This article focuses on the potential of free tools, particularly inquiry tools for influencing participation in twenty-first-century learning in science, as well as influencing the development of communities around tools. Two examples are presented: one on the development of an open source tool for structured inquiry learning that can bridge the…

A status report on the open university in Scotland, including enrollment and staff data and a listing of undergraduate teacher education courses offered. (SJL)

A free university is defined as a community learning center that connects people who want to teach or learn with resources to meet their needs. The free university for Man, located at Kansas State University in Manhattan, is described. (MLW)

A discussion of the future of adult second language learning in Great Britain begins with an overview of the field's current state. It is argued that the large number of adults pursuing foreign language learning in a variety of institutions is not matched by quality of offerings, and attrition is high. A national testing program was developed in…

Aspects of the development of the Open Learning Institute, a British Columbia program to accommodate the learning needs of adult and minority students, are described. Included are its early history and evaluation of its success according to four criteria: access, relevancy to needs and expectations, quality of program offerings, and learner…

This report presents a description of University College, Memphis State University (MSU). Created in 1975, this small, nontraditional college has prospered in the context of a large, state, urban university. It offers nontraditional students a way to create and finish individualized and interdisciplinary degree programs. Faculty can develop new…

This conference paper consists of a sketch of the British Open University at work as well as a brief commentary on current developments in the fields of communication technology, course design, instruction, and current trends in distance education. Provided first are statistics pertaining to current enrollment and enrollment projections, student…

This volume endeavors to provide comprehensive factual information on the Soviet system of education. Chapter 1 offers basic information on the Soviet Republics. Chapter 2 describes the foundations of Soviet Education. Chapter 3 describes preschool through upper secondary education including academic calendars and curriculum. Chapter 4,…

The expansion of higher education in the United States has resulted in a variety of outreach programs to bring postsecondary education off the campus and into the community. New systems and programs of nontraditional study have emerged. Issues of current concern in open learning include: quality and effectiveness, outreach and access, research and…