(1991). New Challenges in the Education and Training of the European Workforce. Presentations. A Seminar for EC and EFTA Countries on Policies for Education and Training of the Labour Force in a Changing European Economy (Stockholm, Sweden, June 13-14, 1990). This report is a collection of 10 papers presented at a seminar attended by delegates of European Community and European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries to discuss policies for education and training of the labor force. Four papers make up the section, "Policies for Achieving Human Resources Development and Lifelong Learning in a Changing Labour Market": "Welfare State, Education, and Responsiveness" (Haavio); "Human Resources Management in Ireland–The Role of FAS" (Leahy); "Competence Development within the Volvo Group" (Keen); and "Defining the Training Needs–The SAS Case" (Bevort). The section titled "Right and Access to Training in Post-Industrial Societies" contains three papers: "Educational Leave and Study Assistance in Sweden" (Rubenson); "Investing in People: The British Approach" (Grover); and "Present and Future Vocational Training Needs" (Terrier). Three presentations are…

(1986). Career Planning & Placement Guide: A Self-Evaluation Checklist for Career Planning & Placement Offices. This document contains the fourth edition of a career planning and placement guide designed as a self-evaluation tool for practitioners involved in career planning and placement programs. A mission of career planning and placement services is briefly presented. The self-evaluation form of the career planning guide is presented in seven segments: (1) program; (2) organization and administration; (3) human resources; (4) funding; (5) facilities; (6) campus and community relations; and (7) ethics. For each segment, objectives are listed and a number of standards are described. Users are instructed to check in the boxes at the right of each standard whether the program, activity, or competency exceeds the standard, meets the standard, or needs improvement. In the program segment, objectives and standards are listed in the areas of career counseling, placement counseling and referral, and student employment. In the human resources segment, standards are listed for professional staff,…

Kelso, William A. (1994). Poverty and the Underclass: Changing Perceptions of the Poor in America. The book analyzes how the persistence of poverty in the United States has reversed liberal and conservative positions, in that the liberals seem increasingly resigned merely to treat the effects of poverty, while conservatives, who once thought that trying to eliminate poverty was futile, are looking for ways to eradicate its causes. New explanations for the persistence of poverty emphasize its multidimensionality and suggest that only a new covenant between the right and left can effectively address these problems. Education has been emphasized as a way to eradicate poverty, and was a cornerstone of the human capital approach to poverty that stressed the poor job skills of the uneducated. The failure to eradicate poverty despite compensatory education and other approaches to the problems of families and the concurrent increase in a social underclass resulted in an abandonment of the human capital approach. This is now being challenged in light of new research that emphasizes the…

Sobeih, Nabil Ahmed Amer (1983). Cultural Crises and Educational Change in Teacher Education: Challenge of the Eighties and Nineties. The contribution that education has made to the development of the world and the realization of human ideals is assessed, and the present social situation is analyzed against the background of inherited human values held in common by most people. Major societal changes are pointed out: the population explosion; urbanization; the rise of educational technology; and the growth of specialization. Each of these critical developments is discussed in terms of how it has affected or will affect the nature of teacher education in the coming decade. It is suggested that, in the future, teacher education should place more emphasis on the rights of the individual in order to develop a form of international education that will foster full appreciation of other peoples and other national groups. A new outlook, which is shaped by the nature and structure of modern society and which unites two main and complementary notions is proposed, involving: (1) continuous close contact with life as it is…

Hill, Kenneth L. (1981). Brain Research and Education: An Overview. An overview of some educational implications of brain related research indicates that new insights can be gained from brain research. Four areas of study appear to be promising. First, the study of the evolution of the brain involves theories derived mostly from sociobiology, which is the study of the social behavior of animals, including humans in the context of evolutionary biology. Concepts about basic human needs and instincts may be derived from sociobiology. The second area of study, brain growth in children, has implications for educators. The periods of brain growth spurts, followed by learning plateaus, should be considered when choosing times for exposing children to new learning experiences. A third area of research is that which identifies innate differences between male and female brains. The fourth area is that of left/right brain hemisphere differences. In addition to these areas of study, other topics relating to brain growth include: (1) the study of learning as it…

