Adult education - Assignment Example

? Adult education Supervisor: October 14, Adult learning Introduction The difference between adult learning and primary learning identifies special needs for adult learners. Adult learning involves formal and informal educational initiatives that an individual engages in after a long interval following a break from an initial educational program. The adult learner shall have developed a different perspective to learning and shall have garnered skills and experience from social and professional interactions. Based on the differences between adult and initial education, special challenges exist that face adult learners and formal policies towards learning strategies are necessary for efficient adult learning. This paper explores the scope of adult learning and its associated challenges and strategies with the aim of recommending a suitable strategy to the Office of Vocational and Adult Education for policy development. This aims at improving benefits of adult education to learners. Adult education: special needs Dynamism of adult learning over the past decades identifies the need for periodic changes in the scope of adult education that offers diversified utility to learners such achieved transformation through self-reflection and development of new knowledge base. The learning process however needs to consider special needs among learners. A rich knowledge base has been developed on adult learning mechanism to facilitate identification and management of the needs. Unlike young learners in initial learning frameworks, adult learners are slow in conceptualization and knowledge development. This means longer time in a learning process and possible needs for empowerment to aid the speed of learning. The adults are however able to compensate for this weakness through their vast experience and through effective time management. Differences in visual potentials across age also identify special needs among adult learners. While human development occurs with age, vision begins to decline after the age of 18 year. The decline is gradual until the age of 40 at which the rate of decline increases and means age is a factor to needs among adult learners. Hearing potential also decline among adult learners though this occurs at late ages and hearing aids may be used to facilitate learning processes. Adults also report memory problems during their learning but the problem is less significant in contextual learning (Florida State University, n.d.). Assumptions of adult learning Basic assumptions to adults learning are another set of important factors, to adult education, that educators and policy makers need to consider for successful learning processes. Learners’ self-concept that changes with age explains a transition from nature of learning among young people in initial learning environments. A level of maturity is evident among adult learners who prefer a more independent approach to learning. There is change from dependence on learning environment to a self-reliant approach in which an adult learner is an independent and active party to the learning process. Understanding the shift in self-concept is important among educators because implementing a learning strategy that fails to recognize a learner’s desired level of independence may communicate oppression and compromise effectiveness of the learning process. Transitions across cognitive development stages supports validity of the change in self-concept at adult learning stage because each developmental stage marks increased learning potential that identifies learners abilities to learn on their own. The cognitive development theory supports independence potential by early adulthood and while level of learners’ required independence may vary across age, it is significant among adult learners (Florida State University, n.d.). Adult learning also holds the assumption of significance of learners’ experience that plays to major roles in education. Having interacted with social and professional environments, adult learners are informed of their shortcomings and their needs in education, factors that identify the need for a facilitator role among educators and an active role among learners. Unlike learners in the initial education, dictating learning concepts to adult, especially with their limited learning time and their awareness of specific knowledge that they need, may lead to conflict of interest and compromise quality of attainable learning. Experience also plays a major role in empowering adult learners towards active participation in learning processes and educators need to recognize the learners’ potentials and motivate the learners. Adult learning also identifies learners’ intrinsic motivation, a factor that identifies focus to successful learning. Knowledge of this motivational scope, by educators and policy makers is likely to organize the education system for sustainable motivational levels that can help the learners to overcome barriers to their learning processes. Based on the experience and motivational assumptions, adult learners also exhibits readiness to engage and succeed in the learning process and this streamlines educators roles to development of a suitable environment, “tools and procedures” that aid learning processes instead of focusing learners interest to learning processes (Florida State University, n.d., p. 1). Closely related to the learners’ readiness to learn is their interest in education based on identified needs (Florida State University, n.d.). Other assumptions in adult learners include learners’ practical nature and the need to be respected (Rogers, Mattu, Winters, Martinez, and Mulligan, 2012). Challenges facing adult learning In addition to adult learning constructs, challenges that the learners face are also fundamental to understanding the learning environment towards effective and efficient learning. Hamilton explains that the type of learning had faced historical challenges should be managed for successful learning. The society continues to be complex and this means that adult learners need advanced techniques for their environmental conditions. Failure to moderate the learning environment to offer the learners’ needs or to empower learners to provision for these needs therefore limits probability of success. Economic challenges amidst tightening economy is another major historical challenge to adult learners who may have such other responsibilities like supporting families or lack of financial support for learning needs. Conflict between social and professional roles is another challenge to adult education. Awareness of needs from work environments such as need for leadership or managerial potentials may for example conflict with traditional constructs of women’s passive role in the society to undermine learning needs. Technological developments, that that adult learners may not be familiar with and possible illiteracy among some of the learners are other challenges that have been reported and continues to be significant in adult learning environments. Inconsistencies between learners’ needs and program and institutional structures are other challenges (Hamilton, 1992; Blakely and Tomlin, 2008). Possible solution The scope of adult learning and the associated challenges identifies need for measures that can manage the challenges effectively and empower learners. Features of transformative learning offers a solution to the needs and therefore promises support for adult learning. The theory’s perspective to education involves a transition in learners’ existing knowledge and perception to a diversified perspective. Transformational learning also involves learners’ reflection of their experiences and rationale as bases for new knowledge development, scopes that are consistent with assumptions to adult learning that whose validity has been established. Constructivists’ perspective to learning as an intrinsic process is also consistent with the adult learners’ intrinsic motivation into learning, their internal locus of control, and their active role in learning processes. Further similarities between scopes of adult learning include reliance on learners’ rationale and significance of learning schemes in knowledge development (Westby, 2007). The learning theory therefore supports fundamentals of adult learning and empowers learners to overcome challenges towards learning success. Conclusion and personal opinion I therefore recommend that the Office of Vocational and Adult Education incorporate concepts of transformative theory in developing adult learning curriculum and adult learning institutions. The office should also train transform trainings for adult educators to focus on transformational concepts for effective acculturation. This will promote empower learners and improve on their motivations factors. The theory also promises control over challenges to adult education through empowerment. References Blakely, P. and Tomlin, A. (2008). Adult education: Issues and developments. New York, NY: Nova Publishers. Florida State University. (n.d.). Adult learning. Retrieved from: http://www.fsu.edu/~adult-ed/jenny/learning.html. Hamilton, E. (1992). Adult education for community development. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group. Rogers, R., Mattu, A., Winters, M., Martinez, J. and Mulligan, T. (2012). Practical teaching in emergency medicine. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Westby, C. (2007). How early childhood and K—12 teachers experience transformational learning in a dynamic urban setting: The role of knowledge facets. Ann Arbor, MI: ProQuest. Read More