A 4-year longitudinal study of English 15-19 year-olds' learning experiences was used as the basis for the development of a theoretical model describing and analyzing young people and their learning in a modern world. Although much contemporary policy assumes that learning is regulated by teaching and standards monitoring, that learning…

Reports results of a telephone interview with history professor and social analyst Carlos Cortes, whose current main area of interest is the multicultural education that occurs outside the classroom, with special interest in the role of the media. Explores the concept of the societal curriculum. (SLD)

Presents results from two studies conducted as part of the evaluation activities of the FUNTIVITIES project, a National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded project to increase girls' and women's interest and comfort level in science and math. Girls showed a slightly higher mean, implying greater recognition that achievement in science and math is not…

The growing diversity in today's classrooms demands that family and consumer sciences (FCS) teachers be knowledgeable, responsive, and well-prepared to work with a multicultural, multilingual student population. To meet the needs of students from all backgrounds, FCS teachers must use a broad array of research-based strategies that support diverse…

Marsick and Watkins, leaders in research on informal learning in the workplace, suggest that this type of learning is a process that occurs in everyday experience and place it in a category that includes incidental learning. It may occur in institutions, but is not typically classroom-based or highly structured. It is unique to the individual, and…

Describes the function of the children's museum in the life of a community and in the experience of a visitor. Included are the emotional experiences of the museum personnel as they moved to change their facility. (SA)

Training effective camp staff starts with reviewing last year's schedule. Desired competencies can be determined by examining existing documents, asking former staff, consulting industry materials, and projecting the future. Specific skills can be taught in orientation and through guided informal experiential learning during the season. A climate…

Explores museum visitors' understanding of skeleton exhibits and whether such exhibits increase their understanding of the zoology displayed. The exhibition under study focused on the diversity of vertebrae skeletons which were arranged according to the mode of locomotion. (DDR)

The pleasures and advantages of informal learning are highlighted in a story about childhood visits to a fabric shop. Contrasts the unhurried, flexible, self-directed nature of informal learning situations with the more structured and controlled environment of the classroom. Discusses skills and lessons learned in informal settings and suggests…

Relationships among different person and environment characteristics of everyday natural learning opportunities and changes in child learning, behavior and performance were examined in a study with 63 parents and their infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with disabilities or delays. Findings showed that learning opportunities that were…

Purpose--Sociocultural learning theories, usually premised on participation in some community, explain workplace learning well up to a certain extent. The paper aims to extend beyond these and to account for learning in repetitive and mundane work environments from a dialectical perspective. Design/methodology/approach--Based on a longitudinal…

Reports on a study designed to investigate the relationship between the length of stay at a national forest visitor center and the density of the visitor population. Results indicate a significant negative correlation exists between the daily number of users and the average duration of their visits. (TW)

This book argues the importance of the incidental learning that can occur when people become involved in voluntary organizations, social struggles, and political activity. Chapter 1 introduces the case studies of informal learning in social struggle used to develop the argument and outlines the theoretical framework within which the case studies…

During a kayaking expedition in 1983, the author was sucked into an underwater tunnel in Mexico's Rio Urique. He miraculously emerged unharmed, but this near-death experience awakened in him a primal awareness that had been coddled to sleep by his so-called civilized perceptions. He gained intuitive insights from this awakening that enabled him to…

Three authors describe their motivations to write and influences on their writing careers, including love of reading, desire to escape other occupations, and influential teachers. Advice for teachers includes using the writers' workshop model; encouraging editing and revision; steering students toward literary, rather than mass media sources;…