Study of the application of principles of adult education to educational staff development during the eras of educational history following the launching of Sputnik and the issuance of the 'A Nation at Risk' report

The history of education in the United States has seen two dramatic periods of reform since the conclusion of World War II. These periods were ushered in by the launching of Sputnik in 1957 and the issuance of the "A Nation At Risk" report in 1983. The wave of educational reform that followed these events touched all aspects of education. The focus of this research was changes in educational staff development during the five-year periods following these events.;In reviewing trends in educational staff development during the research periods, 1958 through 1962 and 1984 through 1988, it was the researcher's intention to direct attention to the application of selected principles of adult education to the practice of staff development.;This study included research to explore the national trends in staff development as well as a local review within two districts of the Lincoln Intermediate Unit ;As a result of this research, there are strong indications that adult education principles were applied to the practice of educational staff development to a greater degree during the latter research period than they were during the former. There is, however, still a need to increase this application far beyond current levels. This research indicates that this can be done in a number of ways. Methods for increasing the application of principles of adult education to educational staff development include development of an enhanced recognition of educators as adult learners, increasing current awareness levels of the relationship between career stages and adult learning, and expanding commitment to staff development as an ongoing professional program.