The annual report of the U.S. Department of Education includes the Secretary of Education's report, and program-by-program analysis of the agency's principal operating components: the Office of the Secretary; the Office of the Under Secretary; the Office of Inspector General; the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education; the Office of Special…

University education should be more widely available to people who are older and less traditionally qualified than the matriculated, predominantly middle-class students of most universities. Two institutions with open admissions policies, the British Open University and the University of Paris Vincennes, are discussed. (MLW)

Provides practical suggestions for the creation of a positive psychological climate, which is necessary to the success of high risk students. Included are strategies for encouraging student participation, fostering a success orientation, and relating to adult students. A list of references is included. (JP)

Britain's Open University is described as an open admissions university that does not compromise academic standards, a technological system that delivers a traditional education, and a distance learning institution that approximates on a mass scale the tutorial relationship of older British universities. (MLW)

A 24-month study of 96 patients in a community-based oral health promotion project found the Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI), a self-report measure of oral health, to be sensitive to provision of dental care. Some further development of measures is needed. Potential applications of this and similar self-report measures in dental…

Discussion of cable television focuses on its use in the classroom. Topics include the learning environment; design, preparation, and delivery of instruction; teacher-learner interactions; examples of cable television use in the classroom; program development; equipment infrastructure; costs; and current trends and federal legislation. (LRW)

Maintains that the entire field of adult music instruction outside of traditional education largely has been ignored by education researchers. Argues that this field is particularly productive in transmitting musical culture within ethnic communities. Identifies some of the organizations available: church choirs, community bands, singing groups,…

Emphasizes that applied linguistics, especially within the context of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) instruction, faces a critical juncture and that publishing activities will influence the assessment of the discourses available to reconceptualize the field. Examines the process of editing an article about teaching the Gulf War to ESL students…

Five studies examined the effect of dysphoric mood on perceivers' subjective unitization of an observed other's ongoing behavior into discrete meaningful actions. Dysphoria generally reduced unitization rate (i.e., number of actions discriminated). Additional evidence indicates this reduction results from failure to initiate a higher (more…

Examines some aspects of English and Lebanese-Arabic adult responses to child answers, exploring the way the use of preferred communication strategies reflects culturally based assumptions about learning and guiding learning. The article argues that adults who regularly deal with young children develop preferred interactive strategies deriving…

Current admission criteria for graduate and professional programs are discussed, their validity in predicting graduate student success is examined, and a potentially more effective model for predicting the success of various student groups (women, minorities, older students) is outlined. Innovative admission criteria and procedures are also…

Models the spread of linguistic change by taking account of the ages of the acquirers and transmitters of change. The article focuses on three interlocutor combinations: parent-infant/young child, peer group-preadolescent and older adolescent/adult-adolescent. Findings suggest that borrowings are the easiest to acquire, while lexically…

Examines children's uses of nominal determiners ("local markings") and utterance structure ("global markings") to introduce new referents through the use of narratives elicited from preschoolers, elementary school students and adults in English, French, German and Mandarin Chinese. Findings reveal that local markings emerge first, and local and…

Used meta-analysis to examine relationship of parents' gender schemas and their offspring's gender-related cognitions, with samples ranging in age from infancy through early adulthood. Found a small but meaningful effect size (r=.16) indicating a positive correlation between parent gender schema and offspring measures. Effect sizes were influenced…

Clarifies the concept of universal basic education. Highlights the need for performance criteria and ways to measure literacy attainment. Identifies issues related to improving primary education, seeing adult literacy as its necessary complement. Underscores the substantial resources required to achieve universal basic education. (CH)