What the Dickens is
Happening
in Continuing Ed?!
"It
was the best of times. It was the worst of times. It was the age
of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief,
it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it
was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the
winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before
us, we were all going directly to Heaven, we were all going direct
the other way—in short, the period was so far like the present
period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on being
received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison
only."
There is little doubt that when in 1859 Charles Dickens penned one of the most dramatic and touching love stories to be found in all literature, A Tale of Two Cities, his thoughts were not about continuing education. However, change the tense and the words have a familiar, if not ironic, ring.
What has been happening in the world of continuing education in the last ten years? Well, we might begin with what has remained pretty much the same. In good times and bad, with or without baby boomers, in times of global economic expansion and contraction, Americans continue to go to college. A triggering life event determines the time adult learners return to school: a change in the family structure (marriage, divorce, job loss, children moving on); a career focus, the single most important reason; or personal enhancement, to grow in their capacities as a person.
The "epoch of belief?" Studies indicate that over 6 million adults 25 or older are enrolled as undergrads in U.S. institutions of higher education, constituting about 40% of the higher education population. Women in increasing numbers constitute the fastest growing population at 70%, and they continue to bear the key child care and household responsibilities while working full-time. Adult learners have many of the same characteristics and needs of traditional students. However, they are more goal-oriented, motivated, have life experiences, multiple roles, demand good service, are resilient, and diverse rather than uniform. They are also vulnerable and always at risk. The "three F’s," fear, family and finance, are a constant.
What of the changes, the rather turbulent changes in this "age of wisdom?" Technology, as we all realize, is the major impetus of change. We live in a much more competitive world. People are shopping around for the best offer to a far greater degree than ever before. Continuing education is not immune to local competition and the Internet is with us and here to stay. Distance learning has become the quicker and sometimes preferred route to gaining an education. It is also serious business, particularly since the development of the World Wide Web in 1991. We are a learning society but we have also become a digital society. Accelerated programs are now much more of a reality and one in five continuing education students is enrolled, drawn by the flexibility offered. At the college level, enrollment in distance-education courses nearly doubled from 1995 to 2001, as more than half of the nation’s two- and four-year colleges offer the courses. International institutions of higher education are going after Asian and European markets heretofore considered the property of American universities, with Australia joining with England in this enterprise.
The "epoch of incredulity?" Combining the flexibility of online learning with hands-on activities, e learning, blended learning, and hybrid courses have become familiar options for adult learners. These opportunities offer ways for a new generation of adult learners to obtain degrees that they want to obtain in the same amount of time as that of the traditional learner—and sometimes sooner. A recent article in a major newspaper captures the term “Stress Rehearsal.” Researchers pose the notion that the modern American family is always in motion, is child-dominated, strained and losing intimacy.
The winter of despair?" People are not working in just one career but rather passing through 3-5 careers and as many as 10 different jobs in their working lifetime. Thus, retraining and certificate programs, credit and non-credit are increasingly vying with B.A. programs. After all, who needs more than one B.A. degree? On the other hand, master’s degrees have become exorbitantly expensive, making certificate and non-credit programs attractive. Add to this mix the very real fact that the corporate sector is no longer paying for their employees’ education to the degree they once did and the average family income of an adult learner is $50,000. Tuitions increase significantly each year while scholarships and loans are diminishing. With their children preparing to go to college, parents are not likely to take advantage of college loans for their own education.
Cell phones, as opposed to experiencing the feeling of community and real time conversation, connect students and their family and friends. Professors connect with e-mail instructions and assignments. Students "meet" with their advisors via e-mail and FAX messages. Here again technology shines its "season of Light"… or is it "season of Darkness"? Transfer Nights, traditionally an information gathering occasion, are more frequently than not poorly attended. Is it any wonder, when students can visit college websites and shop on virtual time? The need to be connected is contagious.
In conclusion, adults keep going back to school. A proliferation of new technologies and those that require licenses and credentials, together with the basic need to make a living, support this fact. Technology is our champion and at times our nemesis. Still, there is an air of exciting urgency when considering the role of continuing education in our society today. Perhaps, then, at the "end of the day," those of us who are privileged to work with adult learners, can recall the remarkable and extraordinary students with whom we interact and their life-transforming experiences. As we watch them reinvent themselves, we can recall the "spring of hope" and Dickens’ closing lines: "It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done…"