This monograph contains five studies of participation in adult education. The first paper, "Participation in Organised Adult Education: A Review of the Literature" by R. J. Sumner, examines a selection of studies conducted in England, the United States, and Australia. Chris Duke's paper which is entitled "Participation…

Devoted to the role of participation in nonformal education (NFE) activities in enhancing development, this issue consists of an article on participation in NFE activities, descriptions of participatory programs, an annotated bibliography on participation, and a review of various publications related to participation. The lead article, "Can…

Each year, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), asks thousands of schools and students to participate in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Their participation allows NCES to provide accurate information nationwide on how U.S. students perform in a variety of academic subjects. The NAEP uses a multistage…

Articles in this theme issue discuss the current status of graduate education in the United States, exploring whether there is or is not a crisis and discussing economic factors that affect participation in graduate study. Featured is the annual list of the top 100 producers of graduate degrees for black students. (SLD)

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program work requirements, part of the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) drastically limit women's opportunities to participate in postsecondary education programs while receiving TANF funds. Unlike previous laws governing Aid to Families with Dependent…

Honoring the contributions of Dr. Rand's educational research, this issue presents an editorial and 11 articles on learning and motivation. Articles deal with theories of learning and motivation as well as instructional practices in motivation, student characteristics and involvement, and educational technology. (SLD)

The 12 brief articles in this "feature" or theme issue describe successful approaches to development of outdoor education programs which successfully integrate individuals with and without disabilities. Titles and authors are: "Outdoor Education and Adventure: Challenges and Rewards for All" (Stuart J. Schleien); "Benefits of Integrated Outdoor…

Australia's public elementary and secondary education system lacks a variety of types of schools, so some educational administration students are sent on field trips to study other school and nonschool organizations. One university, for example, sends its students to a hospital, private schools and colleges, and retail stores. Before the field…

This newsletter reports the results of a study that explored the relationship between the organizational culture of secondary schools and students' progress, that is success, failure, and dropout. Three secondary schools were examined in the study, and the results showed that the organizational culture of schools is a useful concept for…

Doing something positive about youth gangs will require hard work, attitude change, and enlisting the help of many people. In addition to the many obvious causes of gangs, there are less well-known factors, such as academic achievement, that are related to youth participation in gangs. Participation in extracurricular activities helps young people…

Policy analysts approach problems of decision-making from two distinct perspectives: rational-comprehensive and incremental. This paper examines the theory behind both perspectives and argues that incrementalism may be a more appropriate strategy for applied decision-making in education. In considering the appropriateness of applying…

To overcome teacher isolation and help make teaching a more attractive profession, educators might consider a peer support system based on the Stanford Collegial Evaluation Program. This paper describes the program's background, functioning, barriers to successful implementation, and how to neutralize them. The Stanford program uses a peer…

Following a discussion of a number of objective methods of program evaluation, the author recommends a more subjective or existential model. Described briefly are the behavioral objectives model, the goal-free model, the systems analysis model, the decision-making model, the accreditation and adversary models, and the transactional model. The…

Participation by West German youth in international assistance to developing nations is examined. International assistance is interpreted to include public, private, and religious programs and projects involved in technical advancement, food distribution, agricultural development, health improvement, and natural resource development in other…

A study was conducted to analyze the sociodemographic determinants of participation, satisfaction, and persistence in American adult education in order to formulate recommendations for public policy regarding access to lifelong learning opportunities. Data were collected from questionnaire responses by a sample of 79,631 adults. Of the total…