Bibliography


ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR PLAR



Implementation of PLAR in Formal Education
Surveys of PLAR Users

Budnick, Diane, and Shirley Beaver. (September/October 1984) "A Student Perspective on the Portfolio." Nursing Outlook 35(5), 268-69.

See abstract under 2.6.1.1 (Implementation of PLAR in Formal Education/Methods of Assessment/Portfolio/Practice).

Computstat Consultants. (1994) Survey Report on Evaluation Methods. Prepared for the Centre for Instructional Development, Centennial College. Report produced by Computstat Consultants (PLA Pilot Project/Centennial College). Scarborough: Centennial College.

55 pages. Presents a survey of students participating in prior learning assessment programs at Centennial College. Demographic characteristics illustrate the diversity of the students: 32% were 30 or older; 32% had already graduated from a post-secondary program; 25% had received their highest level of education outside Canada; 14% did not speak English at home; 30% spoke English and another language at home; the largest non-British/Canadian culture group was "Caribbean origin"; the largest non-English language group was Chinese. Generally, students expressed a dislike for essay and interview methods of evaluation because they believed a lack of skills in English or lack of support for those with special needs would result in lower marks. PLA Pilot Project/Centennial College. Descriptors: Adults; Colleges of applied arts and technology; Educational experience; Access to education; Data collection; TESTX. Part of the PLA Pilot Project: Responsive PLA Challenge Processes. Issued in a folder with: "The PLA challenge process: adventure tour" and "The PLA challenge process: recognizing student diversity".

Evans, N., and G. Dearden. (1995) Curriculum Opportunity: AP(E)L in Higher Education: The Characteristics and Achievements of Some University Students. 2nd ed. London: Learning From Experience Trust.

Some of the few reports of actual achievements of students making use of some form of PLAR. The reports indicate how complex the research can be, and the difficulties of obtaining specific information from the providing agencies about these students. "However, conversations on this issue do suggest that success rates are higher and withdrawal rates lower for CATS and AP(E)L candidates that for students of conventional age. Perhaps this is only to be expected when one reflects on the motivations of those people who often have to make special arrangements, efforts, and sacrifices to return to learning" (p.19). ISBN: 1 870529 189.

Evans N., and G. Dearden. (1994) Curriculum Opportunity in AP(E)L: The Characteristics and Achievements of Some University Students. London: Learning from Experience Trust. [ISBN: 1 870529 170]

Freers, Shirley Marie. (1994) An Evaluation of Adult Learners' Perceptions of a Community College's Assessment of Prior Learning Program. Ph.D. dissertation, Pepperdine University.

Haden, Dan, and Sue Wells. (1994) Evaluation Bias in Prior Learning Assessment Challenge Processes. Scarborough, Ont.: Centennial College, Centre for Instructional Development. 

See abstract under 2.6.2 (Implementation of PLAR in Formal Education/Methods of Assessment/Challenge Process).

Hodder, D.G. (1995) Perceptions of Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) Processes by Selected Applicants from Within Australian Federal Public Servants: A Pilot Study. M.Ed. thesis, Queensland University of Technology, Australia.

Holtzclaw, Louis R. (April 1985) "Adult Learners' Preferred Learning Styles, Choice of Courses, and Subject Areas for Prior Experiential Learning Credit." Lifelong Learning 8(6), 23-27.

Document Type: journal article; research report. Reports results of a study of 30 graduates who received credit for learning from life experience. The study (1) gathered data about the experience of persons preparing, presenting, and receiving credit for learning from life experience and (2) assessed the relationship to the predominant or preferred learning styles of three other factors in these persons' degree programs. Descriptors: Adult Learning; Adult Students; Cognitive Style; Credits; Experiential Learning; Models; Prior Learning. Identifiers: General Studies Degree.

Holtzclaw, Louis R. (October 1984) "Self-Acquired Competency: Student Participants' Reaction to the Process of Crediting Learning from Life Experience." Lifelong Learning 8(2), 12-14.

