The information contained on this page is designed to give students a representative example of material covered in the course. Any information related to course assignments, dates, or course materials is illustrative only. For a definitive list of materials, please check the online catalog 3-4 weeks before the course start date.

ADTED 505: Teaching Adults (3): Introduces students to the teaching of adults as a professional practice. Institutional (social), organizational and personal factors shaping teachers' assumptions, attitudes, and behaviors are examined. A variety of teaching theories and approaches are critically analyzed for personal and contextual relevance. Prerequisite: ADTED 460.

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Overview | Objectives | General Guidelines and Procedures | Materials | Software | Technical Requirements | Course Requirements and Grading | Course Schedule | Academic Integrity | Policies

Overview: Teaching Adults vs. How to Teach Adults

“Teaching Adults” is designed not only for those who have had formal teaching experience, but also for those who have intentionally facilitated learning in a variety of non-formal organizational settings. Those non-formal settings may include such places as a customer relations office, an admissions office, a travel agency, a community-based organization, a medical establishment or hospital, a place of worship, the public sector, the armed forces, and so on.

This course introduces students to the teaching of adults as a responsible professional practice. It explores what it means, and what it takes, to be a responsible and effective teacher of adults in various organizational settings. Students analyze their teaching experiences (formal or informal) by examining how factors related to social institutions, organizations, and personal identity work together to shape their actions as teachers and facilitators. In other words, a primary focus of the course is on what it means to teach adults, especially what it means to you as an educator interacting with the social institutions and organizations within which you do your teaching.

Given the title, it’s not unusual for students to expect that this course will tell them how to teach adults. This confusion is a natural result of our society’s tendency to simplify complex processes to a “How to…” approach. For example, the first page of my recent search of Amazon.com for “How to” offered resources on  “How to finally live debt free and wealthy”; “How to greet a dog”; “How to take care of yourself and your family naturally”; “How to sew”; “How to live a more sustainable, earth friendly life style” (not to mention “How to date a werewolf” and “How to catch a Christmas star”).

However, trying to simplify a complex process, such as teaching, is often a recipe for frustration.  How many times have you read some “how to” instructions about a particular subject only to say to yourself, “But that wouldn’t work in my situation because…”?  Thinking specifically about teaching, you may have had thoughts like the following:

• “I wouldn’t want to do that; it goes against my beliefs about what it means to teach.”
• “That’s not what ‘the military’ (or ‘business’ or ‘healthcare’ or ‘religious education’) is all about.”
• “The short-term workshops I teach don’t offer enough time to use those strategies.”
• “I couldn’t teach in that way because my organization mandates the course materials and the teaching approach.”
• “Those issues are irrelevant for the content I teach.”
• “My students have challenges that would make that approach impossible for them.”

Because of such realities, it’s not very useful to offer general advice on “how to” teach adults since there are no “typical” adult learners or “typical” teaching situations. Before you can even begin to find an appropriate personal answers to the question of "How should I teach adults?" you need to examine and understand the specific characteristics of your teaching context and how those factors work together to shape the answer in your own practice.

For that reason, the focus in the first half of this course is on the act of teaching adults and all of the factors that influence a teacher’s willingness and ability to teach in a responsible and effective manner. Some of these factors include

• the identity of the teacher (personality, experiences, values, teaching philosophy, skill, etc.)
• the characteristics of the social institution within which the teaching occurs (e.g., education, business, the military, health care, religion, etc.)
• the characteristics of the organization within which the teaching occurs (a particular school, university, corporation, military unit, hospital, church, etc.)
• the characteristics of the students/learners being taught (level of education or experience, age, race, gender, disabilities, personal challenges, goals, motivational level, etc.)

These factors are different for each teaching situation, making it useless for anyone to authoritatively declare: “This is how to teach adults”  (although certainly scholars have made that claim!)

