The history of Adult Education (AE) graduate programs spans almost a century, yet many programs have experienced significant challenges in recent years to remain viable. The purpose of this paper is to understand the struggles AE graduate programs encounter in building, maintaining, and growing programs in North America. We conducted two separate…

At Franklin University, we are in the process of creating a master's degree in Instructional Design and Performance Technology. In one of the program courses, Enhancing Learning with Technology, we wanted students to experience applying principles of e-learning while using an industry standard e-learning application. However, we have learned by…

Following an historical discussion of graduate study in adult education, four models designed for a graduate study program, since 1960, are discussed and illustrated. The models are: (1) the Essert Model, comprised of three concentric circles consisting of core, augmentation, and specialization courses; (2) the Knowles Model, comprised of two…

This article describes a needs assessment strategy for assessing client interest in a graduate liberal arts degree for adults. It is recommended that, in planning a new off-campus graduate degree program for adults, attention should be given to assessing needs both externally and internally. (CT)

THE BUREAU OF STUDIES IN ADULT EDUCATION WAS FOUNDED AT INDIANA UNIVERSITY IN 1947 AND ASSIGNED THE TASK OF PROVIDING OFF-CAMPUS NONCREDIT COURSES IN ADULT EDUCATION. THE BUREAU BEGAN BY PROVIDING FIELD SERVICES, RANGING FROM PROVIDING ASSISTANCE TO LOCAL COMMUNITIES ON ADULT EDUCATION PROBLEMS TO PROVIDING GENERAL ADULT EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES. IT…

Prepared at the request of the executive committee of the Commission of the Professors of Adult Education, the monograph explores problems and solutions that American and Canadian professors of adult education report in initiating and revising graduate programs. Survey questionnaires (approximately two-thirds return rate) were sent to one…

A proposed approach to the generation of a graduate professional culture is grounded in the planned, systematic involvement of students in developing and sustaining a graduate adult education program. The approach has a conceptual basis in the works of Jahns and Urbano (1986), who presented a framework of developmental stages toward completion of…

At the 1968 annual meeting of the Commission of Professors of Adult Education small group discussions were held on the following graduate course areas: survey in, or introduction to, adult education; program development; adult learning; organization and administration; research seminars. Fifteen brief reports ("Interesting Things") were given on…

This document summarizes discussions held at a conference of the National Institute on the Assessment of Experiential Learning, which is concerned with prior learning assessment (PLA), a process developed for awarding college-level credit for out-of-class experiences. The conference consisted of two tracks, beginning and advanced; this format…

The adult education graduate program at Northern Illinois University began offering courses in 1969. Starting points of a progressive agenda were urban, race, and class. Students, many of whom had experience with the social upheavals of the 1960s, along with community-based organizers and the International Council for Adult Education, pushed the…

These five papers are from a symposium that was facilitated by Michael Leimbach at the 1995 conference of the Academy of Human Resource Development (HRD). "Developing Systems Thinking Ability in Organizations" (Carol Ann Zulauf) reports a study that examined the relationship between cognitive complexity, locus of control, and selected…

This research project developed two strategic plans for distance education in social work. The project involved use of a developmental problem-solving methodology, creation of a conceptual framework thorough a literature search, visits to sites that use distance education, consultations with experts, and attendance at local and national…

Birmingham-Southern College has surmounted major problems of enrollment, finances, and mission by adding and expanding career-related curricula and selected adult and post-baccalaureate offerings, reaffirming and finding new applications for its original liberal arts mission. (MSE)

This literature review on the preparation of professional adult educators attempts to cover the leading areas of discussion and research as well as some of the more interesting conclusions reported. Six major preoccupations of research are outlined, followed by two chapters on adult education as a discipline and a profession, patterns of adult…

Graduate programs in adult education at 24 universities in the United States and Canada are surveyed here. An overall review of program content (mainly surveys of the field, program development in adult education, adult learning, and general administration) is followed by unique features and specialties of several programs; information on…