Cross (1981): Barriers to Participation in Adult Learning
Situational barriers – barriers resulting from the student’s situation in life at a given time
-Financial barriers existed because there was only one income during the last year of study (boyfriend)
-Had to make arrangements for childcare
-Had to spend a lot of time helping children with their homework before doing her own Institutional barriers – policies and practices that prevent or make participation
in activities or courses difficult
-Course offerings were limited - -During student teaching, she had to remain at school the entire time the teacher was there , which created a hardship at home
Dispositional barriers – the student’s self-perceptions and attitudes about her ability to succeed
-Worried about being able to juggle home and school during junior and senior years of program
-Grades slipped and she lost her confidence
-Felt out of place with 19 and 20-year-old students
Summary: Nikki enrolled in a teacher education because she was dissatisfied with the practices in her children’s school. She had worked with children as a teenager and received encouragement from family to return to school. Situational barriers presented huge challenges, but institutional and dispositional barriers also impacted Nikki’s performance.
MacKinnon-Slaney (1994): APIL Model (Adult Persistence in Learning)
Component I –personal issues
Self-awareness- personal qualities and characteristics within individuals that drive them through a formal educational environment
-High level of determination -Felt that she was good with children and could make learning fun
Willingness to delay gratification- believing in oneself and the effectiveness of the educational system enough to put one’s life on hold
-Put a lot of things on hold including large purchases and fun trips with her children Clarification of career and life goals- committing to goals and believing that
education is the vehicle through which the goals will be reached
-Committed to program because her goal was to create learning environments that were engaging and fun
more than working in fast food or convenience stores
Mastery of life transitions- balancing home, school, and work responsibilities; renegotiating boundaries with others
-Managed home, school, and work by asking for help from family members
Sense of interpersonal competence- socially competent, able to relate to professionals and peers
-Loves to talk and was not afraid to ask questions of peers and instructors
-Was able to relate well socially to individuals of different cultures and ages Summary: Nikki wanted to leave the life of fast food and gas stations behind. She worked with children as a teenager and felt that her experience as a mother would benefit her as a classroom teacher. Limited household income required Nikki to delay purchases and created a problem with childcare. Nikki would not afford childcare and was fortunate to be able to make arrangements with her parents and boyfriend’s parents for childcare. Component II – learning issues
Educational competence – relearning how to learn (ex. Memory skills, reading, writing, listening)
--Had to learn how to study within limited time frames
Intellectual and political competence – understanding the political climate of the educational environment and its relationship to the learning experience
Not considered by Nikki
Summary: Nikki had to learn how to study and juggle her family responsibilities. Time was limited because she had to assist her children with their homework before doing her own work. Intellectual and political competence were not discussed by Nikki.
Component III –environmental issues within the institution
Information retrieval from the university – knowing what to ask and where to get answers
- Relied on advisor and staff within teacher education program for answers Awareness of opportunities or impediments in the environment – knowing
which institutional processes and practices are helpful and which are hindrances
-Opportunities- could talk with advisor during scheduled office hours
- Hindrance – institution’s limited course offerings Environmental compatibility- general climate is welcoming, caring, and
compatible socially, academically, and physically
- Felt comfortable at university because it was located in her community
- Good social environment because many nontraditional students were in teacher education program
Summary: Nikki was comfortable at her university and was able to socialize with several nontraditional students with similar issues. She relied on her advisor for information. Limited course offerings made it difficult for Nikki to coordinate her school, work, and home schedules.
Comings, Parrella, and Soricone (1999): Types of Support Systems
Relationships –support from family, friends, teachers and peers -Depended on her parents and her boyfriend’s parents for childcare and emotional support
- Received emotional and academic support from professors
-Talked to peers for emotional support
Self-efficacy – belief in one’s ability to succeed at present task - Felt great and was full of confidence during the first two years of study
-Upon admittance to teacher education, Nikki became overwhelmed and began to doubt her ability to succeed
Goals – desired outcome -Goal was to complete the
program because she wanted to be a teacher and make a difference in children’s lives -Wanted to contribute to family’s income
-Wanted to be a good role model for her children
Progress toward goal - able to measure progress - Able to check off courses on
plan of study
Management of forces that may hinder or help persistence – understanding and identifying strong forces that affect persistence and manipulating them to one’s benefit
-Identified external factors that created risks to persistence (finances and childcare) and managed those factors with help from husband and the children’s grandparents -Created a schedule to manage responsibilities, wrote
everything on schedule and stuck to it whenever possible
Summary: Nikki completed the teacher education program with support from family and by creating a schedule to help her balance her responsibilities. Nikki felt that she would be an effective teacher and set a goal to complete program requirements to make learning fun. Nikki was able to manage factors affecting persistence by asking for help from others and relying on her internal strength and determination to overcome obstacles in her path.