A mid-career transition from public children's librarian to academic librarian revealed new pedagogical challenges that emerged when engaging adult learners. Initially feeling unprepared to teach credit-bearing courses, the author enrolled in a graduate program in Adult Education to gain the theoretical and practical tools needed for effective…

Most adult education practitioners will understand the special requirements educators should attend to when educating adults. While Malcolm Knowles's adult education principles might not meet the strictest definition of principles, their universal adoption and acceptance by adult educators affords them the same weight as principles. So, as Knowles…

This article invokes the spirit of "Sophia" as metaphorical guide for an ongoing reclamation of wisdom spaces and describes a path for educators and practitioners that can assist in the recovery of wisdom in the face of increasing pressures of measurable outcomes within the field of lifelong learning. The authors first examine wisdom…

In an effort to figure out what it means to educate "ecologically," I decided to track down some of the stories that I was living, telling and making as an educator. I ended up lost in the house of environmental education, stuck within the rooms of ecological science and political advocacy. Outside on the lawn sat the story of place…

This article presents reflections arising from a study on adult learning professions in Poland. Changes in the socio-political and legal context created phenomena that have occurred in the adult education systems, mechanisms and approaches. The article focuses on the impact of those processes on a specific professional group--adult educators.…

Describes principles aimed at helping adult instructors manage the classroom: (1) encourage timely attendance; (2) encourage timely assignments; (3) encourage high-quality learning tasks; (4) encourage class participation; and (5) attend to the classroom process. (Contains 23 references.) (JOW)

There is an urgent need to build a movement for adult education in the United States. Tens of thousands more classes are needed to enable democratic participation in the economy and society. This dramatic expansion of adult education and literacy should be aimed at the development of critical consciousness and civic participation of over ninety…

The adult learning community has a unique opportunity to engage with the big issues of the times during the coming year. The Learning and Skills Council is due to launch its Strategy for Sustainable Development in 2005 and a series of initiatives and publications is set to follow, including the European Year of Democratic Citizenship, launched…

This report on Portuguese adult education is focused on the principles and practices adopted by the Directorate-General, due to adult education's present embryonic state. Basic statistics and a brief introduction appear first. Part I, The System of Adult Education, is presented as a succession of initiatives and takes practically the entire length…

Environmental adult education (EAE) is a viable solution to the world's mounting environmental problems. EAE is a new and emerging field that is faced with constant changes and challenges. While this change presents practitioners with options for dynamic research possibilities, EAE is such that theory and practice in the field face a potential for…

This document reports on the aims, structure, delivery, and reform of continuing education in Germany. The following are among the topics discussed: aims, definitions, and areas of continuing education; structural principles, organizations, and competencies (institutional providers, cooperation, open access, public responsibility, innovative…