Synthesis Statement for Learning Outcome #1

Compare and contrast the historical, philosophical, and sociological

foundations of higher education and continuing education as they apply to
current practice.
I took AHE 554, Foundations of Continuing Education, next to my last quarter
in the program. In hindsight, my journey through the AHE program would
have been deeper and richer if I had the knowledge and understanding of
the historical, philosophical and sociological foundations of higher education.
It was in this course that I developed my own philosophy of education.
It was quite fascinating to learn about the different philosophical schools of
thought and what they are based on. As I roamed the pages of our textbook
and applied philosophical theories to projects, it became clear that most all
the historical philosophers on education had something good to contribute to
beliefs about adult education. Elias and Merriam (2005) say the value of
having knowledge of philosophical theories of adult education for adult
educators lies in attitudes and understanding that educator will bring to his
or her task.
The artifact I have chosen to use to illustrate my knowledge in the history,
philosophy and sociology of adult education is from the AHE 554 course. It is
the paper I wrote stating my philosophy of higher education and diversity.
My philosophy of education began to take shape as we moved through the
course and covered the variety of schools of philosophical though. There
were pieces from just about every philosophy that were agreeable to me on
some level. By far, the humanistic philosophy resonated most deeply with
my beliefs and liberal arts would probably be the second strongest.
My belief is the student-centeredness of humanistic philosophy is the
heartbeat of adult education. Elias and Merriam (2005) said at the core of
humanistic theory is, Placing sacred value on the dignity and autonomy of
human beings (p. 111).
In my artifact, I also identified my philosophy on diversity. Through the
journey of the AHE 554 course, I gained a much clearer and deeper
understanding of the importance of access for adult learners to education
and the inclusion and interaction between all human beings. I have come to
believe that it is not enough for institutions of higher learning to have a
population that appears to be diverse by having students of many races,
ethnicities, cultures and gender identification on campus to be beneficial to
the whole population. To truly be beneficial, the relationships need to go
deeper. Gurin, Dey, Hurtado & Gurin (2002) created a category called
interactional diversity in the student they did about diversity on college
campuses. Interactional diversity addresses the frequency and quality of
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interactions between diverse students as contributing to the most

meaningful experiences for the student population as a whole.
In my work at a community colleges student support services program, I
interact daily with under-represented students that often are struggling with
poverty, racial and ethnicity barriers and disabilities. The foundational
principles of education I learned in this course and the process of identifying
my personal philosophy of adult education have strengthened my ability to
support and assist the diverse population of students I work with. This higher
level of clarity and understanding of educational principles has added a
whole new layer of understanding in my professional work.
Elias, J.L., & Merriam, S.B. (2005). Philosophical Foundations of Adult
Education. (3rd ed.). Malabar, FL: Krieger Publishing Company.
Gurin, P., Dey, E.L., Hurtado, S. & Gurin, G. (2002). Diversity and Higher
Education: Theory and Impact on Educational Outcomes. Harvard
Educational Review, Vol. 72 No. 3, Fall 2002.