Focusing on the middle of the 19th-century, William J. Reese tells how the public high school went from being an embattled institution with an antirepublican image to a dominant educational institution. Tracing the early development of high schools is an important contribution to the history of education. (SLD)

Reviews some microform research collections, ranging from government records to privately published historical materials. Topics reviewed include American Indians, educational reform in Japan, African American newspapers, women's issues, and various aspects of American history. (SLD)

Reviews eight children's books, three books for teachers, and a set of posters that focus on African American history. The books focus on rhymes, poetry, the negro baseball leagues, the African American family, the civil rights movement, the Coretta Scott King Awards, multicultural education, and black innovators. (MDM)

Describes the Library of Congress' American Memory Project, involving conversion of U.S. archival treasures to electronic format for distribution to other locations. Highlights include subject matter currently released, the beta-test procedure, promoting the new resource, and experiences of several library test sites. Sample screen displays are…

These volumes offer a blend of genres, authors, and purposes. Specific portraits are provided for each volume in chronological order. The central historical and educational values are in the view that the books give of the world of petit-bourgeois African-American women at the turn of the century. (SLD)

Louisa May Alcott's "Work: A Story of Experience" (1873) examines, challenges but ultimately accepts the gendered construction of the feminized century. The novel depicts the ambivalence that Americans, especially middle-class northern white women, felt in regard to the proper roles of women and men. (SLD)

Introduces two microfilm collections, one on the Indian Wars of the 19th century and one on records of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and four CD-ROM references focusing on Amnesty International, multicultural America, Latin American studies, and North American Indians. (SLD)

Reviews teenager-tested and educator-recommended software packages for teaching tolerance in elementary (primarily upper elementary) and secondary grades. The 12 products cover aspects of American and African American history, multicultural awareness, and values education in tolerance and cultural awareness. (SLD)

Presents reviews of five books dealing with the origins, development, and contemporary role of the United Nations. Categorizes the books into "general" and "academic" publications. Asserts that these books will help dispel the cynical attitudes about public service, international politics, and the United Nations itself. (CFR)

Reviews "The American Indian: A Multimedia Encyclopedia," Version 1.0 (New York, Facts on File, Inc., 1993). This electronic product (compact disk) presents a great amount of material on American Indians from various formats, but its effectiveness is limited by the dated nature of some materials. Software design and searching features are…

Features reviews of four computer games for use with intermediate and upper grade students, three on geography (Travelrama USA, Crosscountry USA, My America) and one on history (Vital Links). Comments include strengths of each activity, related multimedia activities and resources, and links to literature. Also reviews "Educator's Internet…

Presents a review of "Communism and the Cold War," an interactive multimedia videodisk designed for teaching about the post-World War II world. Concludes that, although the program is a first step in the use of interactive media in the classroom, it provides a vision of an exciting and dynamic social studies classroom in the future. (CFR)

Asserts that the technology of interactive multimedia gives teachers the tools to help students acquire and use historical knowledge in a visual, active manner. Reviews two videodisks on the Cold War and the U.S. presidency. Concludes that both products would be effective instructional tools. (CFR)

Beginning in Spring 1998, Virginia students participated in the Standards of Learning (SOL) assessments designed to test student knowledge of the content and skills specified in the state's standards. This document contains questions that students were required to answer as part of the SOL End-of-Course assessments. These questions are…

Reviews books and videos for multicultural education and cultural awareness in elementary and secondary classrooms. The 28 works reviewed focus on gender and minority experiences, U.S. history, multicultural mathematics, folklore, world literature, and the lives of distinguished Americans from minority groups. (SLD)