Abstract
Although online distance education provides adult learners with an opportunity for life-long learning, there are still factors challenging them to engage in educational processes. The purpose of this study is to explore the challenges faced by adult learners in online distance education through the analysis of the relevant literature. The articles (N=36) published in the key journals in the fields of open and distance education, instructional technology, and adult education were reviewed and analyzed through constant comparative analysis in the current study. The findings reveal that adult learners have challenges related to internal, external, and program-related factors indicating the interrelated nature of these challenges. The findings also show that the challenges experienced by adult learners vary depending on their age, gender, knowledge and skills as well as the context in which they study. The findings of this study, which has an exploratory nature, have several implications for distance education stakeholders such as administrators, instructors, instructional designers, and policy makers.
Highlights
It is clearly known that distance education provides adult learners with the advantage of life-long learning due to its flexibility
The review regarding the internal challenges indicated that middle-aged adults are unable to create a balance between their education and work, family, and social life
The review yielded a classification of the challenges faced by adult learners in online distance education
Summary
It is clearly known that distance education provides adult learners with the advantage of life-long learning due to its flexibility. Considering the advantages of online distance education, adults compose the largest audience for online distance education (Ke & Xie, 2009; Lim, 2001) and the limits of the diversity expand in online distance education practices. They display significant differences from traditional students in terms of their academic, psychological, and life characteristics (Richardson & King, 1998). Their engagement in education is more irregular and varied compared with the traditional ones (McGivney, 2004). With all these in mind, adult learners’ unique characteristics cause unique challenges for them, which affect the way they continue their education or participate in online distance educational processes
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