{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.01726844583987441, 'fraction_numerical': 0.009419152276295133, 'mean_word_length': 5.407035175879397, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 0, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 1, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Developing a Taxonomy to Support Program Planning for Adult Learning Events

Organizations invest millions of dollars annually in conferences and other learning events aimed at adult learning. Professional and scholarly conferences are time honoured traditions in our field. Yet, often we fail to consider whose purposes and learning needs are met in conferences and whose learning needs remain unaddressed or unmet. Additionally, we bristle at the structure of events we attend as adult education professionals. Identification of stakeholders and stakeholder needs is a key element of program planning models (Cervero & Wilson, 1994, 2005; Caffarella, 2002). I feel we have recognized the importance of this focus on a micro level without fully embracing its implications on a macro level. Adult educators appear to be either generalists, viewing all conferences as relatively the same, or specialists, focused on one specific type of large group educational gathering, such as professional development or continuing education events. We fail to critically analyze the hegemonic structures that guide our current event practices. We do not question alternate means for organizing these important gatherings that lie at the center of our professional and disciplinary lives.