Discusses arguements for, but basically against, both open space classrooms and open education. Reviews studies which reveal that students in a traditional setting and program demonstrate higher basic and creative skills and reveal less anxiety than do those in a nontraditional setting. (KC)

Introduces the five papers on the transition to mass higher education in European universities which appear in this issue and specifies the major issues that are discussed in each article. (Author/DB)

Ten weaknesses of alternative schools are identified; however, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. (Author)

Describes study which indicates that the attitudes of curriculum supervisors toward possible consequences of curriculum organizations of magnet schools is less favorable than their attitude toward consequences of the comprehensive school. Magnet schools are those designed to accommodate specific student interests (performing arts, engineering).…

Begins with a brief overview of the origins of constructivist thinking among the philosophers and the major forms of constructivism. Continues with definitions and descriptions of models of constructivist classrooms and teams. And concludes with a comparison of constructivist and traditional approaches to learning. (Contains 27 references.) (WFA)

The 10 journal articles and documents annotated in this bibliography cover various aspects of the controversy provoked by the emergence of the back-to-basics movement. Several attempt to define the movement and to place it in political and educational context. One paper reports statistics on its growth. Several sources delineate the movement's…

This paper describes the educational movement toward alternative schools and suggests further sources of information concerning this change in American education. Following an analytical comparison of open and traditional schools, the author discusses some of the most important perceived problems related to open schools. Problems noted are…

Refutes the belief that the key to fostering tolerance in a society is to maintain a strong and uniform public school system. Clarifies the concept of "tolerance," uncovers some problematic assumptions underlying the opposition to private/alternative/separate school systems, and considers relevant empirical evidence. (DMM)

Four creativity tests were administered to 264 Sudanese students (ages 15-20) to investigate the differing effects upon creativity of traditional and modern education. Those receiving a modern education performed better on two tests measuring cognitive ability, while the traditionally educated group performed better on an Egyptian test measuring…

The author, one of the most outspoken proponents of fundamentalist education, describes what he sees as the invasion of illiteracy, the departure from discipline, and the paucity of patriotism rampant in today's schools. The responsibility for these problems, he believes, lies with boards of education, teachers' unions, the tenure system,…

Investigation of the effect of a task-oriented learning group approach to writing on attitude and skill improvement, as compared to a traditional one-teacher, whole-class design, was the purpose of this study. Fifty high school English students were administered baseline tests of writing skill. An IQ score was also obtained, and the subjects were…

Traditional measures of academic performance, attitudes, expectations, self-esteem, and learning transfer were compared at formal and informal schools. Informal school students showed more positive attitudes toward school and teachers and greater transfer of training of learning to nonschool settings. No differences were found for academic…

Proposes a typology of reform within the public education system so that reforms can be characterized as conservative, liberal, or radical, depending on the degree to which they cause the traditional standards of public schools to change. The model is applied to educational reform in Chicago (Illinois) public schools. (SLD)

The purpose of this study is to determine whether locus of control scores for students in "open" programs changed significantly over a one-year period and whether there was any change different from change experienced by students in a "traditional" program. The lack of significant group main effects indicated that students in the open programs did…

Discusses the history of open-air schools using an evaluation of Belgian schools. Expounds on the complex relationship between educational space and the educational act, and between traditional and progressive education. Demonstrates that open-air schools provided the same education as traditional schools and were not a real alternative for…