Education of the refugee in the United States

Conclusion This historical survey of the educational goals developed on behalf of the immigrant and refugee in America indicates that there has been a complete cycle. The first systematic educational efforts, as we have shown, were aimed at teaching the immigrant the English language so that he would be useful for his tasks in American industry. Then came the period which extended this educational goal by offering instruction in several aspects of acculturation (officially, assimilation, but a concept which has never been put into effect in the history of America's minorities). The post-war period saw the stress on the academic level on the cultural democracy concept; but this ideal has been more academic than practical, and World War II saw no definite evidences of the popular interest in any Americanization program. The recent waves of refugees, bringing in more or less well-educatedindividuals, saw a revival of educational efforts on their behalf; but they differ from the former endeavors in their emphasis on individual education and on instruction in English. The social aspects of acculturation — featuring, in general, the period between World War I and II — have been entirely ignored 1).     

The decline of the nation-state and the education of national minorities

Many forces are shifting the role of the nation-state and altering our fundamental understanding of how it should function. The author argues that the transplanted European model of the nation-state has become dysfunctional, creating national minorities, serving as an ideological cloak for various forms of oppression and opposing forms of education that would promote diversity of languages and cultures. The decline of territorial sovereignty under the forces of globalization, the move to supranational forms of organization and the emergence of sub-national areas of economic and social development (often city-regions) provide a new range of opportunities for development of minority schooling.

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Zusammenfassung Viele Kräfte verändern die Rolle des Nationenstaates und ändern damit auch unser grundsätzliches Verständnis zu dessen Funktion. Der Autor argumentiert, daß das übertragene europäische Modell des Nationenstaates außer Funktion gesetzt und damit nationale Minderheiten geschaffen wurden. Somit besteht ein ideologischer Deckmantel für verschiedene Arten von Unterdrückung und Widerstand gegen Erziehungsarten, die eine Vielfalt der Sprachen und Kulturen fördern würden. Der Verfall territorialer Unabhängigkeit unter den Kräften der Globalisierung, die Bewegung hin zu einer supranationalen Form der Organisation und die Schaffung regionaler Gebiete wirtschaftlicher und sozialer Entwicklung (oft Stadtbezirke) bieten neue Entwicklungsmöglichkeiten hinsichtlich der Schulbildung für Minderheiten.

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Resumen Son muchas las fuerzas que están cambiando el papel que desempeña el estado-nación y que alteran nuestro concepto básico de cómo este debería funcionar. El autor argumenta que el modelo europeo trasplantado del estado-nación se ha vuelto disfunctional, creando minorías nacionales y sirviendo de manto ideológico para encubrir diferentes formas de opresión y de oposición a una educación que intenta promover la diversidad de lenguas y culturas. El ocaso de la soberanía territorial bajo las fuerzas de globalización, el cambio hacia formas de organización supranacionales y el surgimiento de sectores subnacionales de desarrollo económico y social (frecuentemente en regiones urbanas) proveen un nuevo tipo de oportunidades para el desarrollo de una educación escolar de minorías.

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Résumé De nombreuses pressions modifient le rôle de l'Etat-nation et transforment notre conception fondamentale de son fonctionnement. L'auteur expose que le modèle européen d'Etat-nation qui a éé transposé dans d'autres régions est maintenant atteint de dysfonctionnement, car il crée des minorités nationales, sert de prétexte idéologique à différentes formes d'oppression et fait obstacle à des modèles d'éducation qui encourageraient la diversité des langues et des cultures. Le déclin de la souveraineté territoriale sous la pression de la mondialisation, l'évolution vers des formes d'organisation supranationales et l'apparition de concentrations régionales du développement éconnomique et social (souvent en tant que régions urbanisées) constituent de nouveaux stimulants pour l'élaboration d'une scolarité adaptée aux minorités.

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Selbstorganisation: ein neues Paradigma für die Schulpädagogik — oder alter Wein in neuen Schläuchen?

Zusammenfassung Die Schulpädagogik ist seit langem daran gewöhnt, mit Theorieangeboten aus anderen Wissenschaftsdisziplinen konfrontiert zu werden. Mit dem Paradigma der Selbstorganisation liegt gegenwärtig eine sehr komplexe Konzeption bereit, die die Schulpädagogik zur Reflexion über ihren Gegenstand Schule anregen kann. Eine von diesem Paradigma motivierte differenztheoretische Betrachtungsweise von Systemen schärft den Block für die Möglichkeiten, aber vor allem für die Grenzen eines modernene Sozialsystems, wie es die Schule heute ist. Die Fragen, ob Schule kompensatorische Erziehungsleistungen für das Familiensystem erbringen kann, ob unterrichtliches Handeln auch therapeutisches Handeln sein kann, können aus der Perspektive dieses Paradigmas beantwortet werden.

