Offers brief summaries of contributions made by several of Christopher Columbus's contemporaries, including Nicholas Cusa, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo Buonarroti, Nicholas Copernicus, Johannes Gutenberg, Sir Thomas More, Desiderius Erasmus, and John Colet. Urges modern Catholic educators to learn from these risk takers and visionaries. (DMM)

Describes a step-by-step process for writing a winning application for the U.S. Department of Education Elementary (or Secondary) School Recognition Program. Underscores the importance of faculty involvement. Explains the application process, covering brainstorming, administrative questions, the first and final drafts, and use of various readers.…

Mary Hatwood Futrell, President, National Education Association; Gorden M. Ambach, President, University of the State of New York; Marian Wright Edelman, President, Children's Defense Fund; Rene C. Gonzalez, Office of Educational Research and Improvement; and Nancy Reagan identify students' noninstructional needs. (DMM)

Urges parents and teachers to face the topic of death realistically and naturally, discussing how and when the subject should be raised with children. Considers forms of grief, age differences in children's understanding, theological explanations, and the importance of helping children name/describe their feelings and allowing them to grieve. (DMM)

Offers suggestions to help teachers deal with international students in early grades, e.g., make a relaxed and welcoming first impression; include international pupils in group activities from the beginning; explain appropriate classroom standards of behavior; and incorporate parents in the learning process. (DMM)

Discusses various meeting points between student and teacher, focusing on academic, moral, and affective relationships. (DMM)

Urges Catholic schools and parish centers to take an immediate, honest, and proactive response to AIDS education; accept adolescents as a high-risk group presenting unique challenges for AIDS education; and adopt a moral stance rooted in gospel values. Proposes an ongoing agenda for AIDS education. (DMM)

Considers the effects on the family of the principles of individualism and capitalism that permeate Western culture. Finds Western culture creating autonomous, self-reliant, competitive, and consumer-oriented individuals, who create families that are chaotic, tenuous, and non-relational in their mode of operation. Discusses the educator's role in…

Offers information from a study of anorexia nervosa patients, discussing the behaviors and attitudes that characterize this group. Considers related social, cultural, and environmental factors. Suggests that educators voice concerns to the disturbed student and his/her parents in a simple and frank manner and encourage seeking professional medical…

Examines the obligations placed upon Catholic educators by the pervasiveness of television. Describes "The Media Mirror," a Christian-value-oriented student guide to television viewing, that seeks to develop an understanding of television's role and influence, foster constructive use of television, and clarify Christian values as…

Proposes guidelines for Catholic religious educators to distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable theological pluralism, and infallible and non-infallible religious teachings. Considers personal theological competence to be essential in dealing with dissenting ideas in the classroom. (DMM)

Addresses the crisis in health care, considering costs, lack of access, and system ineffectiveness. Reviews "Setting Relationships Right," the Catholic Health Association's proposal for health care reform. Advocates educators' awareness of children's health needs and health care reform issues and support for the Every Fifth Child Act of…

Offers an overview of the use of instructional technologies in elementary and secondary education, summarizing study findings showing the widespread use of various methods. Stresses the teacher's role in using technology effectively. Presents examples of innovative models currently in use. (DMM)

Suggests that young people seeking intimacy often settle for sex and need to be guided toward discovering healthy, unselfish intimacy. Discusses an approach to sex education founded on Christian sexual values. (PAA)

Suggests that overstressed children be helped by assisting their role models, parents and teachers, to deal with stress themselves and recognize the contributing factors to stress and distress in young people. (DMM)