This basic qualitative study investigated adult learners aged 35 and older and their experiences with situational, dispositional, and institutional barriers while enrolled in a Midwestern community college. Although numerous studies have examined adult learners in higher education, the purpose of this study was to investigate barriers adult…

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of older adult students who learn in a community college academic environment. The rationale for the study stemmed from a lack of knowledge regarding this group's experiences. The research question asked in this study was the following: "How do older adult students in a community…

Students who experience statistics anxiety have reported struggling with academic performance, an increase in academic dishonesty, and an aversion to careers or majors that are perceived to rely on statistical skills. Research has suggested that statistics anxiety is related to lower levels of motivation; however, it remains unknown if, or to what…

The landscape of higher education has changed considerably over the past several decades as a more diverse population of students seeks higher education. Nontraditional students--those who are not entering college as first-time, full-time students immediately after college--are increasingly the norm on college campuses. Student-parents are a…

More than 100,000 adults with some college but no degree (SCND) have reconnected with higher education at Tennessee community colleges over the past decade. However, only 21% graduated within three years of reconnecting. In Pathways to Success for Students with Some College, No Degree, the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) seeks to build a body of…

Error correction has been one of the central themes in accounting for potential gains in second language (L2) writing. While a wide range of empirical studies focused on the effects of written corrective feedback (WCF) on learners' writing outcomes, few of them have specifically examined the feedback process, or its potential role as a shaping…

The purpose of this study is to examine the barriers non-traditional students experience in their attempt to complete their degree program. Semi-structured interviews revealed four key themes: family; support; generational-gaps, and community. These themes highlight areas in which non-traditional students feel they have experienced obstacles in…

This article is written by two researchers and a teacher involved with the development and implementation of a web-based intelligent tutoring system for adults reading at elementary levels. A description of the tool is provided, followed by some of the challenges faced in designing, developing, and using the tool in adult literacy classrooms.

Although more students have formally gained access to higher education, universities continue to present students with norms and ideals that can function as invisible barriers to them. This paper investigates how norms and expectations in Danish higher education pose certain challenges to mature students, who, due to their age and often different…

Adult learners come to us at many different points along their journeys. As practitioners, we are responsible for understanding the range of purposes for which they seek our programs, so that we may partner with them in naming and achieving their goals. In working to get "many" students to progress to "many" steps, it can be…

Many critical educational philosophies assume that learners are naïve and unable to critically read their social reality. Critical educational gerontology (CEG) aims to emancipate learners from oppression, to which they are oblivious. This strand of older adult education charges teachers with the task of raising learners' naïve consciousness, by…

This paper presents the results of a retrospective study that investigates the cognitive effects of learning a foreign language in late adulthood. The learner group, consisting of 21 L1 Chinese speakers who have been learning to read Arabic for 2 years and 4 months, were compared to the matched group on their performance on a series of cognitive…

Adult students comprise a significant percentage of community college enrollments. However, these students have consistently completed college programs at lower rates than traditional-aged students. Community college structures, including student advisement, often align primarily with the needs of traditional-aged students. This has resulted in a…

The literature on adult students, and in particular, graduate students with children, reveals that female students often struggle to balance their studies and home life due to juggling multiple roles. To date, research on student mothers has primarily focused on domestic students, with few studies examining the experiences of international student…

This open access book, now in its second edition, offers a comprehensive overview of the experiences of First in Family (FiF) or first-generation students in higher education. It draws upon narratives of students and their family members and spans the entire university student life cycle (pre-entry, commencement, progression and graduation) with a…