On-campus and distance adult learners (n=20) related the experience of their enrollment decisions, uncovering six themes: fears, motivation, family support, academic preparedness, suitability of programs, and identity change. Motivation was the key to persistence. Preentry information, guidance, and preparation for prospective adult open and…

The Motivational Framework for Culturally Responsive Teaching includes four conditions collaboratively created by teachers and learners: establishing inclusion, developing attitudes, enhancing meaning, and engendering competence. Peer coaching, action research, and a balance of pressure and support are ways to enable successful transfer of…

Presents five high school teachers' ideas about how to create a desirable environment for their students' learning in English classrooms. (SG)

Articles on encouraging growth in foreign language study focus on the following: "Encouraging the Growth of Foreign Language Study"; "Creating Intrinsic Motivation to Learn World Languages"; "Encouraging Growth by Changing Perception"; "Making the Link Between Enrollment and Learning Goals: A School District's Impact"; "Foreign Language Education:…

Discussion of learning from hypertext focuses on a study that investigated three approaches for inducing learning goals: a tutorial that provided external and specific learning objectives; a goal-based scenario; and a strategy training leading to internal goal generation. Compared the three conditions regarding learning outcomes and motivational…

Parents are offered six suggestions, based on research, that can help produce successful readers and learners. (IAH)

Studied reasons for nonparticipation in continuing education to determine whether women in traditionally female professions faced specific deterrents. Analysis of responses from a random sample of 909 nurses (of 2,063 surveyed) found five clusters of reasons: low priority for work-related education, absence of external incentives, incidental…

Professionalization, accreditation, and a shift in government support toward work-based skills mean that learner-centered literacy learning is in danger of being subordinated to unsatisfactory purposes in order to retain funding. (SK)

Presents the concept of using posters that deliver their message in a cartoon format and language aimed at engaging the attention of secondary school students to promote awareness of the relevance of physics and generate enthusiasm for physics among students. Provides information for ordering the posters. (JRH)

Striving to be learning organization, Imperial Oil of Canada focused on organizational, divisional, and individual capability development. Lessons learned include the following: (1) all levels of employees are potential professionals; (2) learning must be continuous; (3) intrinsic motivation and commitment are essential; and (4) organizational…

Examined four- and five-year-old children's abilities to use a newly learned strategy in recall tasks. Subjects in strategy training groups showed increases in sorting, group naming, and category self-cuing activities in posttraining tasks. (BC)

Developed and investigated measurement properties of the Children's Academic Motivation Inventory (CAMI) using 382 junior high school students. Found evidence of the psychometric integrity of the CAMI. Suggests CAMI may have some utility in future research and in interventions designed to target specific aspects of motivational difficulties of…

This study examined behaviors reflecting mastery motivation in 17 young (ages 2 and 3) children with moderate and severe cognitive delays. Results supported the application of the mastery motivation model to this group of children who used mastery behaviors significantly more often than lower level exploratory behaviors. Use of mastery behaviors…

Discusses how teachers can build and sustain students' positive self-images within the classroom. States that emphasizing effort instead of reading ability and focusing on learning goals instead of performance goals will help the "learned helpless" child immensely. Discusses the role of teacher expectations in the success attained by…

Discusses the study of second language learning motivation, and suggests that social and psychological aspects of language learning and use are a source of fruitful exploration. Calls for a triangulation of methodology, using hard sociolinguistic data and personal statements from second language learners. Provides examples from studies of…