Understanding current issues in adult

education
by Amber Goforth

There are many population trends that can affect adult education. Factors such as household size,
population growth, or advances designed to accommodate increasing populations can affect adult
education programs and how they are implemented as well as who they attempt to attract. This
paper will attempt to explain how population changes are a trend that can greatly impact adult
education in both positive and negative ways. To support this claim, Frank Lorimer will show
how education programs designed for individual learners in a largely populated city can backfire.
On the other hand, Timothy Besingi will discuss the benefits of developing adult education
policies that are focused on adult learners as individuals. Both scholars will show how education
programs in largely populated areas will be affected by population changes.

Issues With Individual-Focused Policy

Many metropolitan areas have experienced significant growth over the past few decades and this
growth has an astounding effect on adult education programs. For instance, in an adult education
study in Brooklyn by Frank Lorimer, there is evidence that metropolitan areas have developed
newer, more productive adult education programs to support the population growth. This study
also showed that household size in this community had an effect on the level of education that
certain adults had received over the course of their lifetimes.
Lorimer asserted that educational facilities today were so sophisticated that "the problems of
metropolitan culture are focused in the problem of individual participation." (481). This
statement suggests that even though metropolitan population is at an all-time high, the advances
in technology and education institutions is so great it allows a focus on the learner as an
individual. This line of thought implies that it is through the education of adult learners
individually that will promote growth in the community overall. An adult education program that
focuses on learners as individuals may seem to better for each individual learner. In such a
system, it would appear that the individual experiences and prior knowledge of the learner would
be considered valuable and crucial in the learning process. However, Lorimer later suggest that
the reality of educational institutions attempting to reach every adult learner individually can
produce the problem that in trying to reach "everyone" with a single systematic approach the
institutions will actually prevent diversity. Although

Leading a recent training and development project with local adult learning and community
development workers, who are seeking to work with 'hard-to-reach' adult learners, has caused me
to reflect upon what I believe to be some fundamental truths - about the nature of the work and
the challenges facing those providers of adult education opportunities who seek to engage with
such learners in my part of the United Kingdom. The area that we have focused on concerns how
learning can contribute to regeneration and renewal in local neighborhoods and communities. As
the project started , we widened our brief to include regeneration and renewal at the level of
changes within individual learners and families. We now start from the position of hard to reach
learners and their needs and wants, and the notion of individual capacity building, before we
explore collective capacity building and the connections through community capacity building to
regeneration and renewal.

Hard to reach learners are commonly understood by those working in the adult education
industry, to be those learners who do not self-refer or readily seek to engage in adult learning
programs or courses. They are difficult to recruit, to the extent, that if there are softer targets
available locally, little effort is made to make contact and connect with the hard to reach and thus
their voices can remain unheard and their needs and wants largely ignored. This situation is ever
likely to remain so as long as adult education funding, is driven by the idea that only the
development of the future work force and national economic success matters.

Hard to reach learners are not such, simply because they are difficult for providers of adult
learning opportunities, to engage with and recruit. Most hard to reach learners by category or by
statistical analysis, are disadvantaged, deprived and oppressed. Most of them when they embark
on adult learning journeys, have a long way to travel and at the start of the journey have many
hurdles to overcome, before they feel able to choose to take-up formal adult learning and training
opportunities. Encouraging, supporting and enabling inexperienced and non-confident 'hard to
reach' adult learners, to a point where they can progress, is often both lengthy and costly. The
time and work needed for capacity building with hard to reach learners can be adversely affected
by the impatience of adult learning agencies and funders, seeking to recruit and engage them in
formal learning

A major issue facing providers of adult education is reaching marginalized populations. The
exclusion of and discrimination against individuals and groups is embedded in our cultural,
social, economic, and political systems. While the formal education systems are multi-billion
dollar businesses, providing adult education opportunities to the poorest and least educated
remains problematic.

