Adult education

Adult education is the practice of teaching and educating adults. This is often done in the workplace, or through “extension” or “continuing education” courses at secondary schools, or at a College or University. The practice is also often referred to as 'Training and Development'. Compared to children and teens, adults have special needs and requirements as learners. Adults generally tend to have a need to solve problems and apply new knowledge immediately. Continuing education for adults is often required for vocational or professional purposes. Adult education can be facilitated through independent, traditional classroom, distance, online, and/or conference-type study.

History of Adult Education

In 1883, the first correspondence program in the United States gained academic respectability through recognition by the State of New York, as a valid educational program was the Chautauqua Institute. It originally trained Sunday school teachers and expanded to include a broad range of favorable studies. This institution is one of the few agencies that was designed primarily for adult education from the beginning.

In Great Britain, France, Germany, and the United States, correspondence education developed and quickly spread during the mid-19th century. In 1840, the English educator Sir Isaac Pitman taught shorthand by mail. The extension movement of the University of Cambridge grew out of off-campus lectures given to women by Professor James Stuart, starting in 1867. This grew so rapidly that by the session in 1885-86, 8000 men and women attended lectures in 50 areas.

In the 1950s, European educators started using the term "andragogy" so they could discuss the growing body of knowledge about adult learners in parallel with pedagogy. “Andragogy” is the process of engaging adult learners in the structure of the learning experience. The term was originally used by Alexander Kapp (a German educator) in 1833, was developed into a theory of adult education by the American educator, Malcolm Knowles (April 24, 1913 — November 27, 1997). In 1970s, Malcom Knowles made the word, "andragogy", popular by promoting the adult learning theory.

Patricia Cross' 1981 book, Adults as Learners, described three characteristics of lifelong learning:

1. A broader concept of growth or education than that which has been used in traditional formal education.

2. A wider array of providers of and settings for education than merely schools (what she calls the "learning society").

3. The active endeavor or self-directedness of the learner throughout their life.

Stephen Brookfield's Understanding and Facilitating Adult Learning (1986) summarized six leading principles of effective adult education:

1. voluntary participation in learning

2. mutual respect among participants

3. collaborative facilitation

4. a praxis approach to teaching/learning

5. the necessity of critical reflection upon the breadth of life

6. a proactive and self-directed empowerment of participants.

Adult Learning Theory

Knowles held that andragogy (from the Greek words meaning "adult-leading") should be distinguished from the more commonly used pedagogy (Greek: "child-leading").

Knowles' theory can be stated as four simple postulates:

1. Adults need to be involved in the planning and evaluation of their instruction (Self-concept and Motivation to learn).

2. Experience (including mistakes) provides the basis for learning activities (Experience).

3. Adults are most interested in learning subjects that have immediate relevance to their job or personal life (Readiness to learn).

4. Adult learning is problem-centered rather than content-oriented (Orientation to learning).

Knowles' work (most notably the book Self-Directed Learning: A Guide for Learners and Teachers, published in 1975) has been controversial. To some, his proposed system states the obvious, to others, he has merely proposed an adaptation of existing child-learning theories.

The term has been used by some to allow a discussion of the difference between self directed and 'taught' education. However as the attitudes of society towards young people change, the differences in educational methods will tend to diminish. (Self directed education is encouraged in earlier age groups).

Adult Learning Styles

Educating adults differs from educating children in several ways. One of the most important differences is that adults have accumulated knowledge and experience which can either add value to a learning experience or hinder it.

Another important difference is that adults frequently must apply their knowledge in some practical fashion in order to learn effectively; there must be a goal and a reasonable expectation that the new knowledge will help them further that goal. One example, common in the 1990s, was the proliferation of computer training courses in which adults (not children or adolescents), most of whom were office workers, could enroll. These courses would teach basic use of the operating system or specific application software. Because the abstractions governing the user's interactions with a PC were so new, many people who had been working white-collar jobs for ten years or more eventually took such training courses, either at their own whim (to gain computer skills and thus earn higher pay) or at the behest of their managers.

In the United States, a more general example is that of the high-school dropout who returns to school to complete general education requirements. Most upwardly-mobile positions require at the very least a high school diploma or equivalent. A working adult is unlikely to have the freedom to simply quit their job and go "back to school" on a full-time basis. Community colleges and correspondence schools usually offer evening or weekend classes for this reason. In the USA, the equivalent of the high school diploma earned by an adult through these programs is to pass the General Education Development (GED) test.

Another fast growing sector of adult education is English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), also referred to as English as a Second Language (ESL). These courses are key in assisting immigrants with not only the acquisition of the English language, but the acclimation process to the culture of the United States.

Continuing Education

Continuing education may refer to one of two types of education. The first is a type of post-secondary education in a general sense, often for its own sake rather than being designed for a particular degree or certification. The second type is education required in a licensed profession in order for the professional to maintain the license.

General continuing education is similar to adult education, at least in being intended for adult learners, especially those beyond traditional undergraduate college or university age. However, it is not normally considered to include basic instruction such as literacy, English language skills, or programs such as vocational training or GED preparation. Instead, as the term suggests, it is assumed that the student already has an education and is simply continuing it.

Frequently, in the United States, continuing education involves enrollment in college/university credit-granting courses, often by students enrolled part-time, and often offered through a division or school of continuing education of a college/university known sometimes as the university extension or extension school. Also frequently in the US, it can mean enrollment in non-credit-granting courses, often taken for personal, non-vocational enrichment (although many non-credit courses can also have a vocational function). Also, in the US, many such non-credit courses are offered by community colleges.

The University of Wisconsin, in 1904, was the first academic institution in the US to offer what today would be considered an identifiable continuing education program. In 1969, Empire State College, a unit of the State University of New York, was the first institution in the US to exclusively focus on providing higher education to adult learners.

Professional Organizations

Licensing bodies in a number of fields have begun imposing continuing education requirements on people who hold licenses to practice a particular profession. The requirements are intended to encourage professionals to maintain their training and stay up-to-date on new developments. Depending on the field, some of these courses may be offered by regular colleges, but they are often provided by organizations that cater to a specific profession. Conferences and seminars may also be designed to satisfy professional continuing education requirements.

Method of delivery

The method of delivery of continuing education can include traditional types of classroom lectures and laboratories. However, much continuing education makes heavy use of distance learning, which not only includes independent study, but which can include videotaped/CD-ROM material, broadcast programming, and online/Internet delivery. In addition to independent study, the use of conference-type group study, which can include study networks (which can, in many instances, meet together online) as well as different types of seminars/workshops, can be used to facilitate learning. A combination of traditional, distance, and conference-type study, or two of these three types, may be used for a particular continuing education course or program.

External links

• Universities of The Web - A large directory of colleges in US and Canada offering continuing education programs.
• Free Continuing Education Search Tool - CourseList.org provides a searchable catalog of continuing education classes and training courses in each city.

• International Council for Adult Education (ICAE)
• European Association for the Education of Adults (EAEA)
• The National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE, UK)
• The National Research and Development Centre for Adult Literacy and Numeracy (NRDC, UK)
• Working with Adult Learners in the Library Classroom: A Personal Reflection

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