This article, a conceptual and theoretical piece, opens a window on "playful learning" as a philosophy of education and a suite of diverse pedagogical approaches, methods, and techniques. The paper criticizes the serious ambience of adult education with its high levels of instrumentalism and performativity. It argues for playful learning…

This paper investigated teacher wellbeing in a rapidly expanding educational context of Universities of the Third Age in China. Based on the analysis of 48 metaphors innovatively elicited from 27 teacher participants, important cognitive, affective and social aspects of teaching and learning that configure teacher wellbeing have been outlined. It…

This article reports a case study of older adults learning English in China. It indicates how, founded on consequentialist ethics, risk analysis, and safeguarding, it was decided to use covert research, drawing on the confluence of risk analysis, risk evaluation, risk management, safeguarding, research ethics, and important contextual and cultural…

Numeracy is important for everyday life. Being numerate has a positive impact on the quality of life of individuals, with positive economic, health, and social outcomes. Despite this, little is known about the role of numeracy in the lives of adults with intellectual disability (ID). Design research has been used to develop ways to support…

This paper discusses the development of music lessons for adults in a non-professional choir. Based on the Kodály Concept, the lessons took place from April 2019 until March 2020. The singers and conductor engaged in shared research practices, tracking teaching and learning experiences through journaling and sharing our writings. Through this…

Using the Compassionate Music Teaching (CMT) framework as a lens, in this study I explored the ways that teachers of adults learning recreationally in music lessons may align their teaching approaches to learners' adult-specific needs. Adult education scholars have accentuated the need for facilitators of adult learning to consider adult learners'…

This article investigates the significance of the use of multilingual language assistants (MLAs) in second language teaching for adult migrants with limited formal schooling. Norton's theories of investmentand critical pedagogy serve as an analytical backdrop. An emic perspective is adopted, with interviews with nine adult learners taking centre…

Transformative learning theory has provided a sound theoretical base for adult education's Western and Eastern academic field. This article aims to introduce the mandala model of transformative learning by transferring Mezirow's theory of perspective transformation onto a mandala map. In the mandala model, the learning agent exercises two…

Design Research (DR) has been used to develop means of supporting mathematical learning for typically-developing students. This study investigated the use of DR to develop context specific tools to support adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) to improve their numeracy capabilities and engagement in daily tasks. Using observation and…

In today's interconnected world, increasing longevity has elevated the societal role of older adults, fostering their active participation. Education, particularly language learning supported by technology, empowers this demographic to thrive in a globalized society. Integrating Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) into language…

Work as a place of activism is a vast field to be explored in adult education research, particularly within educational, social, and community intervention with people in situations of vulnerability. This qualitative study aims to unveil the richness of activists' learning processes and outcomes by reflecting on the pedagogy of professional…

This paper examines current views and definitions of learning transfer as well as their dominant characteristics. An alterior way to view learning transfer as preparation for future learning (PFL) is presented along with its defining features. This paper is divided into five sections: (a) what comprises learning transfer, (b) the conventional…

This paper focuses on a group of mothers of immigrant origin as they engage in explorations and conversations about mathematics. We examine how bringing in tasks that draw on their children's school mathematics, and on the participants' knowledge and experiences, can inform us about their understanding of mathematics and provide opportunities to…

The question of whether second languages (L2s) are best learned implicitly or explicitly has been a topic of much empirical discourse, with the majority of studies pointing to the benefits of explicit instruction when learning L2 grammar rules. However, given the focus on grammar, it is unclear how generalizable these findings are to other…

The intentional teaching application of leadership theories is not often addressed in leadership development programs comprising the field of adult education. The purpose of this study is to understand more deeply the quality, characteristics, and practices of profound leaders. This is an exploratory, empirical study, interviewing seven…