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School education has long been accustomed to accommodating theories from other scientific disciplines. The paradigm of self-organization provides a complex concept which will stimulate reflection on the phenomenon of schools within educational science. Analysis of systems in the light of different theory, motivated by this paradigm, can give a clearer view of the potential and limitations of a modern social system, which is what a school now is. By employing this paradigm, answers can be found to the questions whether schools can deliver education that compensates for family systems, and whether teaching can also provide therapy.

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Resumen La educación escolar desde hace mucho tiempo se ha acostumbrado a adaptar teorías de otras disciplinas científicas. El paradigma de la auto-orgnización provee un concepto complejo que estimulará la reflexión acerca de fenómeno de las escuelas dentro de la ciencia de la educación. El análisis de sistemas a la luz de una teoría diferencial, motivada por este paradigma, podrá proporcionar una visión más clara del potencial y de las limitaciones de un sistema social moderno, de lo que es una escuela ahora. Aplicando este paradigma, podrán encontrarse soluciones a los interrogantes de si las escuelas pueden proporcionar una educacíon que compense sistemas familiares, y si la enseñanza puede también redundar en terapia.

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Résumé L'éducation scolaire est depuis longtemps habituée à assimiler les théories d'autres disciplines scientifiques. Le modèle de l'autogestion fournit un concept complexe qui donnera aux sciences de l'éducation matière à réflexion sur le phénomène de l'école. Une analyse des systèmes à la lumière de la théorie différentielle soutenue par ce modèle peut donner une vision plus claire des possibilités et des limites d'un système social moderne, comme l'est l'école aujourd'hui. Dans l'optique de ce modèle, des réponses peuvent être apportées aux questions si l'école peut remplir un rôle compensatoire par rapport au système familial, et si l'enseignement constitue aussi une action thérapeutique.

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On defining quality of education

In this paper quality of graduates is distinguished from quality of education, which is renamed efficiency of education. The first concept is defined in a quantitative manner, the second by way of a set of 66 statements concerning the efficiency of education derived from judgements about the effectiveness of particular teaching methods in the achievement of different types of teaching objectives.Paper presented at the conference on Efficiency of Teaching Methods in Higher Education, organized by the University Teaching Methods Unit of the University of London, 6–7 April, 1976.     

Minority workers or minority human beings? A European dilemma

European identities may be politonymic, toponymic, ethnomyic or linguonymic (Bromley 1984). Each dimension may affect whether migrant minorities are treated as European, and influence their schooling, integration and rights. Treatment and terminology vary in different states and periods of migration. However, the position for immigrated minorities is that they are still largely seen as workers rather than human beings with equal rights. Lack of success in schools is blamed on the migrants themselves rather than the educational system. This construction of migrants as being deficient is parallel to educational practice which falls within a UN definition of linguistic genocide, and contributes to mis-education. If current efforts in international bodies to codify educational linguistic human rights were to lead to greater support for minorities, this could assist in a redefinition of national identities and a reduction of racism and conflict.

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Zusammenfassung Europäische Identitäten können politonym, toponym, ethnonym oder linguonym sein (Bromely 1984). Jede Gruppe kann darauf Einfluß haben, ob Migrantenminderheiten als Europäer behandelt werden und Schulwesen, Integration und Rechte respektiert werden. Noch werden immigrierte Minderheiten jedoch weitgehend als Arbeiter und nicht als Menschen mit gleichen Rechten angesehen. Schulische Mißerfolge werden eher ihnen selbst als dem Bildungssystem angelastet. Diese Darstellung von Migranten als defizitär entspricht derjenigen Handlungsweise im Bildungsbereich, welche unter die Kategorie des linguistischen Genozids definiert wird und welche zu einer mis-education beiträgt. Wenn gegenwärtige Bemühungen internationaler Gremien um die Kodifizierung der Rechte der Menschen auf ihre Sprache Minderheiten unterstützen, könnte dies zu einer Umdefinition nationaler Identitäten und einer Reduzierung von Rassismus und Konflikten führen.

