Bloomfield's "Linguistics as a Science" (1930/1970), "Language" (1933/1961), and "Language or Ideas?" (1936a/1970), and Skinner's "Verbal Behavior" (1957) and "Science and Human Behavior" (1953) were analyzed in regard to their respective perspectives on science and scientific method, the verbal episode, meaning, and subject matter. Similarities…

This study is a review and a critique of the 2008 U.S. "National Report on the Development and State of the Art of Adult Learning and Education" (ALE) prepared by the U.S. Commission for UNESCO and the U.S. Department of Education as a preparatory document for CONFINTEA VI, the 6th International Conference on Adult Education. The study…

More than 40 years have passed since Shirley Engle's article "Decision-Making: The Heart of Social Studies Instruction" was published. It was, in today's vernacular, an instant hit. It somehow reached into the hearts and minds of social studies teachers and gave them a sense of what made their field different from other areas of instruction. It…

In 1933, Dewey presented a speech in which he linked democracy, social class, and teacher activism as integral factors when addressing educational issues. This article argues that those issues include social issues as well. It examines democracy, social class, and present problems in the preparation of teachers, organized around the 1933 questions…

This article presents the author's rejoinder on commentaries of his article which illustrate the variety of perspectives with which people approach poverty measurement issues. Some of the comments highlight the theoretical concerns underpinning poverty measurement efforts, whereas others focus on empirical considerations. As a social scientist,…

Purpose: To introduce the concept of diverse career cultures in the education system and to consider how these impact on individual career investment and attempts to modernise the teaching profession internationally. Design/methodology/approach: A life history approach was used to determine the career environment of teachers, setting career…

Most people know George Bernard Shaw as a dramatist and social reformer, but they are often surprised to discover that he was also the most brilliant British music critic to emerge in the late-nineteenth century. His vision of the ideal critic was not a passive reporter of musical events, but rather a vital and initiating force within the music…

This paper aims to provide a critical review and comparison of the following sets of standards of practice for teachers: (1) The Victorian Interim Teacher Class Standards (ITCS), especially Interim Teacher Class Standards for Beginning Teachers; (2) Professional Standards for Teachers; (3) The National Competencies for Beginning Teaching; (4) The…

John J. Cannell's late 1980s "Lake Wobegon" reports suggested widespread deliberate educator manipulation of norm-referenced standardized test (NRT) administrations and results, resulting in artificial test score gains. The Cannell studies have been referenced in education research since, but as evidence that high stakes (and not cheating or lax…