Canadian Journal of University Continuing Education
Not a member yet
364 research outputs found
Sort by
Writing Our Life: Adult Learning and Teaching Through Autobiography
No full textThis paper explores the use of autobiography as a tool for teaching and learning in continuing education. In a recent continuing education course on adult learning and development, students took on the project of writing five chapters of their life story. Subsequent interviews with the writers explored the process and effects of writing. The findings suggest that when adult learners undertake autobiographical writing in the context of adult education, they embark on a process of self-exploration and meaning making that, in turn, can promote the development of an enlarged view of themselves and the world around them. Based upon these findings, a proposition is made for the transformative power of putting pen to paper
University Extension and Public Service in the Age of Economic Globalization: A Response to Thompson and Lamble
No full textThe Journal invited Allan Lauzon to comment on the preceding article by Gordon Thompson and Wayne Lamble. In his response Lauzon examines the larger shifts in Canadian society, making the case that this represents a fundamental shift in dominant values; examines how this value shift is impacting upon the university; examines the implications of value changes in the university for university extension units; and examines and comments on some of the ideas put forth by Thompson and Lamble. The Journal will provide an opportunity for Thompson and Lamble to respond to Lauzon\u27s comments in the next issue of theJournal (fall 2000)
Continuing Education for Health Promotion: A Case Study of Needs Assessment Practice
No full textIn recent years, both practical barriers and conceptual problems have been identified concerning needs assessment work in adult and continuing education. This article provides an empirical study of needs assessment research that was conducted to support university-based continuing education programming in the field of health promotion in Saskatchewan. We describe the context of the Saskatchewan Heart Health Program (SHHP), narrate the development, findings, and outcomes of a significant needs assessment process, and identify implications of our work for other university continuing educators. Although formal needs assessment practices such as those described in this article may not always be appropriate for university continuing educators, they can be beneficial to marketing and pedagogical efforts. The SHHP needs assessment process encouraged our learners to actively and collectively reflect upon their learning priorities, increased their receptivity to our continuing education efforts, and provided us with an opportunity to role model a collaborative approach to health promotion program development
A Critical Appraisal Model of Program Evaluation in Adult Continuing Education
No full textThis paper describes a critical appraisal model of program evaluation that was developed specifically for a university continuing education context (i.e., credit and non-credit programs designed to meet the personal and professional development needs of adult learners). The articulation of this model is a result of the first Prairie Symposium on Research on University Continuing Education, held in June 1999, and of ensuing discussions about the need for a proactive, research-based, and adult learner-oriented approach to evaluating programs. The paper begins with a brief overview of the conceptual framework of the model, followed by a discussion of the process and content issues deemed important within a university continuing education context. The model is then illustrated in detail through a case study of the approach used by one university faculty of continuing education to evaluate its graduate program in workplace learning. The paper closes with a discussion of the applicability of this model to other adult continuing education programs
Becoming a Master Student: Tools, Techniques, Hints, Ideas, Illustrations, Examples, Methods, Procedures, Processes, Skills, Resources, and Suggestions for Success
No full textOn-line Learning For Abused Women and Service Providers In Shelters: Issues Of Representation And Design
No full textThe challenge and potential of Internet technology to deliver learning services to increasing numbers of diverse learners who may not be included in formal continuing education settings are beginning to be addressed. VIOLET (http://www.VIOLETnet.org), a web site for abused women and their service providers, is designed to provide relevant legal information, an on-line community for support and sharing of experience and information, and on-going updates of legal information and community services. The project emerged out of a unique collaboration among women in many local and national communities and organizations and the Legal Studies Program at the Faculty of Extension, University of Alberta. Together they developed a safe space on the Internet for abused women, inclusive of gender, language, cultural, and learning style issues.A technology that widens access to information may also present barriers to access. In this paper we explore some of these barriers and their implications for the design of information resources and learning environments for abused women. These issues are described using an account of the formative evaluation of the project\u27s web site
Learning for Life: Extending University Level Education to Older Adults in Rural Saskatchewan
No full textAbout 55 percent of Saskatchewan\u27s seniors live outside the province\u27s 12 cities, in towns, villages, and rural municipalities, and are therefore at a distance from the two provincial universities. In order to assess the University of Saskatchewan\u27s Extension Division\u27s outreach development process, the author interviewed 11 individuals. The sample group had participated in at least one outreach course delivering university-level subject matter. The returns from the structured interview indicate very positive evaluations and high satisfaction levels. In contrast, earlier needs identification studies in Saskatchewan indicated that seniors, in general, are not strongly motivated to participate in university-level programs. Closer examination of the data from such studies indicate that this general response pattern may be misleading
Thinking about Research in Continuing Education: A Meta-theoretical Primer
No full textEvery approach to conducting research in continuing education involves background assumptions about the nature of what is being studied, the means through which one can acquire knowledge, and the purpose of the research process itself. Although often not explicitly declared, these assumptions have a significant bearing on the choice of research questions, the methods employed to investigate those questions, the relationship between researchers and the subjects of their investigation, and the integration of research findings into communities of scholars and practitioners.The goal of this article is to promote awareness of the range of alternative possible approaches to conducting research in continuing education. It pursues this goal in three stages. First, it compares and contrasts the three predominant world-views in which modern social scientific research has typically been grounded in Canada: positivism, interpretive humanism, and radical structuralism. Each world-view is explored through ontological, epistemological, methodological and ethical questions. Second, the article outlines recent challenges, largely from postmodern and feminist researchers, to the background assumptions and political implications of these three established orientations to research. Third, the article poses a number of questions in order to encourage critical reflection about continuing education research