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The Promise of Digital Out-of-School Programs for Supporting Youth in Under-Resourced Communities: Participatory Principles for Human Rights-based Virtual Youth Group Programming This study reports insights from a six-year phase ("Law Under Curious Minds") of a 17-year project (Empowering Counseling Program Participatory Science Initiative) with youth experiencing low income residing in disinvested communities segregated by race in a metropolitan US city. The project offered over Zoom employed a semi-structured emergent curriculum to afford youth maximal self-determination in the intervention experiences. A human rights framework informed by critical pedagogy supported youths' efforts to separate their identities and experiences in social systems from deficit-based social narratives. This paper provides guidelines for groupwork interventions including individually focused care, developing group identity to create a positive social space, and encouraging participation while respecting youths' capacities for online self-revelation. The challenges and opportunities of digital out-of-school programs are described, with a focus on the potential for supporting youth excluded from mainstream opportunities by geographic distance, disability, or income. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Policy classifies and shapes people/subjects in particular kinds of ways. Focusing on the context of Health and Physical Education (HPE), this paper analyses policy documents from Australia, the United States of America (USA) and Wales. We pay particular attention to how learners are represented within and across the three policy documents, and we apply Bacchi's 'What's the Problem Represented to be?' approach to guide the analysis. For us, problematization is a fruitful and positive process that enables educators to engage with a critical dialogue regarding the policies they are expected to enact. Our analysis highlighted that common across the policies were overlapping discourses of idealism, neoliberalism, healthism, and individualism, which serve to reinforce deficit language and a focus on what learners 'lack'. The problem of 'learner as lacking' is represented within the policies via at least three subject positions: 'the sedentary learner', 'the un-educated learner' and 'the naïve learner'. The findings suggest that the three policies were producing an ideal and perhaps impossible learner (subject) whilst at the same time representing the learner as a problem that the policy could 'fix'. This paper is important because it: (i) demonstrates how certain discourses and voices are amplified and silenced within curriculum policy documents and policy work more broadly; (ii) makes educational and health politics visible; and (iii) creates space for the profession to develop greater critical consciousness related to policy. In terms of future directions, we urge curriculum policy writers and other stakeholders to carefully consider how learners are categorised, represented and governed in and through policy. If curriculum policies, by their very nature, need to produce problems – in this case, the (im)possible subject - we invite educators to engage in critical conversations regarding the policies they are expected to enact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amid debates about CRT in education, this paper critically analyses laws that have reportedly sought to expand ‘education on racism, bias, the contributions of specific racial or ethnic groups to U.S. history, or related topics’ with the hypothesis that there would be little evidence of anti-racist ideology in policies pertaining to curriculum. The research design thus leans on King and Chandler’s (2016) distinction between non-racist and antiracist stances, as well as Andreotti et al’.s (2015) social cartography that maps out ‘soft-reform’ and ‘radical reform’ spaces, to achieve a latent content analysis of 14 pieces of legislation across 13 states since 2020 to identify and analyse the ideological characteristics of these pieces of legislation. Only four of the 14 documents from four different states contain a significant anti-racist ideological leaning; the others express a liberal multicultural ideological position that celebrates difference and recognizes contributions, but does not examine systemic racism. Thus, among states that are legislating more ethnic studies, the vast majority do not legislate anti-racist positions. This paper concludes that there is little evidence of anti-racist ideas being legislated into primary and secondary education in the United States, and that most curricular reforms toe a non-critical ideological line. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teaching Odissi in the university space is not new to me. However, as a dancer-scholar located in India, teaching this dance form in a university in the United States expanded and deepened my understanding of this dance form and the ways it can be taught. This encounter, a collision of cultures, beliefs, and movement practices in the dance studio, engendered a pedagogical process that revealed itself as I taught this class over two semesters. The design of the class discussed in this article emerged from an intersection of my own training in Odissi with my guru and the institutional requirements of the program. This paper unpacks my pedagogical process of creating a syllabus, adopting teaching strategies, and assessing student work for negotiating the cultural chasm between me and my students, hoping to generate a sense of critical questioning, mutual curiosity, and respect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As study abroad opportunities increase, so too are international teaching exchanges. This article describes the collaborative teaching experience of a course which was jointly developed and offered for Bachelors and Masters level social work students. The course aimed to explore the integration of Eastern and Western cultural understandings and approaches to promote health and wellbeing by examining the mind, body, and spiritual connections and exploring the integration of strategies for health and mental health systems. This paper outlines the process involved in developing and delivering a course which complies with both the curriculum standards of two institutions, and the professional accreditation standards by CSWE across international contexts. Evaluation of the student work through the use of a rigorous qualitative methodological approach demonstrates that the course was useful for the participants and at the same time, the experience was valuable for the authors. The student work reflected two central themes: First is a growing appreciation for the importance of a cultural humility perspective with special attention to an international perspective. Second, directly related to the course content which focused on the integration of Eastern and Western approaches to addressing mental health challenges as a social worker. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is increasing recognition that social work educators must do more to ensure that social work students transitioning into the profession are prepared to engage in adept self-care practices. However, documented curricular efforts targeted at meeting this aim are few. This paper documents the impact of a credit-bearing self-care course on student (N = 40) competency about self-care. The course occurred in a social work education program at a large public institution in the United States. The researcher used a pre-experimental (e.g. pre/post) design to assess course outcomes. Results indicate significant improvements in student knowledge about self-care, skills related to engaging in self-care practices, and value related to self-care. After a review literature, this paper will provide a foundational overview of the course, delineate outcome variables and measures, explicate evaluative findings, and discuss salient implications derived from this endeavor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The network of Cooperative Extension professionals across the United States offers fertile ground for the development of intergenerational partnerships in communities. Cooperative Extension programming prioritizes implementation of evidence-based curricula. This paper provides a reflection of an intergenerational program that adapted evidence-based preschool nutrition education for an intergenerational setting by collaborating with Virginia Cooperative Extension. Specifically, we detail how Cooperative Extension personnel are valuable community partners for implementing evidence-based practices in intergenerational programming via curriculum adaptation. Integrating evidence-based curricula and intergenerational practices can support program sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities have the right to access appropriate and comprehensive sexuality and relationship education (SRE), but face a long history of exclusion from SRE in the USA due to myths about the sexuality of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, biases against people with disabilities, and segregationist educational policies. Additionally, people with autism/autistic people are more likely to report having an LGBTQIA+ identity, and need comprehensive SRE content to become socially competent members of their communities. Teachers and other practitioners are often placed in the uncomfortable position of addressing many SRE topics while feeling unprepared, trying to stay aligned with educational policies, managing caregiver expectations, and providing scientifically accurate fact-based information in an increasingly politicised social climate. This paper provides recommendations on how to teach about LGBTQIA+ issues to students with intellectual and developmental disabilities including recommendations for modifying existing SRE curricula, identifying effective instructional strategies, and outlining a process for including LGBTQIA+ identities in SRE content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sex and sexuality curricula in the USA should acknowledge the structural conditions racialised young people navigate to make sense of their sexual experiences and more explicitly recognise the political power of gender and sexuality. This paper suggests educators use women of colour feminism and decolonial studies to offer a historicised approach to understanding and engaging with gender and sexuality. Such an approach acknowledges how European colonisation has constructed white middle-class masculinity, femininity and heterosexuality as normative and pathologises other forms of gender and sexuality expression. It encourages educators to address state investment in colonial hierarchies by foregrounding how national legislation and associated discourses support the institutionalised pathologisation of racialised sexuality. Using a feminist of colour and decolonial approach, the article examines how US national policy further disciplines racialised sexuality by employing discourses of 'anchor babies' to justify the passing of new laws. It draws on the author's experience as an educator of colour to show how historicising gender and sexuality can teach racialised students there is nothing pathological about their sexuality. A transformed sex and sexuality curriculum is proposed to teach students about the political power they wield, and what critical understanding and action they can achieve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The subject of this paper is the future of marketing education. One focal point of the paper concerns the readiness for change of marketing departments. The culture, climate and policies of marketing departments are discussed with an emphasis on their conduciveness to change. Several elements culture, climate, and policies are presented and accompanied by observations of a curmudgeon-the author of this paper. The paper concludes with some thoughts on students, teaching and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge of the history of the social work profession and of the historical forces that shape the development of social welfare is critical to developing competence in social work. Study of history helps students develop a critical perspective on current controversies within social welfare and the social work profession. The study of local history allows social work students to consider the economic, political, social, and cultural origins of the problems that have shaped and often constrained the lives of people they serve. Using examples from the history of Detroit, Michigan, this paper shows how local history can animate social welfare history, provide students with important context about the practice environment, including relationships between diverse populations, and give specific, meaningful examples of historical trends presented in social welfare history and policy textbooks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forty-five years ago, the first author of this paper surveyed the US medical schools to determine their offerings on EOL (End-of-Life) issues. The results showed limited exposure for medical school students to learn about dying and death, thus their "learning" was apparently on-the-job training. The EOL offerings were so limited that the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC), following the 1975 publication from the survey, contacted the first author to inquire about death and dying in the curricula of their medical schools. Apparently, it was so insignificant that the AAMC did not have such information. Palliative medicine, geriatric medicine, and hospice were then in the "birthing" process, a mere blur on the horizon. Today, as in 1975, it is likely that most medical students have personally had minimal experience with death and that for many entering students, other than on television, the cadaver is their first sight of a dead person. The objective of this research is a longitudinal study at five-year intervals since 1975 reporting on EOL education in US medical schools. The total number of medical schools has increased from 113 in 1975 to 150 in 2020. The current study surveyed medical schools electronically and via postal services with a response rate of 