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Resumen Las identidades de los Europeos pueden ser politonímicas, toponímicas, etnomímicas o linguonímicas (Bromley 1984). Cada una de estas dimensiones puede influir en que minorías de inmigrantes scan tratadas de Europeos y con ello en su educación escolar, en su integración y en sus derechos. El tratamiento y la terminología varían conforme a los períodos y las circunstancias de la inmigración. No obstante, la posición que se adopta frente a las minorías inmigrantes es la de considerarlos en gran medida como trabajadores y no tanto como seres humanos de iguales derechos. La falta de éxito en los estudios se atribuye a los inmigrantes mismos, más que al sistema de educación. Esta consideración de los inmigrantes como inferiores es paralela a una práctica de la educación que cae bajo una definición de la Naciones Unidas de genocidio lingüístico y contribuye a la educación deficiente. Si los esfuerzos actuales que las organizaciones internacionales ponen en codificar los derechos humanos lingüísticos de la educación estuvieran destinados a brindar un mayor apoyo a las minorías, esto podría ayudar a definir con mayor precisión las identidades nacionales y a reducir el racismo y los conflictos.

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Résumé Les identités européennes peuvent être politonymiques, toponymiques, ethnonymiques ou linguonymiques (Bromley 1984). Selon leurs affinités avec chacun de ces domaines, les personnes appartenant aux minorités migrantes sont considérées ou non comme européennes, et cela influence leur scolarité, leur intégration et leurs droits. La façon dont ces personnes sont traitées et la terminologie évoluent selon les différentes étapes et périodes de migration. Mais le plus souvent, les minorités immigrantes sont encore davantage considérées comme des travailleurs que comme des personnes bénéficiant des mêmes droits. Les échecs scolaires sont mis sur le compte des migrants eux-mêmes et non sur celui du système éducatif. Le fait que l'on considère les migrants comme inférieurs se reflète dans une pratique éducative que les Nations Unies appellent génocide linguistique et se traduit par une éducation inadéquate. Si les efforts actuels de la part des institutions internationales pour codifier les droits de l'homme en matière de pédagogie linguistique apportaient un plus grand soutien aux minorités, cela contribuerait à donner une rédéfinition des identités nationales et à réduire le racisme et les conflits.

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Projecting headcount and credit hour enrollment by age group,gender, and degree level

Political debate about how the changing age distribution of the population would affect higher education enrollments led presidents of Michigan's constitutionally autonomous state universities to sponsor systemwide enrollment projections based on calculations of the participation rates and credit hour loads of 66 student subgroups that were defined by age, gender, and degree level. The 1985 figures were applied to cohort population projections in order to assess the impact of an aging population on the enrollments of 1990, 1995, and 2000. Recession and recovery regression models were then developed and used to explore the 1974–1985 relationship between enrollments and economic variables and to generate alternate projections.Presented at the Twenty-Eighth Annual Forum of the Association for Institutional Research, Phoenix, Ariz., May 1988.     

Different aspects in designing mathematics education: Three examples from the Freudenthal Institute

Three teaching designs are offered. They were developed for 12 to 16 year old pupils taking into account their personal differences in terms of gender (in Making Up the Cube), culture (in Mecca), knowledge, and use of calculators in The integrating calculator. The designs concern the representation of three-dimensional objects in the plane, directions and great circles on the sphere, and exploration of the integrating calculator.     

Three-dimensional symmetry

The errors made when high-school students locate reflections in horizontal, vertical or slanting mirrors were examined. A questionnaire consisting of thirty-six perspective drawings, each portraying an upright transparent cube containing a two-sided mirror, was given to 394 Australian students from grades 7, 9 and 11. On a corner, an edge, or a face of each cube was drawn either a point or a straight-line segment. The task was to draw its image (reflection). Analysis of errors revealed a strong tendency towards horizontal or vertical sliding, suggesting that the edges of the cube act in much the same way as a horizontal-vertical background grid does in the two-dimensional case.     

