This study aims to establish the effectiveness of an industrial data set in the delivery of an active approach to teaching and learning across a range of programme levels from NVQ to MSc within Further Education (FE) and Higher Education (HE) Institutions in North Wales. The result described in the paper reinforces in FE and HE the advantages of…

Various surveys have documented widespread support among US parents, students, teachers and health professionals for school-based comprehensive sexuality education. In many school districts, however, the sexuality education provided is minimal, incomplete or fragmented, and essential topics are often omitted or inaccurately presented. To help…

Object: To investigate channels for communication of health information to various groups in the community. Design: An exploratory cross sectional design was used, followed by focus groups of selected participants to confirm and clarify the findings. Setting: Five levels of sub-district administration organizations were selected from different…

The term "culture" has been in common use for a long time. However there is no universally accepted definition and hence it is important to define clearly what culture means in a particular research context. The research reported here is part of a project undertaken at a large Australian university in late 2005. The overall aim of the…

Principals can tap the tacit knowledge, or "deep smarts," of their teachers in a variety of ways, many of which are based on the notion that tacit knowledge is best sought indirectly. Coming right out and asking people to share what they have learned over the years can be intimidating and disconcerting, especially if trust has not yet been…

Perceptions of good parent-adolescent relationships were explored among 19 Mexican American high school students aged 14-17 who participated in focus group interviews on what it means for Mexican American teenagers to have good relationships with parents. Using a grounded theory approach, five general themes emerged in the responses, corresponding…

The growing use of both computers and the Internet in adult English language classrooms has widespread implications for English language programs. As computer access increases, so do new learning technologies in adult literacy education. Specifically, this paper is interested in the case of adult English language instruction, also commonly…

This paper discusses qualitative research into young people's views of independent children's advocacy services in Wales. We conducted focus groups and semi-structured individual interviews with over 80 children who had used advocacy or whose circumstances suggested them as potential users of advocacy. Our topics of enquiry were structured by…

This study describes a series of focus groups conducted with employers. A series of 10 focus groups was conducted in 10 different communities in a midwestern state, with small, medium, and large communities represented. A total of 67 participants, representing human resources offices and direct supervisors, responded to questions regarding…

The term scientific literacy is defined differently in different contexts. The term literacy simply refers to the ability for one to read and write, but recent studies in language literacy have extended this definition. New literacy research seeks a redefinition in terms of how skills are used rather than how they are learned. Contemporary…

Re:Learning, a major national effort to redesign the total school system, is grounded in the belief that school renewal efforts must focus on schooling's primary purpose--to help all students learn to use their minds well. In July and August 1989, 13 focus groups were convened in Colorado for the Education Commission of the States' Re:Learning…

Focus groups were conducted to explore the attitudes of University of Minnesota Extension faculty and staff toward program evaluation and their perceptions of their individual responsibility for evaluating programs. A total of 35 faculty and staff members participated in the 5 focus groups. Responses of participants indicate a definite need to…

Examined types of discussion in three Paideia Seminars through observations, questionnaires, focus group interviews with eight students, and interviews of the teacher and principal. Findings suggest that the observed discussions reflected the teacher's transitional status in conducting dialogic discussion, with some "ideal" Paideia…

Six focus groups with 21 nurses in military hospitals identified five professional development themes: (1) critical topics; (2) appropriate continuing education methods; (3) evaluation of effectiveness and efficiency of continuing education; (4) barriers to professional development; and (5) staff retention issues. Recommendations for mentoring,…

Describes focus group application in student affairs assessment and offers suggestions on conducting groups and using results. Concludes that focus groups can overcome limitations of quantitative designs, such as limited scope of response or profiles of "average" persons who do not really exist; be used to help design or supplement quantitative…