The needs of adult learners: A formative evaluation study of a distance education graduate program in behavioral science

The study developed a formative evaluation program to determine whether a Master of Arts (MA) distance education program in Behavioral Science is effective in terms of meeting the needs of adult learners. Five research questions were addressed: (1) To what extent is the distance learning educational experience in Behavioral Science aligned with adult education learning principles? (2) To what extent does this distance education program provide solutions for the special needs of the distance learner? (3) To what extent is the distance education environment conducive to providing a positive educational experience to the students? (4) What are the students' perceptions about what is working in the MA distance education program? (5) What are the students' perceptions about what is not working in the MA distance education program?; The participants included 94 students enrolled in the Behavioral Science MA distance education program at California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) who started in spring 1999. The study focused on those 56 students who remained in this original cohort. A three-part survey instrument was developed to conduct a program evaluation to determine the extent to which the students' responses to survey questions matched what is known concerning needs of adults as described in andragogy literature and in the writings of distance learning professionals.; Percentages and frequencies were charted and graphed to present student agreement (or nonagreement) with the survey items that were used to answer the first three research questions. To answer the last two research questions, students' open-ended responses were analyzed, divided into pre-established categories, and summarized to discover common themes.; Based on the findings, the CSUDH program, as perceived by the sample group, was favorably addressing most of the adult learning principles and meeting the special distance learning needs of its students. This study highlighted elements which have the potential to produce an experience that meets not only the specific needs of adults who wish to obtain their MA degree in Behavioral Science at CSUDH but also the general needs of those seeking life-long learning.