A study examined the effectiveness of preservice and inservice training in selected interpersonal communication techniques as a way of improving adult educators' ability to communicate with students with a variety of learning styles. The literature on adult learner characteristics and practice, learning style, and concepts and components of…

Lave and Wenger (1991) reject individualistic and psychologistic theories of learning in favor of a more broadly social and contextual approach. They observe that all learning is situated not only in space and time, but also inextricably in relation to social practice. Learning is "legitimate peripheral participation in a community of…

Although adult learners are similar to their younger classmates in many ways, they have some particular characteristics that have implications for teaching them. For example, adults have multiple roles, and classes sometimes cannot be their first priority. Adults also have more life experiences, which can provide foundations for learning or create…

This expanded edition of a 1982 book by Erik Erikson summarizes his work on the stages of the human life cycle, including chapters on psychosexuality and the cycle of generations, major stages in psychosocial development, and ego and ethos. An additional chapter on the ninth stage sets forth his philosophy on old age--i.e. the 80s and 90s--and how…

This book examines the important role of learning in maintaining the health, quality of life, and longevity of older adults. It includes results of the first comprehensive survey of adult learning in men and women over age 55. Chapter 1 focuses on aging, ageism, and issues raised by the graying of the population in what it calls the "Age" Age.…

This study examined adult educators' perceptions of components related to critical thinking, including definitions of critical thinking, instructional methods used, and methods of measuring students' growth. A self-report survey method elicited responses from adult educators who currently teach or previously taught adult education courses in…

This book is the second edition of a work drawn from a series of lectures given by a distinguished scholar and teacher in the field of adult learning at the University of Wisconsin in 1960. The subject of the lectures was adult continuing education--who continues to learn and why. Research was conducted through a series of 2-hour interviews with…

A study examined how a stratified nonrandom sample of 112 female retirees cognitively structure their knowledge about retirement. The women, who were selected from two rural communities in two Mid-Atlantic states, were asked to complete brief questionnaires about their background and satisfaction with retirement and to sort 13 cards imprinted with…

Adults have specific and unique motivational needs in instructional settings. As a result, motivating instruction for adult learners should be designed with special considerations. This paper uses an adult motivational instructional design model to demonstrate the application of prescribed strategies into instructional software designed to teach…

Second language learning in adults is compared to a child's acquisition of its native language in that learning is said to be governed by universal learning strategies rather than imitation. The strategy of simplification is discussed with examples from Indonesian/Malay. (Author/RM)

A community based study of 268 randomly selected subjects over the age of 65 provided information concerning major limitations that prevent older adults from taking advantage of existing or future educational programs. The three most prevalent were poor vision, home responsibilities, and lack of transportation. (Author)

Gibbons et al. (1980) reported 14 principles in "teaching for self-education." Four of these principles illustrate some of the challenges involved in applying the principles to classroom learning: (1) in self-education, the locus of control is in the self-educator, whereas, in formal education, the locus of control is in institutions, their…

This guide deals with issues that should be considered by individuals involved in the education and training of adults. In particular, this document stresses the importance of processes of curricular design and recognition of a core of skills as a basis for learning. The first section discusses recent developments by the Further Education Unit's…

The question of how important place is to learning is one that has fallen in and out of vogue during the past 40 years. Despite frequent statements of its importance, there has been a continual lack of attention to the physical environment of adult education. Under the leadership of John Becker, an architect from Cincinnati, the Adult Education…

A recent wave of linguistic research has attempted to demonstrate empirically that in learning the syntax of a second language, adults re-access their universal grammar (UG). However, the conspicuous lack of success of second language learners has caused researchers to seek evidence in experimental data. The most expedient source of this data is…