Learning in a Digital World
My current area of instructional interest is adult
education. Of all the popular learning
theories, the adult learning theory is a sole and separate one that doesn’t
seem to get talked or written about as much as some of the others. “Andragogy is a set
of assumptions about how adults learn” (Fidishun, n.d.). Knowles is credited with developing the
theory of andragogy that explains how adults learn and how to best prepare to
teach them. Knowles posited that adults
and children learned differently, and adult learning was distinguished by the
following:
“1. Self-concept: As a person matures his self-concept moves from one of being a
dependent personality toward one of being a self-directed human being
2. Experience: As a person matures he accumulates a growing reservoir of experience
that becomes an increasing resource for learning.
3. Readiness to learn: As a person matures his readiness to learn
becomes oriented increasingly to the developmental tasks of his social roles.
4. Orientation to learning: As a person matures his time perspective
changes from one of postponed application of knowledge to immediacy of
application, and accordingly his orientation toward learning shifts from one of
subject-centeredness to one of problem-centeredness.
5. Motivation to learn: As a person matures the motivation to learn
is internal” (Smith, 2002).
Boggs said that adult education should enhance the life of the
adult learner, and
“adult educational experiences should
enhance personal growth and make it easier for adults to adapt to internal and
external changes until the end of life” (Cooper, 2009). Based on the
adult theory of learning as espoused by Knowles, my philosophy of learning for
adult students is different from a philosophy of learning I might have for
students K-12. I believe instruction for
adult students must be relevant; they must be able to relate to it and see
where it fits in with their life and fulfills a need in their life or
professions that they can readily see.
Adult students bring a lifetime of knowledge and experience to their
instruction, and I believe as an instructor I need to tap into that resource
and include their personal experiences in the lessons I teach. Adult students should be actively involved in
their learning; my lessons should be based on their goals and objectives from
the class. For this reason, I survey
incoming students to find out what their goals and objectives from the class are,
then modify my lessons to meet as many of those goals and objectives as
possible. Adult students have different
sensitivities than younger students may have, so my instruction must take those
sensitivities into consideration. I must
allow my adult students to express themselves throughout the learning process
and I must create a safe, comfortable environment where they do not feel
threatened or embarrassed for doing so.
Adults are autonomous, but
Fidishun (n.d.) said “In spite of their need
for autonomy, previous schooling has made them dependent learners. It is the
job of the adult educator to move adult students away from their old habits and
into new patterns of learning where they become self-directed, taking
responsibility for their own learning and the direction it takes.” Technology can help facilitate this as
Fidishun (n.d.) said because it provides adult students the ability to "skip
sections a student already understands, and multiple forms of presentation of
material which can assist people with various learning styles.” As a computer applications instructor in
adult education, I have the unique opportunity to introduce adult learners to
computer technology, the Internet, computer applications and programs that will
benefit them throughout their academic and professional lives and careers, as
well as aid them in becoming true autonomous learners that is one of the tenets
of the adult learning theory espoused by Knowles.
References
Cooper, S. (2009). Theories of learning in educational
psychology: Malcolm Knowles and the
theory of andragogy. Retrieved from
