Download Understanding Nontraditional College Students. and more Study notes Finance in PDF only on Docsity!
DOCUMENT RESUME ED 363 842 (^) CG 026 025 AUTHOR Benshoff, James M. TITLE Educational Opportunities, Developmental Challenges: Understanding Nontraditional College Students. PUB DATE (^) Nov 93 NOTE (^) 20p.; Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the Association for Adult Development and Aging (1st, New Orleans, LA, November 11-14, 1993). PUB TYPE (^) AnalysesSpeeches/Conference (070) Papers (150) -- Information EDRS PRICE MF01/PC01 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Adult Development; *Adult Students; Age Differences; *AgingOpportunities; Higher Education; *Nontraditional (Individuals); College Students; *Educational Students; Sex Differences; *Student Development ABSTRACT Over the last 20 years, the percentage of older students on college campuses has increased dramatically. Because developmental needs, issues, and stressors for adults differ from those of younger students, the college environment must be reconsidered to respond to adult students. Adult learners tend to be achievement oriented, highly motivated, and relatively independent with special reeds for flexible schedules and instruction appropriate for their developmental level. Adults’ generally prefer more active approaches to learning and value opportunities to integrate academic learning with their life and work experiences. Financial and family concerns are two major considerations for adult students. Adults may return to college because of changing job requirements, family life transitions, changes in leisure patterns, and self-fulfillment. Nontraditional students need many different kinds of support and assistance from family, friends, and institutions of higher learning. Research suggests that adult men and women may vary in their motivationsthey face as adult for returning students, to school, the pressures and the types of student and challenges services hey desire. A numberservices which have of (^) implicationsstudies have identified adult student needsfor the student affairs profession. for The willingness of institutions to modify existing programs and develop new services geared to adult populations will have a positive impact on their ability to attract, serve, and satisfy the educational needs of adult students. (NB)
Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document.
EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES, DEVELOPMENTAL CHALLENGES:
UNDERSTANDING NONTRADITIONAL COLLEGE STUDENTS
James M. Benshoff
Running head: NONTRADITIONAL STUDENTS
James M. Benshoff is a counselor educator and coordinator of the Student Development in Higher Education specialization in the Counselor Education Program at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
Paper presented at the first annual conference of the Association for Adult Development and Aging, New Orleans, LA, November 11-14,
“PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE T HI S MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY
TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCESINFORMATION CENTER ( ERIC)”
3 (Aslanian & Brickell, 1980). While college enrollments have been declining since the 1960s, the percentage of nontraditional students enrolling in colleges and universities is steadily increasing (Hu, 1985). (^) One national survey (Appling, 1991) found that "of the 11 million undergraduates enrolled in postsecondary institutions in the fall of 1986:
- 4.1 million were independent
- 4.2 million attended school part-time
- 4.4 million were 24 years old or older ... [and]
- 445,000 were single parents" (p. 7). Clearly, the college student population has changed quite dramatically over the past few years. Brazziel (1989) noted that "adults are the fastest-growing segment of all the population groups in higher education" (p. 116). The number of older students on campuses was expected to increase by more than one million by 1990 (Boaz & Kay, 1980), with this trend expected to continue for the foreseeable future (Aslanian, 1990). Characteristics of Nontraditional Students A number of factors characteristically separate nontraditional students from younger college students. Adult learners tend to be achievement oriented, highly motivated, and relatively independent with special needs for flexible schedules and instruction appropriate for their developmental level (Cross, 1980). Adults generally prefer more active approaches to learning and value opportunities to integrate academic learning
4 with their life and work experiences (Benshoff, 1991). Financial and family concerns are two of the biggest considerations that impact on the adult student experience. The financial impact of returning to college may be greater for adults who must finance education themselves while maintaining other financial commitments (e.g., mortgage payments, family support) (Benshoff, 1991). Adults who return to school are overwhelmingly commuters who live, work, and (usually) play away from the college campus. Many older students are parents and many of these are single parents (Appling, 1991). Conflicting findings seem to suggest that adult students may be employed either full- or part-time, and may be either married or single (Aslanian, 1990; Richter-Antion, 1986; Sewall, 1984; Streeter, 1980). Additional factors (Richter-Antion, 1986) which distinguish nontraditional students from traditional students include:
- stronger consumer orientation (education as an investment)
- multiple non-school-related commitments and responsibilities
- lac of an age cohort, and
