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Migration as a political process and migrants as political subjects or as active participants in the educational process are largely absent from the adult education system in the Cypriot context. This article attempts to inquire on this absence by offering a critical analysis of key policy texts and proposals as well as prominent programmes and initiatives that have shaped the recent transformations of adult education in Cyprus. On the one hand, it is important to reflect on the gaps, mishaps and silences of Cypriot educational policies in relation to the challenges posed by migration in the era of globalised mobility. On the other, it is also critical to highlight the connections between adult education policies and the formulation of the state's policy towards adults' migration and its concrete initiatives towards fostering a politics of integration. The article offers a critique of the presence situation in Cyprus, arguing that it confines adult migrants to a position where they cannot play a significant role in co-shaping how adult learning is organised, structured and implemented in Cyprus.

This paper presents a critical account of the extent and the ways in which learner-centred education approaches are used as a tool for enhancing adult learning in distance learning universities as well as the conditions and restrictions they face. The exploration is illustrated by qualitative data from interviews with eight adult educators and 16 adult learners/students and adopts a case study approach within a phenomenological mode. In this study, learner-centred education approaches are seen as being at one end of the educational practice continuum and comprise of a number of elements, namely: motivation, epistemology, techniques and relationships that are used as a conceptual framework to guide data analysis and interpretation. Findings reveal the partial and unintentional use of learner-centred education approaches in the distance learning programmes explored and make recommendations for the implementation of learner-centred education in the teaching of adults in distance education universities.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether and through what mechanisms vulnerable adults are empowered through a second-chance education programme. At the same time, the paper aims at unveiling the obstacles hindering learners' empowerment process and making suggestions for the improvement of the educational programme fostering further empowerment of the learners. To achieve the objectives set by the research, a hybrid methodological design was applied combining hermeneutic phenomenology and critical discourse analysis. Data collection was performed using three tools: semi-structured interviews, reflective journals and document analysis. The results led to the emergence of a multilevel empowerment scheme of vulnerable adults in the programme. The empowerment mechanisms that emerged were as follows: (a) empowerment through participation as a self-value, (b) empowerment through the reconstruction of past experiences, (c) empowerment through the strengthening of their social capital and (d) empowerment through literacy skills. At the same time, the study shed light on a number of factors that inhibit the process of learners' empowerment, which unveil structural and operational weaknesses of the programme as well as of the policies pursued by the State.

The study aspires, by giving voice to the experiences and perceptions of adult learners and their educators, as they embark on distance learning courses delivered by the Open University of Cyprus and the Hellenic Open University to unveil the adult learning and "fine-grained" processes at work during the organization and delivery of the courses, with the ultimate aim to underline the factors influencing these processes. The project complements previous research and attempts to extract from the findings ideas and practices that could contribute to the re-organization of distance courses that facilitate adult learning. It has as its main units of analysis 16 adult learners and 8 educators, and rests on a research framework that views certain programme elements as being vital in unveiling the processes of adult learning. It harnesses a phenomenological approach and qualitative research techniques. The study contributes to a better theoretical understanding of the processes of adult learning and the mediating role of the distance learning context, in comparison to other previously explored contexts.

The study presented in this article explores the application of the principles of adult learning in the face to face (f2f) meetings organised within the context of blended learning courses. The study adopts a case study approach, employing qualitative data collection through semi-structured interviews with participants in four thematic units in two distance learning programmes: Greek Civilisation (undergraduate) and Education Studies (graduate) organised by the Open University of Cyprus and the Hellenic Open University. The research draws on andragogy and illustrates the experiences and perceptions of 16 adult learners and eight tutors with regard to: the design of the f2f meetings, the educational techniques and means used, the participation, and the perceived usefulness of such sessions. The article concludes by highlighting the limited use of the adult learning principles in designing and implementing f2f meetings during the distance learning programmes explored. Recommendations for the design of f2f sessions in consideration of adult learning are made.

The research reported in this paper is an investigation of the application of adult learning principles in designing learning activities for teachers' life-long development. The exploration is illustrated by qualitative data from a case study of adult educators' and adult learners' insights and experiences of a teacher development course organised by a Greek university. Analysis focuses on the andragogical notion of design, i.e. selecting the combination of "learning units" and "learning formats" that most effectively accomplish the objectives of a programme. Findings of the study are somehow optimistic in that they do indicate, however imperfectly, that adult learning principles might be further applied in designing learning activities for teacher development, and make some tentative recommendations for Greece and elsewhere.

