Critical literacy continues to be a concept which is widely misused, mis-applied and misunderstood. Social commentators and politicians in particular use it to create unease about the way schools teach reading. However, a brief review of curriculum documents from six Australian State Education Departments demonstrates that in the private world of…

Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) is a private institution with some 1,800 undergraduate students and approximately 117 faculty, 34 of whom teach in the School of Liberal Arts. In October 2005, the vice president for academic affairs asked these authors to attend the Assessment Institute in Indianapolis. As full-time faculty, it was their…

The purpose of this research was to explore the effects that gender and institutional classification have on the inclusion of syllabus components. Course syllabi (N = 350) written by men and women from seven types of institutions, based on Carnegie classification, were sampled and evaluated for the presence of 26 syllabus components. The gender…

Developing and applying oral and written communication skills in the undergraduate computer science and computer information systems curriculum--one of the ABET accreditation requirements - is a very challenging and, at the same time, a rewarding task that provides various opportunities to enrich the undergraduate computer science and computer…

This article presents a portrait of interdisciplinarity in the Quebec school system. Following a contextual overview of this system, including its sociohistorical evolution and current organization in order to define the problem of interdisciplinarity, a second section, beginning with a clarification of terms related to interdisciplinarity,…

Educators are being asked to respond to the forces of globalization and human interconnectedness that characterize the 21st century. These forces are resulting in changing population demographics and increased migration which is bringing a new complexity to cultural and ethnic diversity within regions, local communities and ultimately in…

As the world economy continues to evolve, businesses and industries must adopt new practices and processes in order to survive. Quality and cost control, work teams and participatory management, and an infusion of technology are transforming the way people work and do business. Employees are now expected to read, write, and communicate…

As the world economy continues to evolve, businesses and industries must adopt new practices and processes in order to survive. Quality and cost control, work teams and participatory management, and an infusion of technology are transforming the way people work and do business. Employees are now expected to read, write, and communicate…

This case study focuses on two learners who took part in an intensive online German course offered to intermediate level students in the Department of Languages of the Open University. The course piloted the use of a Moodle-based virtual learning environment and a range of new online tools which lend themselves to different types of language…

Higher education institutions are under significant pressure to provide affordable, sustainable approaches that will prepare their students with the skills they will need after graduation to achieve success in the 21st Century workplace. Digital Media Simulations are among the new technologies that have emerged with the promise to help…

This paper investigates the links between the "contributing student pedagogy" and other forms of peer-mediated learning models, e.g. "open-ended group projects" and "communities of practice." We find that a fundamental concern in each of these models is the attribution of "value"; specifically, recognition…

The digital era has enabled educators the opportunity of breaking the confinement of the four walls of the traditional classroom and accessing information across cultures and nations. This session discusses the implementation of an innovative online graduate teacher education course focusing on global perspectives. Over the course of the semester,…

Hidalgo County, Texas, is one of the poorest in the country. The population in the Lower Rio Grande Valley is 85% Mexican-American. Underprepared for college and juggling full time jobs, their own children, and sometimes dysfunctional extended families, students often do not expect to succeed. I recently taught a Creative Writing course which…

This article describes the Ethics and Citizenship Program, a moral education project developed by the Brazilian government to promote education in ethics and citizenship in Brazilian fundamental and middle schools through four key themes: ethics, democratic coexistence, human rights and social inclusion. Some findings from a research project that…

This paper describes a content-based English for academic purposes (EAP) course, "Language and Public Life", and its major assignment, a research essay that critiques media coverage of a current event or social issue. The pedagogical context in which this assignment is realised underpins the forms of critical inquiry expected. The selection of…