Adult Learning
30
Things We Know For Sure About Adult Learning
A
variety of sources provide us with a body of fairly reliable knowledge
about adult learning. This knowledge might be divided into three basic
divisions: things we know about adult learners and their motivation,
things we know about designing curriculum for adults, and things we
know about working with adults in the classroom.
Principles
Of Adult Learning
Part
of being an effective instructor involves understanding how adults learn
best. Compared to children and teens, adults have special needs and
requirements as learners. Despite the apparent truth, adult learning
is a relatively new area of study.
Adult
Learning
Adult
learning is frequently spoken of by adult educators as if it were a
discretely separate domain, having little connection to learning in
childhood or adolescence. This chapter will examine critically this
claim by exploring four major research areas (self-directed learning,
critical reflection, experiential learning and learning to learn) each
of which have been proposed as representing unique and exclusive adult
learning processes.
Supporting and Facilitating Self-Directed Learning
WHAT
IS SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING? An estimated 70 percent of adult learning
is self-directed learning. Self-directed learning has been described
as "a process in which individuals take the initiative, with or
without the help of others," to diagnose their learning needs,
formulate learning goals, identify resources for learning, select and
implement learning strategies, and evaluate learning outcomes.
Adult Learning
"Perspectives on adult learning have changed dramatically over the decades. Adult learning has been viewed as a process of being freed from the oppression of being illiterate, a means of gaining knowledge and skills, a way to satisfy learner needs, and a process of critical self-reflection that can lead to transformation. The phenomenon of adult learning is complex and difficult to capture in any one definition." From: Cranton, P. (1994). Understanding and Promoting Transformative Learning. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 3.
Overiew of Adult Learning Theory
Effective
Questioning
Effective Questioning
Effective
questioning is considered a vital component of adult education and an
integral part of teaching in the medical profession. Contains a lot
of other valuable information and links.
