In 2007, the author examined existing academic libraries in the United States to determine best practices for the design, implementation and service of learning commons facilities. A primary objective of this study was to discover how to create a higher education learning environment that sustains scholarship, encourages collaboration and empowers…

The flexible environment of nonformal primary schools in a community context in Bangladesh facilitates the individual development of young people who would otherwise be excluded from the school system. This paper aims to explore the features of institutional and wider context which support this nonformal learning environment, as well as…

The integration of art and instruction at the secondary level has not been promoted as a school reform as much as it might be. One reason for the lack of attention paid to the integration of arts and academics may be that the relationship between leadership traits and this interdisciplinary approach has not been defined. The purpose of this study…

High-quality out-of-school-time (OST) programs have a positive effect on youth development, but many cities have found it difficult to address the challenges of expanding and improving the quality of programs offered to underserved and high-need students. In response, The Wallace Foundation sponsored an initiative to help five cities increase…

Emerging adulthood is a period in which profound role changes take place across a number of life domains including finance, romance, and residence. On the basis of dynamic systems theory, change in one domain should be related to change in another domain, because the concept of development according to this approach is a relational one. To…

The Systems Theory Framework (STF) facilitates the inclusion of relevant aspects of multiple existing theories within an integrated framework, wherein relevance and meaning is decided upon by each individual. Patton and McMahon emphasise that the application of the Systems Theory Framework in integrating theory and practice is located within the…

From his review of research on consultation, Zins (1995) concluded (a) that a paradigm shift to a more prevention-oriented approach was necessary; (b) that systems-level consultation held significant potential; and (c) that systems-level consultation had the most data to support its use in preventive efforts. This commentary reviews promising…

The adherence of traditional developmental theories to a linear paradigm is incompatible with the nature of "spirit". Dynamic Systems Theory (DST), a recent contributor to understanding child development, offers an alternative which avoids these paradigmatic limitations. Concepts of agency, "top-down" causality, emergence and…

Five key but integrated functions of the educational technologist are identified and described in detail: learning consultant, educational materials producer, manager of learning resources, educational systems developer, and educational planner. (Author/HB)

Important in the study of rhetorical history, systems theory advocates the reading of rhetorical works in their original climates, employing a macroscopic perspective and defining research problems with reference to rhetorical systems, including the rhetoric embodied in the treatise as well as in other treatises of the place or period. The total…

The Commission on Instructional Technology, in their deliberations, must face a current pessimism among those involved in adapting technology to education. C. F. Hoban lists a number of factors that are responsible for this, and which indicate that many problems of instructional technology are not intrinsic and peculiar to it, but are part of…

Explains principles of Kenneth Boulding which Boulding considered important for the understanding of social and political organizations and applies these ideas to systems theories of personality. Discusses principles of opposition, defense, polylithy, size, and persistence. Concludes that principle derived from Boulding's analysis of organizations…

Examines the constructs of individuation, differentiation, and identity formation from the individual development and family system theory perspectives. States that individuation and identity formation process encompass both the individual's efforts toward separation from family of origin and impact of these efforts on identity formation and the…