Jones, William C., Ed.; Mocker, Donald W., Ed. (1975). Why Teach the Humanities to Adult Basic Education Students?. The publication contains an article on curriculum selection in adult basic education (ABE), three presentations on the humanities and ABE, and a concluding commentary. An introductory article, \Criteria for Selecting Curriculum in Adult Basic Education\ by Donald Mocker, emphasizes the need for broader criteria for selection of ABE curriculum. Three papers, authored by educators of diverse backgrounds, address the question of what is basic in the humanities and why this must be included as part of the ABE curriculum. The papers, presented as part of a 1975 \town meeting,\ are: \Why Not Teach the Humanities to ABE Students?\ by H. Bruce Franklin, \The Humanities in ABE: A Means of Achieving Productive Individuality\ by Carmen Rodriguez, and \The Humanities: A Brief View of Potential Power\ by Walter Bradford. The commentary on the three addresses is by William Jones. The authors stress that there are individual rights to full development of human potential and that human potential… [PDF]

Armbruster, Bonnie B.; Lehr, Fran; Osborn, Jean (2002). A Child Becomes a Reader: Proven Ideas from Research for Parents. Kindergarten to Grade 3. The biggest campaign ever to improve the reading achievement of America's children is going on right now. The United States Department of Education, the National Institute for Literacy, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, and the United States Department of Health and Human Services–all members of the Partnership for Reading–are working together to make sure that every American child becomes a reader by the end of third grade. It is known, from research, how children learn to read. What to teach and how to teach is also known. Additionally, it is known that parents can give their children a strong start to becoming readers from the day they are born. This booklet includes ideas about how parents can help their children become readers when they talk, listen, play, and read together. The booklet also gives ideas about what effective literacy programs look like in day care centers, preschools, and classrooms. it is divided into the following sections:… [PDF]

Halperin, Irving (1980). Taking the Radical Risk: Diary of a San Francisco State Professor. Perspectives on the literature teacher's role and appropriate subject matter, educational objectives, and instructional methods are considered in light of campus unrest that occurred in the late 1960s at San Francisco State University. The value of studying works of literature in a time of violence and psychic numbing is addressed, and possible ways of teaching literature that would examine various elements of human experience, ranging from compassion to depersonalization, are questioned, and reference is made to the significance of the European Holocaust. American novelists and literature are cited relative to the question of how the experience of art can be used to promote student growth and development. The interest in Thoreau, Melville, and Faulkner during the period of social upheaval is analyzed. The needs of black and other minority students and changes in curricula and admission criteria, the personal experience of violence during the protests, and the social concern about…

Watkins, Peter (1986). A Critical Review of Leadership Concepts and Research: The Implications for Educational Administration. This monograph critiques the literature on organizational and educational leadership, asserting that traditional approaches are unsatisfactory in their own right and within the existing positivist-functionalist paradigm. After outlining problems in defining leadership, the paper critically examines the "trait" approach, particularly Stogdill's Investigation of 124 papers studying leaders' personality characteristics. Stogdill's findings base leadership not on traits, but on situational variables. According to this monograph, the situational approach (viewing leadership in terms of functions) did not clarify what is actually entailed in leadership. The same holds true for the authoritarian-democratic continuum and Fiedler's contingency model of leadership. The latter theory is criticized for presenting followers as ciphers without human volition. Leadership literature is faulted for avoiding basic questions of class, inequalities of power, and hierarchical control and…

Cancro, Robert (1974). Race, Reification, and Responsibility. Noting that many of the attacks on individual scientists as well as some of the attacks on the field of behavior genetics are more than intemperate–they are non-rational–the author discusses his experience as a signatory to a document drawn up by Ellis B. Page during the winter of 1971-1972. The intent of this controversial document was to defend publicly the right of scientists to pursue the investigation of the role of biologic factors, in human behaviors. The author identifies two historical trends–and perhaps even forces operating within science that contribute to much of the confusion in the current controversy. One is the tendency of scientists to reify or think of theoretical formulations, and especially Descartes' distinction between the mind and body, which are comfortable ways to think about data as if they are Platonic truths. Behavior genetics, in contrast, identifies the artificiality of the gene-environment distinction and insists on recognizing genetic and… [PDF]

