As of September 2012, only Alaska, Minnesota, Nebraska, Texas, and Virginia had not adopted the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Yet empirical evidence that demonstrates the efficacy of the initiative remains elusive. The Emperor has no clothes (Tienken 2011a). This latest installment of standardization and centralization of curriculum and…

This paper analyses Swedish language-in-education policy and planning in the field of minority language education. In recent years, various criticisms have pointed to the discrepancy between these two processes in mother tongue instruction (MTI) at compulsory schools. The general dissatisfaction expressed by some representatives of language…

Several states, including Arizona, have enacted English-only legislation, within the past decade, impacting the schooling of students who are identified as English language learner (ELLS). As a result, ELLS in Arizona are assigned to a prescriptive program--apart from their fluent English-speaking peers--for 4 h a day, during a time "not…

This literary analysis examines constructions of normalcy and disability within contemporary young adult literature, including "Jerk," "California" (Friesen, 2008), "Marcelo in the Real World" (Stork, 2009), and "Five Flavors of Dumb" (John, 2010). As recent winners of the Schneider Family Book Award from the American Library Association, these…

In this commentary on Ziegler and Phillipson's article, "Towards a Systemic Theory of Gifted Education" (this issue), the author commends their attempt to discuss gifted education from a systemic and contextual perspective, which she considers inspiring in terms of theoretical advancement and practical reconsideration. However, Cheng finds the…

Academic peer review is widely viewed as fair, equitable, and essential to academic quality. Successfully completing the process through publication or award is widely deemed as one of the most rigorous and prestigious forms of scholarly accomplishment. Despite this sentiment the academic peer review process is not without fault. It is criticized…

Cooling identifies two starting-points from which to approach the question of the place of religion in education. He calls them "the Argument from Fairness" and "the Argument from Objectivity". He attributes both of them to humanists and to me personally. He says that he accepts the Argument from Fairness, but rejects the Argument from…

In this paper, the author shows that the issue of whether toleration promotes coexistence is controversial and therefore needs careful consideration in light of the complexities that are involved in understanding and teaching toleration in the schools of conflict and post-conflict societies. In particular, this paper offers a critique to the…

Particularly after the Danish political system changed to parliamentarism in 1901, a growing interest in, and expanded meaning of, culture as a pedagogical category developed in relation to state schooling, on the road to a comprehensive school system for "the whole population". This article elaborates on the role played by theological…

Many Chicagoans are getting shortchanged, particularly when it comes to money exchange between the Illinois Lottery (IL) and Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). A significant portion of lottery sales is earmarked for education in Illinois. Because these revenues are not generated equally, however, some contribute more to education via the…

For the last decade Michelle Kamhi has been prominent in her critique of contemporary art education. In her philosophy she positions herself as an essentialist who believes there are essential masterworks that define fine art, and the curriculum in art should teach fine art only. Her definition of fine art focuses on representation in painting and…

Since the 1990s, ethnic studies and other components of multicultural education have been criticized by neo-conservative and assimilationist scholars who maintain that school diversity initiatives weaken national identity and fail to help students attain the knowledge, attitudes, and skills needed to function effectively in the national mainstream…

Billionaire businessman Eli Broad, one of the country's most active philanthropists, founded the "Broad Superintendents Academy" in 2002 with an extraordinarily optimistic goal: Find leaders from both inside and outside education, train them, and have them occupying the superintendencies in a third of the 75 largest school districts--all in just…

The Coalition Government's education policies are ripe for criticism and equally ripe for controlled but principled derision. In the letters pages of the "Times Educational Supplement" and, to a lesser extent, "Education Guardian," Colin Richards has subjected them to a barrage of criticism, some couched as sardonic humour.…

This article provides a critical review of the way that the International Baccalaureate (IB) promotes international education and international mindedness through the IB Learner Profile. While discussing theories of values and attitudes, and the teaching of values and theories of value acquisition, the paucity of such topics in IB texts is noted.…