Conspiring to Change the Learning Environment for Adult Learners in Higher Education

“Higher education needs to pay attention to and prioritize adult learners.”

Dr. Glowacki-Dudka timely brings attention to adult education researchers and practitioners working in higher education settings. The higher education population body has changed with traditional students comprising around 15% of today’s undergraduates with the remaining 85% being adult learners, employees who study, low-income students, commuters, and parents. In addition, adult learners constitute about 60% of community college students (Merriam & Bierema, 2014). Popular education supports social change (Horton & Freire, 1990), in this case, change that is needed in higher education. It provides a theoretical framework for taking actions to change structures, policies, and practices in such areas as nontraditional learner’s campus student services access, instruction, and advising.

First, most campus offices open only from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, arguably times when many nontraditional adult learners may not be available to access the services. Popular education provides us as adult educators in higher education with a powerful organizing tool to actively work with our co-learners to advocate for services accessible on weekends and in evenings, similar to health care and other service industry. This can be done on campus or online. Such nontraditional student-oriented action not only benefits students but also helps improve institutional goals related to recruitment, retention, and completion.

Second, nontraditional learners typically bring rich life skills, prior learning, and work experiences to their new learning, offering benefits or challenges to traditional instructional approaches. Helping them take ownership of their learning may require the conscious application of andragogical, experiential, and reflective learning principles to class instruction, assignment design, and evaluation of learning outcomes. Popular education is a paradigm shift in educational philosophy, transforming the view of education from a “banking system” (Freire, 1972) to a liberating pedagogy that values each learner with valid knowledge and experiences to share and learn from one another. Teaching and learning can be integrated to enhance individual efforts and collective learning using visual activities and debate, connecting history and lives, setting up creative educational events, and planning together with students for action.

Third, advising is a bridge between students and institutional procedures and program requirements. Usually, advisers serve as a “window” into an institution. Therefore, it is critical that advisers effectively work with nontraditional learners by understanding adult learners’ characteristics, are committed to their success, and are available outside of normal work hours to ensure both routine and unexpected interactions to proactively provide assistance. Available technology can facilitate the scheduling of advising at distance and enable student cohort groups to form a learning community for academic or general life with social connections and support.

In summary, higher education needs to pay attention to and prioritize adult learners. Faculty, staff, and administrators need training on the knowledge and skills required to work effectively with adult learners. Via the lens of popular education, nontraditional learner-friendly environments must be established that truly empowers each learner to succeed. As adult educators, we need to act on our own beliefs and be role models for our learners in practice, as exemplified by Horton and Freire (1990): We Make the Road by Walking.