Adults Contemplating University Study at a Distance: Issues, themes and concerns

Abstract

<P class=abstract>This study identifies and explores a range of themes, issues and questions that commonly confront adults contemplating enrolment in university, and why they persist. The study focuses particularly on issues facing prospective adult distance education learners. From a range of interviews, six themes were identified including fears, motivation, support from home, academic preparedness, suitability of programs, and identity change.</P>
 
 <P>It is argued that the more effective we become at information provision, guidance and preparation of adult pre-entry open and distance learners, the more likely students will experience a smooth transition to study, thus improving both student satisfaction and retention rates. Successful intervention with prospective distance education learners at this early point should aim to assist the process of informed decision making, which could result equally in an individual deciding not to pursue university study. The findings in this study should be particularly useful for those academics, course advisors, student counsellors, teachers in preparatory programs, and university information and support officers, and others who provide adult distance students, with pre-enrolment information and advice.</P>

Engaging Online Adult Learners in Higher Education: Motivational Factors Impacted by Gender, Age, and Prior Experiences

“…Bird and Morgan (2003) found that motivational factors infl uential in a persistence of online learning are clear goals, belief in their ability to achieve, and anticipation of signifi cant meaning when the goal is accomplished. Paechter, Maier, and Macher (2010) investigated students between the ages of 18 and 25 years old regarding their expectations in online learning and their learning achievements.…”

Mothers who are student teachers: navigating their dual roles in pre-service teacher education

“…This support centred on practical help, such as getting out of bed after night shift to take children to school while the student completed an assignment, and doing more of the housework and daily chores. It also involved the less tangible support of "putting up with the increased workload and time commitment", as one woman expressed it (Bird & Morgan, 2003;Duncan, 2000a). Once again, this appeared to be more prevalent while the students were on professional teaching practice and were required to be at their respective schools before their own children could be dropped off, and committed to after school meetings with their associate teachers, syndicate meetings and staff meetings.…”

“…Relying on extended family and friends to assist with childcare was also a feature of the women's accounts of how studying had affected their friends and family (Bird & Morgan, 2003;Griffiths, 2002). Five of the six women stated that their parents and family members provided much needed support in the form of looking after their children at various stages of their training.…”

Structural Equation Modeling Towards Online Learning Readiness, Academic Motivations, and Perceived Learning

“…In the literature on distance education, academic motivation is also an important concept associated with the achievement of adults in distance education (Merisotis & Phipps, 1999;Moore & Kearsley, 2012). Similarly, Bird and Morgan (2003) found low academic motivation and lack of readiness to be among the causes of adult students leaving their education in distance education. Researches that emphasize this negative relationship between academic motivation and drop-out rates from online learning are widely available in the literature (Muilenburg & Berge, 2005;Simonson et al, 2006;Willging & Jonson, 2004).…”