37%. Findings from the survey over time revealed significant inclusion of death and dying and palliative medicine as well as geriatrics and hospice. Gross anatomy has evolved from strictly hands-on to integrating 3D/virtual models, a change not without controversy. A noticeable difference in emphasis is obvious as care now plays a more significant role in medical training than previously, thus making modern medicine not only about cure, but more about care than was previously emphasized. Communication with dying patients and families, analgesics for chronic pain, and advance directives all are covered in over 90% of schools today. The current emphasis on EOL care, not just disease management, is increasing and puts more of a human face on modern medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper outlines the life and work of Dr. Elliot W. Eisner, a champion of American education and the inclusion of art in students' lives. Three areas of Dr. Eisner's life are explored, his early formative years, his ideas on curriculum in the United States of America, and his research on the development of arts-based education in schools. The paper recommends several ways to achieve Discipline Based Arts Education (DBAE) in the instruction of culinary arts through the examination of Eisner's educational philosophy and its application in a culinary setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a national survey of Master of Social Work (MSW) program leaders' religious and spiritual beliefs and practices across the United States. Of the 257 eligible MSW programs primary contacts, 119 (46.8%) responded to the survey, with 90 completing the items related to religion and spirituality (RS). Specifically, those RS items assessed participants' religious affiliation, intrinsic religiosity, frequency of religious service attendance and private religious activities, the degree to which the respondent is religious or spiritual, and their RS practices. Among our respondents, 80 (88.9%) held a position of leadership (e.g., dean/chair, associate dean, or program director). The results indicated that these MSW program leaders consider religion and spirituality to be important, are engaging in various RS practices, and over half reporting elements of intrinsic religiosity. Additionally, we compared this sample's responses to these items with a national sample of clinical social workers and another sample of adults across the United States. Interestingly, a number of differences emerged between MSW program leaders' RS with LCSWs and US adults. This paper addresses the implications of these findings, particularly in light of the sample being predominantly MSW program leaders, including how leaders' RS may influence the implicit and explicit curricula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phenomenon: Many U.S. medical schools have responded to the adoption of competency-based medical education (CBME) frameworks by renewing their final-year curricula and including internship preparatory courses. The purpose of this scoping review was to map the published literature regarding the final year to discern how medical schools have responded to this paradigm change. Approach: A structured 5-step approach was used to conduct this scoping review. Electronic searches of PubMed, ERIC, Scopus, MedEdPortal, and 8 medical education journals were conducted to identify relevant articles published from 2006 to 2016. Four authors screened articles for inclusion using standardized eligibility criteria; interrater agreement was discussed and calculated. Authors extracted data elements, and a consensus-based approach was used to categorize, sort, and structure information gathered. Findings: Among 6,485 articles retrieved, 817 articles were included in the study. From 2007–2011 to 2012–2016, articles addressing the final year of medical school increased 93%, whereas articles describing internship preparatory courses increased 218%. The majority of articles did not reference a CBME framework (572/817; 70%), the frequency of mentions increased 268% from 2007–2011 to 2012–2016. Nearly three fourths of preparatory course-related papers reference a CBME framework (37/50; 74%). Insights: Our findings may reflect a movement in U.S. medical schools toward using shared assessment metrics to support 4th-year medical students' preparation for their postgraduate medical education. Despite an increased reference to CBME, there is relatively little use of competency-based assessment frameworks to evaluate learning outcomes. This review also found a substantial increase in the frequency of articles referencing senior-year preparatory courses in U.S. medical schools. Articles tended to describe institution-specific research or experiences. Opportunities likely exist for multi-institutional and organizational collaboration in determining the structure of the final year of medical school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the findings of a quantitative study of 1,698 public library websites in Australia, Canada, and the United States over a period of three years using a spreadsheet protocol. The purpose of the research was to evaluate public library websites, available online sources, and whether library staff were available to respond to users' questions and concerns regarding the website. Descriptive statistics are used to report the results. The study provides public library website information regarding which protocol criteria each country's libraries attained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the key components to the undergraduate research enterprise at Dartmouth is the recognition that learning to do research requires both directed instruction and learning by doing. The economics faculty have tailored a fruitful undergraduate research program based on this philosophy, and this article describes these efforts while also offering advice to other programs as they strive to involve undergraduates in research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Describes the course `Drugs in the Nervous System' aimed at getting college students to think critically and creatively about science. Course at Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts; Project-based, student-centered approach; Focus on students exploring primary literature; Development of variety of skills for scientific work.