King, Michael (2007). The Sociology of Childhood as Scientific Communication: Observations from a Social Systems Perspective. Childhood: A Global Journal of Child Research, v14 n2 p193-213. This article begins by identifying a close relationship between the image of children generated by several sociologists working within the new sociology of childhood perspective and the claims and ambitions of the proponents of children's autonomy rights. The image of the child as a competent, self-controlled human agent are then subjected to observation from the perspective of Niklas Luhmann's social systems theory. The new sociology of childhood's constructivist approach is compared and contrasted with Niklas Luhmann's theory of \operational constructivism\. The article applies tenets of Luhmann's theory, to the emergence of the new childhood sociologist's image of the child as a competent, self-controlled social agent, to the epistemological status of this image and, in particular, to claims that it derives from scientific endeavour. The article proceeds to identify two theoretical developments within sociology–sociology of identity and social agency–which have brought about… [Direct]

Snipp, C. Matthew (1992). American Indians Today. This paper reviews American Indian demography and the political and economic conditions on Indian reservations. After collapsing during the 19th century, the American Indian population grew gradually during the early 20th century, approaching 2 million in 1990. American Indians are heavily concentrated in the West, northern Midwest, and Oklahoma; about half live on or near reservations. The Indian population comprises over 300 tribes and is extremely diverse, but social and economic disadvantages are a common denominator. High school dropout rates are alarmingly high, as are poverty and unemployment rates. The current economic circumstances of American Indians in many ways reflect a long history of federal efforts to exterminate, subordinate, or assimilate them. These efforts are reflected in five eras of federal-Indian relations: removal, allotment, the Indian New Deal, termination and relocation, and self-determination. Today, many tribes have assumed substantial control over… [PDF]

(1985). Humane Education: Resource Guide. A Guide for Elementary School Teachers. Humane education promotes responsible behavior and improves the quality of life for animals and humans. Teaching the humane treatment of animals is a complex, philosophical, and values-oriented subject. Lessons for each grade level have performance objectives, materials, and activities. Student activity sheets are provided for follow-up activities. The lessons for kindergarten emphasize becoming a responsible pet owner by providing for the pet's basic needs. First graders learn to take responsibility for pets at home and identify animals that do not make good pets. Second graders are engaged in caring for a pet in the classroom. They also identify the products that farm animals contribute to society. Third graders recognize that human interference in the natural environment can cause harm to animal life, and they differentiate between proper and improper treatment of animals which entertain and provide recreation. Fourth graders learn about pet overpopulation and why there are laws…

(1977). Citizenship and Social Studies. Released Exercises from the 1975-76 Assessment. A series of exercises were developed and used by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) second citizenship/social studies assessment (1975-76). This volume provides a copy of each exercise, as well as the complete documentation about administration and scoring procedures for each exercise that is being released. The bulk of the document contains exercises developed to measure citizenship objectives, and the remaining pages contain exercises developed to measure social studies objectives. In this assessment, 9-year-olds, 13-year-olds, and 17-year-olds were asked questions related to seven broad objectives in citizenship (show concern for the well being and dignity of others; support just law and the rights of all individuals; know the main structure and functions of their governments, participate in democratic civic improvement; understand important world, national, and local civic problems; approach civic decisions rationally; and help and respect their own families)… [PDF]

Snyder, Ross (1980). Childism and Its Destructive Impact on Children. Just as prejudicial stereotypes about race, sex, social class, and physical appearance have led to inhuman treatment, similar biased concepts exist that support inhuman and oppressive treatment of children. Various \childist\ concepts categorize children as property, uncivilized devils, lumps of clay, tiny adults, or infallible angels. Exploitation, abuse, neglect, and unrealistic parent attitudes and behavior may result from such childist beliefs. Viewing the child as a developing person includes the beliefs that children are persons of worth and full citizens sharing basic rights to life, safety, happiness, equality of treatment, equality of opportunity, reasonable self-determination, and due process. Because children are developing persons, their potential for growth, loving, and significance can be realized or thwarted and damaged. How children are valued and nurtured is of the utmost importance. Needs for adequate nutrition and health, justice, love, education, and meaningful…