Of course, this reality doesn’t keep us from wishing for a definitive answer that would take some of the complexity and difficult challenges out of our practice. As Stephen Brookfield (1995) points out in Becoming a Critically Reflective Teacher, teachers who believe that they are at the mercy of forces over which they have no control “often yearn for curricular and pedagogic models that promise stability and that exhibit the stamp of enduring authority….[A]ny literature that promises ‘the answer’ or that suggests ‘the right way’ has understandable appeal” (p. 202). However, as Brookfield goes on to point out, this eagerness to accept a supposedly authoritative approach often leads to a reluctance to critically evaluate the appropriateness of the approach to the educator’s specific context.  For this reason, he cautions us to reject

the fallacy that someone, somewhere, has an approach that works successfully, in exactly the same way, across all cultures and contexts. Rushing to embrace decontextualized, standardized formulas for teaching dampens teachers’ sense of agency. It removes the inclination to make their own futures in an ambiguous, morally flawed world, and replaces it with a quest for a reified, omniscient, pedagogic savior (p. 202).

Each of you needs to understand the factors that influence your teaching and how they interact in your own practice in order to understand what responsible and effective teaching can and should mean, as well as what changes might be necessary to more closely match your ideal for your specific practice situation. In other words, each of you needs to build your own definition of responsible teaching based on your understanding of

• yourself as an individual and an educator;
• your social-institutional context and its norms and expectations for people working in that context;
• your organizational context, including its structure, processes, and goals related to education; and
• your students/learners (that is, those served by you, your social institution, and your organization).

In summary, the first purpose of this course is to help you develop your understanding of these factors, as a preliminary step in deciding how you can and should teach. Once you better understand the factors that influence your teaching, you will have a good foundation for identifying and implementing the goals, methods, strategies, and techniques that can help assist you in putting into practice your personal definition of responsible teaching.

The second purpose of the course builds on the first as a necessary foundation. During the second half of the course you will read and critically analyze the ideas of some prominent educators about the most effective ways to teach adults in different contexts. The foundational knowledge you develop in the first half of the course will help you evaluate the relevance of their ideas to your teaching in your context. The group book project and facilitated discussion with your peers will--it is hoped--help you expand your conception of "the possible" in your practice. In other words, your critical evaluation and reflection on all of the resources provided in the course—including insights offered by your classmates and the instructor—will help you realize the goal of being active agents able to influence your futures in an ambiguous world.

The course is guided by constructivist assumptions, two of which are: (1) Knowledge production is an active process of making meaning, not the passive acceptance of authoritative "facts" and (2) The collective experiences of course participants are as much a source of knowledge as the assigned readings. Accordingly, the course instructors do not expect that students in this particular section will produce the same knowledge as students taking the same course at another time or place. As the course proceeds the instructors learn from students, and gain new insights concerning course content and structure. This learning may suggest adjustments to the course materials and activities. Students also gain insights as the course proceeds and are for this reason encouraged to suggest revisions or additions to the course, recognizing that all suggestions will be considered in relationship to the makeup of the class and the overall goals of the course.

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Course Objectives

As a participant in this course, you will work toward the following objectives:

1. Ability to accurately describe (without evaluating or judging) specific teaching experiences in which you and your colleagues have played an educative/facilitative role. (Although this may sound simple, it's far from easy; most of our day-to-day thinking immediately--and unconsciously--jumps from observation of externally verifiable facts to evaluation based on previous experience, values, etc.)
2. A basic understanding of institutions, organizations, and identity as influences on professional practice.
3. Understanding of three major theories education that purport to explain the societal roles and functions of schools and education.
4. Ability to analyze actions associated with your specific teaching situation in relation to the forces and theories that influences it.
5. Understanding and discussion of how selected adult educators have negotiated institutional, organizational, and identity factors in their own adult education practices, which represent a wide variety of professional contexts.
6. Self-reflection on responsible practice in your own professional context.

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General Guidelines and Procedures

This course is paced, which means that there is an established start and end date, and that students are required to interact with other students throughout the course. The course consists of four texts, a collection of articles and book chapters (in the PSU Libraries e-Reserves), the instructor's online commentary for each lesson, and communications tools, such as discussion forums and e-mail system. In order to take the course, students need to have the required course materials and an active Penn State Access Account ID and password. The course is 13 weeks in length, consisting of weekly activities and assignments, some conducted individually and some as members of a work team.

