The New Majority

Best Practices in AdultSupport Strategies

Leslie Tucker – Academic Advisor Patty Robinson – Student Services Counselor

The University of Akron2011

The New Majority “As (these) trends continue, higher

education must be prepared to understand this cohort of students

and provide the academic support

services that they need to succeed in reaching

educational, career, and personal goals.”

Bland, 2004

The New MajorityThe Adult Learner

What are our intended learning outcomes?•Professionals participating in this session should:

Understand why adult learners are becoming the new majority.

Develop a working definition of the adult learner. Recognize significant characteristics of this population. Apply adult developmental theory to the higher education

transition. Be aware of strategies to support adult learners. Identify a focus area for improvement within their individual institution.

The New Majority Why focus on the adult learner?

• Ohio’s Third Report on the Condition of Higher Education: Student Centered Initiative is to have 230,000 more students by the year 2017.

Ohio Board of Regents, 2010

• The University of Akron’s Ten Year Strategic Plan focuses on increased enrollment and completion rates by accommodating adult learners.

The University of Akron, 2011

• The Council for Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) has developed guidelines for effective Adult Learner programs and services to ensure student success.

Hardin, 2009

The New Majority Why focus on the adult learner?

• Research in the area of student success concludes a high importance of strong relationships between students and faculty and staff. NACADA, 2010

• 6.8 million people entering higher education institutions are twenty-five years old and over.

• The GI Bill.

• Completion rates vary from 15% to 36% among adult learners. Ritt, 2009

The New Majority Who is the adult learner?

• Adult students are often referred to as nontraditional students; yet not all nontraditional students are adult students.

• The term nontraditional can include traditional-aged students who share common characteristics with their adult counterparts.

• Many characteristics put them “at-risk” of obtaining academic success.

Brock, 2010

The New Majority

What “at-risk” characteristics do adult learners bring with them to college?• Enrolled part time • Work full time• Financially independent• Financially responsible for others• Family responsibilities • Academic deficiencies • Delayed enrollment

DiMaria, 2009

The New Majority What barriers do adult learners face as they enter

higher education?• Institutional Barriers

Proximity to home and work Course availability Extended office hours Accurate academic advising

• Situational Barriers Role conflict Time management Family and work problems Finances

The New Majority What barriers do adult learners face as they enter

higher education?• Psychological Barriers

Coping skills Lack of self-confidence and poor self image Anxiety about schooling based on prior experience Negative beliefs or expectations about outcomes

• Educational Barriers Under prepared academically Developmental coursework

Brock, 2010

The New Majority

What does adult developmental theory say?• Schlossberg’s Transition Theory (1981;1995) was

developed to help professionals understand and offer interventions for adults in transition.

What is a transition?• Change in roles, relationships, or routines

What coping mechanisms can the student draw on?• Situation, self, supports, and strategies

What techniques can the academic advisor apply?• Ask questions and supplement answers

Evans, Forney, & Guido-DeBrito, 1998Evans, Forney, Guido, Patton, & Renn, 2010

The New Majority

Research on adult support systems and student success?• State of Ohio support strategies:

Lorain and Owens Community College

“Open Doors” Demonstration

Sample Size: 2,100

Largely non-traditional students

Regular, intensive, and personalized advising

Advisor to student ratio 1 to 160Brock, 2010

The New Majority

Research on adult support systems and student success?• Appreciative Advising Instrument

The University of South Carolina Five phases- disarm, discover, dream, design, deliver

Optimize educational experience

Student and advisor crafts an “action plan”

Student Academic Services, 2008

The New Majority Most highly developed academic advising

programs: Best Practices 

• Pennsylvania State University “Education Planning Survey” Identifies self exploration opportunities

Personal strengths

Education, careers, and life goals 

• University of Wisconsin “ First Year Advising Program”

Protocol for connecting early and often with students

“Check-In” process

“Pre-Advise” appointment

The “Advise” appointmentNACADA, 2010

The New Majority

Student Success• Kuh states that student success must be defined broadly to

include: Academic achievement Engagement in educationally purposeful activities Satisfaction Acquisition of desired knowledge, skills, and competencies Persistence Attainment of educational goals Post-college performance

Campbell & Nutt, 2010

The New Majority

What would you do given a higher education scenario?• Through audience

collaboration, adult learner support strategies will be applied.

The New Majority The New MajorityThe New MajorityThe New MajorityThe New MajorityThe New MajorityThe New MajorityThe New Majority

How can the information shared today be applied at

my institution?

The New Majority

Assessment• Did you identify . . .

Why adult learners are becoming the new majority? A working definition of the adult learner? Significant characteristics of the adult population in

higher education? How Schlossberg’s adult developmental theory relates

to the higher education transition? Strategies that can support adult learners? A focus area for improvement?

The New MajorityBland, S. (2004). Advising adults: Telling or coaching. Adult Learning, 14(2), 6-9.

Brock, T. (2010). Young adults and higher education: Barriers and break thoughts to success. Academic Research Complete (20)1, 109-130.

Campbell, S. & Nutt, C. (2010). The role of academic advising in student retention and persistence. Manhattan, KS.

Council for Adult & Experiential Learning. (2000). Serving adult learners in higher education: Principles of effectiveness. Chicago, IL.

DiMaria, F. (2009). Keeping our engaged at-risk kids in college. Eddigest, 52-63.

Hardin, C. (2009). Adult students in higher education: A portrait of transitions. New Directions for Higher education, 144, 49-63. DOI 10.1002/he.325

Evans, N. J., Forney, D. S., & Guido-DiBrito, F. (1998). Schlossberg’s transition theory. Student development in college: Theory, research, and practice . San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Evans, N. J., Forney, D. S., Guido, F., Patton, L.D. & Renn, K. A. (2010). Student development in college: Theory, research, and practice. (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Ohio Third Report. (2010). Third report on the condition of higher education in ohio.

Ritt, E. (2009). Redefining tradition: Adult learners and higher education. Adult Learning, 16 , 12-21.

Schlossberg, N. K., Waters, E.B., & Goodman, J. (1995). Counseling adults in transition (2nd ed.). New York: Springer.

Student Academic Services. (2008). University of North Carolina Academic advising. http://web.uncg.edu/adv/advising/

The University of Akron. (2011). Strategic plan: Vision 2020. http://www.uakron.edu/provost/across-the-commons/spring- 2010/strategic-plan.dot