Guichard, Stephanie (2005). The Education Challenge in Mexico: Delivering Good Quality Education to All. OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 447. OECD Publishing (NJ1) The growth of potential GDP in Mexico is not fast enough to narrow the income gap with other OECD countries at a sufficient pace. The persistent weakness in human capital development contributes to this situation. In particular, Mexicans spend comparatively few years in formal education, and the quality of the education they receive is lower than in other OECD countries. This paper discusses the performance of education services up to the upper secondary level. It assesses both the efficiency (outcome for money invested) and the equity of the system and shows that the education system has to be improved further to narrow the human capital gap with other OECD countries at a faster pace and to better prepare children for life and work in a modern economy. The key problem is not a lack of resources but rather inefficiencies and misallocation of spending together with weak incentives for education professionals to perform well. The paper makes specific recommendations to improve the… [Direct]

Bennett, Randy Elliot; Sebrechts, Marc M. (1994). The Accuracy of Automatic Qualitative Analyses of Constructed-Response Solutions to Algebra Word Problems. GRE Board Professional Report No. 91-03P. This study evaluated expert system diagnoses of examinees' solutions to complex constructed-response algebra word problems. Problems were presented to three samples (30 college students each), each of which had taken the Graduate Record Examinations General Test. One sample took the problems in paper-and-pencil form and the other two on computer. Responses were then diagnostically analyzed by an expert system, GIDE, and by four Educational Testing Service mathematics test developers. Results were highly consistent across the samples. Human judges generally agreed in describing responses as right or wrong, but concurred at lower levels in categorizing the specific bugs they detected in incorrect solutions. The expert system agreed highly with the judges' right/wrong decisions, but less closely with bug categorizations that judges agreed on. Causes of machine-rater disagreement were identified, and suggested remedies were proposed. These results suggest that highly accurate diagnostic… [PDF]

Berry, Louis; Szul, Linda (1996). Color Variations in Screen Text: Effects on Proofreading. As the use of computers has become more common in society, human engineering and ergonomics have lagged behind the sciences which developed the equipment. Some research has been done in the past on the effects of screen colors on computer use efficiency, but results were inconclusive. This paper describes a study of the impact of screen color configuration on operators' ability to detect typographical errors in text. Participants included 97 undergraduate business students, divided into 3 ability levels–beginning (N=20), intermediate (N=32), and advanced (N=45)–based upon their reported keyboarding experience. Color configurations tested were white text on blue, blue on white, amber on green, and green on amber, all common color configurations in popular word processors. Screen areas were defined in quadrants, moving from upper left (1) to upper right (2), and then lower left (3) to lower right (4). Significant differences in the impact of color configuration were found in… [PDF]

Shuman, R. Baird (1981). Fantasy and the Brain's Right Hemisphere. While the left hemisphere of the brain is responsible for logical and verbal activity, the right brain is the center of much of human feeling and emotion. Its vision is holistic rather than segmented or compartmentalized. Although schools today are geared almost exclusively to training the brain's left hemisphere, fantasy literature can provide children with the opportunity to engage the whole brain. As fantasy demands visualization, it immediately engages the right hemisphere. Having developed a strong background in fantasy literature, most children begin school with a good base on which teachers can build. In the early grades, fairy tales, fables, and myths should make up the storytelling and reading activities. During the middle school or junior high school years, myths such as the Icarus or Hercules legends will interest students, and as they pass through various stages of initiation the Arthurian legend will appeal to them. Science fiction is another popular type of fantasy….

Glasser, Theodore L. (1982). The Press, Privacy, and Community Mores. Because of judicial indifference and legislative inaction, the conflict between the right of privacy and the freedom of the press is no closer to a resolution than it was a century ago. William Prosser's reduction of the common law of privacy into four separate torts has not solved the problem. The concept of \newsworthiness\ has not been helpful either because the judiciary has neither advanced nor adopted a unified theory of the news. Efforts to link privacy to community mores have been misdirected, stressing the community's right to shield itself from indecency instead of the individual's autonomy and dignity, and failing to discriminate between various types of privacy. Privacy should be treated as a value worthy of its own status, as a matter of human dignity and a requisite for a democratic society. Since prior restraint would be too destructive to freedom of the press, the goal of privacy law must be to prevent its further abuse. A four-part test can be used to balance the… [PDF]