Somewhat ironically, many adult educators are also marginalized by traditional educational
institutions and professional educators. Non-traditional adult educators are marginalized by
choice or chance because of where they teach, who they teach, or how they teach. They may not
have formal training, a foundation in educational theory, or knowledge about best practices in
educating adults. Their primary interest may be in teaching rather than research, grant-writing,
and tenure tracks.

Adult education is offered by organizations ranging from formalized programs in colleges and
the armed forces to events sponsored through religious institutions or community education
partnerships. Merriam & Brockett define adult education as "activities intentionally designed for
the purpose of bringing about learning among those whose age, social roles, or self-perception
define them as adults."

Current marketplace demands for developing and maintaining skills and abilities provide a
strong case for adult education programs. "Beyond 2000: future directions for adult education"
provides a broad review of national data to identify trends in adult education. The report states
"that on the average better educated people become better skilled in literacy and numeracy, they
attend more post-secondary education, they get more diplomas and degrees, they get better jobs
that pay more and they engage in more continuing education throughout their lifetimes."

Shattering the glass ceilings and walls of discrimination among the systems providing adult
education provides greater access and opportunity for marginalized populations. The missions,
goals, images, theories, methods, and practices of adult education need to evolve to meet the
needs of individuals, the communities in which they live, and the businesses that need their
skills.

Many adult educators are working to amplify awareness of those marginalized by our current
systems. That awareness is leading to an increased voice for those marginalized in our society.
Mainstream administrators are hearing the views and experiences of women, people with
disabilities, gays, Latinos, Blacks, Asians, and most other minorities. As voices of the
marginalized are heard and their stories are told, the social, political, and economic systems are
forced to react. Ultimately a better educated population increases the possibilities for our future
successes together.

What are the current issues in adult education? First of all I enjoy working with adult education. I
currently serve as adjunct faculty for three universities in the area of adult education. Adults
bring their own unique challenges to the educational environment and course material needs to
be designed with adults in mind.

My experience with adult education has been that most are highly motivated and have returned
to school for a specific reason. Universities, on the other, hand are still catching up as it were to
provide programs that are designed with adults in mind. Professors have to adjust their styles to
match adult students as well. For example, when I work with a class of adult students I treat them
like peers and the class is typically a seminar format rather than relying on lecture.

Professors may be called upon to help coach adult education students through the technological
aspects of the course. I remember a lady in one of my graduate classes who was attending her
first online course after being away from school a number of years. We had an assignment that
required accessing the university library online. The lady did not submit her paper on the due
date. A week passed and no paper. Finally, the second week I contacted her to see if there was a
problem. She was quiet a moment and then responded, "I could not find the library on the course
home page and was embarrassed to ask for help." I encouraged her that we all had our first
experience on the computer and there was nothing to be ashamed of. I led her through the
process of accessing the library. I then had to explain how to search for articles and how to print
the articles she wanted to keep. This might seem extreme but adult students often bring
technology skills gaps that school personnel need to help correct if possible.
Adult students bring their issues to education. They likely have work and family responsibilities
that weigh on their minds. Adult students often have unique financial concerns because they are
the primary source of financial support unlike younger students who may receive money from
home. Adult students may need flexibility at times due to conflicting work schedules. Adult
students may need assistance assimilating back into an academic environment if they have been
away for awhile. Many adult education students need tutoring in technology especially if the
course is online.

According to recent studies the growth of universities should continue to rise over the next
decade. Many of these students will be adults. What can universities do to help mitigate the
issues of adult learners? Universities need to understand why many adults are returning to
school. Some may go back for personal enrichment but many are seeking promotions or a new
career. If universities understand why adults are returning then they can design programs to meet
their needs. Such programs might include:

1) Resources (e.g., tutoring, counseling) that will encourage success

2) Practicality of instruction and course delivery
3) Respect for the student
4) Flexibility of schedule

Adult education is here to stay and promises to grow in the future. I should know. I am a product
of it.