Penn State recommends that for every hour of graduate instruction a student spend at least an additional 3 hours of study time. If this were a face-to-face course, we would meet for 3 hours each week. The course requires an on-line equivalent commitment of time and energy. Please plan on spending at least 12 hours per week on the course (roughly equivalent to 3 hours class time plus 9 hours preparation).

Course interactions are primarily "asynchronous," meaning that we use tools like e-mail and online discussion forums to exchange ideas. These tools enable each of us to participate at a time of day that is convenient to us. This is not an independent study course that students can take at their own pace. Students must keep up with their fellow students and be positive contributors to each other's learning. Students are advised to log in to the course at least five (5) times throughout each week (not all on the same day) to check messages and postings, to engage in discussion, to work with their team members, or just to keep in touch with their fellow classmates. Continuity and consistent engagement are important elements of discussions; posting all of your comments on the same day does NOT count as discussion. Students are encouraged to talk among themselves using the e-mail system, discussion forums, and the chat rooms that are made available as part of this course. Students are also advised to share their thoughts and ideas freely, and to contribute to the general good by sharing information they have found useful. (A link with Web 2.0 technologies to facilitate advanced collaboration is available on the left menu.) The course assumes that each student will be cooperative and collaborative. Students are not in competition—the goal is to maximize learning for everyone!

Students have great flexibility in terms of "when during the day" they choose to do their work, make their contributions, etc., but they have much less flexibility in terms of "when during the month or week" their work is completed. If a student falls behind in her/his reading assignments and discussions, the whole class suffers. Students are therefore encouraged to be considerate of their classmates.

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Required Course Materials

Most World Campus courses require that students purchase materials (e.g., textbooks, specific software, etc.). To learn about how to order materials, please see the Course Materials page. You should check LionPATH approximately 3–4 weeks before the course begins for a list of required materials.

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Library Resources

Many of the University Libraries resources can be utilized from a distance. Through the Libraries website, you can

• access magazine, journal, and newspaper articles online using library databases;
• borrow materials and have them delivered to your doorstep—or even your desktop;
• get research help via email, chat, or phone using the Ask a Librarian service; and
• much more. 

You must have an active Penn State Access Account to take full advantage of the Libraries' resources and service.  The Off-Campus Users page has additional information about these free services.

 

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Technical Requirements

Technical Requirements

Operating System	Canvas, Penn State's Learning Management System (LMS), supports most recent versions of Microsoft Windows and Apple Mac operating systems.  To determine if your operating system is supported, please review Canvas' computer specifications.
Browser	Canvas supports the last two versions of every major browser release. It is highly recommended that you update to the newest version of whatever browser you are using. Please note that Canvas does not support the use of Internet Explorer. Students and instructors should choose a different browser to use.    To determine if your browser is supported, please review the list of Canvas Supported Browsers. Note: Cookies must be enabled, and pop-up blockers should be configured to permit new windows from Penn State websites.
Additional Canvas Requirements	For a list of software, hardware, and computer settings specifically required by the Canvas LMS, please review Canvas' computer specifications.
Additional Software	All Penn State students have access to Microsoft Office 365, including Microsoft Office applications such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Students will need a PDF reader, such as Adobe Reader.
Hardware	Monitor: Monitor capable of at least 1024 x 768 resolution Audio: Microphone, Speakers Camera (optional, recommended): Standard webcam - many courses may require a webcam for assignments or exam proctoring software.
Mobile Device (optional)	The Canvas mobile app is available for versions of iOS and Android. To determine if your device is capable of using the Canvas Mobile App, please review the Canvas Mobile App Requirements.

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Student Education Experience Questionnaire (SEEQ)

During the semester you will receive information for completing the Student Education Experience Questionnaire (SEEQ). Your participation is an opportunity to provide anonymous feedback on your learning experience. Your feedback is important because it allows us to understand your experience in this course and make changes to improve the learning experiences of future students. Please monitor email and course communications for links and availability dates.

