Non-metropolitan Australia is diverse in terms of population density, educational experiences of the population, and the occupations and industries it supports. Rural adults are less likely to have post-school qualifications and work in manufacturing, property and business services, or finance and insurance. They are more likely to be older, have…

Thirteen marginal Philippine communities were examined in an ethnographic study of the meaning of functional literacy and whether literacy invariably promotes development. The 13 sites were purposely selected to provide a broad sampling from three standpoints: (1) major livelihood and form of economic activity (farming, fishing, urban poor,…

Australia's electricity, gas, and water supply industry employs only 0.8% of the nation's workers and employment in the industry has declined by nearly 39% in the last decade. This industry is substantially more dependent on the vocational education and training (VET) sector for skilled graduates than is the total Australian labor market. Despite…

Data that were originally gathered during the 1978-1990, 1994, and 1996 Scottish School Leavers Surveys were subjected to a secondary analysis to identify the qualifications, characteristics, and choices of high-attaining female school leavers. The analysis revealed that female and male high-attaining school leavers had broadly similar average…

This training manual is intended for use as the basis of a training program by a trainer or as a tool for self-directed learning by an independent reader. An introduction (Chapter 1) looks at the user in relation to the training program: who will use the training manual, locating oneself, building on one's relationship with adult literacy learning…

Australia's Frontline Management Initiative (FMI) marks a political move toward workplace learning and provides evidence concerning development of managing identities and management of such workplace learning. The FMI was examined as a technology of identity within the discourse of enterprise and an instrument of textualization of the workplace.…

The research methods selected for an evaluation of courses in vocational education and training (VET) teacher education at Curtin University (Western Australia) were examined. The university hired an outside research body from a different TAFE college to conduct the evaluation because Curtin University's courses in postschool teacher education,…

Thirteen focus groups including approximately 70 people were conducted at University College Worcester and the Worcestershire Lifelong Learning Partnership in England to determine the participants' attitudes toward the educational programs provided and the best ways to reach them and encourage them to engage in learning. The majority of those in…

Noting that parents are vital partners in the educational system, this French-language handbook provides parents with information about the Grade 7 curriculum in Alberta, Canada. Based on the Alberta Learning "Program of Studies: Junior High Schools," the handbook describes the knowledge, skills, and attitudes students in Alberta are…

Noting that parents are vital partners in the educational system, this French-language handbook provides parents with information about the Grade 8 curriculum in Alberta, Canada. Based on the Alberta Learning "Program of Studies: Junior High Schools," the handbook describes the knowledge, skills, and attitudes students in Alberta are…

Noting that parents are vital partners in the educational system, this French-language handbook provides parents with information about the Grade 9 curriculum in Alberta, Canada. Based on the Alberta Learning "Program of Studies: Junior High Schools," the handbook describes the knowledge, skills, and attitudes students in Alberta are…

Using retrospective data of young people's work experience in Japan, a study found that initial labor market conditions (i.e., when workers first enter the labor market after permanently leaving school) have a significant lasting impact on the employment experiences of workers in their teens and twenties. An increase in the unemployment rate at…

Continuing concern regarding the quality and future of education in both America and Japan prompts many comparisons of their nation's educational systems. Chapter 1, "Japanese Schools' Higher Achievement, Literacy, Efficiency, Discipline, Classroom Management, and Strengths of Civilization," attempts to explain the superior performance…

This journal focuses on the teaching and learning of French. Selected titles in this volume include the following: "Practical Ideas for Teaching Reluctant Learners in Key Stage 4"; "Learning to Count in French"; "Oh No! The Target Language . . . !""French and the English 'Invasion'"; "The Sounds of…

The Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the University Teknologi MARA, Malaysia, developed an undergraduate-level engineering curriculum that balances national interests with those of employers and academics. The curriculum was based on materials posted at the Internet sites of universities in the United States, United Kingdom, and Malaysia…