What are the realities of Latina adult learners? This question guided the design of this research project. Utilizing a focus group approach, six Latinas in Kansas City, Kansas, had the opportunity to speak freely about themselves and to share their stories with each other. In this article, the author focuses on the voices of these women without…

When adult learners return to formal education after a period of absence, coping with change is a constant and often omnipresent challenge. As they come to break down previous barriers to success in an educational arena, many adult learners are able to change the perceptions they have of themselves as learners. Previously held assumptions are…

In this study, we examined the provision and development of lifelong learning within institutions of higher education in British Columbia and explored some of the institutional characteristics that enable or discourage it. The results suggest that most lifelong learning opportunities are directed toward enhancing employment and career…

This chapter discusses how to draw on hip hop as a culturally relevant tool for teaching educators and adult learners to read the word, the world, and the media.

It is hoped that the opportunity to engage in dialogue with fellow adult learners from different countries will enable adult learners and educators to become more globalised in their perspectives and to actively take their place in a global society. This article describes a study that explores how an asynchronous internet-based forum encourages…

The American Association of Community Colleges' (AACC) Plus 50 Initiative is a three-year initiative launched in June 2008 and funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies. It was created to support a pilot group of two-year institutions to develop or expand campus programs that engage plus 50 learners. The initiative focuses on three types of…

The Breaking Through (BT) initiative promotes an expanded and enhanced role for community colleges in providing access to college for low-skilled adults. BT is uniquely important in its systematic integration of adult education, developmental/remedial education, professional-technical education (PTE), and career planning and preparation in…

Adult English as a second language (ESL) students learning English outside of traditional academic settings are an understudied population of second language learners. The purpose of the research reported here is to contribute to meeting the instructional needs of these students more effectively by investigating the relationships between their…

Although it may be so subtle that it is not noticed or sudden and life altering, adult development occurs in a cycle of four inherent processes: transaction, transition, transformation, and transcendence. These processes exist in a cycle characterized by growth and development. The processes can be defined as follows: (1) transaction--personal,…

This book contains a collection of 76 original essays produced by students at a model adult literacy program run by Literacy Volunteers of America-Chippewa Valley (Wisconsin). The essays were produced by the students with the encouragement of their tutors. The essays are grouped into the following topic categories: life's lessons, citizenship,…

The act of reading directions and being able to carry out those directions precisely is very different from reading prose--such a specific skill needs to be taught to adult students. Being able to follow directions is an important workplace competency, as well as being crucial for completing tests required of job applicants. Mountains of forms, in…

Publicity techniques for reaching commuter students are presented in this article. Following a discussion of the special problems associated with reaching commuter students with information, the difference between promotion, advertising, and publicity is explained. Publicity strategies are then provided for: (1) reaching adult students; (2)…

This paper reviews the literature on the habits and preferences of American adults in four areas: reading, library use, television viewing, and adult learning. Within these areas, research results are reported for: (1) the demographic characteristics of readers and nonreaders, the reasons given for reading, time spent reading, the places where…

A nominal group procedure for ascertaining adult students, needs in educational programs is explained, with examples from the American Pie Forum provided. (LH)

After decades of neglect adult literacy and numeracy (ALN) learning in Scotland has been accorded the prominence that it has always merited but seldom received. Understandings of the concept of literacies and what it means to be literate have similarly undergone significant change in the last few decades. This shift has entailed a recognition of…