Mathematics is a core subject in the UK curriculum, with high standards achievement a policy of the UK government. Innovative approaches and strategies have been advocated to achieve these high standards. One approach that has been advocated is Precision Teaching, supported by its successful application in schools in the United States. For this study, a 12-week programme was devised to develop student fluency in the multiplication timetables. A key skill task was devised and scores compared before and after programme implementation. Pre-programme scores revealed poor student performance on this key skill. Post-programme results show an improvement for children using Precision Teaching, with some outperforming the average of their classmates. The paper endorses previous findings that fluency is important for student progress through the curriculum. It also endorses research findings that adding practice and timed assessment improve student performance levels. These results were achieved with minimal disruption and materials. The paper recommends educational practitioners to support further research into the practicalities and suggested benefits of fluency-orientated education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Critical race theory has recently been blamed for causing harmful outcomes. Conservative activists are believed to be distorting this theory in order to ban it. The campaign to ban critical race theory has affected many schools across the United States. In some cases, school personnel have resigned because of the way some groups have responded to the debate over banning this theory. New laws that restrict teachers from teaching content that may make students uncomfortable have been passed. Banning critical race theory from K-12 schools is a controversial topic because public school personnel usually do not teach it. The controversy involves the programs that may have to be dropped if this theory is banned. This paper focuses on the origins of critical race theory, the misconceptions about this theory, the campaign to ban it, and the negative outcomes resulting from the movement to ban it. It also includes a description of how some groups are resisting this movement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this critical reflection, we consider physical education policy research in the United States (U.S.) using a sociocritical lens. Our aim is to extend the discussion and critiques of physical education policy research by exploring how it is conducted in the U.S. Instead of asking 'What is physical education policy research?', we are more concerned with the complex, imbalanced, and unpredictable affects of physical education policy research in the U.S. Thus, we ask questions like, 'How is physical education policy research working in different contexts?', 'What counts as policy research?' and 'Who is doing policy research?' We examine how physical education policy research is being taken up across the U.S. and the orientation – or direction – those studies take. As such, we conclude by considering what directions, people, and elements are not included in the current orientation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a comparative analysis of national curriculum reforms in Australia and the USA, set against the backdrop of global trends since the 1980s. The analysis is driven by an interest in the reconstitution of national policy spaces in global times, and draws particularly upon Stephen Carney’s notion ofglobal policy-scapesas a way of understanding the complex and disjunctive flows of transnational policy ideas and practices. The paper begins by arguing that reforms since the early 1980s have been driven by global panics about globalisation, equity and market competitiveness. These global influences have underpinned parallel reform attempts in each country, including the development of national goals in the late 1980s, failed attempts at national standards in the early 1990s and rejuvenated attempts towards national consistency in the 2000s. Building on this, we argue that despite shared global drivers and broad historical similarities, reforms in each country remain distinct in scope and form, due to several unique features that inform the national policy space of each country. These distinctive national policy spaces provide differentconditions of possibilityfor reform, reminding us that despite global commonalities, policy reforms are relational and locally negotiated. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article introduces a metric designed to estimate the amount of attention given to different countries of the world in academic using Internet term paper mills. The metric is used to introduce a call for the incorporation of more geographic education regarding peripheral areas of the world into the boarder college curriculum. Even as geography courses struggle to incorporate knowledge of may peripheral parts of the world, the rest of the university experience is continuing to reflect perceived national interests.

This paper explores the use of withdrawal as a harm reduction approach to adolescent pregnancy prevention and its association with condom use. Data come from a baseline survey of a randomised controlled trial to test the effectiveness of FLASH, a sexual health education curriculum. Study participants completed electronic self-report surveys in health classes in their first or second year of high school (age range 14.1–17.9, mean 15.3 years). One-hundred and ninety-one students (12% of full sample) reported engaging in vaginal intercourse in the 3 months prior to the survey; of these, 66.0% reported using withdrawal as a birth control method, without significant differences by race, gender, region or birth control beliefs. Withdrawal was often used in combination with condoms (55.5%), periodic abstinence (40.0%) and birth control pills (13.4%). The effectiveness of withdrawal and its prevalence suggest an opportunity to reflect on how withdrawal is taught – moving from avoiding its use to a harm reduction approach to help sexually active youth avoid risk, reduce risk and reduce potential harm associated with sexual behaviours. Rather than focusing on withdrawal as risky, youth-serving professionals should acknowledge young people's efforts to prevent pregnancy and recognise the social and relational contexts of contraceptive choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In spite of concerted improvement efforts to improve curricula, many university-based principal preparation programmes in the United States do not explicitly attend to issues of equity or social justice in a thorough way. While curricular efforts are important, they are not enough on their own; a working theory in the field of educational leadership is that an equity-mindset is also needed and that social justice-oriented principal preparation programs should select individuals who already 'have a propensity, at a minimum, to critically question the inequities found in schools' for admission into programs. Generally speaking, however, there is a dearth of literature on both candidate selection for preparation programs and equity beliefs of current and pre-service school leaders. In this paper, we explore how potential candidates for a principal preparation program in an urban school district view equity and the vexing question of how to prepare socially just leaders Figure 1–8. