In-depth interviews were conducted with eight female graduate students between the ages of 50 and 60 attending colleges in the Pacific Northwest, to examine personal experiences of motivation, challenges, benefits, personal growth and transformation through formal education. Participants reported positive experiences and personal outcomes,…

The first year of college constitutes a time of substantial transition for incoming students. Clearly, students vary greatly in their ability to cope with and adjust to these new challenges, and some students face far more challenges than others. A potentially important resource for successfully accomplishing this life transition is positive…

Reviews dissertation and thesis research that explores adult women's perspectives on their own learning. Key themes include personal development, ways of knowing, and marginality. One concern is the lack of any coherent line of research on women's learning. Discusses implications for practice and further research. (EMK)

From a life-stage perspective, the purpose of this study was to examine the motivation of female students in midlife to enroll in an undergraduate or graduate program and the meaning they attach to higher education (HE) in general. An additional purpose was to reveal these women's subjective perceptions of the benefits they gained from HE at this…

Offers a conceptual approach that begins to connect literacy as an individual development to literacy as an economic development. Grounds the investigation in more than 100 in-depth interviews that explored individuals' memories of learning to read and write. Demonstrates the practical application of the concept of "sponsorship" for interpreting…

The author describes a reading program based on James Dinnan's theory of how people learn. This unique program teaches both highly inefficient readers and those with milder developmental needs to deal effectively with practical and literary prose and with poetry. (Author)

Beginning from general concepts of identity formation, this review of models of African American identity development proceeds to Marcia's expansion of Erikson's identity model and to Chickering's vector theory. DuBois's concept of "double identity" and Erikson's writings concerning "adaptive coping" in minorities are…

This book was written to help students and adults in transition decide whether to prepare for a career in the helping professions. Over 90 different career options are described in various work settings within the counseling and human development field. Fourteen chapters are included, divided into three parts: (1) Getting Started; (2) Work…

A review of the literature suggests that African-American and minority students bring a diverse culture to "traditional" college life. As a result, many institutions of higher learning have designed their student services, student-support programs, curricular, and extracurricular to meet the special nature and needs of its nontraditional…

Explores some of the possible distinctive traits of midlife suicides, which include: loss of spouse, years of heavy drinking, reaching the age of high depression risk, and occupational problems. Midlife suicides tend to be highest among white males, although female suicide rates peak in midlife. The paper concludes with a review of assessment and…

This paper explores and explains the validity and value of the experiential learning portfolio as an effective tool for workplace learning and development. Qualitative and survey methods of inquiry were used to produce data on the portfolio in workplace learning. Eight workers who developed experiential learning portfolios as a component of their…

This report is the second in a projected series reporting data from a 10-year longitudinal study of a random sample of 100 students in the 1967 entering freshman class at the State University of New York at Buffalo (SUNY/B). The report is based on responses to a questionnaire administered in 1973, six years after the project was initiated.…

A variety of methods are presented for developing skills for critical thinking, which is described as reflecting on assumptions underlying actions and considering new ways of looking at and living in the world. Critical thinking is viewed as not just an academic exercise, but a productive process enabling people to be more effective and innovative…

In this interview, the president of Radcliffe College discusses her own development as one of the nation's higher education leaders and reflects on the identification and development of emerging leaders and talent development of women. (DB)

The 45 tests described in this bibliography assess the moral development and values of populations at all age and grade levels (particularly target toward those above grade 7). Some of the instruments consist of questions that pose moral problems and respondents must select a solution. Several of the tests are concerned about professional ethics.…