Component 3

Division of Workforce Development

Region III: Web-Based Training Program

An Inservice Project

3	Improving Student Retention in Adult Education Programs

Component 3: The Reluctant Learner

Identifying Barriers to Student Success

All adult educators have known Reluctant Learners. They were probably given other names, including drop out, leaver, no-show, DNE (did not enter), non-persister, disengager and non-completer. They range from the teenager who gets sidetracked by his/her peers, to the welfare mom who has too many responsibilities and no coping skills, to the more mature adult whose expectations of the class or program have not been met. State and federal statistics report attrition rates in adult education programs as high as 60-70%. (Quigley, 1995 – ERIC – ED389880 Sandra Kerka, Adult Learner Retention Revisited ERIC Digest No. 166.) The Reluctant Learner may be any age or any race, from any culture, socio-economic background, or any geographic portion of the country.

Barriers to Student Success

Let’s review some of the reasons why adults leave programs at such a high rate prior to completion of their individual goals.

There are three types of barriers or obstacles the adult learner faces according to B. Allan Quigley in his article: The First Three Weeks: A Critical Time for Motivation, Focus on Basics, Vol. II, Issue A, March 1998.

Situational Barriers

Family needs and requirements
Financial
Health issues
Transportation
Employment or lack of time
Relocation

Institutional Barriers

Red-tape and paperwork
Program requirements or fees
Scheduling inconveniences or program location
Rules and procedures that serve the institution and not the learner
A non-consumer friendly environment
Negative past school experiences

Dispositional Barriers

Unique attitudes and personal values
Learner expectations versus reality
Low self-esteem/fear of failure
Lack of communication with instructor
Changes in long or short term goals
“Invisible in classroom” - the quiet, shy type
Lack of support

Read:

Staying in a Literacy Program by Archie Willard before moving on to the next section.

Motivational Factors

Learner expectations versus reality

Changes in long or short term goals

Cost of participation outweighs benefits of education program

Every adult educator has developed strategies that attempt to increase the motivational level of the student. List below 6 strategies that you have used in the classroom or other setting to assist the Reluctant Learner.

NOTE: If you encounter problems submitting your responses below, please click here and send your information in the email box.

Additional information on Learning Differences and Cultural Diversity can be found in this file. Click the folder to save this Word Document to your hard drive or disk. Forgot how?

Did you know?
Locus of Control:
the degree to which a learner feels that personal effort affects academic outcomes.
Some students feel that they have very little control over their grades. They think luck, chance or some outside force determines grades. These students have an external locus of control.
Students who see themselves as responsible for their grades have an internal locus of control.

For more information on cultural factors impacting learning, refer to the following websites:

Teacher Talk
http://education.indiana.edu/cas/tt/v2i2/table.html

Multicultural Websites
http://www.emporia.edu/sleme/mcsite.htm

Diversity Digest
http://www.inform.umd.edu/diversityweb/Digest/W99/multiracial.html

This program was developed for the Florida Department of Education, Division of Workforce Development by Brevard Public Schools, Department of Adult and Community Education through an Adult Education 322 Grant.