The decision to return to a formal educational setting as an adult arises from a complex interaction of past experiences and present circumstances. This study sought an answer to the question: What happenings throughout the lives of three mid-life women guided their decisions to return to school? The researcher explored the life courses of these women, particularly focusing on their perceptions of their own educational experiences. The participants were full-time, degree-seeking, undergraduate students at The Florida State University. Four common influences were identified which prompted each woman's educational reentry decision: support for education from others; importance of educational experiences; disposition toward education; and image of self as a student. In addition, certain enabling factors in each woman's present life appeared to have facilitated her return to school: a sense of control over her life; a feeling she would be successful; financial resources; and older children. The researcher traced those common influences through the life of each woman, weaving them together to show the development of individual patterns of reentry. The participants indicated that the desire for a career change precipitated their decision to return to school. At the same time, each one identified personal fulfillment as an important consequence of reentry. / The study was intended as a process of exploration and discovery. As such, open-ended interviews conducted on a weekly basis over a period of five months were used to gather each participant's life story. A series of seventeen working propositions was presented in the last chapter to stimulate further exploration in this area of adult reentry women. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 47-12, Section: A, page: 4266. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1986.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_75982 |
| Contributors | METZGER, ELAINE IRENE., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 299 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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