Adult education and the quality of life

The purpose of this study is to investigate the complementary role of adult education in influencing people's objective and subjective quality of life. The analytical strategy used to achieve this end is to estimate parameters in a path model which includes both objective indicators such as occupational status and earned income, and subjective indicators such as job satisfaction and perceived personal wellbeing. The investigation builds on Swedish data and employs the LISREL method in the fitting of the model to the data. The results indicate that adult education positively influences objective indicators of the quality of life. Even though adult education is found torelate to measures of perceived personal wellbeing, the hypothesis that it alsoinfluences the way men assess their life situation and evaluate their subjective quality of life cannot be confirmed

Valikoitumisvirhe tulosevaluaatiotutkimuksessa

The article deals with methods of analysis to eliminate selection bias when estimating the effects of Adult Education programs. Adult students generally differ from nonparticipants in many ways. This causes methodological problems when estimating the effect that teaching has on individuals and society. The sources of error that may result from the operation of selection bias on study can not be ignored in research.Artikkelissa tarkastellaan analyysimenetelmiä valikoitumisvirheen poistamiseksi aikuisopetusohjelmien vaikutuksia estimoitaessa. Aikuisopiskelijat eroavat yleensä monissa suhteissa niistä, jotka eivät osallistu aikuisopiskeluun. Tästä aiheutuu metodologisia ongelmia estimoitaessa opetuksen vaikutusta yksilöihin ja yhteiskuntaan. Opiskeluun valikoitumisesta aiheutuvia virhelähteitä ei voida olla ottamatta huomioon tutkimuksessa

Participation in Adult Learning

This article presents an internationally comparative overview of adult learning patterns. Emphasis is placed on who is participating in adult learning and the observed unequal chances to participate. The article covers three overarching questions that are central to participation research: (1) What is the extent of participation? (2) Who is participating? (3) Why are certain people or groups participating either more or less, or not at all?. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Lifelong learning and schools as community learning centres : key aspects of a national curriculum draft policy framework for Malta

The island of Malta has been engaged in policy document formulations for curriculum renewal in the country’s educational system (4-16 years of age) since 1988 when the first National Minimum Curriculum (henceforth NMC) was launched (Wain, 1991; Borg et al, 1995). In 1999 a revamped NMC (Ministry of Education, 1999) was developed following a long process of consultation involving various stages and stakeholders. It was a compromise document (Borg & Mayo, 2006) which emerged as a result of reactions to a more radical and coherent draft document produced in 1988. Both curricular documents were subject to debates and critiques (Wain, 1991; Darmanin, 1993; Borg et al, 1995; Giordmaina, 2000; Borg and Mayo, 2006). More recently a series of volumes providing guidelines, key principles and aims for a national curriculum framework (henceforth NCF) have been produced (MEEF, 2011a,b,c,d) and are currently the target of debate and the focus of reactions by various stakeholders in education including teachers who were asked to read the volumes and provide reactions in the form of answers to a set questionnaire. In this paper, I will focus on one aspect of the documents, the first of its three aims: ‘Learners who are capable of successfully developing their full potential as lifelong learners.’ It is that aspect of the framework documents that falls within the purview of the title for this special issue. The use of this notion attests to the influence of the EU’s policy communications on member states, Malta having joined the Union in 2004 (Mayo, 2007).peer-reviewe

A Game-Based School Program for Mental Health Literacy and Stigma on Depression (Moving Stories): Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Depressive symptoms are highly prevalent among adolescents in Western countries. However, although treatment for depressive symptoms is available, many adolescents do not seek help when they need it. Important barriers to help-seeking among adolescents include low mental health literacy and high stigma. Therefore, we have developed a game-based school program, Moving Stories, which combines mental health literacy training for depression with contact with someone with lived experience both in the digital and nondigital world. Objective: The aim of this study is to conduct a first test of the effectiveness of the newly developed game-based program, Moving Stories, using a cluster randomized controlled trial. Methods: A total of 185 adolescents participated, divided over 10 classes from 4 schools. Half of the classes were randomly selected to follow the Moving Stories program, whereas the other half were in the control group, where no intervention was provided. The adolescents filled out digital questionnaires at 4 time points, with questions on mental health literacy, stigma, depressive symptoms, and the program itself (before the program, after the program, 3-month follow-up, and 6-month follow-up). Using R (R Foundation for Statistical Computing), we ran linear mixed-effects models for all continuous outcome variables and generalized linear mixed-effects models for all binary outcome variables. Results: Compared with the control group, participants in the Moving Stories group improved after the program in personal stigma (b=−0.53, 95% CI −1.02 to −0.03; t179.16=−2.08; P=.04). Effects on personal stigma lasted over time (3-month follow-up: b=−0.57, 95% CI −1.11 to −0.03; t174.39=−2.07; P=.04). Most adolescents in the Moving Stories group participated in the introduction (97/99, 98%) and contact session (93/99, 94%), played the game for 4 or 5 days (83/99, 83%), and indicated that they would recommend the game to their peers (90/98, 92%). Conclusions: The results of this study show the potential of Moving Stories as a stigma reduction program. With changes in the program to improve its effects on mental health literacy, Moving Stories could be implemented in schools to improve help-seeking in adolescents and reduce the negative consequences and burden of depressive symptoms

A nurse-led sexual rehabilitation intervention after radiotherapy for gynecological cancer

Purpose: Although vaginal dilator use after combined pelvic radiation therapy and brachytherapy (RT/BT) is recommended to prevent vaginal shortening and stenosis, women fail to use them and experience sexual problems. A nurse-led sexual rehabilitation intervention targeting sexual recovery and vaginal dilatation was developed. Its feasibility was investigated during a prospective, longitudinal, observational pilot study. Methods: Four oncology nurses were specifically trained to conduct the intervention. Gynecologic cancer patients treated with RT/BT were assessed using (i) questionnaires on frequency of dilator use (monthly), sexual functioning, and sexual distress (at baseline and 1, 6, and 12 months) and psychological and relational distress (at 1, 6, and 12 months); (ii) semi-structured interviews (between 6 and 12 months); and (iii) consultation recordings (a random selection of 21 % of all consults). Results: Twenty participants were 26–71 years old (mean = 40). Eight participants discontinued participation after 3 to 9 months. At 6 months after RT, 14 out of 16 (88 %), and at 12 months 9 out of 12 (75 %), participants dilated regularly, either by having sexual intercourse or by using dilators. Sexual functioning improved between 1 and 6 months after RT, with further improvement at 12 months. Most participants reported that the intervention was helpful and the nurses reported having sufficient expertise and counseling skills. Conclusions: According to the pilot results, the intervention was feasible and promising for sexual rehabilitation and regular dilator use after RT. Its (cost-)effectiveness will be investigated in a randomized controlled trial