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Research shows that active student participation facilitates learning. However, encouraging undergraduate college students to engage meaningfully in classroom discussion and to respond to questions, especially in larger classes, can often be frustrating for instructors (Weaver & Qi, 2005). Set against a focused review of the literature, the authors of this descriptive "action research" study explored reasons why students may be reluctant to speak up in class. Based on feedback received from student surveys and in-class discussions, they provide their insight-based recommendations for ways to encourage more participation and discourse in college classrooms. The authors also discuss influences of course and program characteristics (focus, content, size), learning and teaching styles and strategies, as well as instructor and student characteristics (gender, age, race/ethnicity) on student participation. (Contains 1 figure and 1 table.)

The Watershed Learning Center (WLC) was developed by the Brandywine Valley Association (BVA) to provide outdoor environmental lessons to schools on their own properties or on sites close by. Teachers are trained to take over the lessons by observing BVA instructors and attending workshops. The program was evaluated to discover how the WLC was introduced and expanded in the schools, the program's impact on students, and the effectiveness of the teacher training for program take-over and continuation. The accomplishments and challenges of the WLC program are described and insights provided that can serve as a model for replication. (Contains 1 table.)

In tribute to Philadelphia's world-changing past, Festival partners dubbed the month-long Disability Arts Festival "Independence Starts Here." Through it, they hoped to begin to change the future for over 675,000 people with disabilities in the area and their families. Led by Amaryllis Theatre Company, which now also serves as VSA arts of Pennsylvania, and Art-Reach, Inc., a group of cultural and disability leaders and individuals with disabilities met for the first time in 2003 to try to find ways to make Philadelphia more accessible and inclusive, at least where arts and culture are concerned. Since its creation in 1999, Amaryllis' mission had been to include professional artists with and without disabilities and to make all of its productions accessible. As a small company working to find ways to create accessibility for its own artists and audiences, it had been trying to create solutions to problems that not only worked, but were also cost-effective. This article discusses the "Independence Starts Here" Festival of Disability Arts and Culture and how it was created.

In an age of experimentation, library users from Cerritos, California, to Salt Lake City to Seattle are experiencing public libraries the likes of which they have never before seen. While the 1990s may be remembered as the era of the anchor facility, when libraries were called upon to define and support a community's renaissance, this decade's library projects are responding to a new set of expectations and opportunities. A key element, of course, is technology. While older buildings may have accommodated technology, today's new libraries are formed by it. Librarians are keenly aware of the competition, from the mega-bookstores to Kinko's, and retail models are also driving service and design. Rolled into this is a respect for traditional library environments that encourage quiet study and reflective learning. The goal is to be nothing less than the locus for activity in the community. This article presents four libraries in development now that take risks to expand their reach: (1) Darien Library; (2) the Free Library of Philadelphia; (3) St. Louis Public Library; and (4) the North Natomas Library. While each is unique, they all have the potential to make people think about libraries in entirely new ways.

The renovation of Friends Center in downtown Philadelphia began in 2003 as a modest capital improvements project to address outstanding maintenance issues in the Friends' historic Race Street Meetinghouse and the attached ca. 1970 office building. Through a consensus-based process of mission-driven discernment, the Friends and the members of the project team refined a vision of sustainable design, construction, and use practices. Ultimately, the project achieved LEED Platinum certification and the highest number of points awarded for any LEED NC 2.0 project within the state of Pennsylvania. However, the enduring contribution of the project to sustainable design and construction practices has been to advance accepted standards for best practices in design and construction. The project exemplifies the way that successful sustainable projects influence the definition of best practices and raise the bar for clients and designers. While the Friends Center facility does tread lightly on the land and does not emit any CO2, its most significant societal and ecological benefit has been a transformation of expectations regarding sustainability during design, construction, and occupancy. The intent of this article is to describe the sustainable design technologies that were planned and incorporated into the Friends Center renovations, to explain how decisions were made to embrace sustainable design strategies, and to explain how the sum of these parts has been a transformation of expectations regarding current design strategies, construction practices, and building occupancy as they relate to sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]