What are your beliefs about
how people learn best? What is the purpose of learning theory in educational
technology?
As an instructor in adult education, my focus is on adult learners, and older adult learners. I believe students in this age range learn best when they are actively engaged in their learning. Adult learners need to know what they are learning has value, and be able to see how they can apply it in their lives for professional or personal reasons in order to engage them in the learning process. Without their buy-in, the instructor wastes time and energy trying to teach.
Cross’ adult learning theory (Kulatta, 2011) is based on the following principles:
1. Adult learning programs should capitalize on the experience of participants.
2. Adult learning programs should adapt to the aging limitations of the participants.
3. Adults should be challenged to move to increasingly advanced stages of personal development.
4. Adults should have as much choice as possible in the availability and organization of learning programs.
Educational technology can be a catalyst for guiding instruction that best meets the needs of the adult learner. Not only does the use of educational technology benefit the instructor, but it develops the adult and older adult learner as students of technology as well. I teach an introductory computer applications course to adults whose average age range is between 55 – 70 years old. Many are touching computers for the first time. Understanding the learning theory that defines students in this age range guides the methods I use to introduce them to technology in the supposition they will take what they learn in my class, apply it to their life situation, and progress as students of technology.
Reference
Kulatta, R. (2011) Instructional design: Adult learning (K.P. Cross). Retrieved from http://www.instructionaldesign.org/index.html
Hi Anetha,
ReplyDeleteI like what you have to say about working with adult learners. I work with HS age kids and all the time try to relate what they are learning to what they know. They have a wealth of experience they do not even realize they have (considering they begin experiencing the minute they are born). When I can make it relevant for them learning goes so much smoother.
Just this week my son's teacher emailed me about a writing assignment he was not doing. The assignment is to write about the town the school is in (most of the kids live in that town), we don't. When I asked my son about why he wasn't doing the assignment, like a true 11 year old he said why should I write about that town I don't live there? Why can't I write about the town I live in? Relevancy and experience. I would imagine you hear some of the same types of things from your adult learners. If you are showing them how to surf the Internet you had better show them sites they would be interested in or I would imagine they may not understand the purpose of the Internet. I think it is interesting how little our learning style actually changes as we age. -- Carol
Thanks for sharing about your son and the writing assignment, Carol. I agree with him --- why are the majority of students allowed to write about their town and he is not? My adult students would have asked me the same kind of question. In the first years of my teaching adults, I modified my course materials and curriculum course by course as I recognized irrelevancy and/or when a student asked me "Why are we doing this?" and I couldn't give them what I consider a good answer! If the instructor can't answer that "why" or relevancy question whether they are teaching K-12 or adult learners, they should definitely revisit the validity of the assignment.
DeleteGood for your son for asserting himself. :)
AJ