- limited social acceptability and support for their student status (operating outside of traditional adult roles). Krager, Wrenn, and Hirt (1990) note two additional characteristics common to many adult learners: "mistrust of
6 Aslanian and Brickell (1980) proposed a "triggers and transitions" theory that relates the adult's decision to return to school to developmental issues and crises faced during midlife. According to this theory, most adult learners are motivated to return to school by a desire (or need) to move from one status or role to another. ExampJ.es of transitions during midlife includes change related to career, marital status or family situation, leisure, or other life roles. Transitions require new knowledge, skills, and/or credentials that often lead people back to college. T riggers are events that precipitate the timing of an adult's decision to return to school, most frequently career events (loss of job, new job opportunities, failure to be promoted) and family changes (separation, divorce, remarriage, parenting). Transitions explain the need for new learning to cope with new roles while triggers determine the timing of the adult's return to school. Adults return to school primarily due to career (56%) and family (16%) transitions that were precipitated by career-(56%) and family (36%)-related t riggering events (Aslanian & Brickell, 1980). Needs of Nontraditional Students Developmental theorists, such as Erikson and Chickering, have recognized the developmental challenges that typically confront adults who return to school, recognizing that "any significant life event can promote return to earlier themes" (Krager et al., 1990, p. 410. This "recycling" of developmental
7 issues involves “ not just a return to a previous stage but a revisiting of themes in qualitatively and quantitatively different ways. Progress through the revisiting is dependent on [both] the individual and the context” (Krager et al., 1990, p. 42). Chickering (Schlossberg, Lynch, & Chickering, 1989) also
recognized that older students may “recycle” through the developmental tasks described in his seven vectors of college student development. Because adult students confront these vectors with greater maturity and life experiences, their ability to resolve these developmental challenges depends on the individual nature of their life experiences, their personalities, and their ability to deal with the competing responsibilities and demands that adult students typically must manage (Krager et al., 1990). Nontraditional students need many different kinds of support and assistance from family, friends, and institutions of higher learning. Research evidence suggests that 11 both [sexes] have difficulties juggling the roles of student, worker, and family member" (Muench, 1987, p. 10). Adult students need help in building their self-confidence as students, in acquiring or refreshing study skills, and in managing their time and other resources while in school. In addition, adult students benefit from opportunities to interact with their peers and need to be actively involved in the educational process through sharing their relevant work and life experiences (Muench, 1987). Agar
- feelings of responsibility for maintaining their role within the family
- making compromises in careers due to family considerations
- minimal individual free time
- perceived lack of credibility when returning to college
- insufficient support from family for returning to school. In addition, Kahnweiler and Johnson (1980) identified several key developmental issues for the female nontraditional student:
- introspective concerns
- concerns about physical development and appearance
- shift in time perspective
- concerns about change roles as wife and/or mother
- concerns about changes in role/relationship with aging parents
- feelings of uniqueness and isolation in confronting midlife issues. Returning to school, divorce, and separation were the most frequently mentioned midlife events for women (Kahnweiler & Johnson, 1980). Wheaton and Robinson (1983) identified a number of external and internal barriers to success for women who returned to school. Internal barriers included guilt and anxiety about placing their own desires/needs above those of their families, lack of self-confidence, and a general lack of decision making skills. External barriers included: standardized tests required
for admissions; lack of financial aid for part-time students; lack of child care; and, increased family demands on time (Wheaton & Robinson, 1983). In a study of satisfaction and strain among women over the age of 35 who returned to school, Novak and Thacker (1991) found that while most subjects expressed above-average satisfaction in their role as students, most also felt strained as a result of returning to school. Major sources of satisfaction included achievement and meeting challenges, increasing their knowledge, self-improvement and increased self- confidence, and intellectual stimulation. Primary sources of strain included time pressures, family demands, anxieties related to academic demands and abilities, and fear of failure (Novak & Thacker, 1991). Research on nontraditional male students is limited. In one study, Muench (1987) found that both sexes experienced fears of failure and self-doubt. Men, however, suffered more from lack of self-confidence, while women experienced more guilt feelings. Bauer and Mott (1990) found that, among the nontraditional students they studied:
- men were changing careers while women were looking to advance within the same career field
- women more than men experienced competing pressures of child care, financial, and school responsibilities
- men more than women tended to be frustrated about loss of time and money in returning to school.
