Important Adult Education Organizations

Jennifer posted on Group 1 (March Monthly Summary), Group 2 (March Monthly Summary & Important Adult Education Organizations), Group 4 (Important Adult Education Organizations).  Stephanie posted on summary comments: Groups 1, 3, and 4.  Adult Organizations: Groups 1, 3, and 4.

Important Adult Education Organizations

Stephanie Moran, Tonda Martin, Jennifer Hindman

Ball State University

EDAC 631

March 23, 2013

Unique Adult Education Organizations

Each of us has been exposed to adult education organizations.  Jennifer has been involved with the National Association of Emergency and Medical Services Educators, American Association for Adult and Continuing Education, and The National Center for Community Education.  Tonda has participated in The Association of United Church Educators, The Association for Clinical Pastoral Education, The United Church of Christ (Leadership Office), Spiritual Directors International, National Hospice and Palliative Care Association, and Gestalt Pastoral Care.  Stephanie has spent time engaging with The National School Boards Association, Federation of Teachers Association, Education Foundation Association, American Medical Association, American Grant Writers Association, and National Aerobic and Fitness Instructors Association.   Each of these organizations has had impact educating and resourcing members in perspectives of operation, methods, and ideology.    While some have been of benefit professionally, others have been of benefit personally.  All agree that learners benefit from both formal and traditional types of educational organizations and professional association as well as less traditional and formal organizations and associations.  For this report, we included one of each category. 

The Association for Educational Communications and Technology

The Association for Educational Communications and Technology (ACET) is an organization that includes thousands of educators that are focused on improving instruction through the use of technology.  ACET members are found in various educational facets including colleges and universities as well as the military.  The members of ACET are involved in various tasks such as planning, studying, developing and producing communications media for instruction.  ACET happens to be the oldest organization of its kind having both a national and international presence.  Founded in 1923, the organization has evolved just as technology has.  The ACET mission is “helping people learn more efficiently and effectively through the use of the best technologies available at the time.”  (Association for Educational Communications and Technology, 2013)

            The organization originated out of the desire of a small group of passionate educators to make the learning experience for students better.  The organization is directed by a Board of Directors that is well-diversified and come from all over the country.  Board members also represent a variety of colleges and universities. 

            ACET publishes two print journals; Educational Technology, Research and Development and TechTrends.  Also, published are two online journals; International Journal of Designs for Learning and Journal of Applied Instructional Design.  These journals provide the latest research and development in the technology and education field.  The journals are pay-for-subscription and offered at a discounted rate to members. 

            There are ten divisions within the organization that support technology in education in different ways.  The divisions allow focus on development for each of the respective areas.  Members of ACET are encouraged to join a division of their interest.  One of the board members oversees the functions of their respective divisions.  Currently, the divisions are:

1.      Design & Development

2.      Distance Learning

3.      Graduate Student Assembly

4.      International

5.      Multimedia Production

6.      Research & Theory

7.      School Media & Technology

8.      Systemic Change

9.      Teacher Education

10.  Training & Performance

ACET now has developed affiliations with 24 state and six international organizations that also are related to adult education.  All of these affiliations join ACET in maintaining and promoting the highest level of standards in development and professionalism.

The main roles and responsibilities of ACET include; promotion and improvement of the use of technology in education.  Through the affiliations with state and international adult education agencies, the relationship of professionalism and instruction through technology in practice.

ACET has impacted the field of education through their robust and extensive history.  ACET originated as discussed earlier in 1923 by a small group of educators.  This group of educators had a vision, a passion to make education better through the use of new media.  Originally in the 20s, instructors of adults wanted to further the education experience through the use of motion pictures and slides.  (Association for Educational Communications and Technology, 2013)  Later, in the 1930s the activity of incorporating new media into instruction gained momentum as it spread to higher education organizations.  Then, during the post WWII era, there was an influx of technology specialists that were returning from the war at the same time that there was an increase in colleges and universities.  During 1958-1970, the federal government encouraged the improvement of teaching math, science, and foreign languages, which led to the use of new media via television in the classroom.  From 1971-1982 there was a shift in ACET from audiovisual orientation to a systems approach and a new definition statement characterized “educational technology as a systematic problem-solving process.”  (Association for Educational Communications and Technology, 2013)  Later in the 1980s & 1990s the organization moved its headquarters and central office to Bloomington, Indiana while continuing to evolve in their focus and changing towards a center on instructional design.  ACET adapted by developing relationships with instructional designers and computing specialists.  At the end of the ACET organization had evolved into one of several divisions with multiple board members and unique affiliations with external adult education agencies.  The impact of ACET is one that has continued to grow in the field of instructional design through the use of technology over the course of 90 years.  Rather than becoming stagnant, the organization embraced change and continued to meet the ever demanding needs of students and adult education organizations.

We have discovered that the AECT prioritized development of media in education through use of detailed divisions within the organization.  AECT developed standards for use of technology in the classroom.  These standards are used worldwide and have brought innovation into the classroom and brought educational possibilities to those out of the classroom.  AECT has impacted educational entities through developed relationships, published works, and conferences.  Its oversight has advocated through standards and development that the most proficient media and technology is available for educational purposes.

The Association for Contemplative Mind in Higher Education

The ACMHE is an organization that understands adult education as an opportunity “to cultivate deep personal and social awareness; an exploration of meaning, purposes and values in service to our common human future.”  (The Center for Contemplative Mind and Higher Education, 2013)  They are a multidisciplinary, non-profit, professional academic association, consisting of educators, scholars, and administrators in higher education.

