The Department for Education (DfE) commissioned Kantar Public and Learning and Work Institute (L&W) to undertake research to understand adults' experiences of, and decisions about, learning. This report presents the findings from in-depth interviews with 70 learners and focus groups with 16 adults not currently learning, and recommendations…

The principal aim of this paper is to address the question of whether and how professional practice within an informal teaching and learning context (music) may be understood through a critical-geragogy lens. Secondly, we consider whether critical geragogy has relevance to and potential applications for enhancing practice among facilitators of…

Each year there seems to be an increase in the number of mature students enrolled in my Bachelor of Education (BEd) classes. These mature learners experience stress. As there is a need to better comprehend the experiences of the adult learner enrolled in a one-year intensive tertiary education programme, I enrolled in university as a student, and…

The present study examined adult age and sex differences in self-reported aspirations and personal meaning. Young, midlife, and older adults (N = 2,557) from the United Kingdom or United States completed an online survey of their aspiration striving, aspiration importance, and personal meaning (subscales of Purposeful Life, Exciting Life,…

The level of similarity of knowledge work across occupations and industries allows for the design of supportive information and communication technology (ICT) that can be widely used. In a previous ethnographically informed study, we identified activities that can be supported to increase knowledge maturing, conceptualized as goal-oriented…

This article extends currently reported theory and practice in the use of learning goals or targets with students in secondary and further education. Goal-setting and action-planning constructs are employed in personal development plans (PDPs) and personal learning plans (PLPs) and are advocated as practice within the English national policy…

During the affluent noughties it was sometimes said of government that it had "more visions than Mystic Meg and more pilots than British Airways". In 2011, the pilots, the pathfinders, the new initiatives are largely gone--implementation is the name of the game--but the visions remain. The latest one, as it affects adult learners, is in…

In this response to the commentaries, the author makes some general observations on the nature of the Inquiry into the Future for Lifelong Learning (IFLL) and "Learning Through Life" ("LTL"): their design and purpose. He then turns to the comments from the "International Journal of Lifelong Education"…

Despite much research into mate selection, non-heterosexual populations are often only included for comparison purposes, while trans people and their partners are overlooked. This study attempts to address this using qualitative methodology to explore the mate selection of the partners of trans people. Six participants were recruited from online…

In response to postcolonial, feminist and subaltern critiques of anthropology, this article seeks to answer the question, "For whom should research be conducted, and by whom should it be used?" by examining the lives and works of four female dance anthropologists. Franziska Boas, Zora Neale Hurston, Katherine Dunham and Pearl Primus used…

A new Labour government was elected in May 1997 and wasted no time in signalling its enthusiasm for the education of adults. Secretary of State for Education and Employment David Blunkett gave his first speech in office at the launch of Adult Learners' Week 1997 and announced the creation of a National Advisory Group for Continuing Education and…

This article seeks to examine the ways in which a heteronormative discourse dominates the practice and policies of schools in respect of sexualities. Such heteronormativity produces discrimination both direct and indirect against those who fall outside a narrow descriptive band. However, there is increasing evidence of teachers, trainees and…

This paper provides insights into the human capital development of a group of young entrepreneurs, all of whom have built growth businesses with turnovers of between 1M British Pounds and 90M British Pounds. Their development of knowledge and skills was investigated before and during the creation of their first main ventures. This is significant…

"Adult Language Learners: Context and Innovation" presents instructional practices that are particularly successful with adults. Adult language learners are goal oriented and direct their learning to fulfill particular needs or demands: to advance their studies, to progress up the career ladder, to follow business opportunities, to pass…