Assessing Adult Learning Strategies.

The Self-Knowledge Inventory of Lilelong Learning Strategies (SKILLS) was developed to measure adult learning strategies in real-life learning situations. SKILLS consists of a series of 12 scenarios from real-world situations that reflect Shirk's (1990) nine general categories of learning for real-life situations and that necessitate various types and levels of learning. Questions assess how likely an individual is to use specific strategies for dealing with the learning problem. The instrument can be completed in 20 minutes and can be self-scored. SKILLS is based on five aspects of the learning process: metacognition, metamotivation, memory, resource management, and critical thinking. Field tests with 253 adult learners showed that SKILLS has construct, content, and criterion-related validity and that it is reliable. SKILLS is being refined to increase the discriminating power of individual items, to strengthen its reliability, and to make it more relevant to respondents. The final form of the instrument may be used to help people think about how they learn and to test various learning strategies with adults. (The SKILLS inventory is included in this document. There are 36 references.) (KC) ********************ft***************** ***** **********************#t**** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. it****************************************************************MM Assessing Adult Learning Strategies Gary J. Conti Montana State University