American government should be taught using an experiential approach. Activities are suggested. For example, student representatives to school boards can be given responsibility for researching student attitudes and involving others in interaction with the board and administration. (RM)

Assessment of experiential learning must be approached in a different way from assessment of learning acquired through the traditional information assimilation mode. New measurement techniques and program models need to be devised to save money and faculty time, while preserving individualization. (Author)

Knowledge of organizational behavior, characteristics of key actors, and conditions for capturing innovations are seen as critical in developing a strategy for the institutionalization of experiental learning. The possibility of significant change is a measure of the stability or instability of the system. (MLW)

Full institutionalization of experiential learning programs remains a major challenge for educators. Their reasons for resistance to change and strategies for overcoming it are discussed. A checklist for change agents is provided. (MLW)

Discusses research into the external validity of simulation games used in education, i.e., the degree to which the games correspond to the real-life situations they are designed to simulate. An exploratory study examines the validity of a business game and potential problems of validity research are examined. (JJD)

Alec Dickson recalls his 30-year involvement with experiential education in Nigeria and Britain. He notes a change in emphasis from physical skills and stress to personal commitment, and asks how the essence of such commitment can be reinjected into ordinary educational systems so that it can be shared by many. (BRR)

The success and failure of experiential learning assessment programs rests not only on their academic quality, but also on their financial management. Types of cost and the meaning of cost-effectiveness are discussed. Break-even analysis, cost-reduction activities, and revenue-enhancement techniques are described. (Author/MLW)

Provides what the author calls a "meta-analysis" of experience-based career education programs. (Author/JM)

A theoretical model of an effective experiential educational program for training evaluators is described. Two operating programs are assessed against the requirements of the model. The results of a quasi-experimental evaluation of the effectiveness of the programs in producing important educational outcomes are reported. (Author/PN)

Seven factors contribute to the success of an educational information center for adults: counselors with self-direction, varied life experience, problem-solving talent, solid adult development background, and belief in lifelong learning; staff training opportunities; supportive environment; effective outreach; good interinstitutional…

An approach to teaching BASIC to twelve-year-olds makes full use of the graphics capability of PET computers. Student experimentation with the use of loops leads to the creation of something tangible as well as intellectual. Students discover how modifications to simple programs affect outcomes. (MP)

Sixteen American early childhood educators visited 25 British elementary schools. The way the English school head functioned and some of the educational practices were especially interesting to them. (Author/MLF)

For architecture students, a laboratory is seen as the most natural and productive way of learning about building construction. An introductory construction course at MIT is described that includes lectures, assigned readings, homework exercises, field trips to construction sites, and a weekly laboratory for hands-on experience. (MLW)

Reveals how teachers can direct their students to experience history as a process through active questioning, searching for meaningful answers, and especially by tapping readily available and vivid resources in the immediate community. (NEC)

Reports the results of a survey of the practices of 78 Michigan colleges and universities in awarding and transferring credit for nontraditional or experiential learning. (WD)