Critics of distance education frequently assert that completion rates are lower in distance education courses than in traditional courses. Such criticism comes despite sparse and inconclusive research on completion rates for distance and traditional education courses. This article reviews some of the existing research and then describes some of…

Effective development and deployment of a distance education program at the traditional university level is examined using the Department of Technology and Cognition at the University of North Texas (UNT) as the subject of a case study. The evolution of the department's distance education program from the late 1980s to the present is highlighted.…

The constructionist concept of social negotiation of meaning recognizes peer interaction and feedback as an important factor for expanding meaning. This concept has particular relevance in the context of developing habits of reflective thinking in teacher preparation programs. This article describes an approach to increasing opportunities for peer…

Online education holds great potential for rural states like South Dakota, which has been recognized for advances in distance education. To maximize the potential of online learning, design elements that students believe are needed for successful online learning experiences must be identified. In this study, we present the qualitative and…

E-learning, sometimes referred to as online learning, Web-based learning, distance learning, and technology-based learning, among other names, is a concept that has garnered significant global attention. This broad attention to e-learning has resulted in numerous e-learning reports. In doing extensive Web searches for e-learning reports, the…

Provides an assessment of international education as a discipline, and outlines the global security framework. Examines how this framework is reflected in the forms of analysis used by international educationists. Suggests how the central purpose of global security, namely ensuring human survival, could be adopted within international education to…

Aims to apply structural, human resource, political, and cultural perspectives to review and analyze the case of Hong Kong in implementing school-based management. Hopes this analysis can provide a useful illustration of applying multi-perspectives to support development of school-based management and draw useful implications for school reforms in…

Summarizes the findings of Book Flood studies in Niue, Fiji, Singapore, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Solomon Islands, and several other developing countries. It is possible to double the rate of reading acquisition of Third World primary school pupils with a Book Flood of about 100 high-interest books per class and short teacher training sessions.…

Analyzes various data on the South African schooling system since 1910. Finds that from an educational perspective, South Africa followed a modernization trajectory that, although it drew ever larger numbers of pupils into the schooling system, was partial, distorted, and fundamentally dysfunctional. The educational process was strongly affected…

Analyzes the content of South African history text books from the primary level upwards and from the 1980s to the most recent publications. The considerable changes in the content of these books seem to be based on two different theoretical models: the multicultural model and the notion of the universality of humanity. (Contains 40 references.)…

Based on Danish history over the past 500 years, five different traditions of enlightenment and general education are described: Christian enlightenment, civic enlightenment, popular-national enlightenment, workers' enlightenment, and personal enlightenment. Concludes with some reflections on the past 25 years, which have seen an increasing focus…

Examines the administrative and organizational practices in a selected group of secondary vocational schools in Turkey from the point of view of school administrators, teachers, and industrial managers. Finds that the Turkish vocational education system is characterized by a centralized, top-down bureaucracy, which inhibits innovative capacity.…

Outlines reasons given by new teachers in different countries for joining the teaching profession. Discusses a differential motivational model between metropolitan versus developing countries. Presents findings from a study of Jamaican teacher trainees, which verify that extrinsic, intrinsic, and altruistic considerations were three distinct…

Highlights the Researching Learning and Work conference held at the School of Continuing Education at the University of Leeds in England in September 1999. Briefly reviews recent international policy trends concerning workforce preparation and outlines discussions on the development of lifelong learning and learning and work efforts worldwide. (KS)

Analyzes the results of the first countrywide survey of the informal learning practices of adults in Canada, conducted in 1998. The survey found respondents to be devoting unprecedented amounts of time to learning activities, including an average of 15 hours per week in informal learning projects. Implications for policy and program initiatives…