Learner Persistence
contributed by Linda Eckert, Florida TechNet Consultant

Research | Motivation | Goal-Setting | Change Agent-Sept, 2007

Handouts from March 2008 Training
Handouts from 2007 Persistence Training | Websites Visited 2008

Research/Articles

NSCAL - Persistence among pre-ged adult education students
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=663
Researchers looked at a variety of classroom management and instructional practices, including indoctrinational versus democratic teaching strategies; cognitive versus experiential learning; and the effects of different kinds of teacher-student relationships, classroom structures, teacher expectations, degrees of teacher autonomy, and others.

"One Day I Will Make It"
A Study of Adult Student Persistence in Library Literacy Programs
http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/execsum.html
The Wallace Foundation launched the Literacy in Libraries Across America (LILAA) initiative in 1996 with the goal of helping public libraries around the country develop new ways to increase adult learners' persistence. The Wallace Foundation also contracted with MDRC and the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) to document the libraries' experiences and to examine whether the new strategies led to longer, more intense program participation and improvements in literacy and language skills. In the study, the planning and implementation of strategies to improve student persistence were investigated in well-established library literacy programs in nine branches of five libraries over the course of four years, from 2000 through 2003.

Adult Students: Recruitment and Retention
http://www.cete.org/acve/docgen.asp?tbl=pab&ID=108
How to attract and retain adult students is an enduring question for providers of adult education. Adult students must juggle competing demands on their time from study, family, work, and other commitments; their learning goals are often different from those of educational institutions and providers; and their needs and aspirations may change during the education process, sometimes as a result of it. This Brief reviews recent research related to adult student recruitment and retention and provides guidelines for recruiting and retaining adult learners.

Persistence in English as a Second Language (ESL) Programs:
Research Using the Method of Natural Variations by Tom Sticht
http://www.nald.ca/fulltext/sticht/31jan05/1.htm
Testing hypotheses derived from theory using experimental research designs with random assignment are extremely difficult to implement in operational settings such as adult literacy education programs. It may also be prohibitively expensive to conduct this sort of "gold standard" research.
For these reasons colleagues and I explored a different approach when we set out to test hypotheses from Functional Context Education theory in an operational context. In this case we followed a method used in sciences such as astronomy and biology and set out to test a hypotheses from FCE theory using the method of examining naturally occurring variations in adult literacy programs.

Studying the Problem of Persistence in Adult Education Programs
http://adulteducation.smartlibrary.info/NewInterface/segment.cfm?segment=2665
Half of those who enroll in adult education programs drop out in the first few weeks. Three researchers define the problem, review the literature, and suggest a framework to help identify the forces that either help or hinder persistence among adult learners.

Lessons on Building Persistence in Adult Education Programs
http://adulteducation.smartlibrary.info/NewInterface/segment.cfm?segment=2663&table_of_contents=2017
Practitioners employ various strategies during intake, orientation, and instruction to keep adult learners from dropping out. Research indicates that it is also important to establish goals, build self-efficacy, manage barriers, and acknowledge progress.

Study Finds Few Clues for Explaining Why Adult Learners Drop Out http://adulteducation.smartlibrary.info/NewInterface/segment.cfm?segment=2664&table_of_contents=2017
A study of 150 students in pre-GED programs finds no connection between rates of persistence and the adult learner's gender, ethnicity, previous school experience, or employment status. Supports and obstacles identified as important by students also seemed to have little effect on whether they dropped out.

Studying the Problem of Persistence in Adult Education Programs http://adulteducation.smartlibrary.info/NewInterface/segment.cfm?segment=2665&table_of_contents=2017
Half of those who enroll in adult education programs drop out in the first few weeks. Three researchers define the problem, review the literature, and suggest a framework to help identify the forces that either help or hinder persistence among adult learners.

Current WIKI on Adult Education Persistence and Distance Education
http://wiki.literacytent.org/index.php/Distance_and_Persistence
This WIKI provides the research question, a Discussion Group and relevant research in the area of student persistence and distance education.
The broad research question is: under what conditions, with what kinds of students, and to what extent does the addition of distance education (including supported distance learning) program options improve student persistence?

California Adult Learner Persistence Project
http://www.adultlearnerpersistence.org/login.cfm
The California Adult Learning Persistence Project helps adult educators explore ways to improve their programs. The project is self-directed and open-ended. Because each agency has unique circumstances and interests, there is no single "prescription" that will suit all situations. Educators can explore concepts on their own, discuss ideas with other educators in their community or region, or engage in dialogue with other participating educators by posting comments or questions to the listserve.

Why Students stay: Retention and persistence factors
http://www.able.state.pa.us/able/lib/able/fieldnotes03/fn03retention.pdf
The key to keeping students in instructional programs is an ongoing topic of debate among family literacy and adult education practitioners. Why do some teachers seem to have trouble retaining students, while others do not? Is it entirely the responsibility of the teacher to keep students long enough to complete their educational goals? Or, is an individual student's motivation the key to persistence and attainment of educational
goals? This article looks at the research on student persistence and examines some of the factors that seem to affect adult learner retention, persistence, and, ultimately, tudent achievement.

California Adult Education - Research Digest Newsletter
http://www.calpro-online.org/pubs/100719LearnerPersistenceNewsletterPress.pdf
Retaining learners is an ongoing challenge for adult basic education (ABE) programs, in which high attrition is common and accountability pressures are strong. Recently, researchers have called on the field to rethink the meaning of persistence from the learner's point of view, and studies have identified specific ways to support persistence. Their findings provide insights for structuring local practice in ways that may help more learners reach their goals.