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If you need technical assistance at any point during the course, please contact the Service Desk.

For registration, advising, disability services, help with materials, exams, general problem solving, visit World Campus Student Services!

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Course Requirements and Grading

Below you will find information about each of the following formal course elements:

• Assignments and Peer Evaluations
• Conducting Projects
• Grading

Written Assignments and Peer Evaluations

To conduct the course assignments, students are required to reflect on recent personal teaching, training, or facilitating experiences (i.e., experiences occurring within the past 12 months), drawing—preferably—on experiences involving adult learners. Students who have had no recent adult teaching experience may choose a recent experience involving non-adults learners, or they may choose another recent experience that contains some of the elements of teaching: managing others, counseling, mentoring, customer relations, sales and services, persuasive business presentations, and so on. Students must select only experiences that are sponsored and/or supported by organizations. Learning experiences that do not involve the support and/or sponsorship of an organization are not appropriate for this course, nor is it appropriate to focus on teaching in general. The overarching goal of the course is greater understanding and reflection on personal and contextualized conceptualizations and experiences of responsible practice.

The graded assignments for the course include two individual essays, a team book project, two self- and peer evaluations, and a final paper. The individual essays are described in detail in the Assignment Guidelines link. The third written assignment is a team book review and critique project. As outlined in the "Book Reviews and Discussion Facilitation" folder (in the Assignment Guidelines link), this project involves mandatory collaboration with a work team to critique and facilitate discussion about one of the texts for the course. Your self-evaluation of your contributions to discussions about the readings will be combined with my assessment of the quality of your participation to determine your participation grade at the mid-point of the course. Your end-of-course participation grade will reflect your self-evaluation of participation combined with my assessment of your contributions to your team's planning for the book project. (Peer evaluations of participation may also be conducted, but these are optional.) The final paper is an in-depth self-reflection on the factors that facilitate and constrain responsible and effective teaching in your own practice context. The projects build on each other; students use what they learn in each project to conduct subsequent projects.

Consult the Assignment Guidelines link for more information about written assignments and self- and peer-evaluations.

Assignment Description

Brief Description of Assignments	%
Reading and discussion on forces and theories that influence educators' practice. (Note: my assessment of your contribution to this aspect of the course will be factored into your participation grade.)	0
Essay 1: Descriptive essay on a personal teaching situation	10
First half Self- and Peer Participation Evaluation	15
Essay 2: Essay analyzing and evaluating an aspect of the teaching situation described in Essay 1.	10
Book review/critique and facilitation of discussion about the book (Book teams will be assigned)	25
Second half Self- and Peer Participation Evaluation	10
Final Paper: Analysis and self-reflection on responsible teaching in your practice context	30
TOTAL	100

Work Space for Conducting Projects

Course activities include readings, discussions, and written assignments. Special Discussion Forums are provided on ANGEL for each activity. Directions for each project are in specially labeled folders available from the "Assignment Guidelines" link. Assignment Drop Boxes for written assignments can be accessed via the Drop Boxes link.

For each activity the class is divided into teams of varying size, depending on our class size and the goals of each project. General discussion of readings is conducted in larger groups; the book team project take place in smaller groups for ease of planning and communication. Throughout the course you will be participating in two team activities. In Week 1, you will be assigned to either the Blues or the Whites for discussion of the readings associated with Weeks 2-6. In Week 4, you will be assigned to smaller Book Teams for the third written assignment, a team project to write a critical book review and to facilitate class discussion about the book. In addition, students may use the course e-mail system and chat rooms that are part of the course. Two other places to look for information, and/or communicate with colleagues and the instructors are the Announcements section of the Course Home Page and the Main Discussion Forum.

Course Announcements: Course Announcements are displayed on the first page you see when you log on (or accessible via the Course Home Page link). The instructor will post short messages and reminders there. 

