The humor element as a reinforcing tool was examined. Experimental group subjects selecting nouns were shown humorous cartoons. Non-noun selection was followed by a humorless cartoon. Results indicated that humor significantly facilitated intentional learning for the low-creative experimental group. (Author/BEF)

Outlines environmental factors associated with early reading, and describes an environmental framework which is conducive to learning to read. (CM)

An imaginative teacher should encourage students to view history as a process in which they act a part, rather than concentrate on teaching them dead facts. (MB)

Interviews with Maori people aged 18-25 revealed schooling experiences characterized by low teacher expectations and indifference, varied reasons for participation in adult education, and preferences for particular learning environments. (SK)

Responses from 83 of 120 British midwives showed that motivation for continuing education was strongest in regard to professional competence and innate desire for knowledge, less in regard to legal requirements for practice. Strongest motivators were internal and learning related. Social integration was the least important aspect of continuing…

Tests a model of motivation and achievement with data from 50 teachers and 806 Grade 4-6 students in Taiwan. Autonomy as a construct was shown to have ecological validity in Chinese children. The proposed model fit the data well, showing that maternal involvement and autonomy support, as well as teachers' autonomy support, are important for…

Presents a model of instructional games and learning that elaborates key features of games that are of interest from an instructional perspective; the game cycle of user judgments, behavior, and feedback; and types of learning outcomes that can be achieved. Discusses implications for the design and implementation of effective instructional games.…

Despite the interest that second-language students show for learning a foreign language, many of them do not possess the motivation to conclude successfully their course of foreign language study. In the search of an explanation for this apparent contradiction, the concepts of "interest" and "motivation" must be re-defined. (AP)

Vocational rehabilitation clients face the common challenges of adult life complicated by their disabilities. Their learning needs should be addressed by competent rehabilitation counselors aware of adult education principles and by adult educators aware that the client's motivation for learning is the goal of getting or keeping a job. (SK)

Significant differences in reasons for enrollment and 4 family support elements emerged in survey responses from 88 of 110 African Americans in adult basic education (47 of whom were persisters). Persisters were more likely to be preparing for jobs. Family attitudes, financial support, and career motivations were major factors in persistence. (SK)

Provides suggestions and examples for self-training on use of the Web. Focuses on three questions about guidance, motivation and Web training: (1) "Is this class right for me?"; (2) "Now that I'm here, what do I do?"; (3) "What motivates me now and keeps me coming back later?" (AEF)

"Free-agent" employees focus on employability based on their expertise, knowledge base, reputation, and networks. Their skills make them value-added contributors and they expect something in return from their employers such as opportunities for growth and the application of learning. (JOW)

Interviews with a lifelong learning manager and adult learners in rural Lincolnshire illuminated differences between continuing education providers' and learners' expectations of lifelong learning. Learners were job focused and interested in improving labor market outcomes. Policies that reflected community and citizenship benefits from learning…

In one section of a graduate course (n=26), the instructor gave enthusiastic verbal praise 27% of the time for homework logs and administered no verbal praise in the other (n=28). The praise group had higher average scores, studied longer per lesson, and had higher motivation. (Contains 51 references.) (SK)

The opportunities paradigm assumes that participation in lifelong learning is positive and voluntary, yet discourse analysis reveals pervasive pressure to be permanent learners. Recent research suggests that learners may switch between discourses of compulsion and self-realization, and they may combine participant and nonparticipant identities.…