Adult Education Faculty and Programs in North America

Abstract

This article reports on the findings of a quantitative survey of North American adult education faculty and a textual analysis of websites of adult education graduate programs in North America conducted in the fall of 2013. This study examined background information about adult education faculty and programs; the nature of faculty work interests, motivations, and satisfaction; and involvement with the Commission of Professors of Adult Education. It is informed by prior studies in the field, the role of professional organizations literature as related to social capital, and the faculty satisfaction literature.

10 Years of Adult Learning

“…Sole authorship accounted for 58% and multiple authors accounted for 42% of articles with women dominating sole (63%) and multiple (71%) authorship. These higher percentages of women authors parallel adult education faculty in North America consisting of 61% women and 39% men (Tisdell, Redmon Wright Taylor, 2016).…”

Women’s Midlife Career Transition to Tenured/Tenure-Track Faculty in Adult Education

“…Due to prior career experience, this study’s midlife participants reported higher service demands than younger, less-experienced, new faculty. In Tisdell et al’s (2016) survey, AE faculty ranked interest in teaching as a higher job motivation than interest in research or service and expressed dissatisfaction in lack of research time. Men generally devote more time to research and women to teaching and service (Cress & Hart, 2009; Park, 2000).…”

“…In a 1995 survey, Peterson and Provo (1998) found AE and human resource development faculty consisted of 62% men but noted a trend of women filling faculty positions vacated by retiring men. In a 2013 survey, Tisdell, Wright, and Taylor (2016) reported AE faculty in North America had demographically shifted to 63% women. Despite the shift, survey results indicated men continue to outrank women, as evidenced by 43% of men at full professor rank compared with 23% of women.…”

“…Despite the shift, survey results indicated men continue to outrank women, as evidenced by 43% of men at full professor rank compared with 23% of women. With regard to midlife career changers, Tisdell et al (2016) observed today’s AE doctoral students bring prior workforce experience to the classroom. Survey results support the likelihood of prior career experience as most participants were late career based on age but early or midcareer based on years of service.…”

Do They Know Who We Are?: A Starting Point for Enhancing the Visibility of Adult Education Programs within Schools of Education

“…As long as our colleagues and near neighbors in education are unaware of who we are, what we do, and where we might be able to contribute to the work they are doing, we may also find it challenging to negotiate for the power and interest that will benefit our programs, as Tisdell (2014) suggested we must do. Tisdell, Wright, and Taylor (2016) surveyed faculty in adult education programs (n=207). Participants reported a mean score of 2.65 (out of 4) when considering "collegiality with faculty colleagues outside [the] department" and a mean score of 2.47 related to institutional-level program support (p. 89), which may suggest, on some level, a recognition that disciplinefocused silos may be counter-productive and detrimental to the ongoing support of our programs.…”