Maintains that America's lowered expectations about education are not a loss of previous American virtues but neither are they a "culture of indulgence" as Damon suggests; they are simply adaptations by the populace to the difficult job of getting along in a highly competitive world. (MDM)

Notes that variety and difference in writing styles, methodology, and theoretical perspectives are both the greatest strength and greatest limitation of this book containing articles on child, adult, and animal play written by authors from education, psychology, anthropology, and sociology. Suggests that readers can gain theoretical and…

Reviews six books on child cognitive and emotional development. The books address the following topics: the assessment of cognitive competence; children's theories of mind; early grammatical development; the psychological consequences of parental belief systems for children; the role of culture in human development; and perspectives from…

Maintains that the studies presented in this collection combine cultural with political analyses to illuminate educational processes. Elaborates on the key constructs, including contextualization with agency, sociopolitical dynamics in designing school practices, and personal self-definition in relation to sociocultural context. (Author/KB)

This book assembles a wide range of research on children's language development, interprets it with analyses of how bilingualism affects that development, and, above all, breaks the myths surrounding bilingualism and bilingual education. The urgency about introducing language minority children to English immediately in schools, and about…

Asserts that many educators do not hold curriculum studies in high regard. Reviews the "Handbook of Research on Curriculum," published by the American Educational Research Association. Concludes that the volume will serve the interests of researchers but not other constituents within the curriculum community. (CFR)

Reviews "Culture and the Child" by Daphne Keats. Maintains that the book's strengths include the empirical literature on cultural identity and its use of hypothetical incidents with alternative interpretations. Identifies areas that would have enhanced the book, including more in-depth discussion of alternate family structures, gender differences…

Considers "The Culture of Disbelief" (Stephen Carter) and "Educating for Intelligent Belief or Unbelief" (Nel Noddings) and how to incorporate religious issues in public school education in light of the persistent religiosity of Americans, a current discomfort with religious issues in public forums, and strong emerging conflicts whose effects are…

Reviews a book that focuses on the sociocultural nature of both first- and second-language acquisition and on the importance of the school maintaining and developing the language and culture of students' families and local community. The book contains many practical suggestions for teachers working with language-minority children, including such…

Reviews a book that follows an in-depth longitudinal study of Navajos' drinking patterns across the adult life cycle. Findings on survival patterns and the shift from drinking to abstention among men and women in 3 cultural environments are discussed in light of the author's 30-year research experience on this topic. (SV)

Reviews a book that documents the circumstances surrounding the closure of a small, rural West Virginia high school. The book's strength derives largely from its crossing of disciplinary borders to address social, political, and economic factors that have influenced changing educational values and the trend toward consolidation in rural West…