The purpose of this session is to explore trends in adult education from a global perspective and then to focus on the impact of these trends on continuing professional development for our profession. There is a strong emphasis on identifying and addressing the individual and organizational cause of poor performance and then applying training solutions. This topic will explore the ways organizations and individuals are building accountability into their training to raise the levels of job competencies. New Economic Models and Partnerships Traditionally, continuing education and professional development have been financed by the participants who pay fees and receive education and training in exchange.
Participants select from an array of offerings.
Programming success is often indicated by the number of attendees and the financial payoff to the provider. New economic models may be emerging in which the audience is selected first and the educational offerings are designed to meet that audience need. In still other instances, products and services purchased by organizations may have a training component built into the contract. While overall funding for continuing professional development has increased, the improvement has been uneven, varying by organizational size, type, and location, and by content focus. This theme will explore new economic models and partnerships and their potential effect on the availability, quality, and value of continuing professional education.