The ACMHE’S mission develops directly out the history of adult education. The roots of higher education in the West can be traced back to the cathedral schools and monasteries of the 12th century. Likewise, in Asia, education was inseparable from religious and spiritual life. With the Enlightenment, education made a crucial and proper shift towards the secular. They perceive the current challenge of adult education to be; creating a form of education that is at once true to the best ideals of the Enlightenment, which valued reason, experience, and human rights, and at the same time reconnecting to the ethical and spiritual foundations that support our values and deepest understandings.  Their work supports an ethics and spirituality that is not rooted in an ideology or creed but which is available equally to all.  “We seek to recast the traditional foundations for education into a truly integrative, transformative, and communal enterprise that cultivates the whole person in the fullest way possible.”  (The Center for Contemplative Mind and Higher Education, 2013)The reason they advocate for contemplative practice in higher education is to encourage new forms of inquiry and imaginative thinking; and to educate active citizens who will support a more just and compassionate direction for society.  “The ACMHE supports members (educators, scholars, administrators and students) in the development of contemplative pedagogy, research methodology, epistemology and organizational designs by creating forums for the exchange of diverse perspectives on contemplative practice in higher education.” (The Center for Contemplative Mind and Higher Education, 2013)

The ACMHE does this by connecting a network of leading institutions and academics committed to the recovery and development of the contemplative dimension of teaching, learning and knowing and also through its vision.  According to Arthur Zajonc, Founding Committee Chair and Former Director of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society:

“The view on which contemporary higher education is constructed is too limited.  Its impoverished and largely reductive understanding of the world inevitably leads to partial solutions to the problems we face in such areas as education, health care, agriculture and economics.  We need an education that embraces and develops an enlarged view, one that has room in it for the exploration of meaning, purpose and values and how to serve our common human future.  Likewise, the very methods of scholarship and research are limited.  For all their power, the conventional methods of scientific research and critical scholarship need to be broadened.  The reflective, contemplative and experiential methods developed within the contemplative traditions offer a complimentary set of research methods for exploring the mind and the world.  When taken together with conventional methods, an enriched research methodology and pedagogy are available for opening up new pathways for deepening and enlarging perspectives which can lead to real and lasting solutions to the problems we confront.” (The Center for Contemplative Mind and Higher Education, 2013)

The Association for Contemplative Mind in Higher Education developed out of an initiative of its parent organization, The Association for Contemplative Mind, following ten years of administering fellowships and developing a community of contemplative educators, scholars, and administrators, a distinct field of study and practice had emerged.

The ACHME declares the story behind their formation began in 1996 when the Center was looking for opportunities to explore the central question: “Could contemplative practices change the way we think and act so that we move toward a more just, compassionate and reflective society?” (The Center for Contemplative Mind and Higher Education, 2013)

In July 2007 the Academic Program Committee formed the Association Steering Committee. In September 2007 the Board endorsed a refined Association proposal including a mission statement, membership qualifications, and a mandate for the Steering Committee. The Program launched the Association in May 2008.  

The role of the ACHME in adult education is the recovery and development of the contemplative dimension of teaching, learning and knowing.  The ACMHE carries out this responsibility connecting a network of leading institutions and academics by:

• Stimulating scholarship and research concerning contemplative pedagogy, methodology and epistemology within and across disciplines;
• Sponsoring forums for the presentation of research and exchange of ideas through webinars, regional and national meetings and an annual conference;
• Supporting the development of courses and curricula through one-week residential summer sessions;
• Supporting the deepening of contemplative teaching through retreats for academics offering a variety of traditional and secular practices;
• Distributing scholarly work and general information relating to the field of contemplative education online, including a quarterly e-newsletter;
• Providing online resources for members to participate in discussion forums and share profiles, publications, papers, and syllabi.

Conclusion

Both of these organizations are long standing in their respective fields and both provide a multidisciplinary approach that involves educators from higher education organizations.  Through this research, we have affirmation that adult education organizations can make an impact on learners through affecting change and working with other agencies to ensure the change is carried through to the educational institution where the teaching occurs.

References

Association for Educational Communications and Technology. (2013). Retrieved March 13, 2013, from

ACET: http://aect.site-ym.com/?page=aect_in_the_20th_cen

The Center for Contemplative Mind and Higher Education. (2013). Retrieved March 13, 2013, from CCMHE: http://www.contemplativemind.org/programs/acmhe

Table 1. Summary of Adult Education Organizations

	ACET	ACHME
Year Founded:	1923	May 1, 2008
Mission and Goals:	The ACET mission is “helping people learn more efficiently and effectively through the use of the best technologies available at the time.”	Advocate for contemplative practice in higher education, encourage new forms of inquiry and imaginative thinking, and to educate citizens who will support a compassionate society.
Roles and Responsibilities:	To improve the use of technology in education by supporting the profession through its ten divisions, 24 state and six international affiliates.	Administer fellowships and develop  a community of educators, scholars, and administrators in effort to create a distinct field  contemplative inquiry and thinking within higher education.
Other Important Information:	Oldest organization in its respective field.  Publishes two print journals and two online journals	Includes over 150 fellows in 100 colleges and universities throughout the country.  Developed out of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society which was founded in 1996.
Impact:	An old and developed organization of over 90 years that focuses on changing their focus to stay on top of the communication and technology needs of education.	Brought the culture of contemplation into the network of leading institutions and academics.  Stimulated research concerning contemplative pedagogy methodology and epistemology.
Implications:	Able to demonstrate flexibility in evolving to meet the needs of education organizations through different time periods.	There are ways to integrate the practice of contemplation into the academics of higher education which have profound impact on the learner.  This can be done via retreats, forums, webinars and curricula.

                                                 

Tonda completed the research and writing for the ACHME program.  Jennifer completed the research and writing for the ACET program, posted to assignment section on Bb and to blog.  Stephanie completed the PPT presentation, pulled the paper all together and did initial proofing.  All reviewed final product.