The paper details an approach for engaging in research into how historically the geography curriculum has been constructed as a senior secondary school subject in countries throughout the world. It begins with a broad outline of the historical development of geography internationally as a subject. It then describes the existing corpus of research…

With global risks such as terrorism, fundamentalism, and xenophobia permeating our everyday consciousness, there is a pressing need for educators to cultivate in their students a cosmopolitan hospitality toward multiple and marginalized others in the world. Yet, despite growing interest in ethics among literary scholars, theorizations of ethical…

What do a rural elementary school in Indonesia and a suburban high school in Maryland have in common? The authors share vignettes and describe culturally sustaining practices in these contrasting teaching contexts.

Spanning multiple subjects and age groups, U.S. students rate poorly while Japanese students rate highly when subject to international testing. Japanese children complete twice as much homework as their U.S. counterparts and sometimes attend school on Saturdays. The literature review looks at motivation in both U.S. American and Japanese students…

The mid to late teen years are about as tumultuous as life can get. As such, it is not a surprise that so many young people seem to fumble their way through high school, maybe drop out altogether, and then stumble on their pathway to finding a good job. This problem was identified by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development…

The Kamehameha Summer Institute for International Studies brings together high school students from different cultures to participate in tasks calling for international understanding and cooperation. Activities focus on preparation of action plans to meet the demands for economic and cultural survival faced by Pacific Rim countries in the 21st…

This article discusses student pressure as a subject of debate. The latest debate about schoolwork is being fueled by three recent books: "The Homework Myth" by Alfie Kohn, "The Case Against Homework" by Sara Bennett and Nancy Kalish, and "The Overachievers", by Alexandra Robbins, which depicts overextended high…

Explores whether Palestinian high school students in Jordan, compared with U.S. high school students in California, would aspire to higher academic goals and a narrower range of high-status occupations. Considers whether male students perceive greater family support and the relation between aspiration levels and socioeconomic status variables.…

The term "pupil voice" has, in recent years, become part of a wider discourse but tends to refer to a limited conception of young people "having a say" within the bounds of school convention. This article is about what Henry Giroux terms "border crossings," in which voice develops through a physical and intellectual…

Compared perceptions of intimacy in friendships among Israeli Jewish (IJ) and Israeli Bedouin (IB) adolescents. Results from 288 IJ and 327 IB junior and senior high school students show that intimacy was perceived to reflect a balance between closeness and individuality in close friendships. Closeness and individuality appear to govern all close…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Education Programs Receive Little Funding: Striving Readers One of Only a Handful of Programs to Receive Small…

Using data gathered from the High School and Beyond study, a comparative analysis of the social processes related to the postsecondary plans of high school seniors in the United States and Japan was conducted. Differentiations are seen between students choosing to enter the labor market directly from school and those choosing to attend a trade or…

Studied ethnic variations in academic motivation among 1,000 adolescents from Asian, Latin American, and European backgrounds. Found that a sense of family obligation was associated with greater belief in the value of education and accounts for tendency of Asian and Latin American adolescents to have greater academic motivation than their equally…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) U.S. Department of Education Holds High School Summit: Diploma Should Be a "Road Map to a Prosperous, Purposeful…