Exemplary programs that have resulted in greater retention of minority, older, and commuting students are described including: Black students at the University of Delaware, linking cooperative education and educational opportunity at Ramapo College, high-risk adult students at Canisius College, and commuter peer assistance at University of…

"Focus on Basics" is the quarterly publication of the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy. It presents best practices, current research on adult learning and literacy, and how research is used by adult basic education teachers, counselors, program administrators, and policymakers. "Focus on Basics" is…

This study investigated whether adult literacy and numeracy courses produced social capital outcomes, which are changes in students' connections with networks of people. Interviews seeking information about participation in adult literacy and numeracy courses were conducted with 57 students and 18 teachers in four courses, one each in the Northern…

This guide is a proposed unit of instruction for a class composed of adults needing to improve their reading skills. The components include five key concepts with related content goals and adult basic education (ABE) student objectives. The key concepts are as follows: (1) there are many types of homes in the world; (2) people build different…

A sample of 72 nuclear power plant operators in requalification training at a southeastern nuclear power facility was studied to investigate the role of trainees' perceptions of their self-regulatory activities in explaining achievement in an industrial training setting. Respondents completed the Self-Regulatory Activities Survey, which was a…

This book is designed to influence adult educators to make more intentional choices toward developmental growth in their work with adult learners. Part 1 provides a rationale for attending to developmental growth of adult learners and a framework of intentions to encourage such development. Chapter 1 describes characteristics of adult learners and…

This paper offers arguments against some aspects of both the push toward a marketable curriculum and the extremes of student-centered teaching. The author uses as an example her own experiences teaching freshman composition telecourses at an off-campus location. The courses were offered at Inver Hills Community College, Minnesota, a small…

Teaching adults should be different if adults learn differently than children do. Theories or perspectives on adult learning, such as andragogy, make a number of assertions about the characteristics of adults as learners. If there are indeed distinctive characteristics of adults, on which claims for the uniqueness and coherence of adult education…

This document consists of comments provided by 20 adult students taught on the World Wide Web by an associate professor from the University of Central Florida's College of Education. The following are among the benefits of Web-based instruction cited by the students, all of whom are over the age of 25: (1) the ease of communicating on-line makes…

This workbook is one of six professional development manuals designed to help new adult education (AE) instructors find their personal philosophy of teaching adult students. The pretest and post-test appear first. Five units provide useful information on five diverse topics developed by leading (AE) experts and experienced (AE) instructors. Each…

This workbook, one of six professional development manuals prepared by experienced Adult High School (AHS) instructors, is designed to assist the instructor setting up and operating a General Education Development (GED) classroom. A pretest and posttest appear first. Each of the seven units begins with a list of objectives and then provides…

A study examined the labeling practices in the multicultural discourse in two adult education settings in Sweden: a day folk high school and a municipal adult education center. A total of 33 students and 9 staff members from two adult education programs were interviewed. The labeling processes used by the "actors" (the adult learners and…

From ancient Greece to the rise of modern science in the 18th and 19th centuries, liberal adult education was a predominant philosophy. Progressivism, which developed in opposition, had the greatest impact on adult education. It viewed the teacher as a guide, consultant, and resource; the learner as responsible for learning in partnership with the…

Descriptions of experiences with Open University programs for womens' education in two areas of England illustrate the need for regional support networks to encourage participation in continuing education. Such support services would accommodate the counseling and scheduling needs of reentry women, particularly mothers and homemakers. (MSE)

Suggests that community colleges need specially trained adult learning specialists (ALS) to meet the needs of increasing numbers of adult students. Proposes the ALS would facilitate on-campus adjustment and coordinate community based outreach programs. Describes training and qualifications. (JAC)