When Structure Supports Balance: Designing Courses for Adult Learners
Abstract/Description/Artist Statement
Adult learners in postsecondary education programs often balance employment, caregiving and other personal responsibilities alongside academic demands. These competing priorities can generate cognitive and emotional strain especially when learning environments are not designed with adult learners’ realities in mind. Guided by Control-Value Theory of Achievement and Emotions (CVT), this study used a mixed-methods survey design to examine how instructional strategies support work–life–learning harmony.
Quantitative items measured perceptions of course structure, flexibility, instructor practices, and wellbeing. Open-ended questions captured learners' lived experiences managing competing roles. Data were analyzed to provide a comprehensive understanding of emotional regulation, perceived control, and persistence.
Findings indicate that clear expectations, predictable structure, organized course materials, and supportive instructor communication strengthen learners’ sense of control, calm, and engagement. Flexibility demonstrated more variable impact, suggesting its effectiveness depends on learner context and role demands. Instructor presence and empathy emerged as central to emotional wellbeing and persistence.
These findings highlight the importance of emotionally responsive, learner-centered instructional practices that help adult learners remain engaged while balancing work, life, and learning.
Faculty Advisor/Mentor
Michelle Bartlett
Faculty Advisor/Mentor Email
mbartlet@odu.edu
Faculty Advisor/Mentor Department
Darden College of Education
College/School Affiliation
Darden College of Education & Professional Studies
Student Level Group
Graduate/Professional
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
When Structure Supports Balance: Designing Courses for Adult Learners
Adult learners in postsecondary education programs often balance employment, caregiving and other personal responsibilities alongside academic demands. These competing priorities can generate cognitive and emotional strain especially when learning environments are not designed with adult learners’ realities in mind. Guided by Control-Value Theory of Achievement and Emotions (CVT), this study used a mixed-methods survey design to examine how instructional strategies support work–life–learning harmony.
Quantitative items measured perceptions of course structure, flexibility, instructor practices, and wellbeing. Open-ended questions captured learners' lived experiences managing competing roles. Data were analyzed to provide a comprehensive understanding of emotional regulation, perceived control, and persistence.
Findings indicate that clear expectations, predictable structure, organized course materials, and supportive instructor communication strengthen learners’ sense of control, calm, and engagement. Flexibility demonstrated more variable impact, suggesting its effectiveness depends on learner context and role demands. Instructor presence and empathy emerged as central to emotional wellbeing and persistence.
These findings highlight the importance of emotionally responsive, learner-centered instructional practices that help adult learners remain engaged while balancing work, life, and learning.