Community College Instruction of Adult Students

Instructor Educational Qualifications & Personal Skills

As we embark upon the 21st century, the number of nontraditional students continues to increase in the total college population. As occupations continue to require higher skill levels, more adult students are expected to return to community colleges. Community college instructors are faced with a higher percentage of adult students than are traditional colleges and/or universities. Adult students return to school for other reasons than career advancement. Many of them do so in order to acquire higher levels of skills and added personal development. However, both community college instructors and adult students face a host of adult-sized challenges. For example, instructors must often cope with the fear engendered in many returning adult students.

Greater diversity among adult students also places additional burdens on the instructor to create an environment that embraces diversity as a means of enriching learning for all students. For the adult student, there are numerous obstacles from demands on time, money, and family, to work, friends, and leisure activities. For these and other reasons, it is imperative that the community college instructor understands well the demands upon him or her before teaching. This is true in terms of the educational qualifications that are required to gain employment on the community college level, as well as being true with res

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ctor knowing the demographics and needs of students being served. The qualities of nontraditional students are unique from traditional ones. Because of this it is critical that community college instructors understand the nature and needs of their students in order to develop the personal skills necessary to help meet those needs in the learning environment. According to Stover (1985, 8), nontraditional students have a strong need for social interaction and community as well as exhibiting the following special qualities in contrast to traditional students: (1) a lack of confidence in their academic and writing abilities, (2) one or more negative experiences with an English course, (3) poor writing attitudes, and (4) utilitarian motives for taking the course. Because of the special needs and unique demographics of the nontraditional student, we see that community college instructors must develop special skills and qualities in order to meet such needs. Older than average students typically need a more supportive environment when returning to learning. For adult students the demands of work, family, economics, and academic responsibilities can be overwhelming. A variety of classroom techniques, exercises, and supplementar

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