The "News and Views" section of this journal contains reports and comments on various issues related to current aspects of black higher education. The topics reviewed include affirmative action, college admissions policies, faculty diversity, and black enrollment in professional schools. Profiles of some black educators are also included. (SLD)

The "Vital Signs" section of this journal presents a statistical record of the progress of African Americans in institutions of higher education. Every issue contains a composite index of higher educational indicators. This issue features data on African American college enrollment, the enrollment of African American women, and law school…

Critiques the theory advanced by A. Thernstrom and S. Thernstrom that affirmative action is responsible for the high college dropout rates of African Americans because underqualified applicants are admitted. The argument centers on examination of dropout rates at historically black colleges and institutions, where racial preference is not a…

Reviews the historic white fear of the educated black man in the Jim Crow period and earlier, when education of the African American was seen as a threat to the stable workforce African Americans represented. Curtailing educational opportunity was an important means of racial control. (SLD)

The Flynn effect, documented by a New Zealand political scientist, refers to the fact that average IQ scores have been increasing over time, reflecting the effects of environmental factors. Implications for the measurement of the intelligence of African American children and their educations are discussed. (SLD)

Describes the new system of financial aid at Princeton University, which is designed to blunt Princeton's image as a school for wealthy students and to increase enrollment of gifted students from working class families. Whether this will in fact increase enrollment of black students at Princeton is questioned. (SLD)

Discusses a study conducted by W. G. Bowen and D. Bok that develops hard empirical evidence about the benefits of using race-sensitive admissions to selective higher education. The database on which this study rests includes more than 80,000 undergraduates from 28 selective institutions. (SLD)

Discusses educational strategies for integrating hypermedia materials into traditional geographic instruction. Describes an undergraduate course that placed the instructor's lecture notes in a hypermedia format and included links to relevant Web sites. Students responded that the new formats resulted in clarity of presentation and access to a…

Summarizes a study where students were not given full access to the Internet, but were exposed to a variety of Internet source material downloaded onto a network fileserver, and encouraged to communicate internally and externally using electronic mail. Recommends controlled use of the Internet for both the lecturer and student. (MJP)

Discusses the implications raised by incorporating a feminist perspective into various stages and methodologies of student projects. These include choice of topic, choice of research methods, emancipatory role of the project, dilemmas experienced during fieldwork, and interpretive and writing styles used during the research process. (MJP)

Criticizes the emphasis on job and skill training that has gained recent support in the United Kingdom. Discusses the Dearing Report of 1997, a government review of the purpose and practice of higher education. Maintains that education should enhance students' critical-thinking skills. (MJP)

Presents eight papers delivered at a symposium on the impact of the Dearing Report on geography instruction in the United Kingdom. The Dearing Report reviews higher education and charts the course of curriculum and instruction for the next 20 years. The papers address standards, regional applications, and criticisms. (MJP)

Outlines much of the work accomplished by the University of Aberdeen geography department and an employer-liaison group. The group, in conjunction with local businesses, prepared seminars on developing and connecting academic geographic skills to the employment market. Lists employers involved and summarizes students' responses to the seminars.…

Describes the development and implementation of the "short and thin" model of work experience at the Middlesex University geography program. The work experience program operates during the student's final year and is both "short" (10 weeks) and "thin" (one day a week). Outline the advantages and drawbacks of this approach. (MJP)

Describes an undergraduate course that aims at increasing student awareness of the workplace, developing understanding of how environmental policies interact with working practices, and equipping students with skills for investigating and reporting employment-related environmental issues. Students conduct an environmental assessment of a…