Examines virtual reality (VR), and discusses the dilemma of defining VR, the limitations of the current technology, and the implications of VR for education. Highlights include a VR experience; human factors and the interface; and altered reality versus VR. (Author/AEF)

Discusses insights from both the instructional design community and members of research groups seeking to transform typical classrooms into "learning communities," and encourages discussion among members of these two communities. Gives an overview of frameworks for instructional design, and the principles of learning communities. (71…

Examines two systems for quality assurance in nursing education, based on total quality management. The first is concerned with what needs to be done to achieve goals and objectives, based on quality characteristics associated with nurse education. The second considers how things should be done and how to translate policy statements into educator…

Explores the concepts of culture and design to characterize design culture, i.e., a pattern of behavior that integrates design thinking, language, principles, and methods. The importance of the development of a design culture is discussed, including design literacy and design competence, and implications for the educational community are…

Offers a brief history of Louisiana, highlighting the establishment of Catholic schools by missionaries before the development of public schools. Covers the French and Spanish, and Black Catholics in Louisiana, the Code Noir and the missionary church, the beginning of public schooling, north Louisianan schools, and the civil war. (DMM)

Discusses the history of the field of instructional design and technology in the United States. Includes a definition, major features, rational for using instructional design and technology as the label for the field, history of instructional media from 1900 to the present, effects media have had on instructional practices, and the effect…

This article is a workshop report and exploration of interim outcomes related to the role and significance of online teachers and exposes a range of ways of understanding online teaching, including from competency, humanistic and cognitive perspectives. The main body of the report concentrates on a competency-based approach. (JMK)

Looks at how the study of gerontology is evolving into a more interdisciplinary field. Reviews the benefits and risks of this transition in light of the historical development of other disciplines. Notes that the paradigm development in gerontology and the success of gerontology PhD programs have accelerated development of an interdisciplinary…

Provides an assessment of international education as a discipline, and outlines the global security framework. Examines how this framework is reflected in the forms of analysis used by international educationists. Suggests how the central purpose of global security, namely ensuring human survival, could be adopted within international education to…

Key features of the Shiksha Karmi model of primary education are (1) takeover and reform of troubled schools; (2) creation of new schools; (3) investment in training village teachers; (4) school-community linkages built on volunteerism; (5) gender equity; and (6) combination of formal and nonformal institutions. (Author/SK)

Presents the application of curriculum revision at Wesleyan College, a small single-gender nationally-recognized liberal arts college in central Georgia. Reexamines the communication major in terms of its scope and function on campus. Discusses problems encountered in the curriculum revision process. Submits this account to serve both as a guide…

Since the last decades of the 20th century, the teaching and learning environment at colleges and universities has been expanding significantly beyond the standard space-bound classroom. In addition to online and distance learning opportunities, many students have taken part in structured experiential learning that has given them opportunities to…

Private tutoring is a growing industry that is being transformed by an evolution from "shadow education" provision into "learning center" franchises. Traditional shadow educators closely follow the school curriculum, offering short-term homework help and test preparation. Learning centers develop their own curricular and…

At the UN Millennium Assembly in 2000 global leaders committed themselves to eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Seven of these goals were set for achievement in 2015, including the achievement of universal primary education. Only one goal was set for 2005: the achievement of gender parity in primary and secondary education. There was good…

Chemistry became the ''central science'' not by design but by accident in the US high schools. The three important factors, which had their influence on the high school science, are sequenced and their impact on the development of US science education, are mentioned.