Community Partnerships for Adult Learning (C-Pal)
http://www.c-pal.net/build/assess/research6.html
Research articles on student persistence and retention

http://www.c-pal.net/build/assess/how6.html
Articles on how to improve Learner persistence and retention.

General site dedicated to Community College adult student retention
http://www.trumancollege.cc/academics/officeofinstruction/retention.php
Great site to browse around.

Indiana Handbook for Adult educators
http://www.doe.state.in.us/adulted/pdf/handbookch4.pdf
Indiana adult educator handbook chapter for student retention. Topics covered:
Recruitment, Recruitment Strategies, retention Ideas, Student Support Teams and Impact.

Florida Dept of ED Online Retention Workshop
http://www.aceofflorida.org/inservice/region3/retention/indexa.html
Improving student retention in Adult Education programs is an ongoing concern for adult educators throughout Florida. This web-based training program has been designed to provide you with tools and techniques which can improve student retention rates in your school or program

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Motivation

Myths in Motivating Adult Students
http://voc.ed.psu.edu/projects/publications/books/1998/WEF1998.5.html
The author presents a two-faceted discussion of the adult learner trend and its implications for post secondary education. First, five prevalent myths about adult students are carefully delineated and explained, along with the context in which the myths may adversely impact adult learning outcomes. Second, prescriptive strategies are formulated that can be used to negate the potential harm that these myth-based barriers can pose to the adult learners' school based achievement

Exercise in motivation
http://www.studygs.net/motivation.htm
As young children, we have a great ability to learn and to see past setbacks.
As we begin to meet expectations created by our families, schools, and environment, the motivation of our early years shifts from our goals to pleasing others, and often our desire to learn suffers. How can you motivate yourself?

Hawaii motivating students
http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/teachtip.htm#motivating
Tips from Hawaii on how to motivate students. principles of motivation, 8 simple rules of motivation and empowering the student are topics presented.

Power, Literacy, Motivation
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=421
At Pima County Adult Education (PCAE), we have come to believe that literacy is a means to greater power and personal freedom, not an end in itself. It is the prospect of achieving power and not the concept of literacy that truly motivates both students and teachers.

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Goal Setting

Effects of goal setting on persistence - NSCALL
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=331
Article in "Focus on Basics: The Effects of Continuing Goal-Setting on Persistence in a Math Classroom by Pamela Meader. She to observe what effect continuing goal-setting in a math class would have on learner persistence

Integrating goal setting into instructional design
http://www.sabes.org/resources/adventures/vol16/16newamericans.htm
Our program offers ESOL classes from the beginning to advanced levels to adult immigrants and refugees in Franklin and Hampshire counties in Western Massachusetts. In this article we'd like to share our approach to learner goal setting in the hope that other programs will find it useful.

A process for working with ESOL student for short term goals
http://www.arlington.k12.va.us/instruct/ctae/adult_ed/REEP/reepcurriculum/goalsprocess.html
This century has seen an increasing interest in the adult learner as separate and unique from the child and adolescent learner. One distinction made in the literature is that an adult's readiness to learn is related to life's demands. The literature often mentions learning related to individual goals and needs. A study conducted by the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) sought to "identify and explore the forces that are supporting adults to persist in their studies and the forces that are acting to hinder their persistence" (Comings, Parrella, and Soricone, 1999). The findings suggest that "participants who have goals in mind are likely to persist in their studies, and changing a goal through experience appears to be a positive decision" (ibid.).

NALD Study on Goal Setting
FACTORS AFFECTING GOAL COMPLETION OF ADULT BASIC EDUCATION STUDENTS IN THE NORTHEAST KINGDOM OF VERMONT
Table of Contents:http://www.nald.ca/fulltext/thesis/thesis1.htm#TABLE
Introduction: http://www.nald.ca/fulltext/thesis/intro.htm

Why some students stay in Adult Basic Education programs until they reach their goals while others drop out is a question that has plagued their teachers since the advent of the program. Indeed, more drop out than persist. Although a considerable amount of research has been conducted on drop-outs, only within the past decade have people seriously begun to look at factors affecting goal attainment. Also, it is being realized that variables promoting persistence are not necessarily diametrically opposed to factors influencing dropout. Those who complete their goals may possess unique qualities or have access to required services and support.
Developing Goals:

The Adult Student's Guide to Survival and Success
http://www.adultstudent.com/student/asg5/goals.html
Many adults returning to college already have an idea of what they will study due to the type of career toward which they are working. But many do not. If you are one of those who may feel overwhelmed about the future, and even if not, read on!
We are providing several different philosophies on "setting and reaching goals" because what may work for one person may not work for another. Similarly, each style may be better suited to one situation over another. Feel free to borrow ideas from one another methods and combine the tips!

Authentic Goal Setting with ABE Learners: Accountability for Programs or Process for Learning? SABE
http://www.sabes.org/resources/adventures/vol13/13gabb.htm
SABES has been given the responsibility for supporting program efforts to meet dual goals: 1) to encourage classroom-based learner-centered formative goal setting and goal attainment evaluation with learners, and 2) to usher in collection of goal setting and goal attainment data through the SMARTT system. A group of practitioners in the Southeast region of Massachusetts recently responded to questions about the challenges in encouraging learners to set goals during the intake process for their participation in the ABE, ESOL, or GED class:

Bringing Learners into Goal setting SABES
http://www.sabes.org/resources/adventures/vol8/8burke.htm
Our community-based program serves adults with limited English proficiency who desire to maintain and improve their quality of life in American society. Our goal is to enable adult learners to actively formulate their own educational goals.

Colorado Adult Learner Goal setting Kit
http://www.cde.state.co.us/cdeadult/resources.htm
Instruments for setting goals, exploring feelings about goal work, revisiting goals and celebrating goal achievement are available at this site.

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