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors summarize successes in training researchers in the University of Chicago economics program over the last 15 years. Students learn to investigate quantitative relations using models in which purposeful but constrained economic agents interact. They are shown how a productive research culture requires careful work, collegiality, and honesty. Preparing students to perform economics research is a multi-year effort, with clear sequences of ordered coursework and research practice. When advice is signaled early and often to all, motivated students heed that advice and do well. Chicago regularly puts 5 percent of its majors into top PhD programs, for a combined total of 140 over the past 15 years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the United States, an increasing number of new teachers are being prepared through alternative, or early entry, routes into teaching. These new forms of teacher preparation raise important questions about how and in what ways candidates are being prepared, particularly in key areas such as classroom management. To shed light upon these questions, this paper draws upon data from a larger study of teacher preparation in New York City which is engaged in examining the features of both alternative and traditional pathways into teaching. This paper uses qualitative data regarding preparation required by 31 childhood teacher education programs and survey data from 460 program graduates, to analyze new teachers' preparation for classroom management in New York City. We found that less than half of the traditional programs required any coursework in classroom management. Early entry candidates were more likely to have had a course in classroom management. The paper also reports survey findings regarding teachers' reports of their opportunities to learn, which suggest that teachers in traditional programs may encounter more foundational knowledge in such courses, while early entry teachers may have more opportunities to learn practical, concrete strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presently, plagiarism is a serious problem in academics. Research has shown that the number of students who commit some form of plagiarism has increased in recent years. Studies have also shown that students commit plagiarism for a variety of reasons, including ignorance about what constitutes plagiarism, waiting until the last minute to complete an assignment, and a desire to get good grades. Regardless of the reason, students who commit plagiarism face a variety of sanctions ranging from a 'slap on the wrist' to expulsion from school. Because of the potential long-term ramifications of committing plagiarism, it is essential that educators understand why students commit plagiarism and learn ways to teach students how to avoid it. This paper presents a workshop designed to teach students how to avoid committing it and offers a variety of ways in which this material can be incorporated into a program's existing curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a review of the purpose and structure of the undergraduate economics major, J. Siegfried et al. (1991) suggested that every student should be required to "do economics" and specifically recommended the development of skills through writing requirements and research-oriented courses, as in a capstone experience. The author describes results of a survey of economics departments at U.S. institutions designed to determine the degree to which writing assignments are required and the existence and form of research-oriented opportunities, such as honors, capstone and senior experiences, and the senior thesis. Results indicate that, although a majority of departments (70 percent) require a writing component as part of the major, less than half offer research-intensive experiences consistent with capstone and senior experience courses (49 percent), honors programs (37 percent), or senior theses (17 percent). When institutions offer such research courses, however, respondents state overwhelmingly that such experiences are indeed designed to encourage students to develop skills associated with "doing economics" [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world civilizations course is an increasingly integral component of undergraduate curricula in the United States. History instruction literature reveals much discussion about desired learning objectives for students in the course. Given today's complex educational environment, meeting those objectives can be a challenge. Instructors' frustrations are implied, and often expressly stated, regarding the poor quality of their students' research skills. This has an impact on instructors' perceptions and design of the course. As a solution, the author of this paper discusses faculty-librarian collaboration to integrate library instruction into the University at Buffalo's world civilizations curriculum. A multifaceted approach is described, which combines traditional, contemporary, and novel instructional techniques. Preliminary data collected to assess the usefulness and effectiveness of this approach are reviewed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the organization and representation of time in certain kinds of undergraduate programs, here represented by a sociology program in a US university. Written requirements for the major are analyzed as constituting a 'chart' that defines academic time in terms of units of before-after relationships. The paper shows how students 'reuse' these temporal units when charting paths through the university and reckoning their academic work to specific futures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on interviews with Muslim parents, students, and teachers in a Midwestern city, as well as one of the author's (Sabry's) own experiences as a member in the local Muslim community, this paper documents and describes the challenges faced by Muslim youth in U.S. schools. Grounded in the theoretical framework of cultural mismatch, the paper presents key themes of the interviews with regards to the areas of curriculum, instruction, and home-school relations. Based on these findings, and using Banks' Multicultural Education Dimensions, a proactive model of cooperation between the families of Muslim students and the public school system is proposed. The paper concludes by urging other scholars to investigate the schooling of Muslim students in the U.S. and encouraging members of the Muslim community to share their U.S. schooling experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this brief paper is to provide insight into the kinds of work being done by an education research group in a US physics department. As will be evident, instructional technology raises many interesting questions and lends itself to a wide variety of studies. References and contacts are provided for readers wanting more detailed information on the research. The paper is based on a presentation given at the Workshop on Best Practices of ICT Use in a University Environment, 24 September 2004, in Zürich. