Summary

This policy brief focuses on reorienting institutions of government, business, and higher education to the task of providing education and training to a new kind of student — the adult worker.

Description

This brief highlights the message of "Advancing Learning for Our Diverse Adult Population." [It] argue[s] that the payoff to increasing the proportion of educated workers is potentially huge, both for individuals and the country.... At every level, institutions need to embrace a new flexibility, as they remake a system ... [not designed for] adult workers with rent to pay and children to raise." This brief offers ideas about restructuring institutions to integrated into "a seamless system that guides adult learners from basic education, through high school and college, and into the work world" (p. 5). (Abstractor: Author and Website Staff)

Major Findings & Recommendations

Authors suggest the following changes to achieve improved outcomes for adult education:

• Government needs to provide financial aid to students not taking credit courses (p.5).

• Colleges need to adopt new flexibile administrative procedures suitable to students who do not match the traditional picture of an 18-year old, full-time undergraduate (p. 5).

• Colleges also need more flexibile scheduling, offer classes online and on the weekends (p.6).

• Another way to accelerate academic programs is to integrate basic skills instruction into college classes, rather than requiring students to complete remediation before moving on to more advanced coursework (p. 7).

• Improve the GED program, which also needs to accelerate and improve instruction, increase access and provide newly flexible delivery systems (p. 7). (Abstractor: Author and Website Staff)