Education, Adult
Education, Adult, the continuing education of adults after they have ended their formal elementary, secondary, or higher education. The major purposes of adult education are to enable adults to increase their general knowledge, prepare for or advance in a career, and make better use of their leisure time. Adult education is offered through credit and noncredit courses, discussion groups, public lectures, film series, and on-the-job training.
Courses taken to increase general knowledge range from cooking and household repairs to world history and philosophy.
To prepare for or advance in a career, a person may take vocational courses such as drafting or electronics, or may study parttime to complete an elementary education or earn a high school diploma or college degree. In their leisure time, many adults develop hobbies through courses in such subjects as the arts and crafts. Courses are also taken by persons who wish to qualify for citizenship.
Many public and private schools schedule evening courses for adults. University extension programs offer such activities as evening lectures on campus, classes in off-campus centers, and correspondence courses, or distance learning. Students enrolled in distance learning programs may participate in classes through the mail or by means of videoconferencing, television, or the Internet. Other adult education agencies include public libraries, museums, labor unions, park districts, corporations, churches, clubs, and organizations such as the YMCA. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, together with land-grant colleges and county governments, conducts extension programs in agriculture and home economics for farmers.
HistoryBritish clergymen and religious workers pioneered in adult education in the 18th century by teaching illiterate adults to read. In the early 1800's, mechanics' institutes were founded in Scotland and England to provide industrial workers with science lectures, reading material, and recreation centers. Denmark originated the folk high school in which adults studied their traditional culture.
Adult education in the United States was provided at an early date by private schools, which offered some evening classes, and mechanics' institutes, which offered lectures, reading material, and vocational training. The first national adult education movement was the American Lyceum, 1826–39, which promoted the establishment of local lyceums (lecture-discussion groups) to support the public school movement.
The Chautauqua movement of the late 19th and the early 20th century promoted a correspondence program for adults, as well as summer sessions of lectures and music at Lake Chautauqua, New York. United States university extension programs were established in the 1890's.
In 1914 the Smith-Lever Act established the agricultural extension service. The Smith-Hughes Act of 1917 enabled states to set up vocational education programs for both children and adults. By the 1920's, labor unions and libraries were active in adult education. The federal government sponsored many adult education programs in the depression of the 1930's and provided educational aid for veterans of World War II and later conflicts. During the 1970's, the federal government began to provide funds to retrain unemployed workers.
American Association For Adult and Continuing Education(AAACE) is a national organization that promotes adult education in the United States. It was formed in 1982; headquarters are in Washington, D.C.