Reflecting on Experiences of Learning among Adult Learners with Multiple Responsibilities: A Case of Evening Programmes at a University in Tanzania

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Bibliographic Details
Title: Reflecting on Experiences of Learning among Adult Learners with Multiple Responsibilities: A Case of Evening Programmes at a University in Tanzania
Language: English
Authors: Philipo Lonati Sanga (ORCID 0000-0001-5267-5438), Gennes Hendry Shirima (ORCID 0000-0002-1480-2165)
Source: Journal of Continuing Higher Education. 2024 72(2):221-236.
Availability: Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 16
Publication Date: 2024
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: Adult Education
Higher Education
Postsecondary Education
Descriptors: Adult Students, Student Responsibility, Universities, Foreign Countries, Evening Programs, Graduate Students, Masters Programs, Student Attitudes, Part Time Students, Socioeconomic Influences, Academic Achievement, Educational Attainment, Student Experience
Geographic Terms: Tanzania
DOI: 10.1080/07377363.2023.2242954
ISSN: 0737-7363
1948-4801
Abstract: The focus of this paper is to report the findings of a qualitative study whose purpose was to analyse the experiences of adult learners pursuing evening postgraduate degree programmes at the university level in Tanzania. Using ethnographic research combined with multiple case research design, together with in-depth interviews and documentary review, data were generated from 20 postgraduate students from one school within a university in Tanzania. The resulting qualitative data were subjected to thematic analysis. The study found that university adult learners in these evening programmes combined learning with their full-time employment, family, and social responsibilities as well as extra income-generating activities. Inevitably, these multiple responsibilities, as the study established, adversely affected their academic performance and duration for programme completion. In fact, completion on a part-time basis depended on dispositional factors such as individual learner's efforts and strategies adopted to cope with the situation, with many others either delaying completion or dropping out altogether. This scenario invites rethinking the modus operandi of programmes to facilitate postgraduate students' completion rates amid widening participation in higher education.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2024
Accession Number: EJ1432091
Database: ERIC
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