Billions of dollars are spent annually on leadership training and development courses. Unfortunately, this training, both at organizational and university levels, does not appear to consistently result in significant adult learning or better organizational performance. These programs tend to focus on the theories of leadership within closed…

The concept of reflection is central to theories of experiential learning common in the field of adult education. In this article, we expand upon the work of Michelson on the dualistic split between experience and knowing inherent in the field's most common conceptualizations of reflection. We develop alternative approaches to reflection drawing…

Adult education is grounded in responding to the needs of others, and the field places emphasis on adult learning theories such as transformative learning and experiential learning. Service learning is an educational approach that balances formal instruction and direction with the opportunity for adult learners to serve in the community as a…

The U.S. workforce is increasingly comprised of older adults, women, and minorities who lack basic skills and are unable to acquire these skills through traditional educational and training programs. New approaches are needed to provide effective training to the adult learner and flexible support for nontraditional students who must balance…

The objective of this article is to investigate learning in museums through the lens of John Dewey's philosophy of education and experiential learning. The influence of Dewey's philosophy of education is widespread and resounding. In this article, I examine the experiential qualities of Dewey's philosophy and compare it with the objectives of the…

The authors describe an intensive graduate program involving compressed classroom preparation followed by a period of experiential activities designed to reinforce and enhance the knowledge base. Beginning with a brief review of the andragogical issues, they describe methods undertaken to track learning styles via the Kolb Learning Styles…

The proliferation of postsecondary programs for working adults is not surprising, given the importance of a bachelor's degree to employment and higher earnings. However, the demographics of adult learners have changed significantly over the past 30 years, when degrees for adults targeted a middle-class population. Adults now return to college…

Teaching graduate students to conduct evaluations is typically relegated to evaluation methods courses. This approach misses an opportunity for students to collaboratively use evaluation skills to explore content. This article examines a graduate course, Issues in Adult Basic Education, in which students learned evaluation methods concurrently…

Significant stigma exists to marginalize persons living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). Research has demonstrated it is possible to reduce stigma and prejudice through the development of meaningful and innovative education. The purpose of this article is to explore the ways in which the creative and purposeful use of AIDS Artwork as an educational tool may…

This article shares a reframing of lifelong learning beyond a formal career. Like many of his peers, after 40 years in postsecondary education, the author has moved beyond his most recent full-time work teaching in an adult education graduate program to emeritus faculty status. In this article, he shares his experience moving into the next phase…

America's adult populace has failed to keep pace with the rapid inundation of science-centric knowledge affecting nearly every facet of personal, familial, and communal life. With three out of every four American adults considered scientifically illiterate, adult civic science literacy (CSL) has reached alarmingly low levels. The purpose of…

Mentoring has been defined in many different ways. Traditionally, mentoring is seen as a relationship between an older, more experienced mentor and a younger, less experienced protege for the purpose of helping and developing the protege's career. Zachary's (2005) description best fits the process discussed in this article: "Mentoring is best…

Over the past 30+ years, many colleges have made themselves more accessible for adult students. These innovations include flexible scheduling, online learning, professionally-oriented degrees, and credit for what students already know. However, there is more work to be done, particularly in the areas of financial aid for the very large number of…

Reflective practice through continuous learning in the workplace involves viewing experiences as potential learning and reexamining assumptions, values, methods, policies, and practices. Steps in continuous work/learning are as follows: clarify thinking, be open to questions, notice context, test hunches, investigate, name and rename the problem,…

A process for translating experience into college-level learning involves identifying relevant experiences and types: (1) a single experience leading to a single learning topic; (2) a single experience leading to several topics; or (3) several experiences leading to a single topic. Visual representations of these types help students validate the…