This paper summarizes the main results of a meta-evaluation of innovative education programs in Dutch education. Attention is focused on contextual influences, while a case is made for prudent and feasible ways of "rational reconstruction" and for an acitve evaluation policy aimed at overcoming contextual constraints. (LMO)

Reviews three books that make a contribution to the study of French educational history. Themes include provincial French education (Robert Gildea, 1985), liberal reform (Sandra Horvath-Peterson, 1984), and Renaissance public schools (George Huppert, 1984). (TRS)

Analyzes role of faculty in schools of library and information science by reviewing the historical record to demonstrate changing faculty mandate in relation to research, public policy development, and teaching. Discussion covers library school faculty's qualifications, teaching modes, attitudes, and fight to gain acceptance of research in library…

Three topics were discussed at the October 1983 meeting of the International Institute for Educational Planning: (1) the relationship between education and science and technology, (2) educational planning with regard to both formal and nonformal education, and (3) links between educational planning and decision making and educational databases.…

Researchers need to determine the conditions necessary for learning effectively from and the type of information best presented by new technologies, how electronic learning differs from print learning, what conditions foster successful teaching with new technologies, how lives will be changed, and what public policy issues are likely to arise. (RM)

Outlines the foundations of the qualitative and quantitative approaches to research and discusses the implications of these two completely different approaches in educational research. Points out they are not complementary as they are separate scientific paradigms.(MD)

The United States has experienced a significant increase in educational attainment since the 1970s. Young adults in school today are more likely than their parents to finish high school, attend college, and graduate from college. Yet, in California the share of working-age adults who do not have a high school diploma or certificate of General…

College of the Canyons, California, is the only public institution of higher learning in the Santa Clarita Valley, and serves a 367-square mile area. This publication addresses the issues of planning, long-range strategic goals, and decision-making as they pertain to the College. The College has identified the strategic goals areas for 1998-2001…

Croatia has still not established a system of adult educator training. A large part of the problem in development of adult education studies is that Croatia retained the idea that andragogy is a pedagogic subject; also, some believed andragogy was an import from the West. Significant progress has been made since the 1950s when Croatia rebelled…

Since the mid-1970s, participatory research (PR) has provided an alternative approach to those development systems that rely on outside experts and implement predetermined solutions. PR empowers disadvantaged people by recognizing them as co-researchers working together to gather information and implement solutions to their problems. This paper…

The purpose of this study was to determine if the developmental studies courses and the sequential program of developmental studies courses offered at North Harris Montgomery Community College District (NHMCCD) in Texas adequately prepared students for academic success in the first college-level English and/or mathematics courses. All…

This anthology is intended to serve as an introduction to some of the big issues that shaped and continue to shape policy, practice, and debate over public schooling. Perspectives on these issues are presented in 32 chapters: (1) "The Educational Situation" (John Dewey); (2) "Progress or Regress?" (David Tyack and Larry Cuban);…

In this issue, we explore how community partnerships to support formal learning and development matter and how they can be created and sustained. In "Research Update," we discuss the results of a new report and poll on 21st century skills that affirms that every student needs a "basics plus" education that pushes beyond core academic knowledge to…

The purpose of this research was to describe and better understand the experiences of first- and second-year college students (18-21 years old) attending a university catering to a rural population in a mid-Eastern state. A 31-question survey addressed 6 areas of development: building friendships, community, exclusive relationships, self…

This volume examines learning in the age of technology, describes changing practices in technology-rich classrooms, and proposes new ways to support teachers as they incorporate technology into their work. It commemorates the eleventh anniversary of the Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT) Project, when Apple Computer, Inc., in partnership with a…