Abstract
Older students have reported a series of barriers to starting their higher education experience. However, quantitative evidence suggests that older students, particularly older women, have unique approaches to learning that enhance their satisfaction with their higher education studies. The current study sought to extend these findings by quantitatively examining an interaction between age and gender in predicting approaches to learning and subsequent academic achievement. The research provided an original analysis from two previous studies. Participants consisted of Australian and U.K. undergraduates. The Australian sample were 367 undergraduates enrolled with a distance higher education provider. Participants completed a research survey either online or on paper. Consistent with previous research, age moderated the effect of gender on deep learning, such that gender predicted deep learning more strongly among older students than younger students in both samples. Furthermore, gender predicted achievement in both samples, such that women out-performed men. Finally, deep learning only explained the relationship between gender and academic achievement when students were older. Based on this evidence, higher education institutions should consider and address the barriers that older students, particularly older women, experience in order to enhance the social mobility benefits from a university degree that this non-traditional higher education group accrues.
Highlights
Educational researchers have identified different approaches to learning (Marton and Säljö, 1976; Richardson, 2005)
We explicitly review the findings of Rubin et al (2018) in this literature review as it is directly relevant to the interactive effect of age and gender on approach to learning
Applying Cohen’s (1988) benchmarks for an appropriate sample size to detect a small relationship at a significance level of 0.05, we identified three studies that had a sufficient sample size to appropriately test gender differences in learning approach (Richardson, 2013; Salamonson et al, 2013; Rubin et al, 2018)
Summary
Educational researchers have identified different approaches to learning (Marton and Säljö, 1976; Richardson, 2005). These different learning approaches have different implications for academic achievement (Robbins et al, 2004). Rubin et al (2018) found that older women demonstrated deeper learning than other demographic groups at university, and that this deeper learning had a positive impact on their degree satisfaction These findings accord with a qualitative literature that identifies older students as having a clear understanding of the personal meaning and relevance of their studies (McCune et al, 2010). Higher education institutions should pay closer attention to the barriers that older students, older women, experience in their higher education transition (Andreou et al, 2006)
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