Explores the insights gained, methods used, and constraints faced in using a development discourse in Nepal. Discusses how literacy classes, funding proposals, or student writing can provide new development dimensions in training and planning. Argues that educational planning and policy needs to be recognized and analyzed through focused…

Described are some of the considerations necessary in planning a field studies course in the tropics. Discussed are site selection; planning and preparation; course structure; the advantages of travel courses; and recommendations concerning liability, multiple instructors, hotels, sailboats, and tours. A list of 26 references is included. (CW)

Two designs of undergraduate terrestrial ecology and behavior field courses are described and compared. These include using a variety of projects and using a single individual research project. The relative educational benefits of each are considered and the advantages of each type of course are discussed. (Author/CW)

Describes a study to determine if the personality traits of students in televised college-level courses differ from those of students in traditional courses, and to identify the specific traits predictive of successful performance in televised classes. Results showed that telecourse students do have a unique profile and traits for success. (LRW)

Discusses difficulties of classroom-based research and obstacles to conducting classroom-based ethnographic research. Identifies temporal obstacles, personnel, safety, and traditional classroom orientation. Suggests experiential approaches for fieldwork instructors such as individual projects, a choice of group projects, or a single designated…

Describes briefly four qualitative research projects and examines four sets of questions which illustrate ethical dilemmas embedded in qualitative research of the type described: the conduct of qualitative inquiry in the classroom, project implementation, the effect of the researcher's presence in the field, and understanding questions of pedagogy…

The value and difficulties of long-term ecological monitoring studies undertaken in schools and colleges are reviewed. Rookeries, stream ecology, sand dune succession, fish population, and seed production and survival are presented as examples of successful studies. This is followed by a discussion of points to consider when setting up a long-term…

The Sierra Institute offers field studies courses across the environmental studies spectrum from sciences to humanities, seeking an interdisciplinary approach to ecological literacy. Field studies hone critical-thinking skills by combining academic inquiry with group problem solving and discussion, experiential learning of wilderness skills, and…

Describes the research questions, methods, and findings for two action-research studies, conducted in 1996 and 1997, about the use of Internet-based resources for the study of the Holocaust. Discusses data and relationships from both studies and offers direction for schools planning to engage their faculty in action research. (CMK)

On the Fajada Butte in New Mexico, 11th-century Anasazi constructed a site that marks the high and low points of the orbits of the sun and the moon. This unit on astronomy challenges students to think differently about the moon and about the ability of native people to understand the natural world. Includes resources for further study. (PVD)

Describes an experiential learning strategy and field research project that was used as a means of transforming undergraduate students' gender understandings by engaging them in the research process from the development of hypotheses through the interpretation of data collected in field interviews. Discusses student reactions. (CMK)

Explains embodied fieldwork as learning to act and think like a geographer. Examines how students are assumed to be able-bodied (ability to walk/climb) and what occurs when they are not. Demonstrates how the selection of rugged outdoor environments for fieldwork reinforces assumptions about students and staff as able-bodied. (CMK)

Provides a comparative overview of manpower development and training for library and information services (LIS) in Africa. Surveys and explores the curricula, programs, accreditation, resources, fieldwork, continuing education, trainees and trainers, and problems, and a list of LIS education institutions in Africa is appended. (Author/LRW)

Discusses a project in which students in an upper-division methods course conducted field research on racial discrimination and presented the findings to students in Introductory to Sociology classes. States that the aim of the project is to encourage white students to see beyond textbook examples of institutional racism. (CMK)

According to a recent survey of colleagues across the disciplines, the most effective and engaging academic writers are those who express complex ideas clearly and succinctly; write with originality, imagination and creative flair; convey enthusiasm, commitment and a strong sense of self; tap into a wide range of intellectual interests; avoid…