Beauty and Character: Values Beyond Beauty in Architecture

Formalist conceptions of aesthetic goals began to give way from the 17^th century on to rationalist accounts of experience. Beauty as described as essential by Renaissance thinkers was reconceived as just one possibility, with the sublime in Burke's account as another. In the early 20^th century Clive Bell again asserted a formalist position with his argument for significant form. The weakness of the formality position, and the need for a richer, more contextual account of aesthetic goals and experience is argued with reference to the idea of thick and thin concepts as applied by Bernard Williams to ethics, Wittgenstein's attention to the way in which language is used in a specific context, and Scruton's emphasis on an informed conception of the object of aesthetic attention. Beauty, in Alberti's procedural account if not in his version of the Platonic ideal, can be seen to continue to have critical value. The idea of character, however, offers a broader range of possibilities for experience and of goals for design.     

Reforming urban education: A review of recent reports and legislation

Following the National Commission on Excellence Report, A Nation at Risk, a number of additional reports were issued calling for major changes in American public education. Because advocates for poor and minority groups saw a class bias in the recommendations of these reports, there quickly followed a subset of reports arguing that the disadvantaged should not be overlooked in the education reform movement. Not surprisingly, these reports have received less attention than the mainstream ones. This article reviews recent urban education reform reports and legislation, paralleling them to determine whether the reformers have been able to influence policy and whether the reforms they advocate would be likely to benefit the disadvantaged.     

Print and reading: What do preschoolers know?

John Downing, an eminent reading researcher at Canada's University of Victoria, says that many children come to school in a state of cognitive confusion about the functions of reading and the terms we use when we start to teach them to read formally. Adults take for granted that young children know what they mean when they talk about a word, a letter, a sound, and other print-related terms. In his studies done in England and in Canada, Downing (1970; 1973–74) has found that many children, especially those who have not been read to regularly, simply don't understand the conventions of print and really don't understand what reading is all about.Joan T. Feeley is Professor of Reading and Language Arts at William Paterson College in Wayne, New Jersey.     

The effects of educational reform on the content and status of the social subjects in England and wales and the USA: A case study

Over the past decade educational reform has been taking place in the USA and in England and Wales. This paper traces the political pressures to change the social subjects curriculum on both sides of the Atlantic. In England and Wales the new National Curriculum aims to raise educational standards and to increase accountability through a national assessment system. In the USA the Federal Government has set to work on establishing national goals. There is evidence in both countries that the new curricula are emerging from a political process which imposes content and structures upon teachers with little consultation. The paper concentrates on how the social studies curriculum has been affected in this process. It explores the politics of curricular reform by comparing events in the USA and England and Wales and outlines the ways, particularly in the British context, in which the teaching profession has explored the limits of its power and has fought back against central control to make its voice heard.

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Zusammenfassung In den letzten zehn Jahren gab es eine Bildungsreform in den USA, sowie in England und Wales. Dieser Bericht studiert den politischen Druck, der zu einer Änderung des Curriculums in den Sozialfächern auf beiden Seiten des Atlantiks geführt hat. In England und Wales soll das neue nationale Curriculum den Bildungsstandard anheben und die Verantwortlichkeit durch ein nationales Bewertungssystem steigern. In den USA begann die Bundesregierung mit der Festsetzung nationaler Ziele, die den Lehrern Inhalte und Strukturen mit wenig Mitbestimmungsrecht auferlegt. Der Artikel konzentriert sich auf die Auswirkungen dieses Prozesses auf das Curriculum der Sozialstudien. Er untersucht die Politik der Curriculums-Reform, in dem Ereignisse in den USA, England und Wales verglichen werden. Insbesondere im britischen Kontext werden Wege aufgezeigt, auf denen der Lehrberuf die Grenzen seiner Macht erforscht und sich gegen eine zentrale Kontrolle gewehrt hat, um Aufmerksamkeit auf sich zu ziehen.

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Resumen Durante la última década se ha realizado una reforma de la educación en los EEUU, Inglaterra y Gales. Este trabajo esboza las presiones políticas de cambiar los planes de estudio de los sujetos sociales a ambos lados de Atlántico. En Inglaterra y Gales, elNew National Curriculum aspira a crear estándares de la educación y a incrementar la responsabilidad a través de un sistema nacional de valoración. En los EEUU, el Gobierno Federal ha comenzado a trabajar en la fijación de objetivos nacionales. Es evidente que en ambos países los nuevos planes de estudios están emergiendo de un proceso político que impone contenidos y estructuras a los maestros, consultándolos poco o nada. El trabajo se concentra en el impacto que ha sufrido el curriculo de estudios sociales en este proceso. Explora la política de la reforma curricular comparando acontecimientos de los EE UU y de Inglaterra y Gales y proporciona una idea general de los modos, particularmente en el contexto británico, en los que la profesión de enseñanza ha explorado los límites du su poder y se ha defendido contra el control central para hacerse escuchar.

