...RUNNING HEAD: SERVICE LEARNING AND ADULTS Service Learning and Adult Education Jonathan M. Woodward The University of Southern Mississippi Continuing and Community Education, HE 717 Saturday, November 8, 2008 Service Learning and Adult Education Introduction One of the primary goals of the American educational system is to produce productive and active citizens. However, the connection between community involvement and educational institutions is not always nurtured. An innovative new approach in education aims to address this disconnect, service learning. Many times there is a distinction between academic course work and community service. Service learning is a pervasive new tactic that is meant to enhance the academic curriculum, as opposed to just being a second thought or unnecessary addition to coursework. Some research has even revealed that service learning participation has more benefits for students than taking part in traditional volunteer community service (Vogelgesang and Astin, 2000). The focus of one study written by M. Cecil Smith, “Does Service Learning Promote Adult Development? Theoretical Perspectives and Directions for Research,” focused on the effects of service learning as it relates to older adult learners. Smith quickly pointed out that very little research has been done on service learning that involves adult learners. In fact, adults are quite often the recipients of service learning as opposed to participants. Literature Review ...
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...their jobs that they have done for years. 2) Veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq who delayed their education to serve in the armed forces. 3) Adults who have just completed their GED and are moving onto higher education. (Cari Kenner and Jason Weinerman) And category three is what I fall under. I got my GED in 2010 and now I want to get a higher education. Just like Alexis, I too am going to have a challenge in head of me. Adult Learning Strategy and Theory Three metacognitive frameworks that identify how people structure their own learning theories. The first one is tacit theory. According to tacit theory, adult learners acquire their metacognitive skills from peers, teachers, and the local culture. Number two is informal theory. Individuals who use informal theories still acquire their metacognition skills over time from their peers and their environment. For the adult students their informal metacognitive strategies develop in the workplace environment and which brings together intelligence, experience, and reflection. Number three is formal theory which is the theoretical modeling of social system based on game theory, dynamical system theory, and among other interdisciplinary fields. Conclusion Adult learners tend to be more self-directed and task or goal oriented than traditional students. And adult learners generally have had some level of success in their non-academic lives and they can replicate this success in their academic endeavors if they understand...
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...Study Skills: Managing Time as an Adult Learner Managing time especially as an adult is a daily challenge. Most people don’t notice it, but it is a task that requires a lot of energy and very many aspects of planning. There is also a big benefactor of managing time more efficient and properly. Stress can be reduced and can improve work efficiency of everyday tasks. Learning how to manage time can be very hard for an un-organized individual but with detailed planning and step by step instructions anyone can learn to be more efficient with their time. By using the correct tools and methods to assist with time management, the process can become much smoother and easier to understand and execute. Time is money this is why the common person goes to work every day to make a living. Every person knows this and it’s a valuable item to understand why and what for. According to Mancini (2003), every minute we waste in frustration over something that seems overwhelming is a minute taken away from the time we have made to enjoy our everyday life. Most people waste time because they don’t know how to manage their time properly. By managing time properly, it can reduce stress and lower many of the daily worries. Time management can stop the worrying and meeting the deadline predicament that people are constantly overwhelmed with on a constant basis. Having control of time translates to having control of many aspects of one’s life. Another incentive of outstanding time management...
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...as an Adult Learning is an essential part of everyone’s lives, regardless of age. Adults learn much differently than children and teenagers. There are many ways to learn but for the two people that I spoke with there were a few ways that were more prominent. When speaking with someone who just learned how to use a smartphone I found out that he was intimidated by the new technology and that was why he took so long to purchase a newer phone. (He was actually still using an old Motorola flip phone until about two months ago.) When I asked him what intimidated him so much he explained that he liked things simple and had already had a hard time when he got a Kindle Fire for Christmas. His thoughts were that a smartphone was just a smaller version of his Kindle, and since he could barely use that then there was no way he could use a smart phone. He also thought that it would take a long time to learn to use it and his flip phone was just more convenient. He told me that he had asked his daughter for help using it and that although she did help somewhat, he felt that he was coming off as annoying. He just agreed with everything she told him and didn’t really learn anything because he was embarrassed to ask questions. Eventually he figured it out by trial and error, just going through it in private on his own time. After speaking with this person I noticed a few of the principles that I learned about in Chapter 3 and in the supplement reading. Adults like to...
