This study took place in the online 3D virtual world Second Life[R], a recreational environment designed for world-building and socializing, and intended for individuals 18 years old and older. It described learning from the perspective of Second Life[R] Residents and focused on their world-building activities. As a virtual ethnographer, my avatar…

The effectiveness of four adult learning methods (accelerated learning, coaching, guided design, and just-in-time training) constituted the focus of this research synthesis. Findings reported in "How People Learn" (Bransford et al., 2000) were used to operationally define six adult learning method characteristics, and to code and analyze…

Objective: Although continuing education is required for athletic trainers (AT) to maintain their Board of Certification credential, little is known regarding its efficacy for advancing knowledge and improving patient care. Continuing professional education (CPE) is designed to provide professionals with important practical learning opportunities.…

Effective communication with teachers is a critical element of any successful professional development. Teachers are the foundational component of any educational system. It is vital that adequate attention is focused on appropriate and effective training of these teachers. Ideally, professional development offers a means of collaborative support…

This study examined effects of synonym generation on second language (L2) vocabulary learning during reading in both incidental and intentional vocabulary learning contexts. Spanish-speaking adult learners of L2 English (N = 114) at low- and high-intermediate proficiency levels read an English passage containing 10 target words translated in the…

This chapter examines the cultural influences and applications of women's social capital networks on women's knowledge construction, community development, and autonomy within their cultures and the adult learning context.

In this article, we examine adult education literature as it relates to all aspects of popular culture. After an extensive literature review we found that, increasingly, adult educators are investigating popular culture's connection with adult education and learning; however, we argue that much more work needs to be done in this area, specifically…

This art-informed, reflexive, autobiographical inquiry explores the struggles of a feminist academic committed to transformative adult education and subsistence learning, while engaged in program planning for fire service education. The author chronicles how her approach within the applied practice in a traditional, male dominant workplace setting…

This article describes a research-based approach for developing new instructional technologies for higher education. The argument is made that the most common instructional methods used by faculty and educational technology in colleges and universities are based on adult learning theories that have not been supported in the past half-century of…

Many of the community-college faculty hired during the 1960s and 1970s had initially embarked on K-12 teaching but moved into community-college instruction after discovering they preferred adult education and college schedules. While these former K-12 teachers had little to no instruction in how adults learn, their formative teaching years were…

This qualitative case study was designed to explore how master teachers in transfer high schools learn the competencies they perceive are required to engage at-risk students so that they persist and graduate. The study is based on the following assumptions: (1) The requisite teacher competencies can be defined and identified and, in fact,…

Policy interest in international surveys on Adult Learning (AL) has increased strongly. AL survey data are used as benchmarks for a country's educational system. However, results of key indicators like participation in learning activities often vary remarkably between different data sources. Stating that these differences are due to varying…

Culture and national origin can affect thinking about mathematics and mathematics learning. The myth that mathematics is objective and culture free becomes a barrier to adults learning mathematics. Adult educators must reflect upon culture's influence on learning and recognize the implications of universality myths on students' learning in…

Nowadays, the pedagogy of adult numeracy generally eschews the deficit model of the learner as needing diagnosis and remediation, and attempts to take into account the learners' existing competencies, life experience, and interests. However, formalized assessment processes and measurable outcomes can never reflect the actual learning taking place…

The purpose of writing a charter is to show adult learners that the people providing learning for them are willing to sign up publicly to a statement of their entitlement to the very best quality of information, guidance, teaching and support--and not only to sign up to it, but to be ready to be called to account if they do not live up to the…