In collaborative learning, both facilitators and learners are active participants in the process, a sense of community is created, and knowledge is considered to be located in the community rather than the individual. Its guiding principle is that learning is enhanced when knowledge that is created and transmitted is shaped by the activities and…

Reviews recent literature on why some individuals do not participate in adult education. (CH)

An overview of learning disabilities in adults is presented to aid in detection, diagnosis, and instruction. Following a description of learning disabilities in general, and the occurrence in adults in particular, nine observable characteristics of learning-disabled adults are discussed: (1) vision problems; (2) extraneous vocal sounds; (3)…

A review of Knowles' andragogical model (1984) and Pratt's writings (1988) on the appropriateness of learner-centered instruction established that, even though learners may need both direction and support, they can still be involved in designing/directing their own learning in meaningful ways. Adult educators can obtain information about the…

One way to approach the question of whether teaching adults is different is by examining the types of learning in which adults engage. Adult learning has been classified as subject oriented, consumer oriented, and emancipatory. Only emancipatory education has been described as unique to adulthood, but even that claim has been challenged. As a…

Between 1969 and 1984, the number of adults participating in educational programs increased 79 percent and the number of adult education activities doubled. The following facts should be considered when developing instructional programs for adult learners: individuals can learn throughout their lives, adult life cycles influence learning, adults…

Malcolm Knowles is attributed with developing the most cogent model underlying the assumption that teaching adults should differ from teaching children and adolescents. His andragogical model is based on the premise that adult learning differs from preadult learning. Two studies have examined whether teachers do actually use a different style when…

This edited transcription of a presentation by Susan Imel and Judy Wagner, of the ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education, discusses the use of the Internet in adult education and family literacy programs. Issues discussed include models of technology instruction, adult learning characteristics, and World Wide Web sites of…

This fact sheet offers guidelines to consider when developing educational programs for adults. Characteristics of adults which affect learning are discussed under the following headings: adult life cycle; time orientation geared toward immediacy; broad base of experience; independent self-concept; and social roles. The importance of allowing…

This fact sheet presents the needs and characteristics of handicapped adults as an aid in developing and adapting educational programs. Following a discussion of the desire which adult educators feel to provide opportunities for all students, four general problem areas are described: attitudes of others, lack of mobility, diminished cognitive or…

The goal of emancipatory learning is to free learners from the forces that limit their options and control their lives and to move them to act for social and political change. Although emancipatory learning is commonly associated with adulthood, not all adult education fosters it, and not all adult educators align themselves with perspectives that…

Research has suggested that many adults choose not to participate in available literacy programs because they equate literacy education with school. Two new directions in adult literacy program development are being explored in an effort to make programs more appealing to nonparticipants. The first is connected to program content and the second…

Metacognition refers to the ability of learners to be aware of and monitor their learning processes. Cognitive skills are those needed to perform a task, whereas metacognitive skills are necessary to understand how it was performed. Metacognitive skills are generally divided into two types: self-assessment (the ability to assess one's own…

Research on various facets of adult learners' experiences in postsecondary education has established the following facts: (1) instructors who help adult learners connect their real-world experiences and what they already know to what they are learning in the classroom are perceived as most helpful and motivating; (2) adult undergraduates generally…

A form of group learning, cohorts, has become increasingly attractive to administrators, instructors, and participants in adult education. Basic academic skills cohort learning supports three types of knowing: instrumental, socializing, and self-authoring; whereas, in higher and adult education cohort learning, the development of critical…