The paper presents some of the organizing principles that have emerged in the process of designing higher education programs for adults. The analysis relies on some of the recent research and literature on adult development, life stages, and learning interests. The organizing principles were not predetermined, but have resulted from years of…

The Speech Communication Association's National Project on Speech Communication Competencies yielded a developmental perspective of functional communication, from which implications for lifelong learning can be derived. The project resulted in the following contributions: a definition of communication competence; a description of the child as a…

The performance of three groups of mature age unmatriculated students at the University of New South Wales was studied. The first group consisted of 43 students in their second year at the university. Performance of these students was creditable over a wide range of subjects, with a 76 percent clear pass rate. Of the 63 first-year students in the…

Using 24 college and university teachers, this study investigated the effect of teaching styles on adult student learning and analyzed the results of a factor breakdown, interactions between teacher behavior and class and student characteristics, and profiles of teacher effectiveness. Gains in factual information were positively related to teacher…

To examine the characteristics of expertise, a study at the University of Minnesota cardiac clinic compared differences in diagnostic ability and strategies between novices (fourth year medical students) and experts (specialists in pediatric cardiology). The investigator presented a model for expertise based on knowledge of subject matter content…

This thesis reviews activities of a study to develop a systematized course for teaching advanced typewriting on an individual basis to part-time adult students. The introduction presents a rationale for the study and section 1 presents the purpose of the study and definition of terms. Section 2 describes the data gathering procedures, and section…

This handbook provides a comprehensive overview of empirical knowledge about adult development and learning. It is addressed to practitioners in the helping professions who help adults adapt, learn, and grow. The handbook begins with an examination of the concept of adult development and a discussion of persons (practitioners) who facilitate adult…

In this paper, the author reviews the research done on the learning efforts of adults and presents some high-priority directions for the future. The paper first defines major learning efforts (learning projects) and describes some recent changes in the practice and focus of adult education. It then provides a general picture of the frequency of…

The document contains recommendations and section reports from the National Conference on Lifelong Education, which the Australian Association of Adult Education organized and held in Canberra on November 23-29, 1973. Aims of the conference were to examine: (1) the present condition of Australian society as this bears on lifelong education, (2)…

The purpose of this study was: (1) to examine the scores achieved by psychiatrically ill adults who successfully passed the Test of General Educational Development while patients at the Arizona State Hospital; (2) to examine the scores achieved by non-psychiatrically ill adults who successfully passed the Test of General Educational Development;…

The proceedings consist of 11 papers grouped in two major categories: the context of adult learning (social significance and fact and fiction about adult learning) and the utilization of learning models for adult instruction. Contributors are Floyd B. Fischer, George L. Maddox, Rolf H. Monge, Eric F. Gardner, Arthur W. Combs, William J. Hoyer,…

The purpose of this report was to evaluate the more common small group methods in terms of their effectiveness in teaching adults. A rationale for small group instruction was presented, followed by descriptions of the principal methods, and an assessment based on existing research findings. It was concluded that small group methods can be…

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the influence of democratic and authoritarian teaching methods on the efficiency of learning in a short, concentrated management technique course and to develop and test hypotheses regarding the relationship between these teaching methods and the factors of instructor personality, student age,…

Embracing 750 items on adult education research and investigation (mostly dated 1969 or 1970), this annotated bibliography covers adult learning characteristics, program planning and administration, learning environments, instructional methods, curriculum materials and instructional devices, personnel and staffing; education of specific clientele…

Designed especially for relative novices in residential adult education conference and institute work, this annotated bibliography covers 29 books, periodical articles, and book chapters. These items have been chosen for practical application or theoretical significance to the evaluation of program design and content and of learning within…