Adults learn simply through life experience and possibly by pursuing an education. Pursuing an education would depend on the setting of the experience. This project aimed to explore the theories and frameworks that inform the field of adult learning today. A course project was constructed of seven individual projects, each exploring different…

This book is for educators who believe that schools need to be improved and are hopeful that real change can be achieved. The authors argue that if educators want to create more equitable, socially just, and learner-focused schools, then they need a more robust, transformational theory of school change--an UnCommon Theory. After describing the…

The purpose of this article is to provide a conceptual framework for mentoring as an added component of a learning organization in the context of adult learning and development theories. Mentoring is traditionally a process in which an experienced person (the mentor) guides another person (the mentee or protégé) in the development of her or his…

The authors examine the modernist underpinnings of traditional adult learning and development theories and evaluate elements of those theories through more contemporary lenses. Drawing on recent literature focused on "public pedagogy," the authors argue that much learning takes place outside of formal educational institutions. They look beyond…

This qualitative study explores the correspondence between contemplative practices and "orders of consciousness" from a constructive-developmental perspective, using Robert Kegan's approach. Adult developmental growth is becoming an increasingly important influence on humanity's ability to deal effectively with the growing complexity of…

This article explores the relationships among student-centered doctoral study for scholar-practitioners, adult development, and transformative learning. In this research study, the authors describe a project that explores an expanded conceptualization of doctoral education that is grounded in an integrative perspective on adult development and on…

The subject of adult learning has seen increased recognition during the past decade. Over 20 years ago, California established the New Teacher Project (NTP), a forerunner of the current Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment System (BTSA) which was developed to support new teachers in their journey in becoming an expert educator. Recently,…

Engineering educators are often not familiar with the theories and research findings of educational psychology, adult development, curriculum design, and instruction design. Even the published research in engineering/computing education does not sufficiently leverage this body of knowledge. Often in the educational reports and recommendations by…

Since the 1980s, educators in adult basic education and special education have speculated that a substantial if unknown percentage of adults have specific learning disabilities (LDs) and have sought to identify and address effectively the needs of these learners. Two rarely intersecting bodies of historical literature on LDs provide the background…

One aspect of personality, perceptions of internal versus external control of reinforcement, shifts under conditions of change. This review of the literature examines the relationship between planned organizational change and locus of control. The review includes literature from the disciplines of clinical and social psychology, adult development,…

The purpose of this research study was to investigate the phenomenon of the conflicting roles, such as parent, spouse, employee, caregiver, and community member/volunteer, associated with the lives of nontraditional college students and to reveal how these conflicting role obligations influence these students' persistence toward the attainment of…

This document traces theoretical developments in the psychology of aging during the last 50 years. The concept of theory is discussed as well as the bringing together of theories to form a model. After summarizing the early beginnings of American interest in aging, the work of major theoreticians is explored including Hall (senescence), Thorndike…

Transformative adult development involves a qualitative change in world view with resulting tension and struggles of the production of new consciousness. Change occurs through a dialectic process of reconstructing meaning in new ways. (SK)

Examines theoretical underpinnings of educational gerontology that serve as the foundation of programming, including developmental perspectives, longitudinal research into the lifespan, gender roles, reminiscence, cognition, and need-based learning. (SK)

To determine what a theory of adult learning should encompass, three topics were considered: current status of adult learning theory, contributions of the developmentalists, and foundation for a total person model of adult learning theory. An overview of activity related to theory building in adult learning during the 1970s showed the emphasis…