This document is divided into three parts. Part I, "Concepts and the Teaching-learning Process," explores ways that would be effective in developing professional competence of extension agents and other adult educators working in the field and those preparing for it. Part II, "Concepts in Educational Psychology," synthesizes the results of an…

A professor of adult and community college education at North Carolina State University, Malcolm Knowles, expresses his views on adult learning in interview form. According to Knowles inservice management development and industrial training programs, as well as public school and college programs, require a process structure of learning…

Provides an interpretative review of the literature of conforming behavior with special attention to implications for adult education. Eight different research areas of conformity research are summarized, and five reasons for conformity and three different kinds of conforming behavior are identified and discussed. (SH)

A report on a study in which twenty adults were tested for their ability to reproduce accurately the articulatory and prosodic features of three languages in which they had received instruction. The goals were to partially test the "critical period for language learning" and the acquisition of a nativelike accent. (AMH)

An age-related decline in performance is typically observed in research on tasks that rely on cognitive processing. However, such declines must not be accepted as indisputable evidence that the learning efficiency of older adults is necessarily impared. A number of noncognitive factors also mitigate against optimal performance in the aged. (Author)

The author suggests teaching methods useful in helping adults apply their learning. Topics discussed include (1) performing practice audits, (2) emphasizing learning topics that participants want to pursue, (3) providing incentives and reducing resistance, (4) developing active learning methods, and (5) providing evaluation and reinforcement. (CH)

Reviews two current models of reading and examines their relevancy for adult learners of English as a second or other language. Explores implications and presents seven practical principles for the ESL/literacy teacher. (JK)

This article pinpoints eight specific areas where tutors of adult beginning readers need support. It describes the background related to each need or concern, clarifies these needs and concerns, and identifies related potential solutions. The eight areas include tutor isolation, leadership, matching tutor and learner, social network, and lack of…

The authors present eight steps for presenting a successful lecture to adult learners: (1) set learning objectives, (2) capture attention, (3) provide learning guidelines, (4) explain clearly, (5) vary presentation, (6) increase participation, (7) provide a summary, and (8) assess the lecture. (CH)

Examines factors contributing to adult student stress and subject anxiety. Ways in which adult educators can help students overcome this barrier are suggested. Describes results of a Subject Anxiety Inventory administered to 875 adults between the ages of 17 and 72 enrolled at two community colleges and two university campuses. (CT)

This article argues that self-directed learning should be viewed not as the application of a particular technique but as the capacity of adults for critical self-reflection and for changing their lives. The author speculates on the purposes, processes, and conditions required for learning aimed at such awareness. (CT)

As colleges and universities grow increasingly more responsive to the communities in which they reside, programs are required that address the needs of the nonstudent. Georgia State University's program for nonstudents is reviewed after 5 years of operation, and recommendations are made for adapting it to other settings. (Author/ABB)

Suggests four characteristics that any training programs for women in developing countries must share if they are to be effective: (1) they must utilize adult learning principles and (2) participatory methodologies; (3) train for action; and (4) build self-confidence. (MBR)

Relates a personal experience of teaching reading to an illiterate adult from Mexico. (HOD)

Reviews David Kolb's Experiential Learning Model, stressing its potential for developing or redesigning curricula for adult learners to include learning modes focusing on concrete experience, active experimentation, reflective observation, and abstract conceptualization. Offers a checklist for assessing which modes are accommodated by an…