Inquiry cultivates epistemological maturity, as students consider what characterizes meaningful questions, attempt different investigative methods, and seek acceptable answers. The Web has six compatible features: specialized information matching students' interests; diverse topics to prompt student-generated questions; multiple perspectives on…

Discusses two parallel processes at work that are upgrading the role of the learner and downgrading that of the teacher. The article examines the reactions of teachers to this situation. The article concludes that improved training for second-language teachers is required to address the problems arising from this situation. (CK)

Identifies learning to learn and information literacy as crucial skills for independent learning, which is becoming the dominant educational paradigm. Outlines characteristics of the ideal library for lifelong learners in terms of resources, access, and services. (SK)

A carefully designed independent study program is a quick, efficient way to fill gaps, redeem mistakes, and create solutions for seemingly impossible problems. Success depends on understanding students' different situations, using proper supervision, requiring a paper trail, juggling multiple options, getting teacher support, and guaranteeing…

Argues that fostering learner autonomy is an important and appropriate goal in language course design, but that principles to guide the design of such courses are currently lacking. Proposes five course design principles for language courses that seek to promote learner autonomy. (Author/VWL)

The Independent Investigation Method is presented, a model developed to enable gifted students to grow in their independence as they move through a research assignment. The seven-step process guides elementary students from beginning to end in the research process, including topic, goal setting, research, organizing, goal evaluation, product, and…

Provides a checklist of the opportunities, benefits, and barriers to the introduction of independent work-based learning courses in higher education, developed from workshops held at Coventry University (United Kingdom). Considers points of view of learners, the university, and the employers. (Author/LRW)

This study examined rapid orthographic learning following silent reading in third-grade children as a function of number of target nonword repetitions and test delay. In each of two test sessions at least 6 days apart, children read a series of short stories, with each story containing a different nonword repeated either four or eight times. In…

This paper introduces the significant body of research on everyday literacies that has developed over the last 20 years and links it with the concerns of those working in the field of lifelong learning. It starts by briefly introducing debates about adult informal learning. It goes on to discuss ethnographic and interview studies of everyday…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the tenability of a proposed path-analytic model relating resourcefulness and persistence in the context of adult autonomous learning. Data collected from a nonprobability sample of 492 American adults using valid and reliable measures for resourcefulness and persistence were analyzed. Results suggest…

The author of this article describes why, while as a student in the Northeastern University teacher preparation program, she chose not to become a teacher in the public schools. She felt that her philosophy of education, stemming from the concept of the person-centered classroom as espoused by Carl Rogers and Jerome Freiberg in "Freedom to…

"Homeschooling," "deschooling," and "unschooling" are commonly used terms in the alternative-education world, but each lacks specificity. In this article, the author describes what he discovered during several visits to North Star. Known officially as North Star: Self-Directed Learning for Teens, it is not as…

This study investigated the effects of self and cooperative-instructional strategies on senior secondary school students' attitude towards Mathematics. The moderating effects of locus of control and gender were also investigated. The study adopted pre-test and post-test, control group quasi-experimental design using a 3 x 2 x 2 factorial matrix…

This paper takes a descriptive look at Community Science Workshops (CSWs). This paper discusses what CSW is, how it arose and spread, how local CSWs are structured and led, and what programs and experiences they offer to youth. (Contains 2 footnotes.)

This paper uses self-study to analyse the development of a generative, research-based approach to mentoring initial teacher training students in a Training School/university partnership and its contribution to redefining teacher education practice. It focuses on the ontological values and co-learning of the authors as they work collaboratively…