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Résumé Au cours de la dernière décennie, une réforme éducative a été engagée aux Etats-Unis, en Angleterre et au pays de Galles. Cet article retrace les pressions politigues qui ont été exercées pour remanier les thèmes sociaux dans les programmes des deux côtés de l'Atlantique. En Angleterre et au pays de Galles, le nouveau curriculum national a pour but d'élever les niveaux de l'enseignement et d'augmenter la responsabilité par un système national d'évaluation. Aux Etats-Unis, le gouvernement fédéral a entrepris d'établir des objectifs nationaux. Il est évident que dans les deux pays, les nouveaux programmes sont nés d'un processus politique qui a imposé aux enseignants des contenus et des structures en les consultant à peine. L'article se concentre sur les retombées de ce processus sur les programmes d'études sociales. Il étudie la politique de la réforme curriculaire en comparant les événements intervenus aux Etats-Unis et en Angleterre-pays de Galles et souligne, en particulier dans le contexte britannique, la façon dont le corps enseignant a épuisé les limites de son pouvoir et a résisté au contrôle central pour se faire entendre.

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Whitehead and a new look at teaching elementary science

If Whitehead is right, science teachers who try to increase student interest by making the science they teach more pure and by covering more material are going about their work in just the wrong way. Science, for purposes of precision in measurement, translates the dynamic world of feeling and force, of causal efficacy (for example, the San Francisco earthquake), into a static representation spatialized and given presentational immediacy (for example, the Richter scale). But notice that the Richter scale isn't very interesting (even as abstract art) apart from its connection, via symbolic reference, to the earthquake. Such reference is essential to give both a sense of reality and a feeling of interes to the subject, but it makes the science less pure, and it takes more time to cover the material. An example of teaching pure and impure formal logic is given as a case study.     

Language in education: Minorities and multilingualism in India

The question of education in India cannot be properly discussed without referring to its socio-linguistic context. This paper provides background information on the linguistic profile of India. The term minorities in the Indian context is defined, and the protection offered to linguistic minorities in the Indian Constitution is examined. A discussion of language policy in Indian education follows in which the recommendations of the different education commissions are analysed. The important issues covered include: the number of languages that are taught, the medium of instruction, and the educational policies regarding speakers of minority languages. The article also discusses different language movements and their impact on Indian education.

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Zusammenfassung Die Frage der Bildung in Indien kann ohne einen Bezug zum sozial-linguistischen Kontext nicht hinreichend diskutiert werden. Dieser Artikel liefert Hintergrundinformationen zum linguistischen Profil Indiens. Der Begriff Minderheiten wird im Zusammenhang mit Indien definiert und der den Sprachminderheiten in der indischen Verfassung zugestandene Schutz untersucht. Anschließend wird die Sprachpolitik im indischen Bildungssystem angesprochen und die Empfehlungen unterschiedlicher Bildungskommissionen werden analysiert. Die wesentlichen abgehandelten Themen beinhalten folgende Bereiche: die Anzahl der unterrichteten Sprachen, die Unterrichtssprache und die Bildungspolitik hinsichtlich der Sprachminderheiten. Der Artikel befaßt sich außerdem mit unterschiedlichen Sprachbewegungen und ihrem Einfluß auf die indische Bildung.

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Resumen La cuestión de educación en la India no podrá discutirse adecuadamente sin hacer referencia a su contexto sociolingüístico. Este trabajo provee informaciones de fondo sobre el perfil lingüistico de la India. Define el término de minorias en el contexto indio y examina la protección que la Constitución de la India ofrece a las minorías lingüísticas. A ello se agrega una discusión de la política lingüística en la educación india, en la que se analizan las recomendaciones de las diferentes comisiones de educación. Fntre otras cosas, los puntos tratados son: el número de lenguas que se enseñan, el medio de instrucción, y las políticas de educación referentes a las personas que hablan lenguuas minoritarias. El artículo también trata los diferentes movimientos lingüísticos y sus impactos en la educación en la India.

