What do people need to learn to engage actively in social action for neighbourhood improvement or development? How important is emergent learning relative to planned learning in this context? Where does first-person knowledge fit into the body of knowledge required for success in bringing about change for the better in neighbourhoods through…

An action-oriented approach views "users and learners of a language primarily as 'social agents', i.e. members of society who have tasks (not exclusively language-related) to accomplish in a given set of circumstances, in a specific environment and within a particular field of action. While acts of speech occur within language activities,…

When a student in a community-based writing program asked to write science fiction (SF), rather than a personal essay, he prompted the staff to expand the scope of the program's curriculum. This article describes how SF became another avenue for discussing community change. However, instead of just evaluating their worlds and writing about what…

Youth involved in 4-H projects have been engaged in science-related endeavors for years. Since 2006, 4-H has invested considerable resources in the advancement of science learning. The new Minnesota 4-H Science of Agriculture Challenge program challenges 4-H youth to work together to identify agriculture-related issues in their communities and to…

Because researchers know so much more about the brain and development than they did when the 20th-century U.S. education system was designed, this knowledge can now be used to design a system in which all individuals are able to take advantage of high-quality opportunities for transformative learning and development. This playbook suggests a set…

Communication between 4-H professionals and the youth they work with is an important part of a successful 4-H program. By creating a Council of Presidents comprised of officers of all the clubs in your county, you can increase communication while assuring your program addresses all four essential elements. The Council is also as a vehicle for…

The authors describe an Open Source approach to education. They define Open Source Education (OSE) as a teaching and learning framework where the use and presentation of information is non-hierarchical, malleable, and subject to the needs and contributions of students as they become "co-owners" of the course. The course transforms itself into an…

Civic engagement has become an essential learning goal for institutions throughout higher education. Communication scholars employ various pedagogical tools to foster civic engagement. For instance, service learning has been shown to increase political and community engagement in courses such as family communication and public relations. Teachers…

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) is an action research approach that emphasizes collaborative partnerships between community members, community organizations, health care providers, and researchers to generate knowledge and solve local problems. Although relatively new to the field of family social science, family and health…

The Agatston Urban Nutrition Initiative (AUNI) presents a fruitful partnership between faculty and students at a premier research university and members of the surrounding community aimed at addressing the problem of childhood obesity. AUNI uses a problem-solving approach to learning by focusing course activities, including service-learning, on…

The establishment of a mental health clinic in a community recreational park is described. (JD)

Disagreements often lead to confrontations that contribute more to an escalation of a conflict rather than to its resolution. This bulletin shows how to start and carry out a community mediation program that helps prevent violence. Mediation can reduce violence in neighborhoods and schools. Peer mediation is a way of handling conflicts and…

This paper sets forth a community family life education model within the structure-functional framework. Attention is first focused on societal and family needs, followed by the model, its goals, organization, and implementation. Finally, several recommendations and a challenge are given to family educators. (Author)

Reviews national efforts to define urban policies and programs from 1960 through 1994, and suggests reasons for the failure of most in meeting the expectations of their advocates or the American people. It identifies principles and policies that should guide future urban policy makers in dealing with the difficult problems facing the modern city.…

Discusses the biopsychosocial impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic on children in Uganda and the efforts of the Eaglets Child Welfare Project to identify community-based problem-solving strategies to address their needs. Describes the project's methodology and lessons learned to facilitate outreach and intervention. (JPB)