The Self-Knowledge Inventory of Lifelong Learning Strategies (SKILLS) was developed to measure adult learning strategies in real-life learning situations. SKILLS consists of a series of 12 scenarios from real-world situations that reflect Shirk's (1990) nine general categories of learning for real-life situations and that necessitate various types…

Erik Erikson's model (1963, 1982) is most useful to an understanding of development and aging. He describes lifelong growth as related to tasks that must be performed. At each stage of life, times of stability are followed by developmental crises. Upon resolving the crisis, the individual can enjoy the particular beauty and security of that…

This packet of materials is designed to aid teachers in redesigning their courses to accommodate diverse students. The worksheets help organize information on what aspects of diversity are present in each class, what course elements can and cannot be adapted to them, and how these adaptations might be implemented. The worksheets, along with the…

The existing body of learning style (LS) research was reviewed from the standpoint of its applicability to adult populations. It was discovered that most existing LS research has been conducted on populations of school- and college-age students in classroom settings and does not consider self-directed, informal, or incidental learning. The…

This report presents the early findings from the analysis of a family literacy demonstration project under the direction of the National Center for Family Literacy. The data in this report are based upon the experiences of over 300 families who participated in the Toyota Families for Learning Program during the 1992-1993 school year. The first…

As part of a project that investigated the teaching and learning of specific subject matters, three studies of geographic literacy were conducted. The purpose of the first study was to gauge the demand for geographic knowledge placed on adults in U.S. society by coding and analyzing geographic knowledge in The New York Times. To begin to assess…

This paper reports the results of an initial exploration into the attitudes and practices of some selected Canadian distance educators regarding a learner-centered view of education. Twenty-nine Canadian distance education teachers and administrators responded to questionnaires concerning attitudes toward distance education, student autonomy in…

This booklet is part of the "Getting to Grips with..." series, which is intended for the general reader who wants to understand important trends in vocational education and training. It is designed to provide the reader with an understanding of the main practical aspects of on-the-job training. The booklet is in two parts. The first…

Research by Darkenwald and by James and Day supports the contention that instructor behavior is a critical factor in shaping the kind of classroom environment desired by adult learners. Darkenwald developed the Actual and Ideal Adult Classroom Environmental Scale (ACES), which measures seven dimensions: involvement, affiliation, teacher support,…

College and university students in English as a second language classes need to acquire an active and fairly extensive vocabulary rather quickly. Methods of learning such as analysis and memorization of word lists, word building, and dictionary use can be combined with methods of gaining vocabulary by becoming familiar with it and using it in…

Resulting from a project designed to demonstrate that entrepreneurship can be a realistic choice for persons aged 55 years and older, this instructor handbook offers assistance in preparing and teaching courses for older adults on starting a small business. Introductory remarks provide background on the project and explain the use of the guide.…

Education from infancy to old age is a necessity and a responsibility as society looks to the future; and educational institutions could become the sites of cooperation of science and society in the service of the human family in realization of the goals of lifelong learning. Paper presented at 27th Annual Meeting of Gerontological Society,…

The paper reviews briefly the process and modes of communication, explores some problems of cross-cultural communication between the dominant society and the multitude of Indian cultures that exist in Canada, and draws some implications for adult educators. (Author/MW)

An investigation reviewed current literature in the field of physiological factors affecting the adult learning environment. These findings were compared to the academic learning environment at the Phoenix Air National Guard. The end product was a set of recommendations for management to implement in order to improve the learning climate for the…

This paper briefly reviews the first large-scale use of computer mediated communication (CMC) at the Open University (OU) in Milton Keynes, England, including computer conferencing and electronic mail, in an adjunct mode on a multimedia distance education course with 1,500 students. The first part of the paper outlines the rationale for…