Main Forum: The "Main Forum" is the equivalent of a lounge or hallway. Students, and sometimes faculty, use it to exchange ideas about the course, to broaden class discussions beyond their team discussions or to chat with or ask questions of classmates about non-course-related issues. You may also post questions about the course of general interest. However, questions that relate to you individually should be posed via e-mail.

The instructors recognize that students need a place to chat and socialize. That's why the "Main" Forum was created. Please use it liberally for that purpose. The instructors also expect some socializing to occur on the project-related discussion forums. This need for socializing or community building is especially strong early in the course, when team members are getting to know each other. However, students are advised to minimize the use of project-related discussion forums for socializing and to use them primarily to engage in substantive project-related discussions. It is not a very effective use of instructors' or fellow students' time to sift through multiple messages unrelated to the course content or objectives.

Grading

The questions raised in the course seldom have clear-cut (yes or no, right or wrong) answers, making grading an inherently subjective process. However, instructors attempt to avoid arbitrary evaluations by providing transparent and defensible criteria, such as those accompanying the assignment descriptions.

In this course the letter grade "A" means excellent. To excel is to exceed, surpass, to go beyond the instructors' expectations for master's level work. The instructors distinguish between exceeding and satisfying their expectations. Students satisfy the instructors' expectations when they do what's required of them at a level appropriate for master's program students. They exceed expectations when they do over and above what's expected.

The following grading scale (taken from the Graduate Degree Programs Bulletin) is used in this course:

Grading Scale

Letter Grade	Total Point Value
A	95-100
A-	90-94
B+	87-89
B	84-86
B-	80-83
C+	77-79
C	70-76
D	60-69
F	less than 60

Please note: I assign all written assignments a percentage grade that corresponds to the letter grades above, and that is the grade I will put in my comments at the end of your essays. However, course drop boxes are set up around a point system. When you see a grade like 14.1 in the drop box, you might reasonably ask yourself, "How in the world can the instructor distinguish points at the level of a tenth of a point?"  However, what I've done is to convert a 94% (which signals a very high A-, but not quite an A) to its appropriate point value. This can lead to some odd-looking grades in the drop box (and is just one more way in which our actions are shaped by our organizational context).

Letter Grade Rubric

Letter Grade	Description
A (Excellent)	indicates exceptional achievement
B (Good)	indicates substantial achievement
C (Satisfactory)	indicates achievement acceptable for credit, but not up to standard for a graduate student
D (Poor)	indicates inadequate achievement and is a failing grade for a graduate student—a required course in which a D has been obtained cannot be used to meet degree requirements
F (Failure)	indicates work unworthy of any credit, and suggests that the student may not be capable of succeeding in graduate study

The grades of A, B, C, and D are assigned the following grade-point equivalents by Penn State (please note that a minimum grade point average of 3.00 for work done at the University is required for all graduate degrees)

If, for reasons beyond the student's control, a student is prevented from completing a course within the prescribed time, the grade in that course may be deferred with the concurrence of the instructor. The symbol DF appears on the student's transcript until the course has been completed. Non-emergency permission for filing a deferred grade must be requested by the student before the beginning of the final examination period. In an emergency situation, an instructor can approve a deferred grade after the final exam period has started. Under emergency conditions during which the instructor is unavailable, authorization is required from one of the following: the dean of the college in which the candidate is enrolled; the executive director of the Division of Undergraduate Studies if the student is enrolled in that division or is a provisional student; or the campus chancellor of the student's associated Penn State campus.

For additional information please refer to the Deferring a Grade page.

Please refer to the University Grading Policy for Graduate Courses for additional information about University grading policies.

Assignment Policies

The majority of the assignments for this course will be submitted by posting them to assignment "drop boxes". Please do not paste your assignment as a message in the drop box. Instead, upload it as an attachment.

It is strongly recommended that you draft (and save) all postings and e-mails in Microsoft Word (or your favorite word processing program) and then COPY and PASTE the information into your discussion forum posting or e-mail message. That way you will have a copy saved on your computer should anything go wrong with the ANGEL course management system. Those of you who have been in the program for a while know that eventually something will go wrong!

You will receive assignment grades and feedback privately via e-mail messages from the drop boxes.

