Most learning takes place in communities, neighbourhoods and workplaces. Here practical solutions to big problems work or fall down. We may call this the iron law of social learning, recognised in "community development", "community capacity-building", "workplace", "work-based" and…

"The Wiley International Handbook of Educational Foundations" features international scholars uniquely qualified to examine issues specific to their regions of the world. The Handbook provides readers with an alternative to the traditional texts in the foundations of education by taking aim at the status quo, and by offering frameworks…

Since its establishment in 2003, the Japan Council on the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD-J) has paid close attention to informal learning processes in community-based efforts to promote local sustainable development. ESD-J carried out two projects to collect information on and visualise community-based ESD practice: the…

The Philippines, an archipelago of 7,100 islands in Southeast Asia, faces new opportunities as it competes with the rest of the world in the information and communication technology (ICT) arena. New industries including call centers, foreign medical transcription services, and the hugely popular multiplayer online gaming systems require the…

Mission schools in Africa in the first half of the twentieth century were in many ways microcosms of the great educational debates of the times. The objectives of policies regarding access, governance and curriculum were part of a historical evolution of mission education but they were also increasingly a reflection of significant new trends that…

This report highlights the main features of each talk and discussion given at the seminar and pinpoints conclusions reached. The seminar made a number of recommendations, which include: (1) that Unesco place greater emphasis in all future functional literacy projects on the importance of literacy as a factor in the civic and political education of…

The Canada-Asia Partnership used participatory action research to promote participation of marginalized communities in development. It was hampered by the positivist research model dominating academic institutions and lack of clarity and consensus among stakeholders. (SK)

Describes the challenges involved in taking distance out of the context of institutions and applying it to community development in Canada and Southeast Asia. Discusses resources facilitators used: technologies, theater and communication techniques, and the Canadian, Thai, and Filipino participants themselves. (SK)

This report on the Bernard van Leer Foundation's early childhood grant program of 1986-1987 is organized by geographic region. Regional sections cover Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, and the Western Hemisphere. Each regional section contains an introduction, a table of major projects being supported in the region, and feature articles on…

Nine representatives of Thailand, Nepal, Iran, and the Republic of Korea met in Seoul during the month of August, 1977, for a curriculum development training workshop co-sponsored by the Korean National Commission for UNESCO and the Asian Centre of Educational Innovation for Development (ACEID). One aim of the workshop was to improve the…

SUCH TRADITIONAL VISUAL MEDIA AS VILLAGE PLAYS, PUPPETRY, AND SHADOW PLAYS CAN BE CREATED LOCALLY WITH ACTIVE PARTICIPATION BY THE LEARNER AND USED EFFECTIVELY IN COMMUNITY EDUCATION AND DEVELOPMENT. OTHER VISUAL MEDIA, SUCH AS FILMS, CAN BE BEST PRODUCED NATIONALLY IN VISUAL AIDS CENTERS IF GOOD COMMUNICATIONS ARE MAINTAINED WITH THE FIELD…

The last two decades have witnessed a sudden upsurge of new institutions of higher learning in countries of Southeast Asia, and most of these institutions are located in nonmetropolitan areas. What is the nature and function of these metropolitan or regional universities? How do they relate to the metropolitan universities? What role can they play…

A study examined the academic, research, and extension programs of selected agricultural institutions in the Asia-Pacific region in order to determine the extent of their involvement and participation in promoting rural development. Questionnaires were mailed to 65 institutions in 16 countries; 28 (43.1 percent) were returned from 10 countries:…

This document provides brief descriptions of the major projects supported in 1989 by the Bernard van Leer Foundation. A total of 94 projects are covered. Each is described in terms of: (1) the sponsoring institution; (2) the title of the project; (3) the duration of project activities supported by the foundation; and (4) a description of the…

In the last 20 years, progress has been evident in the increase of enrollment in all stages of education in Asia. Tremendous efforts have been made to provide primary education for the remotest villages in the Asian communities. However, the concept that primary education is a means for fulfilling the obligations of human rights and for making…