In 1991 Arizona embarked on a program to change schools and make them more accountable for educational achievement. The instrument of reform was an assessment program known as the Arizona Student Assessment Program (ASAP), the most notable feature of which was a performance assessment that was added to an already extensive battery of…

This paper examines the status of social welfare programs in the United States and recent efforts to reform such programs. It proposes key issues that need to be addressed in any attempt to overhaul the federal welfare system. Welfare reform should ensure that: (1) those families on public assistance are able to meet their basic needs in order to…

This study surveyed political values, attitudes, and behavior of Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, and Cubans in the United States. This report describes U.S. Latinos as foreign-born, native (U.S.)-born, non-U.S. citizens, and U.S. citizens. The study used a household, in-person survey, in English or Spanish (interviewee's choice), of 1,546 Mexicans, 589…

The defeat of the United States in the Vietnam War affected the dearest notions held by Americans of the nature of the national existence. That defeat determined, in the words of John Hellman, "the disruption of our story, of our explanation of the past and vision of the future." This appears most poignantly, perhaps, in school history…

This report presents the findings of a telephone survey of 1,181 adults and 390 librarians which was conducted in 1991 to elicit information on their opinions of services libraries ought to provide; the kinds of materials that should be available to certain people; who should be responsible for libraries; groups who might be involved in…

This document summarizes a civics course for primary schools in Poland, grades 6-8. The curriculum was developed as part of the Education for Democratic Citizenship in Poland Project, a cooperative effort of the Polish Ministry of National Education and the Mershon Center, The Ohio State University (United States). The project aims to help schools…

This biography chronicles the life and career of Annie Webb Blanton (1870-1945), who was the first woman state superintendent of public instruction in Texas. She was elected to this post in 1918, 2 years before women were allowed to vote in general elections. Like many other young women during the 19th century, Blanton began her teaching career as…

The Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) is a continuing longitudinal study of the American higher educational system. CIRP annually conducts a survey of students entering college as first-time, full-time freshmen. The freshman surveys began in 1966; the 1984 survey is the nineteenth in the series. All institutions responding to the…

A study examined the Ronald Reagan Administration's rhetoric about the invasion of Grenada to determine its ethical quality and whether the American public could make a fair judgment about the incident based on this rhetoric. Examination of President Reagan's rhetorical efforts revealed numerous violations of democratic ethical standards.…

The Freedoms Scale was developed to assess the attitudes of slow learning and nonacademic secondary students in Canada toward democratic values, and, in particular, toward civil liberties. Vignettes were developed around situations describing threats to an individual or group's constitutional rights. Students were asked how they feel (e.g.,…

Results of a survey of college students to determine attitude change toward the Third World as a result of their participation in classes taught by faculty members involved in a Third World Faculty Development Seminar are discussed. Faculty from many disciplines participated in the seminar and then integrated Third World materials into their…

As background information for a discussion of India's communication system and its potential for social change, this paper briefly describes the country's physical characteristics, some of its cultural heritage and demographics, and the development of its education and railways. After a discussion of the folk media (traditional changes) of…

This paper summarizes an investigation of a specific set of findings from the Monitoring the Future project, an annual survey of the attitudes and values of high school seniors that has occurred since 1975. The findings investigated relate to indicators of anxiety among these students about the threat of nuclear war. The study developed two…

This paper examines four major research studies spanning approximately 45 years which provide solid evidence that democratic schooling is possible and is an extremely important factor in the education of young citizens for a democratic society. The objectives, methodology, limitations, and results of each study are examined. From the studies, the…

Eight recommendations for superintendents' behavior toward school board members are developed in light of women's changing roles in society and in educational governance. The history of women's involvement in education, including their attempts and eventual success at gaining seats on school boards, is traced from the late 19th Century up to the…