Much has been written in recent decades about the importance of community in education. According to some of the literature, a solution to the lack of community in preservice education might lie in the creation of "cohort programs," in which a relatively small number of student teachers engage in their coursework and (insofar as possible) their…

Started in 1997, Washington Online Virtual Campus (WAOL) consists of a consortium of 34 community colleges around Washington State to provide asynchronous online learning. WAOL bears many of the features of a loosely coupled organization with its geographically dispersed frontline instructors, fragmented external environment, modularity of courses…

Despite reporting greater needs for career planning information, African American students are often less likely to use the services available to them. Understanding the factors influencing the career development of African American students is therefore critical if these students are to succeed both academically and in the world of work. This…

Background: As part of a UK programme of work focusing on older people with intellectual disabilities, the circumstance of those who reside in generic services for older people were investigated. Materials and methods: Questionnaires were sent to 2570 residential and nursing homes in 53 local authorities across the UK. Results: Five hundred and…

This paper presents findings from the pattern of participation and discourse analysis of the online interaction among in-service teachers in the teacher training institute in Singapore. It was found that the teachers formed a knowledge-building community and jointly discussed issues related to integrating information technology into the classroom.…

Religious communities have an obvious interest in passing on their beliefs and practices to future generations. Many traditional churches, however, report major difficulties in retaining the interest and involvement of adolescents. This paper seeks to explore some of the beliefs and values of Australian core Catholic youth (14- to 15-years-old).…

People are often driven to become "independent" as part of the desire to go out on their own. Independent evaluation consultants, however, frequently collaborate with others on evaluation projects. This chapter explores such collaborative relationships from both sides: those leading evaluations with subcontracted consultants and those who work as…

Purpose: There is a need for valid and reliable short scales that can be used to assess social networks and social supports and to screen for social isolation in older persons. Design and Methods: The present study is a cross-national and cross-cultural evaluation of the performance of an abbreviated version of the Lubben Social Network Scale…

Objectives: The aim of this study was to see if earlier findings about factors associated with well-being could be replicated in a large population-based sample in Sweden. To the best of our knowledge, no research on well-being has been conducted on such a large population in a country, which by most standards is regarded as one of the most…

Corporate learning leaders require a unique set of skills to sustain learning programs within their organizations. Leaders must have well-planned strategies and clear direction for learning initiatives. They must understand their organization as well as their learners, and be able to skillfully deploy appropriate learning technologies. A network…

This article argues that "new literacies" is a useful construct for recognizing and understanding the extent to which changes in the current conjuncture are extending social practices of using codes for making and exchanging meanings in directions that warrant serious rethinking of how and why we research literacies. It provides a…

Purpose: E-portfolios, which document and facilitate learning and performance, have recently attracted interest in the USA, UK, and Europe as means to increase employability and support lifelong learning. This article aims to critically examine these objectives in order to guide the future e-portfolio practice. Design/methodology/approach: Social…

In 1994, the U.S. population included an estimated 22.6 million immigrants, over one fourth of whom were from Mexico. Family networks play a crucial role in immigration. Based on a national symposium, this book includes 15 chapters that examine the role of the family in international immigration and the impact of migration on families and…

Children frequently must adapt to changes in their environments, such as school transitions. The different types of social support from different sources were examined here so as to determine the processes by which such support mediates the stress of school transitions. Students' perceptions of the types or amount of support they received from…

This special report is a collection of seven essays exploring issues in professional development and teacher improvement: (1) "The Missing Link" (Ann Bradley) looks at the elements of effective staff development and new attention focused on teachers' on-the-job training; (2) "Union Dues" (Jeanne Ponessa) examines the role of…