Alan Thomas' vision of a learning society and its implications for public policy and adult education in Canada were the driving forces in the Canadian Association for Adult Education (CAAE) for the nine years of his directorship. The most distinctive and important idea that he contributed to the field in the 1960s was that the basic concept must…

This series of statements offers a synthesis of the body of currently available knowledge about adult learning in the areas of motivation to learn, curriculum design, and the classroom environment. The section on motivation focuses on the role of life-event changes in encouraging adults to seek out learning experiences, adults' motivation to…

This paper focuses on aspects of a process of learning (participation) that emerged in a study of crosscultural experiences. As a phenomenological work, this study brings attention to the possibility that how adults learn in everyday life may actually be a process of experiencing the difference between what is familiar and known, and that which is…

A study examined significant deliberate learning activities (as demonstrated in learning projects) which were related to spiritual growth. (Spiritual growth was defined in broad terms within which each interviewee interpreted his or her own concept.) Fifty persons between the ages of thirty-five and fifty-five and representing five groups (three…

In 1974-1975, a preliminary study was undertaken to investigate the presence of learning disabilities in adults. Previously completed research studies have focused entirely upon the child and adolescent, with a direct concentration on remediation of this problem. Learning disabilities, currently estimated to afflict ten million school-aged…

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 impaired. Cognitive factors such as a production deficiency in long-term memory and/or a retrieval…

The authors explore some current models and theories of adult education and give their interpretation of how they can and should be applied in the future. The learning society has always been our goal, but we have not been willing to abandon our principal obstacle--schooling--to achieve it. (Author/AJ)

Based upon the experiences of New York City Community College (NYCCC) in conducting community workshops in consumer education for the elderly, this manual aims to guide the consumer education teacher in determining the needs of older students, in choosing and practicing appropriate teaching methods, and in locating materials appropriate to the…

In this paper the author draws on his own experiences in teaching English as a second language (ESL) to describe how audiovisual aids can enrich the adult's language learning experience. The paper begins with a brief outline of the ESL program in the San Francisco Community College District. The reluctance of many ESL instructors to make full use…

Current research on the adult learner and on instruction through media has grave flaws, and reviews of research in five areas are needed to assist instructional developers and adopters in making wise decisions. These include a critical analysis of existing telecourse packages, as well as reviews of research on the motivation of various subgroups…

The results of the first long-term, wide-scale secondary analysis of survey data concerning the enduring effects of schooling are presented in this work. The findings are detailed in four chapters covering the enduring effects of schooling on knowledge; the influence of other variables; the role of continuing learning, specifically through mass…

The items in this report represent the proceedings of a national conference that explored ways in which community colleges can serve the nontraditional student. The report contains the program for the two-day conference, a list of the participants and their addresses, and excerpts from speeches on the following topics: assessing past performance…

THE TOPICS OF EIGHT CONFERENCE PAPERS INCLUDE (1) THE PROBLEM OF DIFFERENTIATING EFFECTS OF SPECIFIC INSTRUCTION FROM EFFECTS OF OTHER INFLUENCES (GROWTH, ENVIRONMENT, AND SELF-INSTRUCTION), (2) CRITERIA FOR MEASURING CHANGE IN PROFICIENCY, AND (3) WAYS OF RELATING SUCH CHANGE TO OUTSIDE VARIABLES SUCH AS MEASURABLE CHARACTERISTICS OF LEARNERS AND…

Explanations of age-related differences in adult memory usually assume two forms: processing deficits and structural deficits. Processing deficit explanations attribute recall differences to a failure of older adults to effectively use the processes of attention, organization, mediation (the use of such devices as visual images and verbal images…

To assist both practitioner and reader to find answers to questions on the theory and practice of recurrent education, this resource guide compiles 715 abstracts of relevant articles, books, and monographs, from many countries. Descriptors and identifiers, used in computer searches to identify the materials, are arranged alphabetically in the…