Morris, Arval A. (1968). Student Participation in University Decision Making. The causes of student rebellion against established social and educational systems are rooted in many forces that impinge upon their lives, 3 of which are rapid social change, affluence, and the fear of technological death. The firm conviction of \new left\ activists –the third generation of radical, militant students– is that they must do something about social problems that alienate human beings, such as poverty, racism, militarism, urbanization, and war. Believing themselves to be vitally affected by university policies and practices, students are claiming a democratic right to participate in institutional decision making. But within the university, each of the many communities should decide its own affairs, and conditions necessary for democracy do not exist. However, 3 areas in which just student demands could be met involve (1) voting on non-academic policy such as the right to control their private and social lives on campus, (2) voting on non-academic questions that… [PDF]

Beins, Bernard C. (1992). Knowing, Assuming, and Theorizing: Activities To Teach about Theory. The two-part activity outlined in this paper reveals to undergraduate students that assumptions made in theory building remain unquestioned until one steps outside the initial realm of expectations, and that theories adopted have a demonstrable impact on behaviors. Part I defines a theory, describes the roles of assumptions and knowledge in theories, and provides a test to reveal that biases are involved whenever tests are made or taken. The test demonstrates that knowledge is needed to make useful theories and that sometimes the knowledge is based on assumptions that turn out not to be useful. Part II shows how a theory which is not perfect may be better than no theory at all, even if such a model leads to predictable and consistent errors. For example, when human behavior is predicted, it is useful to be right even if the theory is right for the wrong reasons. Further, even if there are gaps in the model, on the whole it may lead to better predictions than random guesses. Part II… [PDF]

Bea Simpson; Mary Goretti Nakabugo; Ricardo Sabates (2024). Understanding Access to and Learning Outcomes from ECE among Refugees and Non-Refugee Populations in Uganda: A Cross-Cohort Comparison. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, v38 suppl 1 pS112-S129. Early childhood education (ECE) is a key investment for improving learning and future outcomes. Yet, in the context of Uganda, it is not compulsory or free, which means that provision tends to be private, and hence there is limited access for children from disadvantaged families, particularly refugees. This article examines the level of access to, and learning outcomes from, ECE among refugees, compared to nationals, over time. Three findings are worth highlighting. First, refugee children were more likely to access ECE relative to nationals. Second, children who access ECE had increased learning outcomes relative to those who did not, with the largest difference observed among nationals with ECE. Third, over time, the benefits of ECE in terms of improved math and English test scores disappear. This article provides insights into the quality of ECE provision, particularly for refugee populations, and raises questions on the benefits of ECE as children progress through Ugandan… [Direct]

Glynn, Shawn M.; McCallum, R. Steve (1979). The Hemispheric Specialization Construct: Developmental and Instructional Considerations for Creative Behavior. Research relating to the relationship between hemispheric specialization and creativity is explored with particular emphasis on implications for elementary education. Physiological and psychological evidence is examined for the construct that hemispheric specialization means that the two hemispheres of the human brain are specialized for different modes or styles of information processing. Information is provided about a new creativity test which incorporates into its rationale the notion of hemispheric specialization. Finally, recommendations are made about how to achieve desirable cognitive and affective instructional outcomes. It is suggested that teachers should strive to develop in their students both left-hemisphere and right-hemisphere information processing skills; that elementary education programs provide opportunities for guided discovery and nonverbal (visual-motor and tactile) expression; and that teachers should encourage students to generate new and efficient…

McKnight, Alex (1995). Pragmatics and TESOL: Using Authentic Language Data. Because all human communication, whether among native or non-native speakers, is inherently problematic, ambiguous, and subject to negotiation, learners of a second language should be taught to cope with ambiguity, approximations, hypotheses, and guesses rather than be pushed to find the "right answer." Much of the instructional material presented in second language courses for development of comprehension is inappropriate. Language teaching materials should expose learners to carefully-selected authentic data as soon as possible, to assist them in developing strategies for dealing with difficult language. Such authentic materials should follow the grammatical, phonological, orthographic, social, cultural, discourse, and pragmatic conventions of the target language. Examples of authentic texts are offered, each of which contains important pragmatic, cultural, discourse, or semantic features for language learning, and each accompanied by a number of suggested discussion… [PDF]

