Lasley shows how American culture fosters selfishness, aggression, and violence. He believes that selflessness can and should be taught in the home and in the schools as an antidote to the individualism and tribalism that multicultural diversity can lead to. Without a certain cultural and personal respect for the other, the myriad racial, ethnic, and ideological differences could tear American society apart. Lasley uses ethnological examples of non-Western societies that stress nonviolence to elucidate models of peaceful behavior. He provides ways and means of teaching peaceful principles by using the literature of altruism and the images of service and other-directed activities.

Education of America s school children always has been and always will be a hot-button issue. From what should be taught to how to pay for education to how to keep kids safe in schools, impassioned debates emerge and mushroom, both within the scholarly community and among the general public. This volume in the point/counterpoint Debating Issues in American Education reference series tackles the topic of standards and accountability in schools. Fifteen to twenty chapters explore such varied issues as assessment (of students, of teachers), basic-skills testing, high-stakes exams, NCLB and its legacy, pay-for-performance, standard vs. alternative teacher certification, and more. Each chapter opens with an introductory essay by the volume editor, followed by point/counterpoint articles written and signed by invited experts, and concludes with Further Readings and Resources, thus providing readers with views on multiple sides of standards and accountability issues and pointing them toward more in-depth resources for further exploration."

Education has fought long and hard to gain acceptance as a profession and, since professionals by definition use data to shape the decisions they make, education has little choice but to continue moving in this direction. This 3-part handbook represents a major contribution to the literature of education. It is a unique compendium of the most original work currently available on how, when and why evidence should be used to ground practice. It is a comprehensive, cross-disciplinary, research-based, and practice-based resource that all educators can turn to as a guide to data-based decision making.

The Handbook of Data-Based Decision Making in Education is a must read for researchers who are just beginning to explore the scientifically based nature of educational practice. It is also appropriate for policy makers and practitioners who are confronted with young people who need to be in classrooms where "best practices" are the norm and not the exception.

Education has fought long and hard to gain acceptance as a profession and, since professionals by definition use data to shape the decisions they make, education has little choice but to continue moving in this direction. This 3-part handbook represents a major contribution to the literature of education. It is a unique compendium of the most original work currently available on how, when and why evidence should be used to ground practice. It is a comprehensive, cross-disciplinary, research-based, and practice-based resource that all educators can turn to as a guide to data-based decision making.

The Handbook of Data-Based Decision Making in Education is a must read for researchers who are just beginning to explore the scientifically based nature of educational practice. It is also appropriate for policy makers and practitioners who are confronted with young people who need to be in classrooms where "best practices" are the norm and not the exception.