A rationale is developed for the use of competency-based professionally oriented undergraduate education, with examples cited from the literature. The Theory-Practice Curriculum Model proposed is described in terms of its characteristics and advantages for the nontraditional student population. (Author/MSE)

A pilot study of undergraduate institutions that tests the value of the reputational rating approach, which uses subjective questionnaires, is described. It is suggested that there is no substantial evidence that quantification of subjective opinions is inferior to quantification of objective indicators when national assessments are conducted.…

Eight social work schools gave the Virginia State Merit System test for social workers to majors and nonmajors. Significant differences were found in the results among schools but little difference between majors and nonmajors. Questions are raised about the test's validity and schools are urged to review the results. (MSE)

A sample of bachelors and masters social work program curricula was examined. Great variation in quantity and content in each major curriculum area within and across levels, internal lack of integration, and inconsistency in approach were found. Discontinuity existed between bachelors and masters levels. Curriculum options are discussed.…

Professors describe their experiences with the undergraduate psychology practicum course that has been in operation for over 10 years at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Specifically discussed are planning and implementation, special problems of industrial placements, administrative issues, and the perspective of a placement agency…

Discusses how greater student diversity and rapid changes in the field of psychology increase the need for individualized, innovative teaching methods and continued professional growth. Future psychology curricula should stress information-gathering skills, problem solving, and effective communication. (AM)

Computer-assisted instruction in the College Expository Writing Program (CEWP) at the University of Colorado at Boulder is detailed. The current challenge is to develop packages that deal with the organizational, semantic, and stylistic elements of composition. (MP)

A Higher Education Research Institute pilot study of the reputations of undergraduate departments is discussed. The intent of the study was to quantify the subjective judgments of undergraduate departmental quality and to investigate the association of ratings on different criteria and for different types of institutions. (MLW)

College students evaluated teaching effectiveness at the end of course and one year after graduation. Results showed variance attributable to the specific instructor was much larger than that due either to course level or course type for both end-of-term and follow-up ratings, and the effects were stable. (Author/RL)

Central Michigan University provides an individualized bachelor's degree program for adult students. A study of participants revealed common student characteristics and five factors predicting academic success: age at entry, grade point average, credits transferred or experientially earned, learning options used, and attitude toward staff. (MSE)

A study of 14 students in a business administration course shows that peer teaching and peer evaluation may enhance student motivation, satisfaction, and achievement. Learning about oneself is found to be a valuable outcome of peer teaching. Student involvement in determining evaluation criteria is encouraged. (MSE)

Summarized are some of the concepts, historical precedents, and pertinent data which explain the existing structure of environmental engineering education in the U.S. Identified are the main issues which must be considered in planning the future directions of academia in educating the environmental engineer. (Author/SMB)

Discusses why university freshmen may be deficient in mathematics and investigates methods of diagnosis and remedy. Improvement of manipulative skills is emphasized. Deficiencies due to failure to understand concepts and notation are discussed in an appendix. (Author/SA)

A design for teaching human behavior to undergraduate social work students is described that is multidisciplinary in its knowledge base, employs a comparative and analytical approach to a variety of theoretical concepts, and is directly linked to the problem-solving competencies of practice. (Author/MLW)

Questionnaires, returned by nurses and clinical year medical students at the University of Oregon Health Sciences Center and Portland Veterans Administration hospitals, were examined to clarify how well traditional teaching strategy is meeting medical students' need to acquire competency in clinical ward skills. A need for increased and systematic…