Two community learning programs that use a professional development center approach to teacher education are described. In one, preservice teachers become part of a school community by participating in real classroom settings; the second, offering a laboratory classroom for elementary school children, brings education professors and students into…

Compares two groups of Mexican Americans with high social standing and educational achievements, but opposing world views: a small group of conservative thinkers who oppose affirmative action and believe mobility in American society devolves from individual merit, and the 1960s Chicana/o political generation, which has gained no prominence in the…

The Florida International University College of Engineering and Design developed a program of incentives and rewards for undergraduate instruction. Full-time faculty with above-average teaching productivity (measured by students taught, classes taught, new courses established, new course preparations designed) were asked to submit portfolios,…

The forgotten or unknown history of discrimination against Franco-Americans in the United States is chronicled. The patterns of discrimination began before World War I but became particularly intense after that war. While discrimination occurred within higher education, faculty have also been instrumental in combating it, and are urged to continue…

One college teacher's strategy for teaching multicultural education and creating a classroom climate that promotes critical thinking and exploration of feelings, thoughts, and opinions is described. Faculty are encouraged to examine their own moral and ethical views of multiculturalism, actively and supportively listen to students, and model…

Describes an approach to faculty development that relies on faculty learning from one another through peer observation. Rather than equating such observation with evaluating a colleague's performance, faculty observers are urged to approach the assignment as "students of teaching." (DB)

Recounts how the part-time faculty at Chicago's Columbia College (Illinois) dramatically improved salaries and gained a strong voice in college decision making through unionization. Emphasis is on the negotiation process which worked to obtain the group's goals without undermining the "rather friendly college environment." (DB)

Confusion over the role to be played by technology in college instruction is common, with administration sometimes in opposition to faculty over transformation of courses into courseware and the action of teaching into commercially viable property. The major proponents of such a transformation include vendors of network hardware, software, and…

Interviews with 21 state legislators, leading technology activists in their states, reveal that policymakers are feeling pressured to ensure that all education sectors have access to the best in educational technology and are attempting to reconcile the costs of such innovation with the educational benefits. Findings of the study, including…

Describes the rise of an academic-industrial complex through which American and multinational corporations siphon the publicly created resources of universities and thereby convert publicly financed research into private gain. Asserts that this new corporate dominance represents an unprecedented intrusion into the heart of academic freedom which…

Describes how collective bargaining has emerged as an important factor in higher education, with some faculty resisting unionism as a threat to status and dignity. Seeks to refute the source of such resistance, the "myth of academe," or the belief that faculty lead lives devoted to selfless pursuit of knowledge in institutions carefully…

Discusses how in addition to developing students' individual aptitudes, education must help students understand their connections to the world at large. Describes the connections that should be illuminated for students and the role of teachers in this process. (EV)

Describing economic and professional marginalization of adjunct faculty and reluctance of tenured colleagues and administrators to work for change, calls for institutional caps on percentage of courses taught by adjuncts, a pay rate closer to 75 percent of tenured salary rather than the current 25 percent, and time limits on adjuncts teaching full…

Asserts that despite attempts by critics of higher education to use tenure as a scapegoat for a plethora of institutional shortcomings, there is no persuasive evidence that tenured faculty aren't doing their jobs. Describes the need for and benefits of tenure, argues against its critics, and calls for more attention toward creating organizational…

Describes changes and program cuts at the University of Rochester as an illustration of a university being invaded by the corporate ethos, with the result that the school resembles an airport mall more than an institution of learning and community. Asserts that academics have a particular role to play in creating alternatives to a homogenizing…