r the mature adult student benefits more from course curriculum when delivered in a class situation composed of their own specific age groups, or whether they are best served by heterogeneous age groupings.
Specifically, Hart and Weinman (1990) examined a University Core Curriculum developed at Fairleigh Dickinson University with two sections of the course being offered, one section being provided to a homogenous age group of mature adult learners, and the other section being offered to a heterogenous age group. No differences were found between the learning outcomes (course grades, midterm scores, final exam scores) for the two groups. The authors concluded that the curricular needs of mature learners are not different from the curricular needs of younger students to the extent that mature learners need homogenous-by-age placement.
Maximizing learning outcomes using cost-effective curriculum has been another issue researched in the current literature. In this regard, Porter (1989) examined whether tutoring (normally an expensive process involving
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