We seem to instinctively crave information that confirms our biases. Rather than learning knowable things, we shrink inside ourselves and hunker down with the familiar, comfortable information that feeds our narrative of what we think we know, of how we think the world works. Students do not naturally know how to open up their perspective to other…

This article posits that inviting students to interrogate and share their worldviews through personal narratives could promote mutual inquiry across difference. Detailing a series of assignments and activities developed from the model of invitational rhetoric, this article analyzes students' writing and reflections to demonstrate how mutual…

Educators, not to mention philosophers of education, find themselves in a difficult position nowadays. With the disappearance of the so-called metanarratives, it seems that the secular society has made it difficult, not to say almost impossible, to justify a particular idea of the good life that can be shared by all or at least many. The paper…

In this third "Innovative Writing Instruction" column, the author invited a former high school teacher on the verge of preparing for doctoral candidacy exams, an instructor and doctoral student interested in writing research/practice, and a university supervisor for teacher education preservice students to share aspects of their writing selves,…

The proliferation of digital media and social networking software highlighted the need for scholars to identify what has been coined "New Literacies". This thinking recognizes that being literate in a digitized world means navigating and interpreting multiple contexts and complex interactions of identification as people communicate, interact, and…

To date, research on bullying has largely employed empirical methodologies, including quantitative and qualitative approaches. Through this research we have come to understand bullying as both a dyadic and peer group phenomenon, primarily situated in the heads (thinking) of those involved, or in a lack of skill or expertise, or in the delinquency…

Describes the therapeutic use of reframing as being fundamental to strategic therapy and considers the need for an adequate conceptual scheme for understanding the critical elements of effective reframing. Background for concepts of frame and reframing are provided, along with clinical examples. Contributions and limitations of radical…

Discusses the grandparent-grandchild relationship and its implications for counseling activities. Reviews the historical and contemporary role expectations of grandparents and grandchildren, the reciprocal significance of this relationship, and ways to use the relationship in counseling services and programming in various settings. (Author)

Today many people experience more frustration and confusion about many moral issues and norms than their ancestors. Traditional values and norms do not seem to serve Christian adults in today's situation. Christians are therefore challenged to develop Christian moral norms and values relevant to contemporary society and culture. In this article,…

Discusses the exhortation to teachers--"Know your students"--as requiring not only knowing that students feel certain ways but also knowing what it is like to have such feelings. Five distinct senses of "feeling the same way" are identified and discussed in pedagogical contexts. (Author/RDN)

Provides perspectives on the process of perceiving another person while interacting with that person. Offers a social interaction approach in contrast to previous approaches that treat the perceiver as a passive information processor. Proposes that each person constructs a significant part of the social reality that one confronts. (ML)

Discusses ways of helping children learn to care for one another. Notes that even very young children respond with empathy to others' expressed distress. Explores ways to enhance children's natural empathy in terms of empathy as identification, as communication, as a caring act, as a moral act, and as respect. (DLH)

A review of communication research was conducted to (1) describe and clarify the nature of empathy, (2) investigate the construct of assertiveness, (3) posit a possible relationship between empathy and assertiveness, and (4) provide possible suggestions for future research. The literature indicates that conceptualizations of empathy primarily…

Discusses three research questions pertinent to person-perception research: (1) identification of dimensions employed by adults in the process of interpersonal perception; (2) developmental changes in the content of expectations; and (3) developmental changes in the role expectations play in influencing behavior. Discusses implicit personality…

As yet there is no comprehensive, systematic, demonstrably effective program for maximizing empathetic communication behaviors. What is needed are theories, concepts, and methods that would provide for such learning. One avenue of approach is to search for models and metaphors that would allow for an encompassing comprehension of empathy and…