With a point of departure in the concept of democracy, this article aims to show how Swedish Popular Adult Education influenced the content of the established school system in Sweden. The Popular Adult Education and established school systems are studied through their relation to democracy, based on curricula, as well as on visionary and political…

The article focuses on the social differences of educability constructed in Finnish general upper secondary school adult graduates' narratives on mathematics. Social class, gender, and age intertwine in the narratives that express the adult students' worries about their ability and competence to study and learn mathematics. Social…

The authors tested a self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000) process model of subjective wellbeing among students at Norwegian Folk High Schools. In this model the authors hypothesized that students' intrinsic goal progress expectancy in the chosen study activity and perceived autonomy support from teachers would be positively…

The purpose of this study was to examine conceptual change among future elementary school teachers while studying a scientific text concerning photosynthesis. Students' learning goals in relation to their learning outcomes were also examined. The participants were future elementary school teachers. The design consisted of pre- and post-tests. The…

Dyslexia is a well-known phenomenon and help and assistance are offered to pupils and students who experience literacy difficulties on a regular basis. But what help do they need and want? In this article the responses people with reading and writing difficulties/dyslexia give to this question are discussed. What, if we take the student's own…

Nationally and internationally equity in education has become a key goal. In Norway, a White Paper has been tabled to address how equity can be improved through education. In this paper the pedagogic and knowledge orientation of the initiatives are analyzed and discussed in relation to two models of equity: "equity through equality" and "equity…

The aim of the present study was to examine inmates' educational motives. The participants were 467 inmates who attended education in Norwegian prisons. Three motive categories were identified: "To prepare for life upon release" (Factor 1), "social reasons and reasons unique to the prison context" (Factor 2), and "to acquire knowledge and skills"…

The article presents selected findings from in-depth case studies of two non-formal learning activities organized by the Danish Folk High Schools and Day High Schools, respectively. The purpose of the empirical study was to investigate how longstanding, non-formal, adult education institutions have worked to foster the acquisition of civic…

How did Internet-supported learning environments (ISLE) impact students' critical thinking (CT) and problem solving (PS) skills in higher education? What specific indicators have been used to measure CT? What types of problems and learning approaches were chosen to assess PS skills? This paper qualitatively reviewed studies published in academic…

A Norwegian translation of the Approaches to Studying Inventory (ASI-32) was administered to 1477 adult students attending flexible study programs in higher education in Norway (2004-05). The intention was to investigate their approaches to studying, taking into account their educational backgrounds and their present, challenging study conditions.…

This paper uses methods from conversation analysis to investigate a well-documented practice from mundane conversation (self-initiated self-repair) as it is accomplished during the interactions of one adult learner of English. The interactions took place during her classroom talk-in-interaction over the course of 18 months. The research describes…

The paper investigates the relationship between assessment and learning through an empirical study of apprenticeship training. The paper suggests that well-established modes of learning, which facilitate meaningful assessment in apprenticeship training, present an "antidote" to a traditional emphasis on assessment as selection and control. In…

This article describes and analyses the background and goals of students at the Finnish open university in the beginning of the twenty-first century. The material consists of statistics based on the student records of the Finnish open university in 2000 (n = 9080) and of the stories, educational autobiographies written by the adult learners (n =…

This article aims to clarify some of our pre-conceived assumptions when we address issues of learning in practice. It argues that we need to develop an understanding of practice based on its own premises. For this purpose the German philosopher Martin Heidegger's (1889-1976) understanding of practice and learning is introduced. Heidegger…

The age structure of university students has changed dramatically in Finland. Now one third of all university students and one quarter of undergraduate students in Finnish universities are aged 30 years or over. The focus of this article is the changing educational identities of students who start and complete their university studies as adults.…