Many key concerns require engagement with science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) knowledge. Consider the complexity and nuance of climate change, energy policy, health and medicine, and data security. Informed voting or decision-making on such issues is no easy task; effective participation in our society requires considerable STEM capabilities. Education of all age groups is essential for a scientifically knowledgeable population involved in making democratic decisions about the future. Lindeman argued for adult education learning processes hand-in-hand with democratic processes, yet, once adults leave formal education, there are woefully few opportunities for the general public to learn or engage with STEM content. Adult education as a field has an important obligation to continue to support adults’ STEM learning. This obligation includes helping scientists and STEM educators better connect to adult learners in informal and nonformal settings. This paper explores adult STEM education for democratic participation. We begin with an overview of adult STEM education, followed by STEM knowledge and skills, with a focus on the utility and value of scientific processes and ways of thinking. We then continue with the function of STEM learning in democratic processes followed by frameworks of adult STEM, specifically scientific literacy and place-based education, and conclude with implications and recommendations for adult education practice.
Literature reviews map the research landscape in a topic area, identify gaps that new research can address, or frame a future research project. Literature reviews inform research and are integral to developing evidence-based policies. In adult education, systematic, critical, integrative, and historical reviews have been conducted. Scoping reviews, however, have yet to be widely adopted, although they can provide adult educators with a systematic process for reviewing a heterogeneous body of literature in adult education. This article explores why scoping reviews are a good fit for adult education and presents a systematic approach to conducting scoping reviews. The paper presents an expanded nine-step scoping review process that begins with the conception of an idea and ends with writing a manuscript for publication. The article discusses best practices, highlights challenges, and provides suggestions to help adult education researchers avoid common pitfalls when conducting scoping reviews.
This qualitative study examines student learning experiences toward a student-developed case study activity for online discussion guided by a three-tier case method model. Forty-five students were recruited from four online adult education courses. Analysis of students’ feedback shows that this activity leads to students’ positive learning experiences, including provoking critical thinking towards the discussion topic and providing unique resources for adult educators. The student-developed case study activity also helps establish a supportive peer relationship and engages students through analyzing a variety of student-developed cases, as well as interacting with the instructor and exchanging ideas with peers. This study furthermore indicates the potential usefulness of the proposed model as a guide for case study activities in the field of adult education and beyond.
Practitioners of adult education have a long history of teaching for social change. They may, however, be uncomfortable using quantitative methods to assess the impact of their learning activities, or they might lack access to statistical analysis software. Quantitative methods help the practitioner determine whether behavioral or attitudinal change among participants is more likely linked to their learning intervention than to chance. This is crucial information for practitioners to secure support or funding for their learning programs. We, therefore, created this guide to try and make quantitative methodologies for measuring social change accessible to practitioners through provision of instruction and resources and by using Microsoft Excel to conduct the analyses.
