DOCUMENT RESUME ED 131 197 95 CE 007 701 AUTHOF Smith, Roh=.rt M., .77d. TITLE Adult Learni.ng: Issues and innovations. Information Series No. 8. INSTITUTION Illinois State Office of Education, Springfield. Adult and COntinuing Education Section.; Northern. Illinois Univ., DeKalb. Dept. of Secondary and Adult Education.; Northern Illinois-Univ., De Ka16. ERIC ClearinghOuse in Career Education. SPONS AGENCY National Inst. of Education (DHEW), Washington, D.C. .PUB DATE Jul 76 NOTE 132p. AVAILABLE FROM NIT. Information Program, 204 Gabel Hall, Northern llincis University, DeKalb, Illinois 60115-(No charge) EpRs pRrcE MF-SC.83_HC-$7.35 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Adult Education; *Adult Learning; Educlonal Innovation; EducatiOnal Research; InstructiOnal TeChnology; older Adults; *PrOfesSional Contintiing Education; *self Actualization; Speeches ABSTRACT ' Seminar...presentations of,six leaders in the field of adult education are contained in this monograph: (1) "Adult Learning the 1970"s" by J.R. Kidd,(2) "Innovation in Organizing Learning for Adults--The New Technology" by Burton W. Kreitlow, (3) "Iihe Nature of Continuing Professional Education" by Cyril O. Houle,(4) "Self-Planned Learning and Major Personal Change" by Allen Tough, (5) "Helping Adults to Learn." by Alan B.Knot, and (6) "What Research Says about Adult Learning Potential and'about Teaching Older Adults" .by HOward McClusky. A reference list is includedfor each paper. .(WL) ********************************************************************* Documents acquired by ERIC includemany informal.unpublished * * ,materials not available from other sOu ces. ERIC makes every effort * * to obtain the'best copy available. NevertheleSs, items of marginal * *IreprOducibilityare often encountered and this affects the quality * *iof the microfiche and hardcopy reproduCtions ERIC makes vailable *Ivia the ERIC-Document Reproduction Service (EDRS)... EDRS is not 31c! responsible flor the quality of the-original document.-,,Reproductions * sUpp14-4d by EDRS Are the best that can be made from the original. ********************************************************************** , ADULT LEARNING: iSSUES AND INNOVAIIONS 'Edited by Robert M. Smith July 1976 fl InfoLmation Series No. 8 OF HE AL114 US 'DEPARTMENTWELFARE CE 007 701 EOUCATIDN I. OF NATIONAL INSTITUTE ECVOCATION BE EN PEPRO- DOCUME N.;1,4A% AA( 1 L Y AS CI iv{ ATION ' DoCED E OR ORC.ANIZ Tull PERSONPOINTSOF Vlf S% OPINtONs Al INC, II NECESSARILY REPRE STATED DO NOT tNsT 0,0E 06 NA1 IONAL SENT 0ClLPOSITION ORPOL,U, EDO( AyON ERIC Clearinghouse in Career Education in Cooperation with' State Board of Education Adult-and Continuing Education,Section 'Illinois Office of Education Department of Secondary and Adult Education, Northern Illinois University ALSO AVAILABLE: The Computer and Guidance in the United States: Past, Present, and a Possible Future, by JoAnn Harris and David V. Tiedeman. ERIC Clearing- house in Career Education information Series Number 2, ED 095 372. Educating for the Intei:r.ition of Occupational Clusters into Careers, by Joyce Cook, Dale Stenning and David V. Tiedeman. ERIC Clearinghouse in Career Education Information Series Number 3, ED 113 436. A Career Education Primer for Educators; by Walter Wernick,David V. Tiede- man, John Eddy and Betty J. Bosdell, with a Bibliography, of ERIC Career Education Literature prepared by Tyrus Wessell and James E.Hedstrom. ERIC Clearinghouse in Career Education Information SeriesNumber 4, ED 113 486. .\- Career Initiation in Association with Alienation'from Secondary Schools. A. An Operational Model and its Literature, by David V. Tiedeman and Anna Milier-Tiedeman. ERIC Clearinghouse in Career Education Informa- tion Series Number 5A, ED 113 527. Career Initiation in Association with Alienation frem: SecondarySchools. B. Measures for the Evaluation of a Model, by Arthur L. Korot-lc:IV-ERIC Clearinghouse in,Career Education Information Series Number.5B, ED 117 309. Structure and Technology for Facilitating Human Development ThroughCareer Education, by JoAnn Harris-Bowlsbey witha List of innovative Programs and a Bibliography of Relevant ERIC Literature by Robert J. Nejedlo and Tyrus Wessell. ERIC Clearinghouse in Career Education Information Series Number 6, ED 112 205: Choice and Decision Processes and Careers, by David V. Tiedeman and Anna. Miller-Tiedeman. ERIC Clearinghouse in Career Education Information Series Number 7, ED 120 338. The material in this publication was published prsuant to a contract with the National Institute of Education, U. S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare. Contractors undertaking.such projects under government sponsor- ship are encouraged to express freely their judgment in professional and technical matters.