English language (EL) learners, many of whom are immigrants, face economic, social, and cultural constraints when accessing Extension programming. NFNM is an innovative program that seeks to address these constraints by developing and implementing place-based natural history curriculum for adult English language (EL) learners in the authors state.…

High school dropouts who return to school encounter many challenges. These obstacles increase the probability that a second dropout event will occur. This leaves leaders in Dropout Recovery programs with little ability to predict which students will stay in school and which are likely to leave again. However, what if a promising new scale could…

This study explores the effectiveness of social practice approach by integrating social practices along with modern teaching strategies, and teacher training to address the challenge of low academic achievement among adult learners in basic literacy programs. For a 4-month experiment, two of a metropolitan city's fourteen adult literacy centres…

NC Reconnect, an effort of the John M. Belk Endowment (JMBE), aims to engage or reengage adult learners over the age of 25 in North Carolina's community colleges to bridge the postsecondary education attainment gap and improve economic mobility within the state. This paper applies the Five P Framework to examine processes at 15 community colleges…

"Grow Your Own" (GYO) programs have emerged as a new approach to expanding teacher supply, addressing localized shortages, and diversifying the profession. However, little is known about the scale and design of GYO programs, which recruit and support individuals from the local community to become teachers. We conduct a quantitative…

This article draws on a case study of an international master's degree programme in educational quality and leadership for senior professionals in sub-Saharan Africa. It reflects the experience of adapting a blended learning approach to a purely online format in response to pandemic-induced lockdowns and travel bans in 2020-2021. Based on this…

A "mind, brain and education" (MBE) approach applies the best evidence regarding how people learn to real classroom settings. Much of the work in the field to date has involved child learners, but MBE is increasingly turning to the study of adult education, supported by a growing understanding of how adults and children differ in their…

Asking open-ended questions for research purposes might be very tempting because the answers can provide valuable authentic information not only about participants' responses to the asked questions but also about their unintentionally expressed feelings and emotions. However, analyzing answers to open-ended questions given in free form will very…

Across the country, policymakers, postsecondary leaders, and students themselves are engaged in questions about the purpose and value of college. Learners are trying to reconcile concerns about the cost and relevance of postsecondary education with the increasing importance of postsecondary training and credentials for attaining good jobs. Many of…

Literacy is widely acknowledged as a necessary 21st-century skill, particularly for adult learners. However, continued low academic achievement among adult basic literacy learners remains a global concern. This study aimed to address the challenge of limited application of literacy in daily life among adult learners by examining the effectiveness…

Blended synchronous learning (BSL) has become increasingly prominent in lifelong education due to its flexibility in enabling simultaneous onsite and online participation. However, enhancing the experience and satisfaction of adult learners in this context remains a challenge. This study primarily used structural equation modelling to examine the…

As digital skills become progressively more essential for workforce participation, addressing foundational digital literacy gaps among disadvantaged workers has become an increasingly pressing issue for achieving economic growth for all. The authors summarize results from a pilot study of a course on foundational computer skills and digital…

This article presents a case study involving the use of a Free and Open-Source Software programming environment to teach a thematic unit within the Information Literacy curriculum for first-year adult learners at a Second Chance School in Greece. This study explores the implementation of a modern, hands-on teaching approach tailored to the unique…

This 5-year research project was based on an NSF S-STEM research grant (1742118) focused on student veteran education and workforce preparation. We addressed STEM workforce and defence community needs by providing targeted scholarships and support for veteran students pursuing engineering degrees. Our aim was to enhance the workforce by improving…

The number of mature students in PhD programs in Canada has increased over recent years. While research suggests older adults are more intrinsically motivated and tend to academically outperform their younger peers, studies generally focus on the problems and barriers mature students frequently encounter. The purpose of this research is to fill a…