A questionnaire responded to by 424 students was intended to find out the ways in which the needs and experiences of 19,000 lifelong learners enrolled in the Lifelong Learning Society (LLS) at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) meshed with the goals of the LLS. Of those students, 44 participated in a follow-up interview. These were the goals of the…

Ideas about what constitutes work, the ways work is organized, the tools used in work, and the relationship between work and the other components of life are all changing rapidly. The implications of these changes for vocational education and training (VET) in Australia and elsewhere were examined. The following issues were considered: (1) the…

New apprenticeships were introduced to Australia in January 1998 to provide practical training opportunities to a wider range of people than the traditional trade-based apprenticeship system did. The effect of the new apprenticeship initiative on the type of employment-based training being undertaken in Australia was studied by analyzing data from…

Studies of 29 welfare reform initiatives conducted by the Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation were synthesized in an exploration of how welfare and work policies affect employment and income. Each of the studies reviewed focused on one or more of the following key program features: mandatory employment services, earnings supplements, and…

The professional development strategies and activities of vocational education and training staff at further education (FE) colleges in the United Kingdom were examined through a mail survey completed by 891 staff members at 108 colleges throughout the United Kingdom (representing 24% of the FE sector). Most respondents (92%) stated that their…

This document contains four papers on organizational enhancement and human resource development (HRD). "Motivation to Improve Work through Learning in Human Resource Development" (Sharon S. Naquin, Elwood F. Holton III) argues that HRD's traditional conceptualization of motivation should be expanded to incorporate motivation to use…

In this report, the role of women's community education in combating poverty and disadvantage in Ireland over the past 10 years was examined, and future directions for policy and practice were suggested. The following data collection approaches were used: literature and policy document reviews; case studies involving regional workshops with…

The barriers to male participation in education and training initiatives in Ireland were examined in a qualitative study. The data collection methods were as follows: (1) semi-structured focus groups with a total of 41 men participating in training initiatives at five sites across Ireland; (2) in-depth interviews with 20 of the men; (3) a…

These six issues contain the following articles: "The Bright Side of the U.S. Teacher Shortage" (Thomas Nixon); "Sharing Power in the Classroom" (Patricia Richard-Amato); "Content for Conversation Partners" (Kathleen Olson); "English Language Teaching in Indonesia" (Bachrudin Musthafa); "Working to Make…

The future of low-wage jobs is examined through a case study of firm restructuring in the retail industry. The study confirms that the retailing sector has come to be dominated by the Wal-Mart model, which emphasizes an efficient technology-driven inventory management system and a human resource approach that includes the following elements:…

The business press abounds with examples of innovative companies that have created high-quality jobs; however, low-wage, deskilled jobs filled by contingent workers are equally prevalent. More than one in six U.S. workers currently hold retail jobs. The effect of globalization of trade on the retail industry is unclear. The most significant…

This document contains three papers from a symposium on workplace issues that was conducted as part of a conference on human resource development (HRD). "Maximizing Opportunities for the Aging Workforce through Workplace Design" (Virginia W. Kupritz), reports on the second phase of study of the office design features needed to provide…

This report examines trends in the well-being of Hawaii's families during the 1990s. Section 1 provides an overview of several demographic characteristics of Hawaii's families, including mean age at first marriage, percent of marriages involving spouses of different ethnicity, percent of families with more than two generations in household,…

Self esteem has been a buzzword in the 1990s but what exactly is self esteem? How is it formed? Can self esteem be raised? How? This book addresses these questions and includes specialized chapters on children, gender, transitions, parents' self esteem, and measurement of self esteem. Many people want to change how they feel about themselves but…

This collection of 38 papers has as its focus adult learners, and covers a wide range of topics including: electronic peer networks; workplace training (in Australia); health professional accreditation; students with disabilities; vertically integrated courses; balancing instructional modes through journal writing and student collaboration;…