CONNECTIONS: POLITICAL IDEOLOGIES: A SERIES OF INDEPENDENT STUDY ACTIVITIES DESIGNED TO DEVELOP THE CONCEPTS UNDERLYING INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL IDEOLOGIES. Shier-Sorrie, Beverley A. and Brenda E. Willoughby. Cambridge (Ont.). Encyclopedia Britannica Publications, 1986, 58pp. loose-leaf, $12.95. Distributed by Britannica Learning Materials, P.O. Box 2249. Cambridge, Ont., N3C 3N4. No ISBN or CIP. Grades 9 and up Reviewed by Louise Dick Volume 15 Number 4 1987 July In addition to the title page objective, the introduction to Connections cites the goal of acquisition and development of "information retrieval skills." specifically "the use of the encyclopedia." Topics are "Why Do Governments Exist?," anarchism, communism, democracy, fascism, nazism, socialism, and "Predicting Governments of the Future." Each has introductory factual information and a list of personalities followed by activities of varying complexity designed "for students of all levels-basic, general, advanced, and enriched." Content is suitable for an intermediate level civics unit; there are appropriate suggestions for contrast and comparison lo the Canadian scene. Political segments of senior level modern western civilization courses could also incorporate or select from all topics. In terms of independent study and research skills the package may have some drawbacks. Many activities (brainstorming, debates, interviews, simulations) call for large or small group work. Introductory sections are simple but frequently suffer from bad punctuation and awkward structure and share the advantages and disadvantages of reliance on specific sources (Champion's Encyclopedia, Encyclopedia Britannica, The Canadian Encyclopedia.) Activity instructions direct students to these sources, often citing specific volumes and pages. Page 1 notes: "The dictionary gives many meanings . . . ." It might also be valuable to note that there are many dictionaries and many encyclopedias. Subject teachers and teacher-librarians could jointly plan activities that would not channel students to a few specific sources. If the requisite expenditure of time is an impossibility, perhaps adaptation or modification of the package would be permissible and helpful. Louise Dick, Branksome Hall, Toronto, Ont.