Ray's History of Adult and Commuity Education



I have commented on Abby and Mari's papers. They both did a great job! 



History of Adult Education-The 1970s
Ray Harmon
Ball State University
EDAC 631 – Adult and Community Education
Professor Bo Chang
February 8, 2015

Adult Education in the 1970s: Social/Political Climate of the time
The decade of the 1970s saw some major changes in the Adult Education arena. Between 1968 and 1978 there were five amendments to the Adult Education Act. These all took place during a time when mistrust of the government continued to rise from its beginnings in the 1960s. Several events took place that would shape the minds of Americans about their government. The war in Vietnam was very unpopular, two shootings occurred on college campuses of students protesting the war, resulting in 6 dead. Seymour Hersch reported on US troops, in the Vietnamese village of My Lai, slaughtering some 300 innocent women and children. The Watergate scandal brought investigative journalism to the front page when Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein broke the story in the Washington Post. This led both President Richard Nixon and Vice-President Spiro Agnew to resign office.  Global terrorism reared its ugly head in the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany when Arab terrorists took several Israeli hostages in the Olympic village. Cable television became available and many of these events were brought into American homes in real time or shortly after they occurred. Many other events took place in the 1970s that would mold how society felt during this time. These included:
Major Social-Political events in the 1970’s in the United States
1.     1970 - Kent State and Jackson State shootings occur during student protests which grow violent.
  1. 1970 - The first Earth Day is observed.
  2. 1972 - President Richard Nixon visits China, an important step in formally normalizing relations between the United States and China.
  3. 1972 - Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty signed with USSR
  4. 1972 - Watergate scandal: Five men arrested for the burglary of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C.
  5. 1973 - Watergate scandal: President Nixon fires three Attorneys General over disposition of the secret tapes and the actions of the Special Prosecutor.
  6. 1973 - Paris Peace Accords ends direct U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War
  7. 1973 - Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling overturns state laws against abortion
  8. 1974 - Watergate scandal: The House Judiciary Committee votes to impeach the President
  9. 1974 - President Nixon resigns, becoming the first (and as of 2015, the only) President to step down. Vice president Ford becomes President. Nelson A. Rockefeller of New York becomes the second person to be appointed Vice President under the 25th Amendment to the Constitution
  10. 1974 - Watergate scandal: Ford pardons Nixon for any crimes he may have committed against the United States while President, believing it to be in the "best interests of the country"
  11. 1975 - Fall of Saigon
  12. 1976 - Americans celebrate the Bicentennial
  13. 1978 - Camp David Accords, where Menachem Begin (Israel) and Anwar Sadat (Egypt) begin the peace process at Camp David, Maryland.
15.  1979 - Three Mile Island nuclear accident, which is America's most serious nuclear power plant accident in its history
  1. 1979 - Iran hostage crisis begins. In the aftermath, a second energy crisis develops, tripling the price of oil and sending gasoline prices over $1 per gallon for the first time.    (Timeline of the United States history)

Adult Education in the 1970s: Highlights
President Nixon created the National Advisory Council on Adult Education in 1970. In 1974 Congress amended the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), adding provisions to create programs for adult Native Americans to improve educational and employment opportunities (Federal Adult Education). Later that same year ESEA was amended to include handicapped and institutionalized adults. Funding was provided and requirements set forth for the states to follow. This amendment also included funding for programs for bilingual adult education as well. In 1978 ESEA was amended to add provisions for setting up and funding programs for refugees from Indochina and other adult immigrants. States were required to provide assistance to adult students by creating flexible schedules for those working jobs while attending school. They were also tasked with providing transportation and child care if necessary. Also civic and community groups were to be involved in this process. Business leaders were also to be involved. Everyone was to come together to come up with a plan for the education of these adults, so when they graduated they were fully prepared to enter the workforce (Federal Adult Education). Finally in 1979 the US Department of Education was created.
Adult Education in the 1970s: Influential Factors
            The civil rights movement continued to push for more and more equality in adult education. This movement created more and more pressure for change on college campuses and in education opportunities in general. “Open admissions”, the process of allowing anyone with a High School Diploma or equivalent, to pursue higher education, gained momentum when in 1970, City University in New York allowed open admissions (The Changing Landscape of Higher Education). The concept of an open university, where learners unable to attend traditional programs, can get a degree was first introduced at New York’s Empire State College. Ernest Boyer, chancellor of the State University of New York, came up with an idea to create a college dedicated to adult learning. Empire State College would remove many of the obstacles to getting and education. The college was very flexible in its policies and allowed students to setup their own academic schedule based on their individual needs (Empire State College).
Politicians at the time were very open to the idea of adult education and created and passed many laws, and amendments to previous laws, bringing significant positive change to adult education. These politicians realized returning veterans, refugees and adults not having an opportunity to attend college, would need to do so in the ever changing world. Technological advances, including the personal computer, were introduced during the 1970s. The move from an agricultural and manufacturing society, to a technical and service society was beginning and educational advancements were needed to keep up with the changes.
Malcolm S. Knowles, in 1973, resurrected the word andragogy and came up with a theory on adult learning. Knowles listed four assumptions:
1.     As they mature, adults tend to prefer self-direction.
2.     Adults’ experiences are a rich resource for learning.
3.     Adults are aware of specific learning needs generated by real life events.
4.     Adults are competency-based learners. (Knowles, 1973)
Knowles pushed for more opportunities for adult students. He dedicated his entire adult life to adult education. From 1940 into the 1990s Knowles was involved in helping adults obtain an education in one way or another. He wrote some 230 articles and 18 books which no doubt had a profound influence on many of the people put into places of authority to make decisions regarding advancing adult education (Malcolm Knowles).


