ADULT LEARNING THEORY

Adult Learning Theory



Adult Learning Theory

Question 1- Adult Education and Theory Context

Define and explain adult education in relation to current/contemporary society including andragogy and pedagogy theoretical formulation from Knowles.

Pedagogy derives from the Greek pedagogic: the word "paid," means child, and "agogos," means leader. Thus, pedagogy originally meant education, attendance on children (etymonline.com).From this origin the teacher-centered model has been part of the pedagogical model. The teacher according to this model has full responsibility for making decisions about what will be learned, how it will be learned, when it will be learned, and determining if the material has been learned. Pedagogy, therefore, places the student in a submissive role. Pedagogy or what some people refer to as didactic has had competition from a different approach to teaching and learning, a new theory called andragogy. The term andragogy was originally formulated by a German teacher, Alexander Kapp, in 1833(Nottingham Andragogy Group 1983: v). The first time the term "andragogy" became widespread among adult educators in North America was in 1968, when a professor of adult education at Boston University, Malcolm Knowles introduced the term (then spelled "andragogy") through a journal article. Knowles later developed it into a theory of adult learning education in the Modern Practice of Adult Education: Andragogy Versus Pedagogy, in 1970. In this book, Knowles differentiates the two disciplines as follows: Andragogy Pedagogy Learners are called participants or ´learners.µ Learners are called´ students, Independent learning style, and Dependent learning style. Objectives are predetermined and inflexible. It is assumed that the learners have experience to contribute. It is assumed that the learners are in experienced and/or uninformed. Active training methods are used. Passive training methods, such as lecture, are used. Learners influence timing and pace. Trainer controls timing and pace. Participant involvement is vital. Participants contribute little to the experience. Learning is real-life problem-centered. Learning is content-centered.

List the major 5 adult learning theories and how can these be used in today's adult education classroom.

Andragogy

Knowles (1968) popularized this European concept over thirty years ago. Andragogy, (andr - 'man'), contrasted with pedagogy, means "the art and science of helping adults learn" (Knowles, 1980, p. 43). Knowles labeled andragogy as an emerging technology which facilitates the development and implementation of learning activities for adults. This emerging technology is based on five andragogical assumptions of the adult learner:

Self-Concept: As a person matures, he or she moves from dependency to self-directness.

Experience: Adults draw upon their experiences to aid their learning.

Readiness: The learning readiness of adults is closely related to the assumption of new social roles.

Orientation: As a person learns new knowledge, he or she wants to apply it immediately in problem solving.

Motivation (Later added): As a person matures, he or she receives their motivation to learn from internal factors.

These five assumptions dovetail with the thoughts and theories of others. Merriam and Caffarella (1999) point to three keys to transformational learning: experience, critical reflection and development. The aspect of experience (the second assumption to andragogy) seems like an important consideration in creating an ...