A survey of 984 mothers in Bavaria of young children with disabilities investigated their views regarding cooperation and what they expect to achieve from parent-expert partnerships. Results indicate dialoguing with professionals and model learning during intervention is the most helpful way for parents to learn how to cope with their child.…

This paper is a case study on the use of active learning techniques in an upper-level engineering course at the Helsinki University of Technology. The paper describes how these techniques were introduced and successfully used within the Finnish university classroom. The cultural subtext is explored and attention is given to teaching techniques…

This study investigated how well chemical engineering graduates perceive they were prepared for work in industry. To this end, sixteen interviews were carried out with a purposive sample of recent University of Cape Town chemical engineering graduates. Qualitative analysis of the interview data showed that graduates felt that overall, they were…

Northern Thailand is home to many hill tribes, who have lived for hundreds of years as subsistence farmers or nomadic hunters. In the 1940s, communist insurgencies drove many hill tribes from China, Burma, and other nations south into northern Thailand. Uprooted from their native lands, the hill tribes left behind ties to economic resources and,…

This paper presents examples from 10 internal consultancies provided by the author within the Open University (United Kingdom) that reveal how teams develop and are integrated into the systems of a complex institution. These consultancies included: providing consulting services to a course team; counseling with a course team chair; serving as a…

A staff member of the Outdoor Adventures Program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln relates his experience in supervising the construction of the first low ropes course in Yucatan, Mexico. During 1994, two staff members visited Yucatan to explore trip possibilities for the program and to inquire about a future conference location. While leading…

This manual is intended to facilitate the integration of children with mental handicaps into child care centers in Canada and elsewhere. The first chapter looks at the background of integration in early childhood child care programs in Canada and identifies concerns of parents. The second chapter explores the practice of labelling children with…

This guide for French speakers describes the Individualized Education Program (IEP) process in Alberta, Canada. Different sections address: (1) components of the IEP; (2) when an IEP is necessary; (3) the process of developing the IEP (includes a flowchart); (4) how evaluation information is collected through the student, parents, professionals,…

A major goal of the School for Independent Study at North East London Polytechnic, which was founded in 1974, has been to provide the opportunity for higher education among students in an underprivileged area of London where typically few students have access to further schooling. The desire to increase access led to "non-standard entry"…

Designed for an undergraduate level survey course at the University of Alberta on developmental issues over the lifespan, the 43-module package, "Human Development," is an attempt to provide a multi-dimensional model meeting diverse instructional needs of a large teaching department. This paper provides an overview of the total design…

Describes a long-term scheme to develop a pond, nature trail, and tree-planting project (in Cornwall, England). The project was designed by teams of students. Plans included a large pond, meadow area, sequential cuttings of school fields to encourage insects, butterfly garden, extensive tree plantings (including a dwindling native species), and a…

A British summer adventure education program aims to re-engage high risk secondary students into society. A qualitative evaluation found that although the participants had fun, there was not enough focus on transferring skills to daily life. Because of the many factors affecting the experience, any difference made in the lives of the youths was…

Explains activities involved in the production of a multimedia course at the Open University (United Kingdom) and suggests that similar concerns arise with coproduction projects. Highlights include the need for planning; production schedules for different media; controlling quality, quantity, and cost; collection and dissemination of information;…

This article examines the roles of deputy principals (assistant principals, deputy heads) in secondary schools and thus contributes to an under-researched area often overlooked in discussions about school leadership. Typically, these discussions have focussed on the principalship alone. Data were collected from deputy principals in one large…

This article describes an action research project, based within a school, to develop and increase the social resiliency of students with special education needs in both school and community settings. The programme included role-plays, scenarios and problem solving. An assessment tool was developed to measure self-esteem amongst the students and…