A pilot study into adult learners' perceptions of adult learning was undertaken in early 1980 at Adelaide College of the Arts and Education (Australia). The research set out to explore whether there are underlying dimensions which adult learners use in evaluating and comparing learning experiences. Five volunteer subjects completed Kolb's Learning…

Reflecting on the contributions to individual education that literature study should make, this paper synthesizes some major directions taken by contemporary literary critics, examines the cognitive requirements for real learning, and puts these considerations into perspective as a goal for the teaching of literature. The major theories of…

To enhance the professional development of teachers and encourage an ongoing climate of innovation and reform, while providing for direct benefits for students, Australia's Schools Commission instituted a program allowing funds for curricular innovation to be granted directly to teachers. Interviews with a random sample of 45 of these grantees,…

The main purpose of this essay is to articulate a conceptual framework for early mental development. The content of the essay is based on a review of psychoanalytic literature and includes an attempt to integrate preverbal developmental data with the constructs of psychoanalytic theory. The view is taken that object constancy and the capacity to…

An overview of some educational implications of brain related research indicates that new insights can be gained from brain research. Four areas of study appear to be promising. First, the study of the evolution of the brain involves theories derived mostly from sociobiology, which is the study of the social behavior of animals, including humans…

Although incompatible differences appear to exist between psychoanalytic therapy, which involves a hierarchical relationship, and feminism, which stresses egalitarian values, some versions of psychoanalytic theory are able to maintain their hierarchy within a context consistent with feminist values. Freud touched on the importance of the…

This paper focuses on the dilemma of job immobility for the married professional woman who, by subordinating mobility to her marriage, faces a problem of professional growth within the constraints of a fixed location. Solutions to this problem are suggested, using an immobile married female psychologist as an example. An adaptation of the "Twenty…

Professionalism and its relationship to scholarly productivity was studied. Specific areas of analysis were the degree of professionalism of criminal justice educators, rankings of a series of selected publications, and the relationship between professionalism level and journal productivity. Data were derived from responses by 1,028 of 1,274…

This manual contains classroom exercises which can be used to supplement each chapter of the story "Mark," (ED 189 016) designed to help adolescents formulate a philosophy of values. The purpose of both "Mark" and "Social Inquiry" is to identify key social issues in the social sciences and expose students to the conflicting concepts at the heart…

The Omaha Teacher Corps Project has developed a comprehensive evaluation plan involving not only concrete data but individual behavior as well. Its evaluation program consists of seven levels of evaluation: inputs, activities, participation, reaction, learning, practice change, and end result. (Six exhibits illustrate the logistical matters…

This paper examines the strengths and weaknesses of liberal education and and considers options for articulation between them in higher education. While the two fields seem unrelated, closer inspection of how each field defines itself and views its goals and objectives leads to the conclusion that they have many similar processes and affective…

A 5-week, 12-hour course given to the community emphasized understanding and coping with stress. At the beginning of the course several inventories were administered to the students, who also completed the instruments in a follow-up procedure 10-12 weeks after the end of the seminar. The course focused on recognition of stress signals and the…

The use of student journals in teaching introductory psychology was investigated at Kansas State University. Students in both a small honors class and a large general psychology lecture were asked to keep a journal with at least one entry weekly. While they were encouraged to relate course material to their own lives, nothing was restricted. The…

The story is a powerful but largely unused tool in the initial preparation and continuing development of the teacher. Teachers know much of reality through stories. However, the exact contribution of the story to the teachers' understanding of their work and development are hidden. Positive effects of teacher story telling include: (1) the…

During the heightened self-consciousness of adolescence, reevaluation and modifications in self-perceptions and sex-role orientations generally take place. Therefore, a developmental perspective is needed to investigate the adoption of sex-typed, cross sex-typed, or non sex-typed attitudes and behaviors. Young women (N=226) responded to a…