Adult learning

This study was designed to examine self-directed learning readiness of volunteer
community leaders and to determine if and how they used self-directed learning in their
community leadership roles. The sample included volunteer community leaders in South
Florida serving as board members in community leadership organizations and Rotarians
serving in leadership roles in the Rotary District 6990. The results support the conclusion that community leaders are self-directed
learners. They make extensive use of learning projects in their community leadership
roles, use a variety of learning methods, and have a need for ongoing learning.
The study suggests that designers of training for community leaders might find it
valuable to reevaluate and update traditional training programs, utilize or support the
identified key methods of learning and recognize that training needs to be applicable,
cutting edge, and go beyond local boundaries.

The following document offers a qualitative case study in the field of adult and
community education from an educational leadership perspective using baseball as an
adult learning tool. Relevant existing theories (adult education, lifelong learning, adult
learners, and certain leadership practices) for successful facilitation of historical baseball
research were examined. The study focused on a purposeful sample population upon
which a pilot study was conducted, revealing the experiences of adult self-directed
learners who produce the seminal work in their field as an avocation. The findings of this
study included, but are not limited to, the passionate approach the study group members
have for their subject matter, their love of learning, and the self-directedness of nonformally
trained research historians using baseball as an adult learning tool. The findings
also revealed the group members belief in the academic worthiness of baseball history,
and their willingness to share their work with others to advance the field.

The percentage of older adults in the American population is expected to
increase from about 12% now to 22% by the year 2030 (Eisen, 2005). Educators can
play an important role in managing the effec.,ts of this demographic shift by designing
learning opportunities that increase older adults' motivation to participate and their
ability to learn. Because older adults themselves can otTer important insights on what
helps and hinders their learning, the purpose of this study was to explore the
perceptions of adults over age 64 residing in a large metropolitan area in the
southeastern United States on effective and ineffective learning experiences.
Utilizing a qualitative design, the researcher interviewed 36 older adults
involved in learning experiences at three distinct sites. Data were also collected
through observations and document analysis. Five research questions were answered with the following four findings: 1) effective learning experiences are involving, 2)
the instructor is a key component in the classroom, 3) familiar or relevant topics are
interesting, and 4) the computer and the Internet are both loved and hated. The
participants in this study value learning experiences that involve them in the
classroom and keep them involved in the world. They enjoy asking questions,
discussing ideas, and learning with friends and family members in environments free
from the pressures of mandatory assignments and tests. They seek instructors who
are knowledgeable about the subject, clear and understandable in their presentation,
respectful of their experience, and effective at grabbing their attention through
enthusiasm, humor, and relevant stories. When they discover effective instructors,
they tend to take classes with them over and over again. However. when instructors'
abilities are unknown, they look for learning experiences that will either expand their
knowledge abcut something familiar or teach them something that will have some
relevance in their lives. Finally, these seniors enjoy the convenience of accessing a
wealth of information using computers and the Internet. Yet, they also experience
considerable frustration in learning computer tasks and dealing with computer
problems. Reommendations are provided for designing, marketing, and delivering
quality learning experiences for senior adults.

African-American adults have been often studied and categorized, historically, as having low educational achievement. Further, they have not been attending educational offerings available to them to the same extent as other U.S. ethnic groups. This exists despite their needs and not withstanding the fact that such participation stands to greatly increase and enhance their life styles and livelihoods. One reason minority adults (and the many other adults in the general population who do not participate in educational offerings) do not participate can be traced to their perceptions of barriers to attendance. Thomas G. Darkenwald and others conducted research on this concern through the development and use of an original deterrents-to-participation scale (DPS) that was later refined (DPS-G) to identify six barriers to general adult participation in education. DPS-G, as a scale, has been used successfully by many succeeding individuals and groups in similar studies. This study used Darkenwald and Valentine's ALQ instrument, which employed their DPS-G and added demographic questions, to survey a group of Orange County, Florida African-Americans and others. Data obtained supported and provided further verification of validity and reliability of the Darkenwald and Valentine identified factors and procedure. Six hypothesis are incorporated that address the attitudinal differences between African-American adults and others concerning the Darkenwald and Valentine factors. Results showed that the African-Americans expressed stronger concerns for each of the six factors, namely: (a) lack of confidence, (b) lack of course relevance, (c) time constraints, (d) low personal priority, (e) cost factor, and (f) low personal priority. Further, the study showed that African-Americans responded more cohesively and stronger on each and every factor category than did their fellow non-Black others. Study results can be used in further research about minorities' perception of barriers to participation in adult education. Resulting information can also be used in the planning and delivery of adult education programs that attempt to ameliorate or eliminate such barriers to participation in adult education.

Rapidly changing technology has dramatically affected the needs of the workforce. As a result, the need is great to implement training and education methods that are maximally effective for the adult learner and can be delivered in a timely and cost-effective manner. As a means toward helping achieve this goal, the concept of self-directed learning has been proposed. Effective implementation of self-directed learning methods has the potential to assist workers in adapting to the demands of the information age. This study investigated and analyzed the relationship between scores on the Guglielmino Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale (SDLRS) and multiple variables of employees at a large Midwestern company. Fourteen hypotheses were tested, using 27 statistical tests. Conclusions were drawn comparing and supplementing the findings of two earlier studies using similar variables. The SDLRS was administered to 607 employees in nine different occupation categories. The mean score for all respondents was 234, which is above the adult norm. A significant positive relationship was found between the mean SLDRS scores and performance ratings, creativity and problem solving required in the job, degree of change on the job, and education levels. These findings were congruent with those of Guglielmino and Guglielmino's (1981) study of an American utility company and Roberts' (1986) study of the Hong Kong Telephone Company. Other findings were also compared. The Guglielmino and Roberts studies found that a small sample of low performers with high SDLRS scores were in jobs that required low levels of creativity, problem-solving skills, and adaptation to change. In the present study, however, no such groups could be isolated. SDLRS scores of males were significantly higher than those of females and managers scored significantly higher than non-managers in the present study. No relationship was found between SDLRS scores and the following variables: age, years of service with the company, and degree of routine on the job. A significant difference in scores was found due to occupation classification. Sales managers and salespeople scored significantly higher than all other categories and manufacturing/factory, and clerical/administrative employees scored significantly lower.

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between experiential learning and self-directed learning readiness of bachelor's and master's level social work students. A quantitative design was utilized. The study consisted of 115 senior social work students and 70 master's level social work students (separated into three student groups) from a state university. Students participated in a one-semester field education component as part of their social work degree program. The research instrument utilized was the Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale (SDLRS) constructed by Guglielmino (1978). The SDLRS is a self-report questionnaire with 58 Likert scale items designed to measure the attitudes, values and abilities of learners relating to their readiness to engage in self-directed learning. A pretest, treatment, posttest design was utilized. Demographic data were collected with the pretest administration and level of satisfaction information was collected with the posttest administration. The bachelor's level social work students demonstrated statistically significant differences in the pre and posttest SDLRS scores while the master's level social work students' changes in readiness for self-directed learning were not significant. It is important to note that the master's level social work students spent only half the amount of hours in the field education as the bachelor's level students at the time of the posttest. Correlations between change score from pretest to posttest SDLRS with students' previous exposure to the field of social work, prior experiential learning in a social work program, their satisfaction with the experiential learning component, and demographic factors of gender, age, ethnicity, marital status, number of children, and number of years pursuing degree were not significant.