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Building upon past studies of curriculum textbooks in the US, this paper presents an analytical framework that classifies curriculum texts according to their representation of reconceptualized curriculum scholarship. It uses four indicators of the representation of curriculum scholarship in the analyses of eight curriculum texts published in the USA in the 1990s: the author’s stated intentions; the organization of the table of contents; the treatment of the forms of reconceptualism; and the ratio of curriculum and non-curriculum journal citations. The analysis finds that reconceptualized curriculum scholarship has been at least mentioned, if not extensively treated, in most texts since the mid-1980s, and that this approach is most comprehensively treated in books published in the 1990s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accounting programmes are being challenged (e.g. Albrecht and Sack, 2000) to make accounting curricula more relevant and to present assessment data regarding the efficacy of course and curricular offerings. In addition, assessment is embedded in current accreditation standards in the USA by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International as fundamentally important to motivating continuous improvement (AACSB 2005). However, survey results in this area (viz., Kimmel et al., 1998, Issues in Accounting Education, 13(4), pp. 851-868 and Calderon et al., 2003, Best Practices in Accounting Program Assessment, Sarasota, FL: Teaching and Curriculum Section, American Accounting Association) indicate that assessment is not as widespread as might be expected. Further, Akers et al. (1997 Issues in Accounting Education, 12(2), pp. 259-280) note that the accounting education literature is limited with respect to descriptive accounts of assessment programme design and implementation results. This paper offers a framework, consisting of three key attributes (broad-based involvement, multi-trait/multi-method approach, and assessment follow-up), that can be used to guide the development and implementation of a programme-level assessment plan in accounting. A case study applies this framework to the development and implementation of an assessment plan for a graduate accounting programme in the USA. This plan includes multiple assessment measures and provides feedback regarding both academic (curriculum-related) and administrative (operational) dimensions of performance. To demonstrate the value of such a plan, a discussion of programme changes made in response to assessment data collected to date is included. While the application of this framework is to a USA context, the framework is such that it can be used more generally to guide the design and implementation of an effective programme-level assessment plan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past decade and a half, states in all regions of the United States have formed Holocaust councils, advisory groups, and other agencies for the purpose of developing educational programs in response to a growing interest in the Holocaust. Some states have called upon educators and Holocaust agencies within the state to develop curricula and/or resource materials for use in social studies and English classrooms. Furthermore, many states now either strongly recommend the teaching of the Holocaust or mandate that it be taught in their public schools. In a previous paper published in TRSE in 2002 (Understanding Matters: Holocaust Curricula in the Social Studies Classroom), we addressed the problematic aspects of much of the content found in state-developed Holocaust curricula. In the present paper, we present a critical analysis of the instructional strategies advocated in state-sponsored Holocaust curricula. We ground our evaluation within the framework of authentic pedagogy--particularly the work of Fred Newmann. More than an attempt to simply criticize these works, we offer constructive alternatives to inadequate and/or poorly designed instructional strategies. Fundamental to the intent of this paper is its usefulness as a guide for evaluating instructional activities designed to support the teaching of content knowledge about the Holocaust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Religion and spirituality (RS) are vital aspects of client identity and well-being, yet social work professionals are often ill-equipped to address these in practice due to a lack of specialized training. The National Association of Social Work (NASW) and Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) support integrating RS content into social work curriculum, but existing research focuses on Master of Social Work (MSW)-level elective courses. This qualitative study addresses Bachelor of Social Work (BSW)-level integration by (a) exploring how many accredited BSW programs offer an elective course on RS and (b) analyzing syllabi from these courses to determine specific strategies for teaching RS topics. BSW programs can use the study results as a guide for planning and structuring RS content within their curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports results from a large study comparing four different approaches to teaching Introduction to American Government: (1) traditional, a paper textbook with 100% face-to-face lecture-style teaching; (2) breakout, a paper textbook with 50% face-to-face lecture-style teaching and 50% face-to-face small-group breakout discussion sections moderated by graduate students; (3) blended, an interactive online textbook with face-to-face full-class meetings taught with a blend of lecture, discussions, and in-class activities; and (4) online only, an interactive online textbook with (almost) no face-to-face class meetings. We find that the mode of course delivery is significantly related to student academic engagement and performance as well as civic educational outcomes. Although drop rates were higher in the online only condition, students who successfully completed the online course were significantly more likely to express interest in discussing and participating in politics. Furthermore, students in the online only and blended conditions demonstrated significantly higher levels of objective political knowledge relative to students taking the course in a more traditional format. Finally, students enrolled in sections that assigned the interactive online textbook rated their textbook as significantly more beneficial to their learning experiences than did students who used the traditional paper textbook. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The internationalization of universities and the aging of the global population are two current issues that converge and challenge undergraduate gerontology curriculum development in Canada. One response to this challenge is to envision an intercultural gerontology curriculum. What might this curriculum encompass? How might it be taught? An exploratory study was undertaken to address these two questions. This paper presents findings from this study based primarily on interviews with university-based stakeholders from Canada, the United States, and Europe. Thematic analysis of the interviews resulted in five themes: multiple perspectives on cultural diversity; the dynamic nature of cultural diversity and aging; flow of an intercultural curriculum; institutional culture and intercultural curricula; and principles and practice for intercultural gerontology. Framed by principles of gerontology theory and educational approaches, this paper focuses on the principles and practice suggested by study participants. Scaffolding learning, active learning strategies, experiential learning opportunities, teacher modelling, and internet-based learning are discussed as key