The Impact of a GED to College Transitions Program on Student Motivation

Student‘s motivation and persistence are common issues that educators and learners struggle with continuously. This is particularly significant in the field of adult education. According to Hardin (2008) these adult learners, or non-traditional students exhibit characteristics such as; delaying enrollment into higher education until adulthood, enrolling part time, working full time, being financially independent, has family responsibilities and academic deficiencies. Such characteristics can form severe barriers in the quest to pursue higher education. Therefore, understanding self-determination and motivation are necessary to help these learners to be successful. To help students to be successful, scholars and practitioners must engage in longitudinal studies in order to help students transition from General Education Diploma (GED) and other basic adult education programs to higher education. In this study, the researchers make meaning of the participant‘s experiences that can add data to the current research base. This study is aimed at exploring the experiences of 14 GED students enrolled in a GED to College Transitions course at a southern community college in the US during the spring 2011 semester. The study was guided by the following research question: What primary factors motivate GED students to enroll and persist