The main theme of the conference was the politics of adult education research. The following papers from the conference are included in this compilation, following the opening address (Nisbet): "Some Tension Points in Adult Education Research" (Bryant and Usher); "Key Issues in Adult Education Research" (Gerver); "Some…

A coauthor of a book on the history of thought and practice in educational administration reflects on issues raised during the writing of the book as follows: (1) Categories of administrative thought are difficult to establish. Two categories were derived from Richard Scott's rational systems approach--scientific management and bureaucracy. The…

This monograph discusses Thomas Greenfield's writings and those of his two major detractors, Daniel Griffiths and Donald J. Willower. For nearly a decade Greenfield has attacked traditional theories of educational administration and argued for the centrality of mind in the construction of organizational and administrative reality. An introductory…

This paper illustrates the need for full description and measurement of differences between "experimental" and "control" situations in school program evaluation studies. Two studies were completed at the University of Oregon involving the innovative program--differentiated staffing (DS). The first study, a doctoral investigation, sought to assess…

A study was carried out at Pennsylvania State University to examine the effects of both textual and computer animated orienting activities--i.e., mediators through which new information is presented to the learner--and practice on the application and problem solving skills of elementary school students. It was hypothesized that students provided…

A consortium of four institutions, based at Western Michigan University, was to plan a Research and Development Center on Student Testing, Evaluation, and Standards Setting. The four consortium sites are Boston College, the Dallas Independent School District, the University of Kansas, and Western Michigan University. This report is a final…

A brief history of television use in foreign language instruction is presented, and the ways in which videotape technology has increased television's potential are discussed. Various uses for the medium, including films designed for language teaching, non-specialized material taped off the air, videotaping of student productions, and…

This paper describes the results of a study of the microcomputer use patterns reflected by more than 13,000 users' records from the microcomputer laboratory at Western Kentucky University for 1983 to 1986. The data analyzed focused on: (1) numbers of users; (2) frequent user groups; (3) sex differences; (4) prime time usage; (5) the use of…

This is part of a series on selected areas of science and technology prepared by the Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy, at the request of the Science Advisor to the President of the United States. This volume includes four individual reports. The first is the report of the "Research Briefing Panel on Science of Interfaces…

Analysis of current literature indicates that the process and the outcome of social studies education in rural communities is little different from that in the rest of the country. Despite the excitement surrounding the "Foxfire" program in rural Georgia and the efforts of curriculum innovators, students in rural America are likely to encounter a…

Current efforts and methodologies to evaluate vocational education programs are plagued by a number of problems. Included among these are the following: disagreement over the primary role and function of vocational education, too great an emphasis on summative and product evaluation as well as on labor market outcomes as indicators of program…

This report summarizes activities of the 5-year Rural Education Project of the Mid-continent Regional Educational Laboratory (McREL) and reviews the current state of rural education. Deteriorating agricultural economy and mandated school reforms were found to have exacerbated rural school problems of maintaining quality programs in situations of…

The paper suggests priorities for the federal government's elementary and secondary education data collection efforts. Sections on outputs, inputs, and private schools describe what data is needed, what is already available, and what is recommended for data collection. Recommendations include a high priority for federal funding for the National…

This essay provides an historical perspective on conflict and discusses the relationship of prejudice and ethnocentrism to intergroup conflict, prejudice and conflict resolution in childhood, as well as approaches to conflict resolution in society. History is full of hateful and destructive indulgences based on religious, racial, and other…

This paper argues that just as imagination has been important for the inception and promotion of invitational education, it is also necessary for the development of inviting research strategies. Applying the educative process to the study of inviting, recommendations are made for relating the constituent parts of the inviting stance (optimism,…