12 students (Martin, 1980; Rawlins, 1979) have cited additional needs for services, including:
- separate registration, advising, and orientation services
- adequate parking
- more evening, weekend, and summer course offerings
- assistance with financial aid and housing
- information services and communication networks
- social networking and support
- educating university faculty and staff about needs of nontraditional students
- increased awareness of and access to personal, academic, and career counseling services. Novak and Thacker (1991) found that reentry women students identified the most important institutional supports as availability of weekend, evening, and off-campus classes, assistance from professors, financial aid, and counseling services for adults. Studies of adult students have identified a number of additional services to better meet their needs, including:
- separate registration, advising, and orientation
- greater availability of and access to parking
- more evening and weekend course offerings
- special assistance with financial aid and housing, and
- better preparation of faculty and staff to meet the needs of adult students.
13 Byrd (1990) recommended that colleges and universities address a number of institutional barriers identified by adult students, such as providing academic credit for life and work experiences, establishing more liberal admissions requirements, making financial aid information more readily available, providing child care. Thon (1984) found that the student services most often implemented for adults were counseling and career-related. Services that adults considered important (but which were least often available to them) included health services, publications for adults, and qualified staff to work with nontraditional students. In addition, colleges must offer social activities appropriate for both older students and their families. Innovative and creative approaches often must be implemented to effectively communicate information about both academic and student services programs to nontraditional students who overwhelmingly commute and attend school on a part-time basis. Conclusion Nontraditional students are causing institutions of higher learning to re-think the focus of academic and student affairs programs. Research has shown that nontraditional students have needs that differ from those of traditional-age students (Richter-Antion, 1986; Thon, 1984). The willingness of institutions to modify existing programs and develop new services
15 References Agar, D. (1990). Non-traditional students: Perceptions of problems which influence academic success. Higher Education, 19, 435-454. Appling, R. N. (1991). Nontraditional students attending postsecondary institutions: Congressional Research Service report for Congress. Washington, DC: Library of Congress. Aslanian, C. B. (1990, March). The adult learner. Program presented at the annual meeting of the American College Personnel Association, St. Louis, MO. Aslanian, C. B., & Brickell, H. M. (1980). Americans in transition: Life changes as reasons for adult learning. New York: College Entrance Examination Board. Bauer, D., & Mott; D. (1990). Life themes and motivations of reentry s t u d e n t s. Journal of Counseling and Development, 68, 555-560. Benshoff, J. M. (1991). Nontraditional college students: A developmental look at the needs of women and men returning to school. Journal of Young Adulthood and Middle Age,3, 47-61. Boaz, R. L., & Kay, E. (1980). Participation in adult education, 1978 (advance report). Washington, DC: Bureau of the Census and National Center for Education Statistics.
Brazziel, W. F. (1 89). Older students. In A. Levine & Associates, Shaping higher education's future: Demographic realities and opportunities 1990-2000 (pp. 116-132). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Byrd, S. R. (1990, November). Perceptions of barriers to undergraduate education by nontraditional students at selected non-public, liberal arts institutions in the mid-south. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Mid-South Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA. Clayton, D. E., & Smith, M. M. (1987). Motivational typology of reentry women. Adult Education Quarterly, 37, 90-104. Cross, K. P. (1980). Our changing students and their impact on colleges: Prospects for a true learning society. Phi Delta Kappan, May, 630-632. Hooper, J. O.(1979). Returning women students and their families: Support and conflict. Journal of College Student Personnel, 20 , 145-152. Hu, M. (1985). Determining the needs and attitudes of nontraditional students. College and University, 60, 201-209. Kahnweiler, J. B., & Johnson, P. L. (1980). A midlife developmental profile of the returning woman student. Journal of College Student Personnel, 21, 414-419.
Rogers, B. H., Gilleland, K. R., & Dixon, G. (1987, April). Educational motivations of part-time adults as related to socio-demographic variables. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Washington, DC. Schlossberg, N. K., Lynch, A. Q., & Chickering, A. W. (1989). improving higher education environments for adults. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Sewall, T. J. (1984). A study of adult undergraduates: What causes them to seek a degree? Journal of College Student Personnel, 25, 309-314. Spratt, P. A. (1984). Needs and interests of adult learners: What do they seek on a campus? NASPA Journal, 21, 4-8. Streeter, R. B. (1980). Alternative financial resources for the nontraditional student. Journal of Student Financial Aid, 10, 17-22. Terrell, P. S. (1990). Adapting institutions of higher ED to serve adult students' needs. NASPA Journal, 27, 241-247. Thon, A. J. (1984). Responding to the non-academic needs of adult students. NASPA Journal, 21, 28-34.
Wheaton, J. B., & Robinson, D. C. (1983). Responding to the needs of re-entry women: A comprehensive campus model. NASPA Journal, 21, 44-51.