Adult Education in the 1970s: Implications
Due to the significant changes in the United States adult education model during the 1970s many advances took place. From 1968 to 1978 funding for adult education increased from $31 million to $81 million. Enrollment continued to climb and 1975 was the first year with 1 million enrollments in adult education. By 1979 that number had almost reached 2 million (Federal Adult Education). Civil rights continued to expand and more and more barriers to education based on race, ethnicity and other factors disappeared. More people were given an opportunity to better themselves through adult education. There are currently 1132 community colleges in the United States. The average age of the students is 28. Women make up 57% and men 43%. When it comes to Ethnicity, 51% are white with 49% being minority. The largest population of the minority group is Hispanic with 19% followed by Black at 14% (American Association of Community Colleges). These figures show that adult education has come a long way in America and the decade of the 1970s played a big role in the advancement.


Areas
Summary
Social/Political Background
-Mistrust of government due to war in Vietnam, National Guard and Police shootings at Kent State and Jackson State
-Watergate scandal, first president to resign office
-Global terrorism at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany
-Massacre by US soldiers in My Lai village, Vietnam
-Cable TV brought into the classroom
Highlights
-Increased legislation and funding for Adult Education
-Amendments to the Adult Education Act creating programs, and setting standards in states, for many adult groups including
-1970, National Advisory Council on Adult Education
-1974 ESEA amended to help adult Native Americans with education
-1974 ESEA amended to include handicapped and institutionalized adults,                     also to provide funding for programs for bilingual adult education
-1978 ESEA amended to provide more funding for states and set requirements, also provided programs for Indochina refuges and other adult immigrants
-1979Creation of the US Department of Education
Influential Factors
-Civil rights movement
-creation of open universities
-Politicians placing a higher emphasis on adult education
-Veterans returning from war needed education opportunities
Implications
-funding increased from $31 million in 1968 to $81 million in 1978
-1975 is first year over 1 million student enrollments
-1979 enrollment almost 2 million
-Civil rights continued to be gained and expanded in adult education











References
Knowles, M. (1973). The Adult Learner: A Neglected Species. Cincinnati State Community College, Cincinnati, Oh. Retrieved February 3, 2015 from https://www.ncjrs.gov/ovc_archives/educator/files/chapter3.pdf
Federal Adult Education. A Legislative History 1964-2013 Retrieved February 4, 2015, from http://lincs.ed.gov/publications/pdf/Adult_Ed_History_Report.pdf
Timeline of the United States history (1970-89) Retrieved February 3, 2015 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_United_States_history_%281970%E2%80%9389%29
The Changing Landscape of Higher Education: 1965 – 2005. Retrieved February 6, 2015 from http://futureofchildren.org/publications/journals/article/index.xml?journalid=72&articleid=523&sectionid=3589
Empire State College. Retrieved February 6, 2015 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empire_State_College
Malcom Knowles. Retrieved February 6, 2015 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_Knowles

American Association of Community Colleges. Retrieved on February 6, 2015 from http://www.aacc.nche.edu/AboutCC/Documents/Facts14_Data_R3.pdf

6 comments:

  1. edac631group2projectblogFebruary 10, 2015 at 6:41 PM

    Ray,

    Thank you for sharing the decade of the 1970's. As I completed my paper on the 1960's, I learned a lot about how the era changed the face of Adult Education in the United States based on the opportunity for minorities and those in poverty to gain more education.

    The 1970's is a direct continuation of what they worked towards in the 1960's. The uprisings and concerns from the 1960's only grew in the 1970's. More funding for Adult Education and additional underserved populations grew during the 1970's. Open enrollment allowed so many to go to school and for many who had to take remedial classes, many still had the opportunity to overcome their deficiencies and increase their knowledge and earning potential. The rise in community colleges also grew exponentially and still benefit so many today. Thank you for your contributions, I learned a lot.

    Mari Swayne

    ReplyDelete
  2. Group 4 EDAC 631 Spring 2015February 11, 2015 at 8:28 AM

    Thank you for sharing information regarding the face of adult education in the 1970's. I found it interesting that funding increased by 50 million dollars in the 1970's. I think that was a positive gain for the field of adult education.

    Javita Johnson

    ReplyDelete
  3. edac631group2projectblogFebruary 12, 2015 at 9:13 AM

    Great information Ray. It was nice to see the amount of money increase that was put into funding adult education. It is also interesting to read that states were required to make for flexible learning schedules available for the learning adult. The Civil Rights Movement played a critical role inthe 70's and was nice to see how it affected adult education.

    Kyndra

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownFebruary 15, 2015 at 2:33 PM

    Ray,
    Nice job on your paper. I enjoyed reading about the 1970's. I did my paper on the 1960's so read about the 70's was great! It was also interesting to learn about how the funding increased and so did enrollment over that next decade. Thanks to the civil rights in the 1960's and carried over to the 1970's that more people were able to be educated during this period.
    Angela Henry

    ReplyDelete
  5. Bo ChangFebruary 16, 2015 at 6:06 PM

    Ray,

    This is a well-written paper! You have covered many interesting facts in 1970s. You also thoroughly described Highlights and Influential Factors.

    Suggestions:

    1. Tell us how social background has impacted the field of adult education.

    2. You have described the influenced factors such as Civil rights movement, -creation of open universities, and politicians placing a higher emphasis on adult education. Tell us how these factors influenced the field of adult education.

    3. Move the contents in Implications to Influential Factors. For example, you may say:

    Due to the fact that politicians place a high emphasis on adult education…, the funding to adult education has been improved…and the enrollment continued to climb….

    4. Revise your Implications. Based on what you have researched about 1970s, tell us the main ideas/perspectives/lessons we can learn from this period of time.

    5. Revise your APA and read my other comments.

    Bo

    ReplyDelete

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