Web survey system to discover the actual role of experience in learning in higher education: a case study

March 19 - 22, 2006, São Paulo, BRAZIL World Congress on Computer Science, Engineering and Technology EducationAdults students (AS) bring to Higher Education (HE) and to the learning process a wide range of life experiences. The use of these can assist academic learning and enable AS to become independent reflective learners. Research is urgent as more adults are returning to HE, because of the push policy for lifelong learning – at national government, European Commission (EC) and Bologna Process levels. The project PRILHE (Promoting Reflective Independent Learning in HE), funded by the EC Socrates- Grundtvig Programme, aims to identify the learning processes which enable AS in HE to become independent reflective learners and how best to support these processes. Within this research, both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to determine how students organise their studies and to discover their learning experiences. This paper describes the design and development of the system for the web survey data collection, taking into account the characteristics of information systems quality models

Lifelong learning: case study of adult students in portuguese technological schools and higher education institutions

Paper to be presented in ESREA 2007 ADC Network Seminar - Changing Relationships between the State, Civil Society and the Citizen: Implications for adult education and adult learning, 14 -16 June 2007 - University of Minho - Campus de Gualtar, Braga (Portugal).Adult education, especially at the tertiary level, is significant when preparing citizens to work in today’s continuously evolving markets, a hallmark of the knowledge-based economies. This paper focuses on the identification of learning strategies used by Portuguese non-traditional adult students who embark on lifelong learning routes to obtain tertiary level education. The results of a case study undertaken within the project PRILHE (Promoting Reflective Independent Learning in HE) funded by the European Commission Socrates Adult Education Programme Socrates – (113869-CP-1-2004-1-UKGRUNDTVIG- G1) are presented and discussed. It seems that there is still a long way to go before non-traditional adult students can benefit from lifelong learning opportunities, at tertiary level in Portugal; nevertheless the study presents evidence of some “best practices” in TS which could be shared with HEI

Building a knowledge and learning society in Portugal - Adult students in technological schools and higher education institutions

Chapter in Merrill, Barbara (ed.) (2009) Learning to Change? The Role of Identity and Learning Careers in Adult Education. Hamburg: Peter Lang Publishers. URL: http://www.peterlang.com/ index.cfm?vID=58279&vLang=E&vHR=1&vUR=2&vUUR=1This chapter introduces a case study of adult students in Portugal. It was developed by the Portuguese partner of the PRILHE (Promoting Reflective Independent Learning in HE) project consortium. This was a project funded by the European Commission Socrates Adult Education Programme (113869-CP-1-2004-1-UK- GRUNDTVIG-G1PP). In Portugal, adults may choose Higher Education Institutions[1] (HEI) or Technological Schools (TS) to pursue their education. The case study shows that there are similarities and differences between students from TS and Universities, mostly related with the approaches students have to learning and the way teachers take into consideration these approaches. It seems that TS have “best practices” that could usefully be implemented by other institutions. The chapter is organised as follows: first, we contextualize LLL development as an element within the political objective of creation of a knowledge economy, especially in the context of the European Union's Lisbon Agenda, linking education with employment. The different access routes non-traditional adult students can take to access Universities in the Portuguese higher education (HE) system are then briefly described. The PRILHE project, its main objectives, the participant institutions in the consortium, and the methodology used to gather and analyse data are briefly explained. Finally, the results of the Portuguese case within this project are presented and discu

Knowledge sharing and learning processes: case study of portuguese technological schools and higher education institutions

Paper to be presented at the ESREA Conference Learning to Change? The Role of Identity and Learning Careers in Adult Education, 7-8 December, 2006, Université Catholique Louvain, Louvain–la-Neuve, BelgiumThe interest in adult learners has increased over the last few years. When we study their biographies, we realize that they reveal uncertainty and sometimes a lack of confidence concerning their potential. However, we also realize that some of them have developed approaches to deal with these difficulties and have become autonomous and independent learners. This situation may be related to the pathways chosen during their lifetime. As a consequence, we may have different identities emerging from different institutions. In Portugal, adults may choose Universities or Technological Schools to pursue their education. Is this choice dependent on how they lived before? And has this choice affected the way they learn and develop their autonomy and independence? The Portuguese case shows that there are similarities between students from Technological Schools and Universities but also differences, mostly related with the approach used to learn and the way teachers take into consideration the way students learn. It seems that Technological Schools have “best practices” that should be shared with the other institutions

Educational characteristics of adult students in Portuguese Technological Schools

Despite a massive expansion of education in Portugal, since the 1970's, educational attainment of the adult population in the country remains low. The numbers of working-age people in some form of continuing education are among the lowest, according to the OECD and EU-27 statistics. Technological Schools (TS), initially created in the 1990's, under the umbrella of the Ministry of Economy in partnership with industry and industrial associations, aimed to prepare qualified staff for industries and services in the country, particularly in the engineering sector, through the provision of post secondary non-university programmes of studies, the CET (Technological Specialization Courses). Successful CET students are awarded a DET (Diploma of Technological Specialization), which corresponds to Vocational Qualification level IV of the EU, according to the latest alteration (2005) of the Education Systems Act (introduced in 1986). In this, CET's are also clearly defined as one of the routes for access to Higher Education (HE), in Portugal. The PRILHE (Promoting Reflective and Independent Learning in Higher Education) multinational project, funded by the European Socrates Grundtvig Programme, aimed to identify the learning processes which enable adult students in higher education to become autonomous reflective learners and search best practices to support these learning processes. During this research, both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to determine how students organise their studies and develop their learning skills. The Portuguese partner in the project' consortium used a two case studies approach, one with students of Higher Education Institutions and other with students of TS. This paper only applies to students of TS, as these have a predominant bias towards engineering. Results show that student motivation and professional teaching support contribute equally to the development of an autonomous and reflective approach to learning in adult students; this is essential for success in a knowledge economy, where lifelong learning is the key to continuous employment.publishersversionpublishe

case study of Adult students in Portuguese Technological Schools and Higher Education Institutions

Correia, A. M. R., Sá, D. M., Costa, A. C. and Sarmento, A. (2007). "Lifelong learning: case study of Adult students in Portuguese Technological Schools and Higher Education Institutions". In: Castro, R. V., Guimarães, P., Bron, M., Martin, I. & Oliveira, R. (Eds.), Changing Relationships between State, the Civil Society and the Citizen: implications for adult education and adult learning. Proceedings of the 2007 Active Democratic Citizenship and Adult Learning Network Seminar, 14 -16 Jun. 2007, Universidade do Minho, Braga (Portugal). (ISBN: 978-972-9050-27-5) https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/47136016.pdfpublishersversionpublishe