An exploration of the barriers and facilitators to application following an adult continuing education program
Creators: name: Ogden, Catharine Allison
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2009

description: As adult educators we spend vast amounts of time identifying learning needs and developing and delivering programs to meet these needs. In this way we promote ourselves as change agents, intending that our programs will facilitate the development of new knowledge, skills or attitudes in those who participate in them. Ironically, despite our good intentions, most of us know very little about the effects of our programs other than what we have witnessed in the classroom. The posteducational experience of learners remains a mystery. We are unsure of what takes place when learners leave our classrooms and return to their lives and try to put the ideas and skills they learned into action. Whether and how they put this new learning into action continues to elude us. In this study, the post-educational experience of adults was explored through the framework of Application, a complex process that has recently been revisited in the adult education literature. As very little literature is available.on application, various other related processes were explored to inform an understanding of application. These processes are described in the literature as implementation, utilization, transfer and diffusion. Through a qualitative case study design, participant's perceptions of the meaning of application were explored along with their thoughts on the factors that influence application. Nine individual interviews were conducted. At the completion of the interviews, and after a preliminary analysis of the data, a follow-up focus group was held to explore areas of interest and areas requiring further elaboration and clarification. For the most part, the findings of this study are consistent with findings of a comparable study. Application is a complicated and messy process that is influenced by multiple factors. Instead of one clear path to application, there are many different routes. Despite the similarity, this study has some interesting and unique findings. Application is perceived as visible action. Ideas are adapted to fit both context and personal style, and yet an understanding of what constitutes an adaptation is unclear. Multiple factors seem to influence learners' perceptions about the value of the program ideas, which in turn shape whether and how application occurs. Application appears to occur within a framework of decision making. It is the result of a series of actions versus one instantaneous act. While helping to illuminate some of the. mysteries of the post-educational experience, this study identifies areas for further study. More research is needed to better understand the role of decision making and how this process begins, evolves and ends. The extent to which value is a more significant influence on application also needs to be explored. Awareness of application and the post-educational experience needs to be developed with learners, so they are better prepared for its challenges and better equipped to discuss and provide insights into the process.