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Résumé On ne peut vraiment débattre la question de l'éducation en Inde sans la replacer dans son contexts socio-linguistique. Cet article fournit une information de base sur le profil linguistique de l'Inde. Il y définit le terme de minorités dans le contexte de ce pays et étudie la protection que la Constitution indienne assure aux minorités linguistiques. Il s'ensuit un exposé de la politique linguistique dans l'enseignement de ce pays, incluant une analyse des recommandations des différentes commissions pédagogiques. Les points essentiels traités portent sur le nombre de langues enseignées, la langue d'enseignement et les politiques pédagogiques touchant les locuteurs de langues minoritaires. L'article analyse enfin les différents mouvements linguistiques et leur influence sur l'éducation en Inde.

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Die Überwindung des Deweyismus in den USA

Ohne Zusammenfassung

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Reflections on the defeat of Deweyism in USA

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Reflexions sur l'echec du Deweyisme aux etats-UNIS

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Nach einem Vortrag, gehalten am 26. August 1965 im Rahmen der diesjährigen internationalen Hochschulwochen in Alpbach über Europa und die Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika. Vgl. auch v. Verf. Amerikanische Bildungspolitik aus deutscher SichtPädagogische Rundschau Heft 1, Jg. 1966.     

Exploring the Concept of ‘Habitus’ with Preservice Teachers Through the Use of Popular School Films

The thesis of this paper is that it is a productive venture to introduce preservice students to social theories that are typically not a part of teacher preparation programs. Examples of these theories are those associated with terms such as habitus, the carnivalesque, power / knowledge, seduction, detournement, the spectacle,la perruque, (the wig), and the art of making do,as well as others. In this paper, I describe a project that involved exploring the theory of habitus to problematize the tendency of preservice students to not think in terms of relations between what goes on in the classroom and what goes on in society. I introduced habitus by having preservice students read selected print materials and by having them view, analyze, and respond in writing to popular school films. Students also analyzed their experiences in classrooms in terms of habitus, making a connection between theory and practice.     

A Textbook Case of the Nature of Science: Laws and Theories in the Science of Biology

The two concepts law and theory are among the most important elements of the nature of science. They represent both the tools and products of science itself. Unfortunately, the variable meanings and use of these terms in general discourse and in other school disciplines results in much confusion with respect to their proper application in a science context. The project included the design of a six-part model definition for law and theory based on a review of the literature of the philosophy of science with special reference to biology. These model definitions were then compared with those provided in a range of U.S. secondary school biology textbooks. The majority of all current major U.S. secondary school biology texts were reviewed and analyzed with respect to how the concepts of law and theory were defined and applied, in an attempt to determine whether students and teachers using such texts would gain an accurate impression of these terms and the distinction between them. This study focuses on biology instruction since a life science course is completed as a graduation requirement by virtually all U.S. high school students and as such serves as a widely shared educational experience across the nation. The term law is rarely defined in any text but various laws such as those found in genetics are frequently included as examples. The term theory is frequently defined but with a wide range of completeness of the definitions. Only rarely are theories in biology included as examples.     

Studying construction work: Connecting classroom centers

Johnny has one hammer, one hammer, one hammer; Johnny has one hammer, Johnny has two, sings a small group of children in the woodworking center as they pound small cuts of wood with hammer and nails. Hey, Ronnie, put that block here. We're making a chimney for our house, directs one youngster in the block center. We can move in when we're finished, he tells his two companions.Laverne Warner is Professor of Early Childhood Education within the Division of Teacher Education at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas. Melissa Sepulveda is a kindergarten teacher at Lowery Elementary School in the Cy-Fair Independent School District in Houston, Texas.     

Do transitional classrooms really provide transitional time?

In the United States, kindergarten marks the beginning of formal schooling for more than 3 million children each year (Shepard & Smith, 1986). At the end of the kindergarten year, most of these children demonstrate expected levels of achievement and are promoted to traditional first-grade classrooms. Others are labeled unready or immature for successful performance in today's academically rigorous first grade. In most elementary schools, the placement for these at-risk children is either retention in kindergarten or social promotion to first grade. An alternative in approximately 17% of the nation's elementary schools is assignment to a transitional classroom between kindergarten and first grade (Educational Research Service, in press). This additional year of instruction is often viewed as a gift of time — time for children to mature and make a gradual transition from kindergarten to first grade.Judith E. Stroud is Assistant Professor of Elementary Education, Ball State University, Munice, IN. R. Ann Williams is Professor of Elementary Education, Ball State University, Muncie, IN.