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...Characteristics of Adult Learners The purpose of this posting is to discuss two of the adult learning characteristics, described by Malcolm Knowles, which pertain to my learning ability the most. Malcolm Knowles, an American educator, developed five characteristics of the adult learner which are: Self-concept, experience, readiness to learn, orientation to learning, and motivation to learn. The first learning style that pertains to me is experience. Malcolm Knowles believed adults derive their self-identity from their experiences. In my experience working for a local hospital for over thirty years and as an ED technician, I have gained knowledge and experience that I have applied to my nursing career. I am a visual and kinesthetic learner...
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...Jonathan Rice10/12/12 As an adult learner, there are different ways of learning. In this paper, the three most common ways adults learn will be discussed as followed: self-direct, operant conditioning, and social learning. Each are in-depth in different ways that are much different from one another. Self-directed learning is the first to speak of. Self-directed learning “Is any increase in knowledge, skill, accomplishment, or personal development that an individual selects and brings about by his or her own efforts using any method in any circumstances at any time” (Gibbons, 2002, p.2). That being said, a person is needing a want to learn about a certain person, thing, or idea to do so. This sort of learning takes the most effort as it is strictly up to that person to learn anything in such way. It takes that one person to be motivated, strong, and willing. “In classical antiquity, Self-study played an important part in the lives of such Greek philosophers as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Some historics included Alexander the Great, Caesar, and Descartes. Social conditions in Colonial America and a corresponding lack of formal educational institutions so many people have to learn on their own.” (Hiemstra, R. (1994)) Self-directed learning can strictly only be used by a person mentally or physically. Operant conditioning is “A behaviorist theory based on the fundamental idea that behaviors that are reinforced will tend to continue, while behaviors that are punished will...
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...Activity 1, Reflects principles of adult learning and takes account of factors (at least 2 individual and 2 environmental) that can impact on learning: Individual 1, Activity 3, Write a reflective statement relating to Activity 2 in which you consider: How you created a positive learning environment: As I used a Power Point presentation I ensured that the lights had been turned off and the blinds were closed so that the learners could clearly read my presentation. When the presentation was over I turned the lights back on so that they could read and complete my feed back with adequate lighting. I ensured that I was at facing all my learners and that the learners were facing the Smart Board. This was to ensure that when I was addressing the learners then could see and hear me clearly and vice versa. This layout also helped when feeding back or answering questions. ‘In a presentation, the main thing is that the presenter and his or her visual aids can be seen, (Truelove 2006, p147)’. ‘People should be sitting fairly close to each other, ideally in a circle. (Truelove 2006, p151)’. This also ensured that whilst observing the presentation learners were sat comfortably and facing both the Smart Board and myself, minimising the need for too much movement and disruption. ‘The discussion leader controls the discussions by asking questions that are replied to by group members directing the response to the leader. (Truelove 2006, p152)’. ‘Look at your audience from...
