Aristotle serves as a valuable, and practical, model for mentors of adult learners. His writings give insight into mentoring even as we practice it today. Although he lived in ancient Greece (c. 384 BCE to 322 BCE) and his audience was aristocratic males, the tenets of his philosophy for adult learning hold true in the present age for learners of…

The aim of this article is to examine collective memory work (CMW) as a method for turning the work-life experiences of adult learners in a part-time master's program into a collective knowledge resource, thereby strengthening the interplay between theory and practice in the students' learning processes. CMW is a well-known qualitative research…

Higher education programs are rapidly transitioning online in support of a broader geographic base, working professionals, and, recently, emergency contingencies such as COVID-19. The flexibility of online courses makes them attractive to adult learners; as such, there is much academic discussion about online learning for adult learners and the…

Older adults are a growing population. This article reviews the literature on older adults in "Adult Learning" from its inception in 1989 through 2020. Topics focus primarily on program reports, programmatic learning needs, personal reflections, and classroom methods. Key findings include that "older adult" is not well-defined…

This paper reports on the coping strategies of mature female students whilst studying a Foundation Programme at a Business School. In recent years, research has focussed less on the problems that confront adult learners and more on how they exercise personal agency and cope with the multifarious challenges of combining study with part-time…

Blended, or hybrid, courses have often been touted as the ideal way to facilitate learning as they allow learners to interact in both face-to-face and online settings, thereby experiencing the "best of both worlds." In practice, that ideal learning setting is more difficult to achieve. While blended courses have the potential to…

Recent trends in higher education indicate a steady increase in the number of adult and non-traditional learners returning to complete college degrees. Though higher education can provide numerous economic and career enhancement opportunities, adult learners experience several challenges when they return to college. The purpose of this qualitative…

Shorthand is, by definition, coded symbolism used for purposes of speed. It's a system of abbreviation, intended to skim the top of more complex systems of meaning, taking shortcuts but keeping track of the important facts. Shorthand is used all the time in adult basic education (ABE). The very name of the field, adult "basic" education,…

This study explores the potential of ChatGPT as a virtual tutor to facilitate self-directed learning (SDL) among adult learners in asynchronous online contexts. Although SDL has been identified as a critical skill, factors such as the lack of skills to find resources and the absence of a supportive learning environment could impede adult learners'…

A late modern rationale for the education of older people has not yet been sufficiently explored. In this action research, I explore Giddens's life politics as a framework for a late modern rationale for older adult education. Eleven older learners were recruited voluntarily to an online study group conducted via Zoom at a University for the Third…

The ability to understand how our work-life experiences impact our pursuits as emerging scholars, parents, and individuals is critical to our successful performance in each role. We explore the intricacies of our work-life systems using collaborative autoethnography, a technique in which several autobiographical ethnographies are analyzed in a…

This study sought to fill a gap in the literature by considering the role of motivation in post-secondary aspirations of adult learners, specifically full versus part-time status, previous level of educational attainment, years of work experience, and the selection of an academic program. The data from this study came from adult students ages 25…

The Netflix docudrama, Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal, illustrates how college admissions, particularly at elite colleges, favors the privileged. Higher educational attainment overall favors the informed. Prospective students have many options when it comes to earning a college degree, with some of the more visible options…

This study's main purpose was to identify adult learners' motivation to pursue learning at Saudi Arabia's Yanbu adult-education schools. The study also investigates if there is a difference by gender, by age, and among learners in terms of their internal and external motivation to learn. The study's theoretical framework came from Knowles' theory…

One of the pedagogical benefits that emerged from the pandemic period for adult learners was that teachers, in addition to supporting institutions, were more willing to consider and introduce technological innovations to the learning experience. For 2 years, teachers and institutions had no choice. Unanticipatedly, some of these innovative…