Educational guidance and learner support should be fully integrated into the learning experience for community learners who may not have higher education experience. Student feedback is an essential element. (SK)

From a literature review, the following principles for facilitating adult learning in continuing education were derived: (1) promote positive relationships; (2) gain learners' attention; (3) ensure that content is relevant; (4) provide support and challenge; and (5) ensure learner satisfaction. (Contains 55 references.) (SK)

Mature students may experience dislocation from familiar circumstances, vulnerability, or overconfidence. Some learn nothing from experience or simply enjoy the experience of learning. Humility to learn and the excitement of new learning are needed by both learners and educators. (SK)

Finds that the majority of surveyed adult students taking a class in the three-weekend intensive format were happy with the overall format. Notes how employer reimbursement, gender, and extrinsically-oriented versus intrinsically-oriented motivation affect student satisfaction in this class format. (SR)

In interviews with 38 adults returning to education, many expressed the need to redress a perceived imbalance. Their initial motivation was often vocational, but the experience of transition caused situational or dispositional imbalances in their lives that they sought to correct through education. (SK)

A literature review was used to build a model of college outcomes for adults that depicts six elements: prior experiences; orienting frameworks; declarative, procedural, and self-regulating knowledge; the "connecting classroom" for social engagement and negotiation of meaning; the life-world environment; and types and levels of learning outcomes.…

Young farmers (n=93) were motivated to participate in education by intrinsic and extrinsic factors, especially regarding increased profitability, learning the latest technology, and relevance and accessibility of courses. They preferred hands-on and trial-and-error methods. (SK)

After 20 years on the job, people often begin to count the days until they receive the gold watch and move into their sunset years of retirement. With the ever-changing economy, however, that is not always the scenario that occurs. Instead, many will find themselves back in the classroom preparing for a new career and planning a new future.…

Foreign language learning is a challenging task, involving mastering a new sound system, phonological and syntactical forms, vocabulary, and sometimes a new writing system. For the adult second language learner, one of the most frustrating aspects is having an inadequate vocabulary for expressing complex ideas that are so easy to relate in one's…

This study attempts to identify the factors perceived to be important in choosing an Institution of Higher Learning (IHL) for distance learning. One thousand five hundred questionnaires were distributed to the first year students in the social sciences distance learning programs and 980 valid responses were received of Malaysian public university.…

This article describes two models for enhancing the social integration of nontraditional students in academic programs. The first explains ways to develop onsite communities for both graduate and undergraduate degree-seeking students at New York University. The second model is used with undergraduate students at Washington State University seeking…

The Bachelor of Science in Industrial Management (BSIM) was designed for technical college graduates with work experience because the University of Wisconsin-Stout (UW-Stout) recognized a need among adult students with technical college degrees. The program was developed to provide these students with an opportunity to earn baccalaureate degrees…

Many students in New Zealand are now of mature age, female, and mothers of dependent children (Allister et al. 2006). These students typically experience the challenge of sharing themselves between their children, partners, extended families and their fellow students, lecturers and studying. This research explored how a group of student-teachers…

A comparison of the error profiles of monolingual (child L1) learners of Dutch, Moroccan children (child L2) and Moroccan adults (adult L2) learning Dutch as their L2 shows that participants in all groups massively overgeneralize [-neuter] articles to [+neuter] contexts. In all groups, the reverse gender mistake infrequently occurs. Gender…

This case study examines the impact of a program-wide event on the sense of community in a distance education program. The departmental conference examined in this study is intended to help students gain experience in sharing their ideas and plays a large role in building a sense of community among residential students and faculty. This study…