- Prior to publication, the manuscriptwas submitted to consultants commissioned by the ERIC Clearinghouse in Career Education for ritical review and determination of professional competence. This publica- ion has met such staudards. Points of view or opinions, however, do not necessarily represent t'he official viewor opinions of either the consultants or the National Institute of Education. !ERIC Clearinghouse in Career Education .204 Gabel Hall /Northern Illinois University / Delcalb, Illinois 60115 Thc-.activity which is the subject of this report ,Wls supported in whole or in part by the U. S. Office of Education, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. However, the opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the position or the policy of the U. S. Office of Education, and no official endorsement by the U. S. Office of Education should be inferred. This publication is printed under provisions of Section 309 of the Adult Education Act, P.L. 91-230, as amended and funded_by the Illinois Office of Education, Adult and Continuing Education Section, the facts and opinions stated in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the Illinois Office of. Education. Preface Dr. Robert Smith is eminently qualified to act as editor of this monop.raph. We already know him through his contributions_to adult educa- tion, notably as editor of the 1970 Handbook ef Adult Education while serving as a university administrator. Since the Fall of 1974, he has been a member of the Vacuity of Secondary and Adult Education at Northern Illinois University. In his introduction, Dr.,Smith deftly captures both the quality of each author's personality and the flavor of his presentation. The comprehensive and authoritative nature of these essays in adult education heralds their value to the field. We are grateful to theiAdult and Continuing Education Section of the Illinois Office of Education for making it possible to disseminate this monograph more widely to adult educators. John A. Niemi Associate Director ERIC Clearinghouse in Carepr Education July 1976 iv Introguction In the Spring of 1975 siN outstanding leaders in the field of adult education accepted invitations to jecture and conduct-seminars at Northern Illinois University. They were given,considerable latitude as to choice of topic and subject'matter having only to find room under the umbrella of "Is'sues and Innovations in Adult Learning." The x.esult was a stimulating and challenging experience for several hundred faculty, students and practitioners. The essence of.that experience can now be shared with others through the papers published here. Both the seminars and this publication required the cooperation of many. persons and agencies. Among the latter were the Illinois Office of Education, the University of Illinois at Urbana, together with Northern Illinois University's College of Continuing Education, Graduate'Colloquium Committee, and Department of Secondary and Adult Education. 'In our first essay, Roby Kidd, Canadian and citizen of the world, does w.at no one can do better summarizes and synthesizes a vast body of mlterial in a lively and provocative way. At the same time he conveys a ense of excitement about what is being (and might be) done to forge more _.....- eful-theories of adult learning and "adults learning."Dr. Kidd has a knack of motivating you to join in the great adventure by choosing one- of the unsolved puzzles ofadult learning and getting started on it tonight or tomorrow morning. Burton Kreitlow has hit upon an intriguing way'to introducetha formidable area.called technology. His personalizedshistorical recapitulation and personal reflections give way to a mind-stretching exercise that gently forces us to confront a problem that will not go away: how can real impact in-the education of adults be derived from such lechneaogicill giants as "satellites?"You cannot read his essay without vowing dhat the vast potential of "hardware" shall not be wasted -- despite our puny efforts thus far. Cyril Houle, perhaps our greatest generalist, can and has Written clearly and helpfully about many aspects.of our field -- military programs, V community development, programidesign, participation, and non-traditional study, for example. But: one gets the feeling that continuing professional education must be a favorite of Dr. Houle's. At any rate, there is no area in which he seems more at home and writes quite so effortlessly. 'His essay can vfely be called a model for introducing the readers to a complex "sub-field" of adult education a sub-field, incidentally, that is quite possibly the fastest growing of-them all. We,probably should have said the fastest growing of the institutionally based areas of adult education. For Allen