The four issues of the journal SKOLE published in 1997 contain articles, personal narratives, and interviews about small alternative schools, home schooling, educational history, the deficiencies of public education, and educational philosophy and innovations. Major articles include: "The Creatures They Are: Children Becoming Their Nature" (about…

This document is an overview of the projects conducted in England and Wales as part of the European Year of Lifelong Learning. The document begins with an overview of lifelong learning that outlines the United Kingdom's educational attainment targets for the year 2000 and the six strands of the United Kingdom's lifelong learning policy framework…

The eight articles in this theme issue of CEDEFOP's twice-yearly multi-lingual bulletin focus on continuing education to maintain and upgrade the workforce. "Force--The Community's Action Programme for the Continuing Training in the 1990s" describes the objectives of this new program to improve the skill levels of the European…

The purpose of a research project was to find out the barriers to the use of the open entry-exit concept in cooperative vocational programs in the retail clothing area. The researchers developed individualized instructional materials and arranged for them to be accessible to students in 12 secondary and 2 adult programs in Oklahoma City and Tulsa.…

Both time and circumstance have convinced many a school district that it must find a better way to educate its students. For many districts the way has been alternative schools and programs that offer students a choice of goals, structures, and approaches to curriculum. One report estimated that as many as 5,000 alternative schools would be in…

A study examined the relationship between different types of learning climates and the levels of academic achievement in extra-mural classes in Nigeria. Investigated during the course of the study were the following six types of learning climates: open, autonomous, controlled, familiar, paternal, and closed. To determine what, if any, relationship…

Although classrooms vary in design and populations, there are certain features that are common to virtually all classrooms. These include the crowding of pupils, the compulsion of school attendance, and the expectation that teachers will foster literacy. The manner in which these features are dealt with in a classroom constitutes the core problem…

This paper, a teacher's informal account of her own professional growth and teaching experiences over a 10-year period, focuses particularly on her experiences as a participant in a non-credit seminar on children's thinking and on the impact this seminar had on her teaching. The seminar included wide-ranging questions of philosophy, teaching…

In the last decade, the Office of Education has granted several billions of dollars to local educational agencies (LEAs) in an attempt to stimulate, and sometimes force, educational improvements. This paper was presented at a symposium considering experiences accumulated in a recent national study of federal change programs as they have (or have…

Southeast Alternatives describes six elementary and secondary schools -- the result of a 1971 proposal for Federal funding for experimental schools to bridge the gap between experimentation and actual school practice and for evaluation of the effort. Discussion of the mechanics of implementation, including organization, governance and finance, and…

The steps which led to the establishment of the Open University in Great Britain and the intentions of its founders are first described, with particular attention paid to the needs it was intended and not intended to meet. Following this is an examination of the evidence to date of the University's success in reaching its target student…

Students and faculty of the New City School are housed in a single open room of a reconditioned building in an industrial area of St. Paul. Students come from St. Paul's neighborhood high schools, night school, and Open School. They may attend a nine-week session in the morning or afternoon for 2 1/2 hours. The eleven permanent staff members are…

This report examines some of the many varieties of alternatives now available, their problems and pitfalls, and their hopes for the future. After defining alternative schools, the report discusses the rationale for having alternatives and then summarizes the range of alternatives available at both the elementary and secondary levels. Separate…

The Minneapolis public school system is philosophically committed to providing for and encouraging the development of individual differences found in the highly diverse population the schools serve. A demonstration program offering a number of educational options to the heterogeneous population of the small geographically unified area of Southeast…

Two studies combining teacher questionnaires, classroom observation, and pupil interviews were conducted to contrast formal and informal teaching practices in open plan and conventional classrooms. Study I sampled 12 teachers of classes including second year junior pupils (8-9 years of age); Study II sampled 30 teachers, including 13 with mixed…