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...UNIVERSIDADE DO VALE DO RIO DOS SINOS – UNISINOS UNIDADE ACADÊMICA DE GRADUAÇÃO CURSO DE LETRAS – LICENCIATURA EM INGLÊS THAMIRES RENATA ARENHART ADULTOS APRENDIZES: DESMISTIFICANDO A IMPOSSIBILIDADE DO APRENDIZADO DE INGLÊS NA FASE ADULTA SÃO LEOPOLDO 2012 Thamires Renata Arenhart ADULTOS APRENDIZES: DESMISTIFICANDO A IMPOSSIBILIDADE DO APRENDIZADO DE INGLÊS NA FASE ADULTA Projeto de Trabalho de Conclusão de Curso apresentado como requisito para aprovação na Disciplina Trabalho de Conclusão de Curso I, do Curso de Letras da Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos – UNISINOS. São Leopoldo 2012 INTRODUÇÃO Na tentativa de elucidar questões a respeito do aprendizado de Inglês na fase adulta e das dificuldades e mitos envolvidos nesse processo, este trabalho visa a uma análise de como adultos superam suas dificuldades e tornam possível seu aprendizado, assim como visa-se desmistificar a crença de que não é possível aprender uma segunda língua após a fase adulta. Para tanto, visa-se à coleta de dados referentes às crenças de alunos adultos e de educadores através de questionários. Fazendo uma breve contextualização da origem da proposta deste trabalho, podemos partir do fato de que existe a crença de que não é possível aprender uma língua adicional a partir da fase adulta, uma vez que as dificuldades de aprendizagem nessa fase são maiores; muito dessa “dificuldade”...
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...Managing Time as an Adult Learner Many adults feel like they already have a full plate; that is to say they have as many (or more) commitments competing for their time, as they have time available. Based on a U.S military study, taking the average requirement of three college classes a semester, the adult learner can expect to add approximately eighteen hours a week of educational related activities onto their plate (Dyer, 2014). A report, issued by the National Clearinghouse Research Center in October of 2014, indicates that only one-in-three adults, returning to school, end up graduating (New, 2014). With the odds so heavily stacked against them, how can the adult learner balance work, home and school to fit in the time necessary to get a college degree? For an adult, with adult responsibilities, to be a successful student requires: undaunted commitment, discipline in focus, sacrificing of the extraneous, and the ability to effectively manage time. Much research and countless studies have been done attempting to determine the key contributing factors for success of adult learners (Tyler-Smith, 2006). The results of the studies are not only significant for the adult student, but also for the universities they are attending. The information obtained is used by Universities to modify their learning environments in an effort to promote an increase in student success rates. Statistically high adult attrition rates have a negative impact on a university’s educational planning...
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...For many adults after graduating high school college wasn’t an option, the cost of tuition, family life situations, or just not ready to go at that time. Whatever their reasons they entered the work force and started a career immediately, in doing so, they established themselves financially and moved past many of the distractions that prevented them from college in the beginning. Most adults are accustomed to traditional in classroom learning with the personal interactions between instructors and students. Unfortunately traditional classrooms will not fit into the busy schedule of adult students, with this in mind the internet has presented additional ventures for adult through distance learning, therefore providing another approach for them to achieve a higher education. The influences of distance learning on adult learners opens up new opportunities for adult students who might be left out from partaking in achieving a greater education. A study there are four barriers found for adults completing a degree: lack of time, family responsibilities, scheduling and location of courses, and cost (Silva, Calahan, And Lacireno-Paquet 1998; Keengwe, J., & Kidd, T. 2010, p55). Distance learning has been defined as: any type of instruction in which the student and instructor are separated by physical distance not in the same room. It is a medium of teaching and learning using modern technology so that teachers or students do not have to be together in the classroom (Wahlstrom, William...
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...Cognitive Development of Adult Learners Sheri Adult learning is often looked upon as being a separate entity in the education system, an educational process that has little to do with prior experiences and makes little connection to the learning that has taken place in childhood and adolescence, when it fact it is though those experiences that have shaped and molded the adult into the adult that they become (Brookfield and Tuinjman, 1995). Andragogy, which is defined as "the science of helping adults learn," has taken on a broader meaning and included not only curriculum based education, but also experience and learner centered education (Titmus 1981). Today, we know different. There is a plethora of research devoted to the cognitive development of adults and their learning styles. “Adult learning is inherently joyful. Adults are innately self-directed learners and that good educational practice always meets the needs articulated by learners themselves and that there is a uniquely adult learning process as well as a uniquely adult form of practice. (Brookfield and Tuinjman, 1995).” As an educator of adults, the andragogical cycle of teaching is critical to effective communication with adult learners. There are five stages of the cycle of teaching adults. They include: the identification and analysis of adult needs; the identification and selection of a program that is designed to meet those needs and meet educational goals; the planning of instructional...
