In the past 10 years many countries have implemented large-scale reforms of their public educational systems. The origins of reform programs in four countries--Canada, the United States, England, and New Zealand--are presented here. The text focuses on four aspects of reform: (1) the sources of reforms as initially proposed by governments, the…

This document reports the results of a study of the extent to which civics education and other factors contribute to student political knowledge. In particular, the research focused on how much the civics curriculum, student background, demographics, home environment, and individual student achievement affect 12th graders' awareness of government…

This speech examines the relationship between the college experience and education for citizenship in the United States. The research evidence finds changes toward greater altruism, humanitarianism and sense of civic responsibility and social conscience during the college years. Most research also shows that students' political attitudes and…

The prevalent use of sophisticated advertising techniques in political campaigns presents the great danger that citizens can be manipulated to make political decisions out of emotion rather than rational thought. Citizens must be provided with the educational tools needed to detect the bias, distortion, and other tactics used to influence them.…

A century or more of reform in urban services, including schooling, has seen a competition over four core values: quality, equity, efficiency, and choice. These four are not always mutually compatible. Quality opposes equity and choice but is reinforced by efficiency, which is supported by equity. The choice value is incompatible with all the…

Positive Action, an American curriculum intended to facilitate teachers' use of positive affective and democratic elements in educational practices, was used in two Moscow schools over a 1.5 year period. A review of problems associated with the "deindividualization" of past Soviet educational practices points out the need for programs…

United States President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev have strongly emphasized in several speeches that their ultimate goal is peace between their respective nations. However, this apparent shared goal has not come about, largely because they lack a common understanding of the meaning of peace. Both have stated that they wish…

Three essays by the Director of the Comparative Education Center at the State University of New York (Buffalo) have the following titles: "Comparative Perspectives on the Academic Profession,""Student Political Activism," and "University Reform". The first essay discusses the role of the academic profession in the university, stressing the…

It is commonplace to lament the lack of knowledge about world issues and events exhibited by U.S. citizens. Communication scholars criticize the mass media's poor coverage of world affairs and stereotypic portrayals of distant lands and leaders. Despite sophisticated communications networks, U.S. mass media provide only a limited window on the…

A study examined the influence of nation states' self-interests on their media's coverage of a major news event, in this instance, the Soviet shooting down of a Korean airliner. It was hypothesized (1) that there would be discrepancies between different accounts of the KAL 007 incident, a complex news event with international political…

The contexts and purposes for civic writing may influence the composition process as well as text features, and an analysis of the purposes and audiences for civic writing might yield an insight into the way that such writing stimulates the personal and moral development of both its readers and writers. An examination of two related pieces written…

Findings of a study of the attitudes, values, educational achievements, and life goals of U.S. college freshmen are summarized. The study report, "The American Freshman: Twenty Year Trends, 1966-1985," is based on the Cooperative Institutional Research Program's annual surveys of college freshmen. Major findings from the study point to…

American foreign policy must operate within the parameters of public opinion, and governmental and non-governmental actors must educate the characteristically alienated citizenry concerning policy issues. Since rational discourse is of limited benefit in the process, advocates instead use verbal representations or metaphor to instill within the…

This document presents the results of a two-year study of a British Broadcasting Company children's news program which examined the goals and routines of the programmers, the program content, and audience response. Observations were made of program routines, the content was analyzed, and responses to the programs were obtained during informal,…

Criticisms of foreign student and international programs at U.S. colleges and universities are reviewed, along with the efforts by higher education institutions to examine their foreign student programs. Bills before the U.S. Congress that would affect these programs are also briefly described. Some criticisms reflect the view that efforts to…