iPhones and iPads are bringing significant changes to the way in which people communicate with their families, friends, colleagues and with the outside world, and how they access information, carry out work tasks and interpret and incorporate the non-alphabetic symbols and signs that represent daily realities. Additionally, many primary and…

The experiences of adult learners with dyslexia is an under-researched area in Ireland at present. This article will discuss the findings from phase one of a mixed methods research study, which is investigating the guidance counselling needs of clients with dyslexia within the Adult Education Guidance Initiative (AEGI). The research is underpinned…

This article documents the findings of a qualitative study into the social value of community-based adult education in Limerick City. The article demonstrates that participants experience significant improvements in numerous facets of their lives and we argue that it is crucial that we recognise the multiple and inter-connected social impacts that…

This article summarises the background to the development of further education and goes on to describe research carried out with a group of older mature students in a further education college in Ireland. The first research element was a survey and focus group, followed by interviews, which explored with the students their reasons for returning to…

Public art galleries and museums have been mandated to become more relevant and useful to the lived experiences of the broad communities they claim to serve. Adult education has long been part of the work of these institutions, although historically the relationship has been uneasy, and they seldom feature in the adult education literature. To…

This paper assesses the relationship between community education and internal political efficacy. In particular it examines the association between voter/civic programmes run in advance of the 2009 local elections in Ireland and internal political efficacy amongst the asylum seeking community in Cork. A survey is used to test this relationship.…

This paper explores exclusion and equality through critical theory, in the context of adult literacy provision in Ireland, by investigating the sites of exclusion that exist for a group of five male adult literacy learners. A summary review of literacy theories, exclusion and equality is provided framing the reporting of data from this…

The proposed changes in the further education sector, including the rationalisation of the VEC into Local Education and Training Boards (LETBs) and the closures of the Senior Traveller Training Centres (STTCs), have implications for guidance counselling provision to the Traveller community. This article discusses female Travellers' experiences of…

This article presents empirical research exploring adult returner students' approaches to learning via qualitative analysis of a series of semi-structured interviews. Interviewees' comments illuminate their approaches to study, their conceptualisation of information literacy, and their experiences as learners. We interpret the data through two…

This paper examines and compares learning narratives associated with older men's participation in three community organisations in an Australian rural setting: an adult and community education provider, an emergency service organization and an aged care facility. The interview data are from a larger Australian study of learning in community…

Using a qualitative case study method the researcher studied a group of adult returning students completing a childcare course. Methods used included focus groups, a questionnaire and observations. Using a holistic analysis approach (Yin 2003) of the case the researcher then focused on a number of key issues. From this analysis the themes of…

This article discusses the findings of a research study on the longitudinal measurement of individual progression in the Irish Adult Education Guidance Initiative (AEGI). The research was underpinned by a critical constructivist methodology in its examination of the three main discourses of the client, practitioner, and policy maker in the field…

This article adopts a radical lens and examines the relationship between community development, adult education and professionalism. It draws from research on one specific community- university partnership and presents the professionalisation of community work as detrimental to radical practice because of its encouragement of individual vertical…

Research in Canada on the learning needs of older people looked at such issues as how to cope with changes in society, the need to make a contribution and the need to be influential. The White Paper on Adult Education "Learning for Life" notes that strategies for active ageing stress the critical importance of access to learning as a key tool in…