ABSTRACT
Computers will play an increasingly important role in adult education in the 1990s. Today’s high school students will be a primary adult education ‘market’ then. They will be totally at ease with computer hardware and software, and will expect computer technology to be a part of their learning experience Older adults will also have increasing familiarity with computer technology. This paper reports on six years of experience in introducing computers into the young adult and adult education program at the University of Calgary.
Some of the most interesting possibilities involve using computers as knowledge archives and organizers. On-line databases and scholar’s workstations provide fresh, new media for learning. In addition, computers are becoming a ‘first-line’ communications tool for many people. This capability opens up opportunities for adult education through data communication. It also creates some challenging cost and logistics problems. The latest developments in computer technology, such as artificial intelligence, raise hopes, which may be justified, for an adult education facility that is effective, pleasant, affordable, and most of all, humanized.
