This study explored adult learners' experiences of participating in a second-chance education pilot program in The Gambia. The study examined learners' motivation for enrolling in the program, barriers they faced, and their benefits from attending the program. The participants consist of 13 learners from a second chance education centre in the…

This article explores the experiences of a group of women who having achieved success in education and returned to the adult learning environment again. A creative methodological approach allows the women to describe in their own words experiences of educational success and motivations to return to learning. Discussion points predominantly focus…

In this report, AIR shares key findings about postsecondary enrollment decision-making experiences of adult learners of color. This report serves as our main study report, encompassing the range of topics we explored; an important goal of this project was to shed light on new issues or ideas, including those that might spark experimentation with…

This article describes a posthuman study that used Deleuze's rhizoanalysis to explore the journeys of adult learners who returned to an adult high school to pursue their high school diplomas after having prematurely left high school. Five graduated adult students participated in individual recorded intra-views, and two of them also participated in…

Scholars and policymakers alike have recognized mass incarceration and criminal recidivism as two of the most profound challenges American society faces. For more than half a century, the United States has been the world's most prominent incarcerator, boasting the highest incarceration rate and the third-highest recidivism rate, with analysts…

The current and projected influx of older adult learners over 50 years of age implies the need to revisit lenses in which they are perceived and their academic needs. Though there are several support services to assist with physiological, socioeconomical, emotional, and cognitive hindrances, accessibility to these services continues to be the…

This doctoral research study examined how nontraditional students from different generations experience returning to college to gain insight into their media and technology usage habits and determine how those differences might influence enrollment marketing practices. The study was designed and administered using relationship marketing as a…

My research is a work in progress. This paper discusses the potential project that will utilize narrative inquiry to learn about the lived experiences of adults over the age of 45 who have made the decision to re-enter a high school program to complete grade 12. I review the literature surrounding adult learning and early exits from high school.…

This dissertation examines the relationship between community colleges and prisons as similar institutions that absorb and manage displaced workers, economic refugees, and dispossessed adult populations. Based on interviews with adult learners in two community college settings, I discuss how these two seemingly distinctive institutions work…

So-called "Mathematics-anxiety" can be a key inhibitor for some adult learners considering higher education. The Institute of Technology Tallaght (ITT) in Dublin hosts the "Centre of Expertise for Adult Numeracy/Mathematics Education" mathematics research group which is a hub of EPISTEM, formerly known as the "National…

The history of Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) can be traced back to World War II when the American Council on Education (ACE) began conducting credit evaluations of military training. However, it wasn't until the 1970s with the inception of adult-serving colleges such as Charter Oak State College (COSC) and others, the altering of ACE to expand…

This article examines the kind of space formed by philosophical discussion of education with lower-income, adult learners making their way back to structured education amidst work and life responsibilities. It explores two new social contexts that define this experience of return to education. The first is the sociability of philosophical…

Adult students add nuance to the understanding of transfer. Overwhelmingly, research on writing transfer assumes students move from grammar to high school to college to work in one uninterrupted progression. Yet, 40 percent of college students are older than twenty-four, and younger students increasingly work while attending college. These…

Today, more than ever, increasing numbers of adult learners are reentering the college arena. Teaching adult learners can be an overwhelming responsibility for educators, especially if they are unprepared to meet the diverse needs of these learners. The adult learner, no matter their age, still desires to be successful. By learning to identify and…

The purpose of this research was to gain an understanding of how returning adult learners, who were enrolled in a teacher preparation program within a career college, understood and made sense of their experiences in the program. This qualitative study centered on the experiences and stories of six adult learners who were student teaching while…