A cross-cultural study of conversational politeness in Chinese and English as a foreign language is presented. The primary goals of the study were to make a systematic comparison of politeness rules and conversational strategies used in each language, to identify and analyze the actual communicative problems of cross-cultural communication…

In 1987, the department of Rio San Juan was declared the first "illiteracy-free territory" in Nicaragua, since it had reduced its rate of illiteracy from 96 percent in 1979 to 3.7 percent. This regional literacy crusade was made possible by the facts that the necessary facilities had been provided; a network of consultative committees…

Intended for use with college students, this booklet contains a traditional Hupa story (in Hupa and English) followed by information to aid in a critical literary analysis of the story and topics for student discussion. The introduction explains that "Origin of Fire"--first written down by P.E. Goddard in 1902 and still told by…

Over the last 15 years, parent education programs have emerged that teach parents what they need to know and do in order to put their children at a psychosocial advantage in society. The Culturally Adapted Parent Training Project, initiated by the Center for the Improvement of Child Caring, was developed to adapt existing programs to meet the…

As exemplified by New Zealand, the nature of educational policy research is shaped by political and social factors that impinge upon the research environment. Following a description of the educational system and research funding methods, this paper analyzes three areas that affect policy research in New Zealand and addresses relevant social…

A discussion of classroom techniques and activities useful in teaching English to monolingual Arab students begins with a review of cultural factors significant in the second language learning patterns of this population. These factors include historical and traditional influences, North American perceptions of Arabs, the teaching of English in…

Because teacher expectations and student learning styles may conflict in a multicultural class, teachers should examine ways to meet the needs of multicultural students. In Western educational institutions, instruction is planned for incremental learning, students are expected to complete their assignments on time, and the classroom is…

During the 1960's, the nations of the world strove to provide access to schools, especially primary schools, to all children, on the assumption that education was a necessary and sufficient precondition for economic development. This faith gave way, in the 1970's and 1980's, to worldwide skepticism about the linkage between education and economic…

As part of Australia's Education and Local Development project, Tasmanian researchers investigated whether the upgrading of district schools to district high schools had contributed to the social, economic, and cultural development of the local areas. For three selected areas (Glenora, Sheffield, and Ouse), researchers gathered financial and…

An outgrowth of earlier research on historical and contemporary adult education in Greece, this paper provides highlights of the relationship between the state and adult education in that country. The highlights are organized by the following historical periods: prehistory (c. 3000-1100 B.C.); early and archaic Greece (c. 1100-700 B.C.);…

A comprehensive, interactive conference was designed to help improve the quality of external degree programs and adult education. Sixteen papers are presented as follows: (1) "Designing Self-Instructional Print Material for the Adult Learner" (Diane J. Davis); (2) "Degrees by Alternative Delivery for U.S. Soldiers and Sailors"…

This paper promotes discussion by native community groups of the meaning of physical and mental health, the differences between treatment and prevention, and how education contributes to disease and health of children. Education's role in disease prevention is defined as helping the learner respond appropriately to stress arising from the…

Orientation materials for prospective teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) in Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries contains information about factors affecting EFL teaching in the classroom. Topics discussed include religion, family, politics, education, English-Arabic language differences, teaching approaches, and the…

Through the Arizona Chapter of the Association of American Indian Social Workers, a panel of key social workers was selected to act as the American Indian Curriculum Task Force. The Task Force developed an appropriate schema whereby American Indian content areas relevant to social work could be identified, presented, and clarified. The four major…

Development, implementation, and teaching of a college-level course on dying and death are described. The authors review their own experiences in becoming involved with death education and describe teaching methods, problems, and content of their current course in dying and death at the State University of New York, College at New Paltz. Because…