Engineering education has increasingly become an area of interest at the P-12 level, yet attempts to align engineering knowledge, skills, and habits to existing elementary and secondary educational programming have been parochial in nature (e.g., for a specific context, grade, or initiative). Consequently, a need exists to establish a coherent…

"The MetLife Survey of the American Teacher: Challenges for School Leadership" (2012) was conducted by Harris Interactive and is the twenty-ninth in a series sponsored annually by MetLife since 1984 to give voice to those closest to the classroom. This report examines the views of teachers and principals on the responsibilities and challenges…

Last December, the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education Coalition--a national organization of more than 600 groups representing knowledge workers, educators, scientists, engineers, and technicians--wrote to President-elect Obama urging him to "not lose sight of the critical role that STEM education plays in…

When it comes to education from K-12 and into the college years, the literature is replete with stories of the accomplishments of youngsters and adults with any number of disabilities who surpassed the expectations of their families and teachers. Similarly, there are an increasing number of examples of young men and women with a range of…

"Education Matters" is the monthly newsletter of the Association of American Educators (AAE), an organization dedicated to advancing the American teaching profession through personal growth, professional development, teacher advocacy and protection. This issue of the newsletter includes: (1) Historical Change (Barbara R. Davidson); (2)…

A major cause of the decline in student achievement is the lag time between the rise of teacher unionism and the more recent rise of effective school management. Recommendations for improving educational quality include administrator leadership and refusal to be intimidated by unions, concentration on teaching the basics, and testing newly…

Why geography is essential and central to the mission of education at all levels and why the profession or occupation of geographers should become increasingly recognized are discussed. Some common complaints lodged against geography and ways to deal with these complaints are first examined. For example, it is often said that geography has…

In contrast to curriculum standards initiatives, the teaching standards movement advocates a broad teaching approach that includes teaching for understanding, skills development in context, collaborative activities, and diversity of content and method. Using this conceptualization to analyze teachers' responses to a survey, we found that their…

Four brief articles examine the implications of restructuring, a central element in the school reform movement, for special education. Major areas of focus include curriculum, organization, and school governance, academic standards, discipline, accountability, restructuring the teaching profession, and the relationship between special and regular…

School standards and the educational objectives of Great Britain's schools for students up to age 16 are the major focus of this speech. Changes needed in the curriculum and in the 16+ examination system to achieve higher academic standards are examined. How to keep high-quality teachers is also discussed. (RM)

Four comments are made on the speech given by the British Secretary of State for Education and Science in which he urged that changes be made in the curriculum and in the 16+ examination system in order to achieve higher school standards. (RM)

This book discusses challenges facing teachers in the knowledge society today, focusing on the changing world and the changing work of teaching. Seven chapters discuss: (1) "Teaching for the Knowledge Society: Educating for Ingenuity" (e.g., profiting from, developing, and teaching for the knowledge society); (2) "Teaching Beyond…

At the same time that NCLB has given states a mandate to staff their classrooms with "highly qualified teachers," the federal government is pushing a dangerously narrow definition of the knowledge and skills that today's teachers need. Over the last decade, policy makers and business leaders have come to realize what parents have always…

Analyzes the political implications of two reports on educational reform: "Tomorrow's Teachers" and the Carnegie Task Force's "A Nation Prepared: Teachers for the 21st Century." Proposed changes involving career ladders, a national standards board, and abolition of undergraduate teacher education will produce power struggles over evaluation…

Presents findings of a national survey intended to provide a foundation for subsequent polls and to compare teachers' attitudes toward schools with the public's. Reports opinions on a wide variety of general, political, professional, disciplinary, and academic issues in education. (MCG)