Dissatisfaction with the quality of education in large elementary and secondary schools has been one of the factors leading to rediscovery of the small school in America. The question is whether small schools are truly better places for educating elementary and secondary students. Although often viewed as being essentially rural in nature, small…

Designed to provide mature adults in an urban setting with an alternative to the high school diploma, the External High School Diploma Program of the District of Columbia is a systematic assessment of an individual's demonstrated competencies in the four generalized life skills areas of health, social/political, consumer/producer, and career…

Kansas Balance-of-State, a CETA (Comprehensive Employment and Training Act) prime sponsor explored the possibilities of open entry-open exit in meeting the classroom training needs of clients in area vocational technical schools (AVTS). The change to open entry-open exit was found to involve consideration of flexibility and self-paced,…

An examination of the degrees of diversity in off-campus education in California is presented. An off-campus inventory, detailed questions, and questionnaires were sent to the public segments and central offices of the University and State University on a variety of topics including: curriculum; administrative mechanisms; procedures for hiring…

Results of a one-year investigation on lifelong learning by the Michigan State University Task Force on Lifelong Education are presented. Topics concern the following: current trends, a definition of lifelong education, lifelong education at Michigan State, the university's present objectives and lifelong educational arrangements, major academic…

A survey of the 49 students who had enrolled in a self-paced, variable-entry data processing course offered by Black Hawk College (BHC) in cooperation with area public libraries was conducted to determine whether the course was serving the students for whom it was intended, that is, non-major, adult students who were employed full-time and for…

The role of college student personnel administration in serving adult learners is considered. Historical trends in the student personnel function and the philosophy that student personnel workers are educators who create programs that contribute to the student's overall educational growth are examined. Changes for the student development personnel…

Inability to relate classroom experiences to the real world in the community was greatly impeding the learning process for some students. Other students were eager to gain career experiences in the community, yet were unable to do so because of an inflexible school schedule. In an effort to offer these students more relevant learning experiences,…

Models for assessing prior learning or noncollege learning are discussed. The increasing variety of interests, ages, and levels of maturity among prospective college students requires that higher education institutions face the issue of granting credit for noncollege learning. It is suggested that the key issue for colleges and universities is how…

Information on establishing and running a free university is presented in this handbook. A free university is defined as an organization offering ungraded, unaccredited classes, activities and programs to the general public. Information on starting the free university includes: how to determine the needs of your community; deciding on a name and…

The Alternative Learning Experiences (ALE) Program at Whatcom Community College was designed to provide opportunities for students to pursue educational goals outside the traditional classroom, specifically through the use of learning contracts, advising services, on-the-job training programs, correspondence courses, and competency-based…

A Career Orientation Program (COP) which provides exploratory work experience as well as classroom career instruction is described. The program is part of the High School in the Community (HSC), New Haven, Connecticut, an alternative school designed to provide a choice of learning environments within the public school system. Four components…

This report contains three topic centered studies. Each provides a description of the similarities and differences between four elementary alternative schools: a free school, an open school, a continuous progress school, and a contemporary school. Dimensions of the instructional process provide a comparison of the four instructional programs in…

The New York State program of student financial assistance is broad and comprehensive, comprising an extensive network of low-tuition public colleges, scholarships for outstanding high school graduates, tuition assistance grants for use at public and independent colleges, and guaranteed loans to college students. The present scholarship and…

The traditional methods of university education and some alternative approaches are considered in light of the course needs of both students and teacher. The self-teaching system is examined in the overall context of the learning process. This is followed by three case studies of the development and use of self-teaching systems, one for chemical…