In this paper, animated pedagogical agents are looked at from an instructional design perspective. A "support-typology" was constructed based on different dimensions on which support can be described and different roles instructional agents can assume. This typology is used to analyze currently available pedagogical agents. This analysis indicates…

The purpose of this follow-up study was to determine 14 high school graduates' perceptions of the open-informal learning environment they had experienced in elementary school. Subjects were interviewed individually on their recollections (facts and feelings) of their fifth grade year, and were shown videotaped scenes of themselves in the…

After the speaker, an elementary school principal, presents examples of what makes his school "humanistic"--open plan, emphasis on student choice, flexibility in learning/teaching styles--he presents some of the ways in which accountability is measured. Specifically, he discusses management by objectives and planning, programming,…

Nontraditional education has the following characteristics: In nontraditional education emphasis is on the student as learner, on his achievement, and on the provision of materials and processes to expedite or promote that achievement. Less emphasis is on where, and how learning occurs. The shift to an emphasis on the learner also means that the…

This study is part of a continuing program of evaluation of open vs. traditional education at the junior high school level. Incoming seventh graders were assigned to open and control groups to evaluate relative effects on academic underachievement, socialization, and general academic "success" as a function of various means of student selection.…

The Classroom Attitude Observational Schedule (CAOS) is designed to detect pattern shifts in a classroom during the absence of controlling adults. It is concerned with the independent learner who will continue school related tasks in a socially acceptable manner without supervision. The CAOS recording form notes activities and inappropriate…

The purpose of this study was to compare aspects of educational environments in elementary schools which differed in the degree to which programs were individualized flexible, and diverse; and architectures were open. Fifteen classes were assigned to the cells of a factorial design, and data on educational environments were collected from teachers…

This paper examines some of the problems associated with unquestioned teaching practices and theories ("sacred cows") in the field of reading. Topics discussed include phonics, pronunciation, oral reading, teacher accountability and behavioral objectives, individualized reading, and the open classroom. (KS)

The School for New Learning (SNL) was established in 1972 at DePaul University especially for adult students. SNL students are adults, age 24 or older, who want to accelerate their progress to a degree by using experience as well as classwork for academic credit, and who want to design their own programs with help from an advisory committee of…

Moore's Creek Open Elementary school, located in a quiet African-American neighborhood in a sun-belt city, has operated as a progressive school of choice since 1973, despite the low survival rate of public alternative schools. This study identifies forces that have affected curriculum and instruction at Moore's Creek over the past quarter century.…

This paper describes: (1) the experiences of a class of 6- and 7-year-old students as they designed and built a small farm on the Laboratory School grounds at Berry College (Georgia); (2) the understanding that comes with the relevant and meaningful experience of building a farm and raising animals; (3) the infusion of Friedrich Froebel's…

Open area designs for school buildings were adopted frequently in Australia in the 1970s, often without adequate preparation of the educators who would be using them. A study of the effects of open area designs led to the recognition that school building design warrants more serious attention as a variable in formal education than it has yet…

Miami-Dade Community College's Open College allows students to enroll in classes, purchase course materials, and proceed through coursework at their own pace without having to go to a campus except for course examinations. Three major components of the distant learning program are audio, video, and print materials which are used in conjunction…

This paper examines the argument that increased freedom of choice for students will rid education of undesirable coercion, compulsion, and conformity. Throughout her discussion, the author emphasizes that merely allowing a child to choose does not guarantee his capacity to choose. The capacity to choose presupposes not only the existence of…

Individualized instruction is an educational program in which grade levels and time units are designed to permit the student to work at his own pace and level with the use of unipacs. The unipac, a "unique package," is a specially designed group of learning activities based on specific behavioral objectives chosen by the student. Unipacs consist…