The research reported in this paper explores aspects of the relationship between academics and practitioners in the context of a professional development programme. It is illustrated by qualitative data from a case study of university teachers' and secondary teachers' experiences and perceptions of a university-led in-service training course in Greece. Three antithetical pairs: "theory versus practice, propositional versus procedural and knowledge producers versus knowledge translators" are used heuristically to guide data analysis and presentation, seen as constituting a continuum between two poles. It is indicated that rather than focusing on the "gap" between academics and practitioners, the discussion should be about "space" between the two groups, and that both should inhabit this space and work mutually its boundaries and its purpose, so that a vital partnership will emerge, which in turn can assist university-provided in-service training.

This exploratory study is an attempt to shed light on the internal dynamics of secondary teachers' and academics' professional learning, its context and its occasions, in a course of a university-provided in-service professional development programme in Greece, using the experiences and perceptions of its participants. In investigating the above, the study harnesses a qualitative methodology and a research framework that draws upon a set of ideas that cohere under the rubric "programme development," in order to generate a heuristic that guides research techniques and analysis procedures. The investigation reveals professional learning to be characterised by a number of dimensions: professionality, mutuality, emotionality and formality. Professional learning is therefore seen as a complex process rather than linear, a step-by-step event. The article concludes by emphasising a shift from the delivery of the in-service courses to an understanding of the complexity of the processes by which professional learning is developed.

The research reported in this paper compares the experiences of twentytwo secondary teachers and twelve university tutors as they embark on a course of a "new" in-service professional development programme in Greece, in relation to adult learning. It harnesses a qualitative methodology and draws upon a set of ideas that cohere under the rubric "programme development" to build up a heuristic guiding research technique and analysis procedure. The analysis focuses on two key parameters of programme development for adults i.e. climate and planning, and on their associated elements. The findings identify the "them" and "us" image that continues to perpetuate the "new" courses and indicate some tentative points that might have implications for the design of the in-service training of teachers.

This article explores critically the case of university-provided inservice training for secondary teachers in Greece, using the experience of both tutors and teachers as they embark upon it. It draws upon an exploratory study carried out with 22 secondary teachers (philologists) and 12 university teachers in the context of two university departments. The analysis focuses on two aspects of Kirkpatrick's (1975) conceptualisation of the evaluation process: reaction evaluation and learning evaluation. The findings highlighted the limitations of the event-delivery model of professional development, in particular, the vexatious relationship between theory and practice. The article concludes with a number of recommendations related to the need for the greater involvement of teachers in the organisation, formulation and delivery of in-service professional development. (Contains 1 table.)

Copyright of Studies in Adult Education & Learning / Andragoška Spoznanja is the property of Andragoska Spoznanja and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Adult Education Discourses / Dyskursy Młodych Andragogów is the property of University of Zielona Gora and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The study presented focuses on research using meta-interviewing that was conducted aiming at enhancing the credibility of a university program and the impact of the professional development in terms of exploring participant's personal and professional experiences after the training. Kirkpatrick's fourth facet on evaluation, ''behavior evaluation,'' is used as a foundation for the study. This concerns the extent to which participants applied the learning and altered their behavior. The research used a qualitative methodology within an interpretative paradigm and used meta-interviews as the core method for data gathering. 18 secondary teachers and 8 academics were questioned. The findings expose thought-provoking issues allied to the impact of the university imparted professional development programme; reinforce claims made in the prime study; and make a case about the practice of follow up research and meta-interviews in qualitative inquiries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study presented in this article explores the application of the principles of adult learning in the face to face (f2f) meetings organised within the context of blended learning courses. The study adopts a case study approach, employing qualitative data collection through semi-structured interviews with participants in four thematic units in two distance learning programmes: Greek Civilisation (undergraduate) and Education Studies (graduate) organised by the Open University of Cyprus and the Hellenic Open University. The research draws on andragogy and illustrates the experiences and perceptions of 16 adult learners and eight tutors with regard to: the design of the f2f meetings, the educational techniques and means used, the participation, and the perceived usefulness of such sessions. The article concludes by highlighting the limited use of the adult learning principles in designing and implementing f2f meetings during the distance learning programmes explored. Recommendations for the design of f2f sessions in consideration of adult learning are made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper reports the findings of a research project that seeks to explore and understand adult educators' and learners' experiences and perceptions of distance learning courses in the Open University of Cyprus and the Hellenic Open University. The ultimate aim of the paper is to unveil and illuminate some of the adult distance teaching and learning processes at work in these courses. The research harnesses a case study approach within a qualitative paradigm. It draws upon the experiences of 16 learners (open university students) and 8 educators (open university tutors) who embarked on an undergraduate programme in Greek civilization and a postgraduate programme in education studies in the two case study universities. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with the above participants. For the analysis of the data, a heuristic was used that brings together a set of key stages on adult programme development. These are: needs identification, planning, design, climate, and evaluation. The findings highlighted a number of issues/factors that relate to the above stages of programme development and proved as influencing adult distance teaching and learning processes in the contexts under exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]