An ethnographic study of 12 low-income Puerto Rican parents of children with learning disabilities or mild mental retardation found that different cultural meanings of disability and normalcy led parents to reject the notion of disability and focus on the impact of family identity, language confusion, and detrimental educational practices on…

Common instructional practices in the teaching of language minority students are described. The case study of a fourth grade classroom in Longmont (Colorado) illustrates how a teacher's enthusiasm for literacy instruction creates an environment where all students, including the Hispanic language minority, can be active participants. (SLD)

Experiences of the author support the contention that professors and practitioners in education face common dilemmas, and share the practice of teaching, but are not bound by any professional community. Professional communities based on commonalities in teaching can be constructed for those in higher education and the public schools. (SLD)

Argues that everyday school violence, as distinct from isolated sensational incidents, is caused at least in part by the educational policies and procedures governing schools and by the way these policies are implemented. Trends affecting school disorders, including erosion of teacher authority, are discussed, and some solutions are proposed. (SLD)

Teacher educators in Kentucky must prepare teachers who can meet the demands of the state's schools as articulated in the Kentucky Education Reform Act. Teacher educators themselves must demonstrate the kinds of practices that students are expected to learn and must recognize diversity and optimize the success of diverse populations. (SLD)

Reviews the multicultural perspectives that have operated in early childhood education in Australia, involving sociocultural issues, maintenance and development of the mother tongue, and development of English as a Second Language. The challenges of equality of opportunity regardless of differences in cultural or linguistic backgrounds are…

Provides preliminary draft of proposal to kindle thought about what a Montessori secondary school could look like. Suggests ways to think about integrating a farm model and its extensions to adolescent students. Emphasizes the universality of work, the nature of commitment and contribution, the meaning of community, and an optimistic view of…

This paper explores teaching strategies for communicating complex issues and ideas to a diverse group of students, with different educational and vocational interests, that encourage them to develop critical thinking, and explores pedagogies appropriate to the multidisciplinary field of Aboriginal studies. These issues will be investigated through…

This case study was an investigation of the role of the institutional culture of a university in the process of changing to reform-based practices for two college mathematics professors. A framework is presented for identifying and analyzing institutional norms and policies that are present and those lacking in supporting faculty efforts toward…

In management education the medium can be the message. Students can experience the concepts they are learning if the curriculum is organized and run according to the management and organization principles being taught. This article defines ideas and presents guidelines for the design-in-the-large of education in management and organization. These…

This paper examines Australian students' knowledge of Asia, and reports on a national survey of Year 5 and 8 students. Knowledge was measured by using a combined set of subtests tailored to each state and territory curriculum and reported in terms of a standards referenced framework. The survey collected data from more than 7000 students in over…

David Niguidula, an education consultant who helped research the effectiveness of digital portfolios as an assessment tool in the mid-1990s, discusses core questions for schools planning to use digital portfolios. Schools must take time to identify the purpose of portfolios, plan what will go into portfolios, and decide how to assess portfolio…

The purpose of this study was to describe attitudes of first and second grade teachers in Benin, toward school science and their instructional preferences (inquiry-based and traditional noninquiry-based instruction), and determine some factors that could explain these attitudes and preferences. Three hundred (N = 300) preparatory classroom…

With the global information boom, and rapid developments in electronic media and the World Wide Web (Web) within the last two decades, the Singapore government envisioned a need for Singapore to be Information Technology (IT) equipped and competent in every industry, beginning most importantly with the education sector. Taking its cue, the…

Drawing on published feminist literature, this essay deconstructs developmentalism as a metanarrative that contributes to the oppression and exploitation of women and underpins educational practice. First, I examine feminist critiques of developmentalism, distinguishing between "insider critiques" formulated by feminist psychologists evaluating…