A Critical Review of the U.S. Literature on Race and Adult Education – Implications for Widening Access

A commonly stated goal for adult education is its aspiration to create equality of opportunity but often the opposite occurs. The historical treatment of race within adult education in the U.S and Canada serves as an illustration of how leaders within the field have defined what matters and furthermore of their understanding of key issues.

The paper argues that to discuss race in adult education, we must recognize the absence of the concept of whiteness. Adult education literature is considered from this position and in particular the paper examines how race has been treated historically in adult education using three perspectives on race that inform contemporary action in adult education. Specific suggestions for widening access for adults in higher education are made.

It is argued that rather than ‘a no-barrier thinking’, we need ‘barrier-thinking’ so that we may construct a future where race does not matter. A three-part strategy based on an examination of the hidden curriculum, negotiation for a new educational structure and actively resisting from within an enfranchised position of comfort is set forth for consideration.