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Adult students need ‘more ladders and fewer chutes’

Wednesday, October 12, 2022
Chronicle of Higher Education

Chutes and Ladders is a fun game for kids. It’s also a pretty apt allegory for the ups and downs that adults and other nontraditional students encounter as they try to make their way through college. So when it came time for the folks at Higher Learning Advocates to debut their “Widen the Path” campaign to members of Congress, two specially crafted versions of the game seemed the perfect props. The chutes-heavy version highlights obstacles — credits that won’t transfer, disruptions in child care, unreliable transportation — that commonly derail older students. The ladder-laden version, meanwhile, offers boosts like credit for prior learning. On a Tuesday late last month, staff members from the bipartisan organization delivered the games to more than 150 congressional offices around the Capitol.

American Institutes for Research

U.S. Department of Education

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