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Publications Catalogue
Position Papers -- Education
For position papers on other topics, please click below:
Community Family Public Health Security in a Post-9/11 World
Undergraduate Education and the
Development of Moral and Civic Responsibility--Undergraduate
years are an important time for developing students moral and civic
responsibility. This essay describes our work-in-progress, under the
auspices of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, to
analyze the American undergraduate scene in terms of efforts to promote
students' moral and civic responsibility and to encourage our colleges and
universities to strengthen those efforts.
From Public Relations
to Partnerships: A Changing Paradigm in School, Family, and Community
Relations--Howard Kirschenbaum analyzes the shift to a
collaborative model of education among schools, families, and communities
at large. Kirschenbaum makes specific policy recommendations to foster
parent and community involvement in developing and sustaining effective
public education.
Twisted Tongues: The Failure
of Bilingual Education--Rosalie Pedalino Porter examines "The
Failures of Bilingual Education." The paper studies the ways in which the
30-year experiment in what is called bilingual education in American
schools has failed to provide a solid grounding in either English or
Spanish for the majority of students. Porter presents signigicant data
demonstrating the educational disservice of bilingual education as it is
conducted in most schools, and highlights the lack of accountability in
current bilingual education structures.
The Relationship of Religion
to Moral Education in the Public Schools--Charles Haynes and
Warren Nord describe the civic and educational principles that should
guide the instruction of religion in public schools. They sketch a
general theory of moral education that concieves a liberal education as a
moral education. Sex education and economics education serve as case
studies in examining the essential role of religion in moral education.
The authors offer a series of recommendations for reforming education in a
manner that takes seriously religion and moral education.
The Role of Civic Education--
Education for citizenship is essential to maintain a strong and healthy
constitutional democracy, but America has failed to achieve a high level
of civic education among its citizenry. Margaret Stimman Branson and
Charles Quigley discuss the need to improve civic education in the United
States, and examine the essential components of a good civic education, as
well as where and how civic education takes place. The authors make
specific policy recommendations for shoring up education for citizenship.
Service Learning: A National
Strategy for Youth Development--Voluntary service learning
options for students that include regular, structured opportunities for
reflection provide demonstrable benefits, including engaging students
with their communities, developing an ethic of service, and enhancing
civic attitudes. Susan Andersen outlines components of, standards for,
and early best practices in service learning and makes policy
reccomendations for implementing meaningful service learning
opportunities.
Education for Interpersonal Relations, Family Life, and Intimacy--This paper examines a complex set of issues that deeply affect our entire society: the rise of teen pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and sexual exploitation, and the related moral, social, and psychological factors. Instructed by different religious and secular perspectives and by divergent political and social philosophical persuasions, drawn from academic and practical backgrounds, the focus of this examination is on what is commonly referred to as "sex education" in public schools. The paper's goal is to chart a morally sound course and design a moral framework for programs that are too often constructed in the absence of such concerns.
Schools as Moral Communities: Methods for Building Empathy and Self-Discipline--Developing core values such as respect, integrity, and responsibility in our children are the basic foundations of character education. However, while character education is something that is relatively simple to discuss, it is far more difficult to teach. Sheldon Berman and Diane Berreth address Amitai Etzioni’s framework for character development, as well as the necessary skills and factors for implementing these goals into an educational setting.
Community Schools--This piece advocates the concept of community school, a new approach to educating children in a supportive and holistic manner. Carolyn Denham and Amitai Etzioni discuss benefits such as reduced juvenile crime rate, increased parental support, and deeper education that have been achieved through converting traditional schools to this system.
Building Character Through Sports--According to a recent study, 96% of kids who dropped out of school were not involved in co-curricular activities. In this piece, Russell Gough explores the notion that with the right balance and structure, organized sports can promote the development and well-being of our youth.
Role of Community in Character Education--Mary Brabeck explains the role of community schools in fostering strong relationships between the various components of the community and its educational system. By striving to include all community members, community schools help to foster moral and ethical development not only for the students themselves, but also for everyone involved in the initiative.
Community Colleges: A Vital Resource for a Communitarian
Society--Community colleges are engines of economic development
and reconstruction; they train the local and regional and other labor
forces; they bring together a diverse groupe of people in an often
constructive environment; they symbolize some communities. This paper
examines the community roles of community colleges.
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