(1989). Analysis of the Federally-Assisted and State Funded Programs Serving Individuals with Developmental Disabilities in Virginia: Appendix A to the Developmental Disabilities 1990 Report. This report presents summaries of federally-assisted and state (Virginia) funded programs as required by Public Law 100-146, The Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act Amendments of 1987. Information presented for each of the 55 programs includes: (1) the administering agency; (2) the legislation enabling the provision of services; (3) the eligibility requirements for receiving services; (4) the scope of the programs (range of the services offered); (5) the extent of services (data on the number of persons served or program expenditures); and (6) the effectiveness of the services in meeting the needs of individuals with disabilities. Programs are grouped under the following services: Department of Labor; Health Services; Housing; Medicaid; Mental Health Programs; Office of Human Development Programs; Protection and Advocacy; Social Security; Special Education; Transportation; Vocational Rehabilitation Programs; and Virginia Mental Health/Mental Retardation…

Anderson, Eileen R. (1982). The Changing World of Personnel Management. Although personnel management in the public sector has become increasingly difficult because of recent social changes, more worker and middle management involvement in decision-making processes can improve all levels of personnel management. The social changes affecting personnel management have assumed three forms: (1) the entrance into the work force of workers who are more aware of and assertive about their civil rights, (2) the rise of public sector unionism, and (3) the reduced fiscal resources available to governments with which to provide public services. To respond to the challenges facing personnel management today, personnel specialists should be elevated to decision-making roles, more opportunities should be provided for employees in public sector unions to participate in decisions related to their work, and greater emphasis must be placed on training management personnel in human and interpersonal relations. (JW)…

Lee, Marilyn; And Others (1980). Human Relations. Discussion Topics and Activities. Designed primarily for students in the intermediate grades, this document provides discussion topics, poetry, and activities to help students: (1) recognize the uniqueness of themselves and others; (2) become aware of their uniqueness as members of the human family; (3) become aware of individual differences, emotions, and feelings; (4) recognize the rights, responsibilities, capabilities, and limitations of themselves and others in society; (5) understand and respect individual differences through awareness of prejudice, dislike, and stereotyping; and (6) become aware of and respect various cultures within the community. In each lesson, students first define the unit topic, then personalize it, and then consider thought-provoking challenges. In addition, the document includes student worksheets, bulletin board ideas, and student inventories. This document is a part of a collection of materials from the Iowa Area Education Agency 7 Teacher Center project. (LH)…

Collins, Michael (1986). Philosophy and the Role of the Adult Educator. This article addresses major philosophical orientations and shows how they have practical import for practitioners of adult education. The philosophical approaches presented are conceptual (linguistic) analysis, phenomenology, hermeneutics, critical theory, and existentialism. References are made to selected works by writers in adult education who adopt one of these orientations. The article proposes that any one of these philosophical approaches obliges the adult educator to question theories implying that the deployment of the right techniques or prescriptive formulations for curriculum and for needs assessments, and so on, somehow guarantees that adult learners will become more literate or more competent at an occupation. The adult educator's challenging role in helping to enhance some dimension of human competence in today's society, according to the article, calls for the kind of critical thought and analytical orientations associated with the philosophical approaches…

Struve, Nancy (1982). The Beautiful Brain: A Unit for Grades 5-9 with Further Explorations for Gifted and Talented. The unit provides information on the study of the human brain for students in grades 5-9 with suggestions for extending the lessons for gifted and talented students. Learning activities are offered for ten lessons (sample subtopics in parentheses); introduction to the unit (student pretest and posttest); brain growth; medulla-oblongata-reptilian brain; cerebellum-lumbic brain; cerebrum-neocortex-new mammalian brain; hemisphericity (the mind's dual nature, styles of learning and thinking); the hemispheres (right brain and left brain functions in terms of styles of learning and thinking); the senses; long and short term memory; and the positive potential of the brain. Extended learning activities require higher level thinking on topics such as dreams, extra sensory perception, the biochemistry of emotions, and phobias. This document is part of a collection of materials from the Iowa Area Education Agency 7 Teacher Center Project. (CL)…