Regardless of where students go after high school graduation, a solid background in consumer education will help prepare them for many responsibilities of adulthood. (Author/IRT)

With the help of the Foundation for Teaching Economics and private foundation support, the San Diego City Schools initiated a citywide economics program that is a model for other schools. (MD)

Integrating economic concepts into consumer education provides students a better understanding of their economic environment and can lead to more rational, informed decision making. Outlined are ways in which economic concepts can be integrated into consumer education courses. (MD)

Defining the meaning, practical uses and purposes, and objectives of consumer education, the author clarifies confusion regarding the topic. (MD)

Financial planning attitudes start early. Schools can help by introducing elements at each grade level. Courses should include obtaining financial resources, spending plans, borrowing, saving, investing, insurance, and taxpaying. (MD)

School Family groups at Westmont High School, Westmont, Illinois, provide counselor-student relationships, teach life-related skills, and create closer student relationships. (Author/JM)

Two interpretations are presented of the social dimensions of consumer education: the social/political interpretation and the personal/moral interpretation. Both contain a moral dimension involving questions of obligations and responsibilities to others. (MD)

Teaching buying skills was once based on evaluating products on a cost/quality and individual need comparison. Changes make this inappropriate today. Students must consider the social, economic, and political implications of their choices. (MD)

Providing a link between a variety of academic subjects, consumer education can be significant in understanding and influencing societal structures and decisions. It can lead to meaningful analysis of public policy and the processes of the political system and provide meaningful examples of citizenship. (MD)

Consumer education claims center stage in the high school curriculum today as a means of arming ourselves with the only effective weapon against exploitation--information. (Editor)

Technology education (based on an organized set of concepts, processes, and systems) is designed to replace traditional industrial arts programs (based on a study of materials, like wood or metals). At the secondary level, teachers can engage students in research and experimentation that cuts across the disciplines. (MLH)

Home economics can help students deal with social problems, learn to cope with their lives, make sound judgments, get along with family members, and manage their resources. Guidelines are given for implementing the new, socially significant home economics. (MJL)

Consumer education should be part of our educational system, teaching a way of thinking and problemsolving that is transferable to new circumstances in the future. It should be part of the foundation on which we begin to build a more responsive and humane world. (MD)

In light of the fact that young Americans spend hundreds of dollars each year on the arts yet have little training in developing critical skills, this writer outlines what must be done in school arts programs to educate culture consumers. (Author/JM)

The articles in this special section discuss emerging national standards and chart future developments for secondary curricula in health, physical education, arts, music, family and consumer sciences, technology, science education, business education, and social studies. Emphasis is on reform efforts, knowledge development, curriculum frameworks,…