The author worked at the sharp end of the steel industry for 25 years having left school with a few O-levels at 16, feeling he had not done well. As an adult learner he re-discovered his academic ability and returned to learning with the Open University in 1977, emerging in 1982 with a 2:1 in Social Sciences. Leaving the steel industry, he took a…

Aspiring teachers are taught the elements of "pedagogy," originally the art and science of teaching children. Many aspects of teaching adults, however, are fundamentally different than those employed in teaching children. In order to acknowledge these differences, a new word--"andragogy"--gained currency in the late 20th century. This article…

Adult literacy education is increasingly focused on preparing adults with literacy skills for the world of work. Assumptions about how this goal is being met should be made with caution, given that adult education also serves other goals, adult educators have diverse training, and many adult students are presumed to have learning disabilities (LD)…

This study represents a first effort to identify sociocultural background variables that predict the successful mastery of a heritage language by adult learners. While there are well-documented sociocultural models for other second language learners, thus far there are no similar published models for heritage language learners. We focused on…

This study tested and extended Dweck's social-cognitive theory of motivation with adults who deliberately chose to face the challenge of returning to school. We examined the relationships among beliefs (implicit theories) on the nature of intelligence, goal orientation, cognitive engagement in learning, and achievement using path analyses.…

This article is concerned with the effects that growing numbers of mature students have on the pedagogical practices of lecturing staff in the Institutes of Technology in Ireland. It is predicted by the Commission on the Points System and Mature Students that mature student enrolment may reach 15% by 2006, increasing to 25% by 2015. Lecturers in…

The globalisation of English and a growing demand for good English-speaking skills in the job market in particular have been placing a greater emphasis on the teaching of English speaking skills in Bangladesh. The private universities emphasise developing English skills. It seems that students of public and private universities have the same level…

There is an urgent need to build a movement for adult education in the United States. Tens of thousands more classes are needed to enable democratic participation in the economy and society. This dramatic expansion of adult education and literacy should be aimed at the development of critical consciousness and civic participation of over ninety…

This study examined the impact of two Problem-Based Learning (PBL) approaches on knowledge transfer, problem-solving self-efficacy, and perceived learning gains among four intact classes of adult learners engaged in a group project in an online undergraduate business research methods course. With two of the classes using a text-only PBL workbook…

The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) program is exploring a change in Section 3 of the TOEFL test that would replace the vocabulary subpart with additional reading comprehension questions. This study investigated the proposed revision in terms of the length and timing that would be necessary to address concerns of test speededness of…

This handbook provides practical information about the special needs of adult students (especially in literacy programs) who are being treated for mental disorders. The handbook includes teaching strategies for meeting these needs, as well as basic information about mental disorders and their treatment. The handbook is divided into six chapters…

A study used the Educational Resources and Information Center (ERIC) database as a resource for journal articles on adult education and women since 1971 to examine the recent effort at including inquiry on women and gender in the adult education literature. Once the ERIC database was searched and analyzed for possible trends, a random sample of…

A study investigaged: (1) whether learners of English as a Second Language can attend to meaning and form simultaneously; (2) how the nature of the linguistic form might affect processing for meaning; and (3) whether the learner's ability to focus on particular linguistic features is affected by whether or not those features have been acquired.…

According to a 1994 analysis of returning students, as many as 43% of all college students are currently over the age of 24. This influx of returning students demands a new look at existing pedagogical practices. The changing demographics of the classroom turn age and life experience into a consideration for pedagogy alongside race, class, and…

The impact of the introduction of Australia's competency-based Certificates of General Education for Adults (CGEA) in 1994 was examined through a participatory action research-based study. Data were collected from 3 sources: reflective journals kept by 12 practitioners, interviews with 13 practitioners, and related documents. Accreditation of the…