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...following forms is designed mainly for evaluating software packages that are intended to be used offline and are started from a hard disk on a stand-alone computer, from a network server, or from a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM. The second of the forms is designed for evaluating websites and Web pages that contain interactive materials. You may begin by asking the following questions: • Does the software/website offer anything extra that cannot be done in more traditional ways, e.g. with pencil and paper or chalk and talk? • Do you intend to use the software/website for whole-class teaching, e.g. using a computer plus projector and wall screen / interactive whiteboard? • Do you intend to use the software/website in a computer lab, i.e. where each learner works at an individual computer? • How do you intend to integrate the software/website into your teaching? Bear in mind that what you feel about ICT materials is often a question of personal taste. All too often teachers dismiss the materials as “rubbish” without considering who the intended users are and how they are likely to use it. Try to put yourself in the...
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...forms is designed mainly for evaluating software packages that are intended to be used offline and are started from a hard disk on a stand-alone computer, from a network server, or from a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM. The second of the forms is designed for evaluating websites and Web pages that contain interactive materials. You may begin by asking the following questions: • Does the software/website offer anything extra that cannot be done in more traditional ways, e.g. with pencil and paper or chalk and talk? • Do you intend to use the software/website for whole-class teaching, e.g. using a computer plus projector and wall screen / interactive whiteboard? • Do you intend to use the software/website in a computer lab, i.e. where each learner works at an individual computer? • How do you intend to integrate the software/website into your teaching? Bear in mind that what you feel about ICT materials is often a question of personal taste. All too often teachers dismiss the materials as “rubbish” without considering who the intended users are and how they are likely to use it. Try to put yourself in the position of the user. Just...
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...Managing Time as an Adult Learner Don Campas Foundations of Online Learning American Military University Jane Herder Managing Time as an Adult Learner In today’s world there are many obstacles and challenges that adult learners can face starting college. As adults get older and inherit more responsibilities making the decision to further one’s education can be overwhelming and frustrating.”it-define ‘it’ this can be rewritten as “more responsibilities making the decision to further one’s education can be overwhelming and frustrating.” can seem overwhelming and frustrating when adults make the decision to further education. There are things in adult’s lives that have to happen on a daily basis such as taking care of children or work and attending college classes may become put at the bottom of the stack of priorities over time if adults have not planned properly. When an adult makes the decision to attend college it should become one of the priorities of their life. Prior to any study task, it is necessary to acquire some study skills including the reading and thinking (Motevalli, et al). There are a few strategies that adult learners can employ before they start the journey of furthering an education. Most students qualify for some sort of financial aid, including adult students. This may be in the form of scholarships, loans, grants, or employer reimbursements, and did students know that programs now exist where student/one student/one can earn college credit for...
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...Success: Never Standing Still. We hope that those who attended will be able to use the resources and activities themselves and that it will be stimulating as well as useful for those who were unable to attend. As with all of Dialogue NW activities this event was more than a training session telling people how to do it – instead we wanted to provide a space for critical discussion and reflection. Our focus was on the learners and what success meant to them, acknowledging that this may be very different to official concerns and discourses around recruitment, retention and achievement. If we start from the learner, then success is more about the journey than crossing an imaginary finishing line: it is about the hurdles, the timing and in some cases the stamina to finish what might feel like a gruelling race. It also allows us to appreciate that the journey is not always straightforward and it is often easier when travelling with others. It is much more than the bullet point statements often used to describe or monitor success. We started the day by thinking how learner and institutional perspectives on what counts as success may be different. Comments and discussion from participants suggested that although we know about these differences we often get drawn into organisational or official views of success, putting our own professional knowledge on the back boiler. People felt that professional...
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