Compares two instructional strategies, prompting and direct instruction, to determine which produces dialogical reasoning in written essays concerning controversial issues. Participants were 45 sixth graders. Finds both strategies equally productive and concludes that the emphasis should be on providing thought-provoking, issues-oriented social…

The Accelerated Christian Education Curriculum used in many fundamentalist private schools and home schooling in Australia is examined in the areas of Social Studies and Science and found to be at odds with widely accepted educational principles, not in compliance with registration requirements for private schools, and designed solely for the…

Statewide assessment of comprehensive school health education (CSHE) in Pennsylvania surveyed administrators, curriculum supervisors, and teachers from 164 public school districts on curriculum development and professional preparation. Results indicated only 12 districts met the criteria for providing K-12 quality CSHE. Subsequently, Pennsylvania…

Compares the 1995-96 curricula of U.S. optometry schools, focusing on clock hours and proportion of curriculum devoted to specific content areas. Results indicate greater variation in some areas than in others, and changes in curricular emphasis since a previous study, particularly consolidation in hours devoted to basic sciences and expansion in…

Summarizes some of the recent research concerning curriculum-based external exit exam systems (CBEEES) based on explicit content standards. Suggests that compulsory national standards and CBEEE-based reform of the precollege curriculum should lead to improvements in both teaching practices and student learning. Outlines the characteristics of a…

Evaluation of the provincial science curriculum in grades one to five in Saskatchewan (Canada) involved collaboration among teachers, administrators, and subject specialists in developing an evaluation plan, developing evaluation instruments, administering student and teacher questionnaires and student achievement tests, evaluating case studies of…

The Swiss national curriculum for upper secondary schools requires geography to be taught according to new paradigms concerning subject contents and learning methodology. Today, nearly 10 years after the new curriculum was enacted, the question arises whether the paradigmatic changes were acknowledged by geography teachers and integrated into…

This report summarizes and compares findings of researchers' and teachers' opinions in six subject areas (literature, social studies, science, mathematics, music, and art) about ideal and actual elementary school curricula. Three researchers and three teachers participated in each subject area. Participants were asked to write detailed responses…

This paper reviews the development of a curriculum assessment plan by the Business and Management Division of Cardinal Stritch College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and reports the results of a study to determine the effectiveness of the plan. The division, which delivers accelerated instruction in evening courses, used the comprehensive outcomes…

In response to concerns of unnecessary duplication in programs offered by Texas community/junior colleges and the Texas State Technical College (TSTC) system, TSTC conducted an examination of curricula, enrollments, and outcomes for both systems. This report provides findings from the first phase of the study based on Texas Higher Education…

In response to concerns of unnecessary duplication in programs offered by Texas community/junior colleges and the Texas State Technical College (TSTC) system, TSTC conducted an examination of curricula, enrollments, and outcomes for both systems. This document provides the second volume of the study, containing the data tables used to generate the…

This annual report provides an overview of Arapahoe Community College's (Colorado) efforts to improve undergraduate education and the success of those efforts as of 1993-94. After outlining changes made in the transfer, vocational education, and developmental studies programs, the report provides information on specific recommendations implemented…

In an effort to meet all federal, state, and accreditation requirements, as well as accountability demands from business and industry, Iowa's Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) developed a 3-year faculty-driven process to develop a plan for assessing student outcomes. The first step in the process was the formation of a 22-member faculty…

The purpose of this inquiry was to determine the perceptions of certain secondary students in the Greater Cincinnati (Ohio) area who experienced an integrated curriculum that combined the subjects of geometry and visual art. A mathematics teacher and a visual arts teacher collaborated to facilitate student discovery by implementing creative…

The Literacy for Health program was a yearlong project to develop and test a curriculum combining literacy skills and health knowledge to help young inner-city adults develop the literacy skills needed to interpret written health information and gain the information needed to maintain their health. The project was a partnership between health…