to intercultural learning. An appendix includes a list of resources that may be useful to developing an intercultural gerontology curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several critical scholars recently have debunked the media's proclamation that with Obama's presidency, the United States has entered a post-racial era, with the media thus fabricating an image of a 'race neutral' American society (McCarthy, C. (2013). The problem with origins. Race and the contrapuntal nature of the education experience. In H. A. Giroux & P. Shannon (Eds.), Education and cultural studies (pp. 104–153). New York, NY; Zirkel, S., & Johnson, T. (2016). Mirror, mirror on the wall: A critical examination of the conceptualization of the study of Black racial identity in education. Educational Researcher, 45(5), 301–311). In this paper, first, I suggest that today's pedagogical conditions within schools built upon 'deficit thinking' (Yosso, T. J. (2005). Whose culture has capital? A critical race theory discussion of community cultural wealth. Race Ethnicity and Education, 8(1), 69–91) need to be critically considered as a source of inequity. Second, I contend that the historical legacy of the academic gap and the current health gap work implicitly as a new form of neocolonialism embedded in the current neoliberal colorblind era that continues to mark ethnic-minoritized young people as 'deficient'. Black and ethnic-minoritized young people's attempts to reconcile discrepancies between their own culturally relevant sense of self and the normative 'white' identity become a problematic and difficult process. Third, against the backdrop of intersecting forms of oppression, I discuss how the pedagogical infrastructure of the Body Curriculum allows young people to re-write the body 'from below' (Spivak, G. C. (1993). Outside in the teaching machine. New York, NY: Routledge) from the perspectives of the 'other' – ethnic-minoritized young people, to destabilize the 'center' position and at the same time, create powerful counter-stories for social change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the results of an 18 month study of a variety of participants involved in written reflection on their learning, both in classes at two universities in the Southern US or in voluntary focus groups. The purpose of the study was to analyze the effects of including autobiographical tools in written reflection. Participants used three tools from the genre of autobiography as they reflected on their learning inside either course content, internship experiences, experiential learning, or goal-setting. Over 500 samples were gathered, offering a large data set for analysis of what kinds of best practice produce quality reflective writing. Through analysis of the data and student surveys and interviews, results show increased attention to critical thinking and metacognition; expressed flexibility, adaptability, and ability to handle ambiguity; and value in connection to others/empathy-building as a result of incorporating autobiographical tools in reflective prompts. The study indicated that reflections using the same autobiographical tool over the course of several sessions seemed to produce deeper levels of reflection and more engagement with the autobiographical tool. Of the three autobiographical tools used in the study, the tool that seemed most helpful to participants was reflection as storytelling that revealed aspects of the self. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Classrooms reflect and contribute to normative sex, gender and sexuality categories in school culture, rules and rituals. Texts, materials, curriculum and the discourse we employ as educators perpetuate the pervasiveness of these categories. This paper explores some of the less visible ways in which sex and gender categories are constructed in US English Language Arts (ELA) classrooms, and how institutionalised heteronormativity positions students within normative categories of sex, gender and sexuality. These limiting conversations are difficult to identify and even more difficult to challenge. But it is precisely this dynamic – the subconscious reinforcing of sex and gender binaries – that upholds the dominance of the institution of heterosexuality. Merely addressing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) issues in the field of teaching reading, writing and literacy is an incomplete strategy. To disrupt normative narratives in the ELA classroom, educators must first identify the everyday practices occurring in school spaces, specifically recognising the teacher as a text. For sustained challenges to institutionalised norms, ELA teachers must engage in this work outside of LGBTQ-inclusive instructional materials and anti-homophobic education, and this paper offers specific methods for disrupting mainstream narratives in ELA classrooms. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Few studies have investigated what occurs inside charter schools with respect to instructional leadership, teaching, and learning. To address this gap in the literature, this case study examines two major issues: how the principals at four charter schools enact instructional leadership in their respective schools, and what barriers the principals encounter when enacting instructional leadership at their school sites. The results highlight three main categories of instructional leadership practices: developing a school mission, managing curriculum and instruction, and promoting school climate and culture. In addition, the data reveal that while the principals attempted to engage in instructional leadership, they encountered barriers related to budgeting and staffing. The paper broadens the scholarly understanding of instructional leadership in schools with high levels of autonomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper the immediate managerial environment in sport and physical education, or physical education and athletics, is the major point of departure and is discussed in detail. The general managerial environment is described in broader terms only as part of a concluding statement. It is argued that the immediate environment of the physical education and athletics unit includes the organizational climate, suppliers, controllers, controllees, advisers, adversaries, and so-called publics with opinions. Four phenomena are explained that make the organizational system of the department, school, or college open to a greater or lesser degree (e.g., departmental members who enter and exit from the unit). After discussing each of the components of the immediate environment (e.g., the suppliers), it is asserted that a manager should also plan to assist the larger community (the general environment) as well by accepting some responsibility for the structure and function of the larger society. This includes the promotion of internationalism in sport and developmental physical activity as well as part of a growing world family. Finally, it is stressed that search committees should increasingly select people who are committed to sound management theory in accord with ethical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hidden