Overview
Adult learners comprise almost 50 percent of all students enrolled. Some argue they are pioneering change in today's higher educational landscape. This book is designed to assist faculty members and administrators who want to understand how the impact of adult learning programs has and is helping to transform the academy and how newer initiatives are likely to change their own campuses in the coming decades. Through the use of case studies, and by blending the theoretical aspects of adult learning with practical application and personal experience, Lee Bash depicts each facet of adult learners and the requirements higher education must fulfill to meet their needs. The author explores* The context of adult learning from four perspectives: adult programs, adult learners, demographics and projections, and programmatic best practices* The distinguishing characteristics of adult learners, the special challenges they face, their motivations to continue their education, and why they seek and what they bring to college-level learning* The institutional responses to the adult learner, such as programmatic perspectives and the fundamental needs required to sustain adult learning programs* Meaningful applications of the term lifelong learning as well as some projections on how the 21st-century academy is likely to change This book is a helpful guide to all interested in understanding adult learning's place in academia today and implementing and sustaining successful adult learning programs for tomorrow.
Full Product Details
Author: Lee Bash
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc
Imprint: Anker Publishing Co
Dimensions:
Width: 15.70cm
, Height: 1.80cm
, Length: 23.60cm
Weight: 0.460kg
ISBN: 9781882982608
ISBN 10: 1882982606
Pages: 230
Publication Date: 01 April 2007
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Out of Stock Indefinitely
Availability: Out of print, replaced by POD
We will order this item for you from a manufatured on demand supplier.
Reviews
As the number of adult students on college campuses continues to grow, faculty members and administrators unfamiliar with the educational needs of such nontraditional students may well need an education of their own on the subject. Mr. Bash, dean of lifelong learning at Baldwin-Wallace College, says his book is meant to serve as a wake-up call for those members of the academy who may have a preference to work primarily with traditional students. Adult-learning programs have already had a substantial impact on higher education, he notes, especially in their use of technology and a pedagogical approach described as learning centered. The book begins with an overview of adult-learning programs, followed by an examination of significant differences between adult students and their younger classmates. Mr. Bash looks at why adults are choosing to continue their education, and he discusses the particular challenges that they have to contend with, not the least of which are pursuing studies when their responsibilities are already likely to be overextended, and placing themselves into an environment they often perceive as hostile and frightening. He also describes how the presence of adult students can enrich the classroom. And he brings up the mostly overlooked but potentially fastest-growing segment of the student population: senior citizens. Another section examines how institutions have responded to their adult students. Many colleges and universities make a number of fundamental mistakes when it comes to addressing the needs of those students, Mr. Bash argues. Too many colleges still take a cookie-cutter approach, failing to separate or even recognize their special needs. Those needs, he writes, span all facets of the academy -- from curricular support to scheduling formats and registration options. Learning should be perceived as part of a continuum, says the author. In a culture that expects the typical traditional student who graduates from college to experience six to seven career choices in his or her lifetime, no person can afford to think of his or her education as having been completed. (The Chronicle of Higher Education (Online), 2003)
As the number of adult students on college campuses continues to grow, faculty members and administrators unfamiliar with the educational needs of such nontraditional students may well need an education of their own on the subject. Mr. Bash, dean of lifelong learning at Baldwin-Wallace College, says his book is meant to serve as a wake-up call for those members of the academy who may have a preference to work primarily with traditional students. Adult-learning programs have already had a substantial impact on higher education, he notes, especially in their use of technology and a pedagogical approach described as learning centered. The book begins with an overview of adult-learning programs, followed by an examination of significant differences between adult students and their younger classmates. Mr. Bash looks at why adults are choosing to continue their education, and he discusses the particular challenges that they have to contend with, not the least of which are pursuing studies when their responsibilities are already likely to be overextended, and placing themselves into an environment they often perceive as hostile and frightening. He also describes how the presence of adult students can enrich the classroom. And he brings up the mostly overlooked but potentially fastest-growing segment of the student population: senior citizens. Another section examines how institutions have responded to their adult students. Many colleges and universities make a number of fundamental mistakes when it comes to addressing the needs of those students, Mr. Bash argues. Too many colleges still take a cookie-cutter approach, failing to separate or even recognize their special needs. Those needs, he writes, span all facets of the academy -- from curricular support to scheduling formats and registration options. Learning should be perceived as part of a continuum, says the author. In a culture that expects the typical traditional student who graduates from college to experience six to seven career choices in his or her lifetime, no person can afford to think of his or her education as having been completed. (The Chronicle of Higher Education (Online), 2003)
Author Information
Lee Bash has been dean of the Division of Lifelong Learning at Baldwin-Wallace College (B-W) since 1999. Dr. Bash received his PhD at SUNY-Buffalo. His more than 30 years in adult, college, and high school education have taken him from teacher, professor, and administrator to researcher, author, lecturer, and consultant. His busy life included ten years in Kentucky where he served as chair of Fine and Performing Arts at Bellarmine College while concurrently holding the post of director of the Kentucky Governor's School of the Arts. He has published five books and more than 200 articles ruing his career. In recent years, Dr. Bash has been in great demand as he has presented his research and papers for numerous organizations devoted to the adult learner. His regular column, Bash on Books, was featured of more than 15 years in Jazz Educators Journal. He continues to write articles occasionally for Jazziz Magazine. In 2000, Dr. Bash completed the prestigious Management and Leadership in Education program at Harvard University. In 2001, he led a team of faculty from B-W at the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) titled Sustaining Innovative Leadership on the Campus. Dr. Bash has also contributed a chapter to The Administrative Portfolio, edited by Peter Seldin and Mary Lou Higgerson (Anker, 2002).