Finally, please keep a copy of ALL your work. We cannot assume responsibility for lost items.

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Course Schedule

Note: All due dates reflect North American eastern time (ET).

Note: If you are planning to graduate this semester, please communicate your intent to graduate to your instructor. This will alert your instructor to the need to submit your final grade in time to meet the published graduation deadlines. For more information about graduation policies and deadlines, please go to the Graduation Information on the My Penn State Online Student Portal.

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Academic Integrity

According to Penn State policy G-9: Academic Integrity , an academic integrity violation is “an intentional, unintentional, or attempted violation of course or assessment policies to gain an academic advantage or to advantage or disadvantage another student academically.” Unless your instructor tells you otherwise, you must complete all course work entirely on your own, using only sources that have been permitted by your instructor, and you may not assist other students with papers, quizzes, exams, or other assessments. If your instructor allows you to use ideas, images, or word phrases created by another person (e.g., from Course Hero or Chegg) or by generative technology, such as ChatGPT, you must identify their source. You may not submit false or fabricated information, use the same academic work for credit in multiple courses, or share instructional content. Students with questions about academic integrity should ask their instructor before submitting work.

Students facing allegations of academic misconduct may not drop/withdraw from the affected course unless they are cleared of wrongdoing (see G-9: Academic Integrity ). Attempted drops will be prevented or reversed, and students will be expected to complete course work and meet course deadlines. Students who are found responsible for academic integrity violations face academic outcomes, which can be severe, and put themselves at jeopardy for other outcomes which may include ineligibility for Dean’s List, pass/fail elections, and grade forgiveness. Students may also face consequences from their home/major program and/or The Schreyer Honors College.

How Academic Integrity Violations Are Handled
World Campus students are expected to act with civility and personal integrity; respect other students' dignity, rights, and property; and help create and maintain an environment in which all can succeed through the fruits of their own efforts. An environment of academic integrity is requisite to respect for oneself and others, as well as a civil community.

In cases where academic integrity is questioned, the Policy on Academic Integrity indicates that procedure requires an instructor to inform the student of the allegation. Procedures allow a student to accept or contest a charge. If a student chooses to contest a charge, the case will then be managed by the respective college or campus Academic Integrity Committee. If that committee recommends an administrative sanction (Formal Warning, Conduct Probation, Suspension, Expulsion), the claim will be referred to the Office of Student Accountability and Conflict Response.

All Penn State colleges abide by this Penn State policy, but review procedures may vary by college when academic dishonesty is suspected. Information about Penn State's academic integrity policy and college review procedures is included in the information that students receive upon enrolling in a course. To obtain that information in advance of enrolling in a course, please contact us by going to the Contacts & Help page .

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Course Policies

• Accommodating Disabilities

  Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the University's educational programs. Every Penn State campus has resources for students with disabilities. The Student Disability Resources (SDR) website provides contacts for disability services at every Penn State campus. For further information, please visit the SDR website.

  In order to apply for reasonable accommodations, you must contact the appropriate disability resources office at the campus where you are officially enrolled, participate in an intake interview, and provide documentation based on the documentation guidelines. If the documentation supports your request for reasonable accommodations, your campus's disability resources office will provide you with an accommodation letter. Please share this letter with your instructors and discuss the accommodations with them as early in your courses as possible. You must follow this process for every semester that you request accommodations.

• Procedures for Resolution of Problems

  For procedures pertaining to a range of concerns and disagreements involving graduate students and other members of the University community (e.g, faculty, staff, or undergraduate student), please see the Procedures for Resolution of Problems (Appendix II) website.

• Additional Course Policies

  For information about additional policies regarding Penn State Access Accounts; credit by examination; course tuition, fees, and refund schedules; and drops and withdrawals, please see the World Campus Student Center website.

  Veterans and currently serving military personnel and/or dependents with unique circumstances (e.g., upcoming deployments, drill/duty requirements, VA appointments, etc.) are welcome and encouraged to communicate these, in advance if possible, to the instructor in the case that special arrangements need to be made.

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