This idea book comes from projects undertaken by American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) chapters and state and local retired teachers associations around the United States. The projects described range from simple acts performed by one volunteer to elaborate schemes funded by corporations, from involvement in existing programs to the…

As schools guide students in acquiring the skills and knowledge necessary to become responsible citizens, the question arises as to how they can better go about providing them with a well-rounded education: academically, socially, and emotionally. Providing Resource Opportunities with Learning (P.R.O.W.L.) suggests the following solutions: (1)…

This guide was developed to share successful Community Service Learning (CSL) instructional practices. It presents units that can be replicated and adapted for varying grade levels and curricular goals. The guide notes that as students use newly acquired academic knowledge and skills to address real issues in their communities, they often gain…

This document describes three different programs at three California Community Colleges, each of which has as its aim to improve their ability to serve an expanding and increasingly diverse student population. The programs are: (1) Project MATCH (Mentors Act To Change History) at the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD); (2) The Disabled…

This report presents findings from Phase 1 of an evaluation of the New York City Beacons initiative, a school-community-family partnership model initiated in 1991. Beacons are community centers within public schools that offer activities and services to people of all ages before and after school, in the evenings, and on weekends. Research included…

Paper draws on observations of a community organization that focuses on educational reform. (Author)

In the University of Toledo/Springfield Local Schools Project, school districts, community councils, and teacher education institutions collaborated to assess school improvement needs and design personnel development programs. Results of this Teacher Corps program are described. (PP)

Describes the benefits of community-based career education and offers suggestions on setting up a program. Discusses locating and recruiting community resources, placement of students in the community site, follow-up interviews and other liaison activities which help students apply academic knowledge, test the feasibility of plans and develop…

Describes a San Francisco, California, science museum whose design is based on the exploration of perception. The museum is arranged in sections on patterns, light color, eye logic, third dimension, sound, hearing, electricity, and the tactile gallery. Programs include teacher training, student learning experience, field trips and study projects,…

The Teacher Corps Project at Jarrett School in Hawaii attempts to coordinate the major elements of the educational system: the Department of Education, the University of Hawaii, and the local community, through the process of collaboration. Part of a theme issue on community education in Hawaii. (Author/SJL)

This introductory article in a special issue on mentoring as a means to prevent school failure looks at the beginnings of mentoring in the United States, recent growth of mentoring programs, similarities and differences in mentoring programs, sources of funding for mentoring programs, what works and what does not, and the future of mentoring…

Uses a critical postmodern analysis to examine the range of thinking and contemporary practice in the field of service learning. Introduces a new schema, discourse-praxis community, as a way to conceptualize the field and to reexamine issues such as diversity, historicity, conflict, and power. (SM)

Currently, youth services are uncoordinated, youth workers are underpaid, and youth programs survive on hand-to-mouth funding. Although schools touch every child's life, they cannot singlehandedly repair this damaged youth ecosystem. Community development, a necessary partner in education reform efforts, will enmesh schools with other agencies in…

Describes a conflict resolution program now being used in many schools. Offers practical advice for addressing conflicts and lists ways that schools and communities can work together to resolve conflicts in creative ways. Provides vignettes that show how the program works. (RJM)