Hanson (1991) on Participation

Hanson, A. L. (1991). Understanding participation in programs. In T. J. Sork (Ed.), Mistakes made and lessons learned: Overcoming obstacles to successful program planning (New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, vol 49) (pp. 29-41). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Type of Work
Book chapter
Focus / Goal
Discusses “elements that influence participation in continuing education programs” (p. 29)
Audience

• Program planners, in general
• Special emphasis is placed on planning continuing education events

My Notes
Raises important issues to think about when planning programs. However, because it is geared toward continuing education and approaches this topic from a business-like perspective, it seems a little less relevant to me. All those years of working in churches drove home the message that every participant is important and that programs should continue to be offered regardless of the size of the audience. While I understand that program planners cannot continually operate with negative cash flow, I will never feel truly comfortable with any that smacks of a profit motive.

Key Points

1. “adherence to basic tenets of program planning does not guarantee participation” (p. 30)
2. “Continuing education is a business” (p. 32).
1. “The general mission of adult and continuing education providers is to offer programs that meet the educational needs of the intended audience, attract the appropriate clientele, and produce the desired changes in the participants. … All of these goals must be accomplished with a positive economic outcome-that is, the programs must generate sufficient revenue to justify offering additional programs” (p. 30).
2. “there should always be a specific target in mind so that the provider can make a decision about the program’s present level of success or risk relative to attendance at any point prior to the program date” (p. 32)
1. Cancelation (due, in this case, to lack of attendance) can have a negative impact …
1. on future programs
2. financially
3. on credibility
2. Having too many participants can be just as problematic as having too few.
3. Though a target audience (with clearly identified needs, etc) may be identified for a particular program, the program will only be experienced by those who are “in search of learning” (p. 31), and programming plans should geared only to the latter group.
1. Programs aimed at those who do not attend are obviously not effective.
2. “Needs are not the same as interests, and an expression of priorities with respect to either one does not, in itself, ensure participation” (p. 36).
4. Planners need to be aware of potential barriers to participation, such as …
1. Job constraints
2. Scheduling
3. Family obligations
4. “lack of relevance” (p. 37)
5. Also need to be aware of things that increase the likelihood of participation, such as …
1. Intellectual interest
2. Requirement
3. Pleasure or rest
4. Socialization opportunities
6. In order to increase the likelihood of having sufficient participants, a planner should
1. Attempt to minimize/avoid the potential barriers while maximizing/emphasizing those things that facilitate participation.
2. Stick to the target audience, whether specialists or generalists
1. “providers should not dilute their programs in an attempt to make them of general interest to all people within their target group; instead, they should aim programs at a more selectively defined audience” (p. 38)
3. Emphasize promotion/marketing for more specialized audiences
4. Be aware of and minimize the impact of competition from other programming sources
5. Make wise logistical decisions
1. “consider where the demographic center, rather than the geographic center, of the target audience is” (p. 39)
2. Avoid scheduling around holidays, etc.
3. Make the program long enough to address the objectives, but be aware increases in length decrease accessibility and may hamper participation.

Misc. Information
4 different criteria for evaluating programs:

1. Process: “essentially a ‘happiness index’ related to how well the attendees liked various program aspects” (p. 29)
2. Effect: “the focus here is on learning outcomes, such as whether attendees acquired knowledge, attitudes, or selected skills as a result of participating in the program” (p. 29)
3. Application: “this means determining, at some point after the program is completed, to what extent the knowledge, attitudes, or skills acquired through the program have been transformed into behaviors applied in the practice setting” (p. 29)
4. Attendance

Quotes

• “adherence to basic tenets of program planning does not guarantee participation” (p. 30)
• “Predominant reasons for nonparticipation centered on different aspects of the program’s accessibility. These findings appear to lend credence to the position stated earlier in this chapter: Adherence in program planning to educational principles alone does not ensure satisfactory levels of participation (p. 38).