In July 2010, Michele Hancock, EdD, became the 14th superintendent of the Kenosha Unified School District (KUSD), the third largest Wisconsin school district, with 42 schools and a student population of almost 23,000 students. She arrived with a strong vision to improve student achievement by adjusting educational methods to harmonize with the new…

Educational development has changed in many ways over the last 40?years and the International Consortium for Educational Development has highlighted the sheer variety of practices by bringing together educational developers from countries where activities differ markedly. These reflections identify the wide range of foci of attention that are…

Ziegler and Phillipson (Z&P) advance an interesting and ambitious proposal, whereby current analytical/mechanistic theories of gifted education are replaced by systemic theories. In this commentary, the author focuses on the pros and cons of using systemic theories. He argues that Z&P's proposal both goes too far and not far enough. The future of…

Romain Bertrand is a middle school math teacher and Opportunity Culture enthusiast. As the 2012-13 school year wound down, he was already thoroughly looking forward to the next--when he will become a multi-classroom leader at Ranson IB Middle School, taking accountability for the learning results of 700 students. At Ranson, a Project L.I.F.T.…

This essay reviews six competing positions on U.S. school reform: a speech from Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan; Diane Ravitch's "The Death and Life of the Great American School System"; Frederick Hess's "The Same Thing Over and Over"; Charles Payne's "So Much Reform, So Little Change"; Anthony Byrk and others' "Organizing School for…

Mike Rose points out that this is a crucial moment in the history of education in the United States. On one hand, Americans see a rhetoric of College for All, and pressure to get more racial minorities and low-income students into higher education, while the high school dropout rate stays stubbornly high near 30%. There is another rhetoric, about…

Black, Wilson, and Yao (this issue) make a compelling case for a coherent model of curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment, all built around a well-specified theory of learning. Arguing that dominant assessment policies and practices tend to drive pedagogy and student attitudes toward learning in pernicious ways, Black et al. make an argument that is…

This article presents the author's response to D.G. Mulcahy's "Energizing Liberal Education" which compellingly contends that the long-term viability of liberal education depends upon both methodological and curricular diversification aimed at the "many sided development" of the student. Professor Mulcahy thoughtfully espouses both the cultivation…

This paper focuses on the educational method--the "elenchos"--of Plato's Socrates, arguing, against some prominent interpretations, that it is love, both "eros" and "philia", that is the key that links Socrates' philosophy with his education. This analysis, of course, raises some difficult questions regarding the relationship between teacher and…

Literature on globalisation claims that changed global patterns of production and industrial organisation have intensified international economic competition, prompting nations globally to restructure their education systems in an attempt to position themselves favourably in an increasingly competitive economic environment. This is an environment…

The authors discuss the need to balance the unique history of Russian higher education, preserving and developing those areas in which the country has traditionally excelled and competed successfully at the international level, with the country's signatory acceptance of the Bologna Agreement for European educational integration. While apprehensive…

Accomplishing the tasks spelled out in the 1999 Bologna Declaration requires reforming the structures of higher education in the countries of Europe to bring them into closer harmony, while preserving fundamental values and traditions in education that have been formed in each country. The author discusses fundamental differences between the…

Today's specialists are required to be actively involved, independent, flexible, original thinkers, and well trained both generally and professionally. Results of a sociological survey of 2,000 students at Urals State University indicate that a majority of students are at an average level of well-formed professional competence, and less than 1…

The prevailing model of school knowledge is bounded, verifiable, controllable, and external to the knower, reinforced by textbooks, curriculum guides, and standardized tests. A better vision of schools is one in which multiple and diverse voices are heard, and knowing as a process is valued over knowledge as a product. (JOW)

Maintains that school violence of the 1980s is different from that of the 1960s. Reviews contemporary causes of violence such as misguided town planning, fast-paced life, lack of parental guidance, and rigid school organization. Details positive approaches to the problem and makes specific suggestions for school improvement. (JDH)