Document Type: journal article; research report. A survey of students who completed portfolios of self-acquired competencies to earn credit for prior learning at Indiana University reveals the benefits derived from the process including self-esteem, ability for self-evaluation, and better focus for their degree programs. Descriptors: Academic Standards; Adult Students; College Credits; Competence; Experiential Learning; Higher Education; Independent Study; Portfolios (Background Materials); Prior Learning; Self Esteem.

Kent, Elene Pollow. (1996) User Perceptions for Transforming Prior Learning Assessment: A Critical Review of Adult Learners' Insights. Ph.D. dissertation, The Union Institute.

Kray, Eugene J. (1976) The Non-Traditional Student Seeking Assessment of Experimental Learning -- Who and Why? Ed.D. Practicum, Nova University.

84 pages. In order to identify characteristics and motivating factors of nontraditional students seeking to obtain college credit for practical experience obtained prior to college entrance, a questionnaire was distributed to 186 directors of experiential education programs in institutions participating in Cooperative Assessment of Experiential Learning (CAEL). Directors were asked to supply information on students in their programs during 1975. Responses were received from 82 institutions (44 percent). A similar questionnaire was distributed to 305 students who had applied to the Life/learning Experience Assessment Program (LEAP) at Delaware County Community College (Pennsylvania) during 1975. Seventy students responded (23 percent). This document compares the mean age, income, highest education level attained, number of years since last formal schooling, sex ratio, marital status, employment status, major curriculum area, and motivations of the LEAP students to the national sample. The majority of institutions in the national sample used a multiplicity of delivery systems following the assessment of experiential learning. The mean average credit award was 20 credits. Data are tabulated, a literature review is provided, and the survey instruments are appended. Descriptors: College Credits; Experiential Learning; National Norms; Post-secondary Education; Student Characteristics; Student Experience Community Colleges; Delivery Systems; Learning Experience; Literature Reviews; Nontraditional Students; Two-Year Colleges.

Schatz, Jack, and others. (December 1981) "Learners Assess the Prior Learning Assessment Process." New Directions for Experiential Learning (Financing and Implementing Prior Learning Assessment) 14, 71-93. 

Experiences in prior learning programs are discussed by three adult learners. The College of New Rochelle's Life Experience Portfolio Program, Marylhurst Education Center's Prior Learning Program, and Ohio University's Prior Learning Program are summarized. Descriptors (major): Adult Students; Evaluation Methods; Experiential Learning; Portfolios (Background Materials); Prior Learning (minor): Higher Education; Program Descriptions.

Sutherland, John, and John Hammill. (1994) "Accrediting Prior Learning, Part Two: Student Reflections on an APEL Exercise." Education and Training 36(6), 6-10.

Swift, John S., Jr. (March 1985) "The Economics of Recognizing Prior Learning in a Baccalaureate Degree Program for Adults." Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for the Study of Higher Education (Chicago, IL, March 15-17, 1985).

See abstract under 2.2.3.08 (Implementation of PLAR in Formal Education/Post-Secondary Education/Academic Programs and Professions/Liberal Arts).

White, Barbara. (Fall 1995) "Prior Learning Assessment: Outcomes and Characteristics." Michigan Community College Journal: Research and Practice 1(2), 51-57.
 

Document Type: research report; journal article. Describes the Ontario college system's Prior Learning Assessment program for adult learners, focusing on outcomes and characteristics of students completing the process at Seneca College from April 1994 to February 1995. Indicates that of 77 participants, 46 were female, the mean age was 31, and 81% passed the process successfully. Descriptors: Adult Students; Community Colleges; Foreign Countries; Outcomes of Education; Prior Learning; Student Characteristics; Student Evaluation; Success; Two Year Colleges. Identifiers: Seneca College (Ontario). ISSN: 1081-9428.

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