Working Adult Student (WAS) Profile

Higher Education, WAS, Working Adult Student 0 comments

Working Adult Student (WAS) Profile

By Prof. Jonathan Acuña-Solano, M. Ed.

School of English

Faculty of Social Sciences

Universidad Latina de Costa Rica

Saturday, May 21, 2016

Post 281

During the first work week of the Laureate Faculty Development course, I presented and shared my experience teaching WASs with other faculty members from other Laureate universities. And part of this experience was directed towards the chance to consider my profile as WASs' facilitator in terms of Andragogy.

A template was provided to all participants to fill in by taking into account the information covered during the first week of the online course. The rubric, so to say, made me consider what each WAS profile category defined next refers to:

Academic profile: Previous learning experiences, previous education, role as a student, study habits, use of technology.

Professional profile: Work experience, professional or trade practice.

Psychological profile: Attitudes, relationship with the facilitator, relationship with other students, attitude towards learning, motivation, emotions, self confidence, family-work-study balance.

Group of WAS´s profile: General characteristics of the group.

Here is the result of my analysis and the ideas that I consider should go in each of the subcategories proposed by Laureate Education.

WAS profile	Main characteristics
Academic profile	Previous learning experiences: - Probable empirical knowledge of subject-matter - Knowledge of how certain processes in the field of study are carried out
	Previous education: - People who might have stopped their studies for various reasons (personal, family, working, etc.) - Learners who may only take one or two course per term due to their tight schedule or lack of economical resources - Students who may be taking their second study program at a university
	Role as a student: - Willing to validate what they have empirically learned with a higher education degree - Eager to compare his/her way of doing things to what it is currently done in the workplace
	Study habits: - Limited time for studying - In search for a balance between his personal, working life with the university learning tasks - Highly independent due to his/her many responsibilities
	Use of technology: - Depending on the age group the WAS belongs to, the use of technology can be ample or limiting. - They may be more prompt to using collaboration tools to work with non-working peers.
Professional profile	Work experience: - Coming directly from the working world - Employees from companies where they are using what they are going to study in courses at the university - May be graduates from other study programs and who are coming back to the university for a second degree
Professional profile	Professional or trade practice: - Probably with ample professional or trade practice - Immersed in their field of study with lots of practical experiences - Willing to use his/her knowledge in practical situations such as case studies, simulations, and so on
Psychological profile	Attitudes: - Positive or negative depending on how empathy is created - Looking for some comprehension and help due to his/her many activities in his/her life
	Relationship with facilitator: - Open and direct since both may be working on similar companies outside the university - Dependent on facilitator’s assistance to comply with course learning activities and projects
	Relationship with other students: - Depending on cultural background, learners can be very independent and will try to work independently. - Collaboration with the ones who lack the knowledge they have is present and beneficial for the whole class.
	Attitude towards learning: - Great predisposition to learn and to validate what they have empirically learned while working - Eager to confront the professor with questions regarding processes s/he is involved in at work
	Motivation: - At his/her peak of motivation - Goal-oriented and success-oriented - Wasting time is not part of their ideas. - Extrinsically motivated either at work or in their families
	Emotions: - Emotionally prepared to accept the challenge to go back to the university to finish his/her study program - Determined to achieve goals
	Self-Confidence: - Self-reliant on what s/he has learned at work - Willing to accept the challenge to get his/her university diploma
	Family-work-study balance: - Could be either hectic or very well-balanced - Studying schedules do not match with those of their peers - Might encounter some difficulty in meeting deadlines
WAS group profile	- Full of empirical knowledge to be used in learning activities - Could be someone coming back to the university to finish a study program or to study another one - Searching for a way to validate what a job has taught them experientially - Some with a tight schedule to meet studying needs and project development - Someone who already works with technology and may have some trouble with portable technology - Mostly coming directly from the labor market with lots of experiences and experiential learning - Currently or formerly employed in the area of studies - In search for the chance to be understood as someone who is not solely studying - Ready to establish open and direct relationships with peers and instructors - Great predisposition to learn from instructors, from peers, and from course content - A goal- and success- oriented individual who does not want to waste his/her time and resources - Emotionally prepared to accept the challenges of higher education - Self-reliant on his former working experiences that are being brought to the classroom - In search for the right balance among job responsibilities, family, and studies