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  Open-Counselling Functions perspective 
During the 1970s, increased attention was paid to open forms of adult and continuing education, to self-directed learning and lifelong learning (see Self-directed Learning in Distance Learning; Lifelong Education Research Strategies; Lifelong Education: Growth of the Concept; Lifelong Education: Issues and Trends). Concurrently, attention was focused on more open forms of adult education counselling not necessarily offered by professional, institution-based counsellors or in traditional counselling forms. At least in part, the shift away from the professional, institution-based model resulted from expressed concerns that such counselling can be more institution than client-serving and that professional counselling may be incompatible with the needs of many adult learners to be self-directed. Moreover, traditional forms of counselling seemed incompatible with the needs of adults, particularly those wanting to engage in nontraditional forms of learning.

There has been a shift in the titles of the literature describing counselling of adult learners. Before the 1970s, authors typically used the terms "professional," "counselling." and "adult education programs" in titles of articles and books on the topic. During the 1970s titles such as "counselling and information services for adult learners" or merely "counselling and information services for adults" were in vogue.

These counselling and information services were usually described (Farmer et al. 1977) as consisting of one or more of the following functions:

(a) Information giving-providing to adults information about specific educational or occupational opportunities or related services, along with assistance to enable them to use such information to plan further education.

(b) Assessment-using assessment instruments, such as inventories, tests and questionnaires, to assist individual adult learners to relate their interests and values to occupational choices and further education.

(c) Planning-providing assistance with education and career planning for adult learners.

(d) Assisting adult learners to cope more effectively with personal problems-such as marital conflict, family planning, parenting, nutrition or occupational adjustment.

(e) Advocacy-of the needs and rights of adult clients to representatives of educational institutions.

(f) Referral-of adult clients to other agencies for other types of assistance.

When viewed in terms of these six functions, counselling for adult learners at least in part, could be performed not only by professionally trained counsellors but also, and perhaps more efficiently and effectively, by a wide variety of others including: teachers programme developers, administrators service-agency personnel, factory managers, librarians, para professionals, volunteers and peers. Sometimes those without professional training in counselling provided one or more of the counselling and information service functions described above in their everyday roles as relatives friends, colleagues or supervisors. At other times such persons were trained to perform one or more of those functions and did so as part of the staffs of adult education programs or community-based counselling and information service centres.

Provision of the counselling and information services functions, moreover, was offers not only in educational institutions but also (according to some authors, more effectively and efficiently) in a wide variety of other settings such as libraries, community-based counselling and information centres, factories, rented store-fronts and homes. According to Knox (DiSilvestro 1981), the community-based education guidance centre is one of the most significant innovations in counselling adult learners. Ironside (DiSilvestro 1981} has described and illustrated the nature of such centres. Some of the centres make extensive use of or are sponsored by representative community councils; some are sponsored by consortia of the providers of adult education in the community; some are independent educational broker agencies; some make extensive use of networks of support services in the community or referral networks; some are centres in which centralized services are provided; and some are government sponsored.

The professional institution-based approach to counselling in adult education was typically provided for whichever adult students happened to be enrolled in the institution providing the service. In contrast, differentiated versions of the open-counselling, functions approach were developed and implemented to meet the needs of specific clientele such as women returning to education and work, the disadvantaged, and alien (foreign) employees.