curriculum consists of implicit values taught and learned through the process of schooling. The first section of this paper describes theoretical and methodological approaches to research in this area, drawing examples from general education literature. The second section reviews research related to the hidden curriculum in physical education. The final section proposes a model for feminist analysis of the hidden curriculum in sport and physical education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Commercial-off-the-shelf learning platforms developed for medical education (herein referred to as MedED-COTS) have emerged as a resource used by a majority of medical students to prepare for licensing examinations. As MedED-COTS proliferate and include more functions and features, there is a need for an up-to-date review to inform medical educators on (a) students' use of MedED-COTS outside the formal medical school curriculum, (b) the integration of MedED-COTS into the formal curriculum, and (c) the potential effects of MedED-COTS usage on students' national licensing exam scores in the USA. Due to the limited number of studies published on either the use or integration of MedED-COTS, a focused review of literature was conducted to guide future research and practice. Data extraction and quality appraisal were conducted independently by three reviewers; with disagreements resolved by a fourth reviewer. A narrative synthesis was completed to answer research questions, contextualize results, and identify trends and issues in the findings reported by the studies included in the review. Results revealed consistent positive correlations between students' use of question banks and their licensing exam performance. The limited number of integration studies, combined with a number of methodological issues, makes it impossible to isolate specific effects or associations of integrated commercial resources on standardized test or course outcomes. However, consistent positive correlations, along with students' pervasive use and strong theoretical foundations explaining the results, provide evidence for integrating MedED-COTS into medical school curricula and highlight the need for further research. Based on findings, we conclude that students use exam preparation materials broadly and they have a positive impact on exam results; the literature on integration of MedED-COTS into formal curriculum and the use by students of resources outside of exam preparation is scant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teaching, the core technology of schooling, is an essential consideration in investigations of education systems and school organizations. Taking teaching seriously as an explanatory variable in research on education systems and organizations necessitates moving beyond treating it as a unitary practice, so as to take account of the school subjects implicated in the work. Building on and extending earlier work, in this paper we examine subject matter differences in how one education system (Local Educational Agency) and its elementary schools organize for instruction in the core elementary school subjects. Specifically, this paper explores how education leaders and teachers in one local American school district interact with one another with respect to advice and information about teaching and learning in literacy, mathematics and science. We examine similarities and differences in school staff members’ advice and information networks and consider how these differences relate to the formal organizational infrastructure intended to support instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Physical education is critical to addressing childhood obesity, yet many school-based programs do not meet established quality standards and teachers are called upon to change. Little is known about how change is initiated and its associated internal and external factors.Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate physical education teacher change that was self-initiated and externally initiated and to examine dispositions toward the change process relative to initiation.Method: A random national sample of physical educators representing each SHAPE America - Society of Health and Physical Educators regional district participated in a survey measuring past programming changes, primary initiators of change, and teachers' dispositions toward change. In total, 2,423 teachers (46% response rate) completed electronic, paper, or telephone questionnaires.Results: Teachers most often made minor curriculum changes, and they added/subtracted student assessments (primarily informal assessments) least often. Self-initiated (bottom-up) change was most frequently (83.1% of the time) reported. Externally initiated (top-down) changes were less frequent and were most often associated with professional development. Teachers reported principals' involvement in both top-down and bottom-up change processes was minimal. Teachers who were more disposed to making future changes reported making significantly (p < .01, η2 = .046-.119) more past changes than those who were less disposed to change.Conclusions: Physical education teachers primarily self-initiated minor programming changes without involvement from administration. Externally initiated change was infrequent and mostly involved professional development. Dispositions toward change were individual and enduring such that teachers who had made more past changes were more likely to also make future changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates opportunities for and challenges faced by Chinese dance and movement educators at the higher education level in the United States, drawing from interviews with seven influential Chinese dance and movement academics. The article probes the boundaries of what is considered Chinese dance in the US context, including Chinese interdisciplinary xiqu (often mistranslated as Chinese opera) and martial arts. Background information gathered from US dance and theater departments indicates the lack of Chinese dance and movement courses overall and describes the common formats for including these forms in higher education curricula. The interview discussion highlights the navigation involved in teaching Chinese dance and movement in the United States via four major categories: Institutional, Curricular, Pedagogical, and Cultural issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This commentary uses the lens of curricular implementation to consider issues and opportunities afforded by the papers in this special edition. While it is interesting to envision innovative approaches to physical education, actually implementing changes in the complex institutional school environment is exceptionally challenging. These authors have done an excellent job presenting viable solutions and fore grounding challenges. Yet, without a concerted effort to invite teachers to engage with us in this process, our implementation initiatives may not enhance the meaningful and educative process that these scholars envision for physical education. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]