This special issue contains eight papers from a conference on library collection development and networking issues. Discusses the library's role and the need for new policies; serial costs and recommendations for resource sharing; evaluation of academic periodicals; partnerships and the relationship of vendors and libraries; and models and trends…

Addresses the need to integrate services in rural areas and provides guidelines to help practitioners move toward systemic change that facilitates service integration. Presents case studies of three sites in the Pacific Northwest that are utilizing community and school-level service integration to expand service delivery to rural families. (LP)

A partnership among teacher educators, schools, and field study centers in New South Wales (Australia) was developed to improve the ability of preservice teachers to conduct outdoor environmental education programs. Discusses various uses of the field study center, and benefits of the cooperative program to schools, teachers, and students. (LP)

A distance education program trained teachers in West Virginia and Missouri rural school districts to implement the Life Centered Career Education Curriculum, a comprehensive K-12 transitional program. The program allowed educators in rural school districts to access a campus-based training course and begin incorporating transitional…

Discusses the collaborative use of learning materials in distance education based primarily on experiences at the Open Learning Institute (OLI) of Hong Kong. Topics addressed include curriculum issues; instructional design; academic standards; technical factors; copyright regulations; costs; product evaluation; readability; and ethical…

Resource constraints can limit the size of research projects. Dealing with these limitations and reaping the advantages of larger studies through formation of a short-term consortium are discussed and illustrated through a case study of United Way agency members. Problems and advantages of the method are discussed. (SLD)

Describes the North Country Mentor/Intern Teacher Regional Consortium, which provides training and supervision to 11 pairs of mentors and beginning-teacher interns in 4 rural New York school districts through a partnership with the State University of New York at Plattsburgh. Discusses program design, goals, needs assessment, training activities,…

Considers the implications of community connections by examining a coalition developed by the Pekin Public Library (Illinois): the Pekin Intergenerational Network (PIN). Highlights include recognizing the need for coalitions; developing a team; and evaluating the coalition's progress. (AEF)

High schools need new kinds of spaces to accommodate the many different ways students will work in the future. Floor plans show a 1,600-student high school that organizes students as a large school, a house, an academy, a small family, studios for 5 students, and, finally, individual study spaces. (MLF)

This article discusses allowing high school students to enroll simultaneously in high school and college courses. Controversial issues surrounding dual enrollment are considered including: shifting control for educational decisions, awarding course credit and grades, and reallocating tax dollars for tuition. Factors in developing a student's K-16…

This case study describes three main strategies used from March 2002 to November 2003 at the Open University and Distance Education Coordination (CUAED) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) to consolidate distance education at the University. The author explains how, in just 18 months, these three main strategies enabled the UNAM…

An environment in which children feel secure and achieve a sense of emotional well-being is an environment in which children can learn. Today, psychology's greatest contributions to education are those that promote student welfare and enhance educational effectiveness and student achievement. Schools mirror society; both are struggling with issues…

This book reports on a study of rural community development policies and practices in the United States, Europe, and Canada in relation to multicommunity collaboration as a rural restructuring strategy. The study focused on multicommunity collaboration involving two or more small rural communities working together to attain social or economic…

The purpose of this paper is to determine the current status of the Taunton Public School's (Massachusetts) kindergarten to grade eight library program in terms of networking and resource sharing. It uses Diane Kester's model of the three stages of library networking in four key areas--human support, financial support, technological support, and…

This paper describes efforts to address the shortage of special educators in rural Georgia by supplying regular education teachers with information and resources to teach disabled students. Since 1969, the Georgia Center for Students with Disabilities (GCSD) has provided yearly comprehensive medical and psychoeducational evaluations to…