| The two purposes of this study were to ascertain in what ways and to what extent colleges and universities had modified their missions, their programs, and their methodologies in attempting to address the needs of the adult learner and to ascertain if there was a relationship between the attitudes of chief academic officers and institutional practices.;The results of the study indicated (a) that the first hypothesis was rejected for mission statement, delivery systems, advanced standing processes, and the availability of support services; it was not rejected for diversity of methodology, admission procedures, residency requirements, financial practices, and the extent of faculty involvement in adult education; (b) that the second hypothesis was rejected for the percent of enrollment that was nontraditional and the type of adult administrative unit, but was not rejected for size of the institution, type of institution, or region of the country in which the institution was located (c) that the third hypothesis was not rejected; and (d) that the fourth hypothesis was not rejected.;The study concluded with suggestions for further study in various aspects of adult education.;To fulfill these purposes a national survey was conducted which tested four hypotheses: (a) that no more than 25% of the institutions which were involved in adult education would have made shifts in their educational missions, practices, or methodologies which reflected this involvement; (b) that there would be no significant differences in attitudes, policies, or practices based on size, type, region of the country, existence of an adult administrative unit, or the percent of enrollment that was nontraditional; (c) that the practices and procedures of an institution would not be reflected in the majority of attitudes and opinions of its chief academic officer; and (d) that in most instances the involvement in nontraditional education would have had no impact on the way an institution rated itself on a traditional/nontraditional continuum. |
