As determined in this study of 35 adults in the Toronto area, the single most common and most important reason for adult learning is the desire to use or apply knowledge and skill. Commitment to an action goal (producing, accomplishing, or doing something) came first; then came the decision to learn certain knowledge and skills as one step toward…

Socio-psychological variables that influence the extent to which older people (age: 50+) will be consumers of education are examined to arrive at criteria for programs appropriate to the developmental needs of this group. Research indicates that two primary influences are changes in learning abilities and interests. Secondary influences include…

This theoretical paper is the concluding part of an extensive two-part examination of the problem of educating adult educators. The first part dealt with the relationship of adult education to other disciplines. This part establishes a framework for classifying areas of needed research in the field of adult education. The framework used here is…

Recurrent education, as developed in the past four or five years in a number of European countries, is seen as a process of formal, full-time, for credit instruction for adults beyond the age of compulsory schooling in which participation was supposed to take place during intermittent periods throughout the adult working life-span. This would…

A 1975 survey of adults (over 18 years old) in the Greater Tuscaloosa, Alabama area was conducted by the University of Alabama Committee on Adult and Part-Time Students, to assess opinions and attitudes on post-secondary educational opportunities and programs within the local area. From a random sample of approximately 400 individuals listed in…

The tragic feature of our society is that much time and effort has been placed into the remarkably successful feat of prolonging life. But somehow in our society we have failed to build in reasons for appreciating those added years. Our heritage has been adapted to career building with the concommitant factors of home-making and family-raising.…

A summary was made of the approach, rationale, and some of the results of an effort being made at the Naval Training Device Center Human Factors Laboratory to acquire information on learning, retention, and transfer which can be applied to help solve military training problems. Various psychological theories were reviewed, and 181 relevant…

The report discusses four steps in the systematic development of human resources through training--specifications of training objectives, input control (trainee selection), training procedures, and output control (proficiency measurement). It then considers their implications for conducting training programs and training research. A primary…

A series of exploratory studies and three experiments dealing with conceptual rule learning are reported in this paper. Discussants related the results to subject matter fields and to educational research and development. Four groups of subjects, five to twelve years old, solved six rule learning problems. It was concluded that younger children…

A rationale is presented with examples of an approach for professionals in the health sciences to becoming more self-directed in the ways in which they continue their education throughout their career. The five objectives of the discussion are: (1) to understand the functioning of the mentor role as it is used to guide self-directed education of…

Adults who lived in 30 of the nation's large standard metropolitan statistical areas (SMSA's) in 1970 had completed a relatively high educational attainment; about 61 percent had completed at least a high school education, including 26 percent who had completed one or more years of college. The data in this report on the educational attainment of…

IN THIS COMPILATION OF ABSTRACTS OF 78 DOCTORAL DISSERTATIONS AND MASTER'S THESES PREPARED AT FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY IN ADULT EDUCATION AND RELATED FIELDS, 48 PERCENT COME FROM THE FIELD OF EDUCATION (EDUCATION, HOME AND FAMILY LIFE, AND SOCIAL WELFARE), 6 PERCENT FROM PSYCHOLOGY AND SOCIOLOGY, AND THE REMAINDER FROM OTHER DEPARTMENTS. RESEARCH…

A mathematics curriculum, based on building up an adult's confidence through success and in teaching practical math abilities that are relevant to adult needs, is discussed. (BP)

A model for an alternative degree program for postbaccalaureate students is presented. The program is designed for lifelong learners for whom traditional graduate study is not appropriate. It is not directed toward disciplines, but toward the learner's profession and his personal needs for advancement within his profession. (JMD)

This is a description of a model for use in a values clarification program for adult learners. The aim is to help adults become familiar with a tool to aid them in clarifying the meaning of conflicting values in life situations. (Author)