Module 6 - Military Education

For this final blog the reading I chose is called, “Contributions of the Military to Adult and Continuing Education. The article went into detail about the GI Bill and I found this section very interesting.  I knew that my mother-in-law used it to go to school after she was in the army. She told me that she lived off of it as a single mother while she went to school. The GI Bill gave her the opportunity to provide a better life for her children. 

This has been true for a long time. 7.5 million World War II Veterans used the bill when it was first established after the war. This helped the Veterans increase their earning income by 40% according to the reading. Today, 20 million Veterans have used the bill. According to the reading 96% of those using the GI Bill say it has helped them to achieve higher education. They may not have had the chance to receive higher education without it.

Module 5 - English Language Learning and Adult Literacy

For this modules blog assignment, I reviewed the Fast Facts by the National Center for Education Statistics on Adult Literacy.  I was really surprised regarding some key things that stuck out to me.

1. I was surprised to see such a wide gap in the U.S. between above average literacy (13%) and below average literacy (18%). What does this mean? To me it means that there is a large group of people that we are failing. The potential is there for them, but something is amiss.

2. The other thing that stuck out to me was were the U.S. ranked amongst other countries.  I was prepared to not be at the top, but was surprised how low we ranked compared to other countries.

Module 4 - Community Education and Adult Basic Education

For this week’s blog, I read the ERIC article called, Adult Learning and Nonformal Institutions.

The first thing that stuck out to me was the explanation of attraction. Attracting the students helps to get their attention in holds that they will be engaged. The problem is that as instructors or educators, we only have a brief period to attract them. If we fail attracting them, we may lose them before we are able to get our message across.

The second point that stuck out to me was that a positive part of having an adult learning is their experience. We should try to utilize this knowledge as a way to help our student learn. There could be a downside to this too. Sometimes the adult learner may use their experience in a way to justify the way they do things and not be willing to adjust or learn new methods.

Module 3 - Higher Education and Distance Education

The reading I focused in this week is called Teaching and Learning at a Distance, Fifth Edition. The chapter discussed what distance education and the pros and cons of it.  There were two key things that stuck out to me.

1. A study was done to see if there was a significant difference between distance learning and traditional learning and it was found that there was no significant difference. I really like reading this. I earned my Bachelors all online and now the same with my Masters Degree. I am glad that the students they interviewed found no major significance. 

2. The quality of distance education.  I was relieved to see that the quality of learning in distance education was good. I often worried if others would think less of me or think online learning a not as good as traditional so I was glad to see evidence that others believe what I believe that I am getting just as good (maybe better) of an education.

Module 2 - Worforce Education and Continuing Professional Education

The article I focused on this week is called Continuing Professional Education by Donna S. Queeney. There were 2 key points that stood out the most to me.

1. Continuing professional education is meant to keep up-to-date on any new knowledge. This helps by allowing those who have finished school, have the chance to learn new skills. This is extremely helpful for those in healthcare. I teach medical assisting students. We try to teach the latest, most current technology, but we all know that technology changes. Continuing education allows them to maintain their competence level even years after they graduate.

2. The other thing that really stuck out to me is that just because someone has complete continuing education does guarantee that they will improve. It is up to the company to make sure that the continuing education provided can be assessed. This can help to ensure that the information is being retained.

Module 1 - Adult Learning Organizations

The National Center for Education Statistics answered the following question. How many people participate in adult education activities? The answers were very surprising to me. The key items that stuck out were:
1. In 2005 on 5% of those 16 and older participated in part-time college or university programs. 
2. Most in that group participated in adult learning that either had to do with job training or courses that were of personal interest to them.
3. It also stuck out to me that there were a larger percentage of females then males that participated in adult learning programs.

https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=89