Learning Journals in Higher and Continuing Education

¶ … Learning Journals in Higher and Continuing Education

The study by Langer (2002) exploring the use of learning journals in higher and continuing education presents new data that may challenge the existing paradigm in the area. This critique focuses on assessing the robustness of the study by examining the problem the author considers and the methodology employed to answer any questions raised. The literature that the author reviews becomes an important consideration since it provides a framework against which the work is examined. The results and findings of the author are discussed as they provide ample support for the conclusions the author posits. This examination will demonstrate that meaningful qualitative work can make a salient contribution to the development of knowledge in any discipline.

Research Question/Problem

In this study the author considers a novel problem which speaks to a central concern of adult learners. The substantive question that is answered by the study is how does the use of journals impact the learning process (Langer 2002, 337)? This question is very important because it infers that the existing paradigm used for encouraging learning behaviors in relation to adults may be inadequate. Adult learners may not have the same experiences with reflexivity as younger students. Consequently, the act of journaling may not be as useful as previously thought for these learners.

Literature Review

The literature review was a mixed element within the study. The extensive use of literature beyond 10 years from the date of publication is a concern with the study. Many authors tend to engage the most recent literature available, suggesting that the ideas within the study are the most recent and relevant. However the manner in which the literature was used clearly outlined the gap in the field. The examination of adult learners represents an area of enquiry that holds ample potential for fecundity in the future (Langer 342). The structure used by the author to examine the literature could have entailed analysis beyond a typology and description of types of journaling (Langer 341).

Methodology

The use of a qualitative methodology was effective and allowed the researcher to adequately answer the questions posed. The data were collected through an evaluation of learning journals and interviews with selected students (Langer 343). This approach to data collection allows the researcher to examine the conclusions of the assessment of the learning journals, through the in depth interviews. Using two sets of data provides greater understanding and explication of the problematic as constructed by the researcher.

Results or Findings

The valuable element of the results would be the qualitative descriptive components rather than the identified percentages. The author presented several percentages as an attempt to describe the sample behavior (Langer 344). These are not necessarily very useful since they cannot be generalized from. However the statements from the students relating to their experiences and opinions may be expanded to wider publics. The value of qualitative work is not necessarily statistical generalizability but adequate representativeness of the phenomenon.

Discussion or Implications and conclusion