...– 12 4.0 CHARACTERISTICS OF ADULT LEARNERS 13 5.0 SUCCESSFUL ADULT LEARNERS AT IPD-OUM AWARDS CEREMONY 14 6.0 CONCLUSION 15 7.0 REFERENCE 16 1.0 INTRODUCTION Online learning has grown rapidly in the past few years in colleges requiring instructors to learn effective ways to build online communities of learners. There are barriers to avoid, as well as key components to include, when creating online learning environments. There are many technology options to choose from to deliver course material, but instructors must keep in mind the adult learners’ unique needs. Creating Online Learning Environments for Adults As our world embraces technology, the way instruction is delivered to students is evolving from face-to-face instruction to online formats. Creating effective interactive learning environments for adult online courses is important to the success of students. Online learning is a relatively new format for teaching, but as a growing field, it is important for educators to understand the best methods for creating learning environments with available technology. Technology can enhance or defeat the building of community learning environments. Social constructivists understand that learning takes place in a community setting, where instructors and students interact to construct meaning. Connectivists realize knowledge is increasing at such fast speeds that it is important for learners to know how to find pertinent...
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...------------------------------------------------- Andragogy The most dominant instructional method used in Europe and America is “pedagogy,” or what some people refer to as didactic, traditional, or teacher-directed approaches. Pedagogy, though, concerns teaching children. A competing idea in terms of instructing adult learners, and one that has gathered momentum within the past three decades, is called “andragogy.” (Note: I am using the spelling of this word preferred by Malcolm Knowles, the leading proponent of this theory.) The pedagogical model of instruction was originally developed in the monastic schools of Europe in the Middle Ages (and it is pretty much still the same today). Young boys were received into the monasteries and taught by monks according to a system of instruction that required these children to be obedient, faithful, and efficient servants of the church. The term pedagogy is derived from the Greek word “paid,” meaning child, plus “agogos,” meaning leading. Thus, pedagogy has been defined as the art of leading (or teaching) children. There is an old story concerning the origin of the word “pedagogue;” and, while this may not be true, it is an interesting anecdote. According to the legend, ancient Greek citizens who were wealthy would have a slave whose job was to lead their children to and from the school (the place of knowledge). That slave was called the “paidagogos” (leader of boys), and from that word we get the term for leading children to knowledge:...
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...Managing Time as an Adult Learner Many adults feel like they already have a full plate; that is to say they have as many (or more) commitments competing for their time, as they have time available. Based on a U.S military study, taking the average requirement of three college classes a semester, the adult learner can expect to add approximately eighteen hours a week of educational related activities onto their plate (Dyer, 2014). A report, issued by the National Clearinghouse Research Center in October of 2014, indicates that only one-in-three adults, returning to school, end up graduating (New, 2014). With the odds so heavily stacked against them, how can the adult learner balance work, home and school to fit in the time necessary to get a college degree? For an adult, with adult responsibilities, to be a successful student requires: undaunted commitment, discipline in focus, sacrificing of the extraneous, and the ability to effectively manage time. Much research and countless studies have been done attempting to determine the key contributing factors for success of adult learners (Tyler-Smith, 2006). The results of the studies are not only significant for the adult student, but also for the universities they are attending. The information obtained is used by Universities to modify their learning environments in an effort to promote an increase in student success rates. Statistically high adult attrition rates have a negative impact on a university’s educational planning...
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...learning opportunities for the adult learner. By examining these new innovations in adult education, it will allow us to see how we have grown from the past teaching styles and delivery methods to the advanced opportunities that we have today. Adults of today are looking to increase their knowledge and improve their skills from a few different ways. There are able to do this through formal and informal training, on-the-job training, and self paced courses. In today’s society adults need to be educated or have some type of trade or skill in order to be competitive in the workforce. Before you can get these adults to return to school you have to first get them to get over any fears they may have. Therefore, we will discuss those fears and obstacles that prevent the adult learner from achieving their maximum potential and provide them with some methods to overcome or cope with them as well as allowing them to see that technology is there to help them. Keywords: education, innovations, training, advancements, potential, technology. New Innovations in Adult Education The workforce today is in desperate need of well qualified and educated individuals. These individuals are important, and are needed in order for companies to advance and keep up with the growing and demanding economy. Competition with foreign companies is growing as well making it hard for individuals who have little or no education. Therefore, training these adults and giving them the skills...
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...The intent of this paper is to reflect on the topic presented in this class and how to apply them in the future as a DE facilitator. The topics covered in Units 1-3 are The Theory of Transactional Distance, Community of Inquiry Model, and Independence in Unit 1; The Adult Learner in Distance Education and Technologies; and Instructional Design in Distance Education in Unit 3. The paper has two sections: a) presentation of the topics via a summary, b) and application into a future practice. The author’s most significant realization is that after almost one year of full-time studies, these units were able to put together in a clear and concise manner, the DE program that the author experienced online. In the author’s opinion knowing applicable theory will help design a DE course. Furthermore, being surrounded by a team of experts will help avoid pitfall along the way. Topics Unit 1...
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...reading the excerpt and reviewing all of the materials in the Reading & Study folder, please complete the questions related. Do not neglect to include citations as needed. In order to provide some clarification, please see the definitions below: * Paraphrase: When you paraphrase something, it means that you are restating the facts in your own words, clarifying facts, or rewording. * Summary: A summary requires that you take a passage or excerpt and break it down into the most basic points. To use a common metaphor, you are trimming the fat. The reader should be left with only the major points. * Quotation: A quotation requires that you take a portion of the text and replicate it exactly. This can be anywhere from 3 words to an entire sentence. Part One: 30 Points For the assignment, write as though each answer is a portion of your Adult Learning Theory Paper. Everything should be in current APA format (where necessary). Please read the excerpt below and answer the questions. In an effort to better understand how adults learn, adult learning theories are derived to help theorists and practitioners by providing workable and testable explanations of the learning process. These theories seek to explain how the process of learning as an adult differs from learning as a child. They focus on describing how various social, psychological, emotional, and physiological factors affect adult learning. To that end, ideas generated by educators,...
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...explains how adults learn. The adult learning process is complex, context bound, and highly personal. As a result, there is no single theory of learning that can be applied to all adults. Instead, the literature of the past century has yielded a variety of models, sets of assumptions and principles, theories, and explanations that make up the adult learning knowledge base. The more adult educators are familiar with this knowledge base, the more effective their practice can be, and the more responsive it can be to the needs of adult learners. This fact sheet reviews three major theories and discusses their implications for practice. What is Andragogy? In attempting to document differences between the ways adults and children learn, Malcolm Knowles (1980) popularized the concept of andragogy (“the art and science of helping adults learn”), contrasting it with pedagogy (“the art and science of teaching children”). He posited a set of assumptions about adult learners, namely, that the adult learner • Moves from dependency to increasing self-directedness as he/she matures and can direct his/her own learning; • Draws on his/her accumulated reservoir of life experiences to aid learning; • Is ready to learn when he/she assumes new social or life roles; • Is problem-centered and wants to apply new learning immediately; and • Is motivated to learn from internal, rather than external, factors. Inherent in these assumptions are implications for practice. Knowles (1984) suggests that adult educators...
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...Success: Never Standing Still. We hope that those who attended will be able to use the resources and activities themselves and that it will be stimulating as well as useful for those who were unable to attend. As with all of Dialogue NW activities this event was more than a training session telling people how to do it – instead we wanted to provide a space for critical discussion and reflection. Our focus was on the learners and what success meant to them, acknowledging that this may be very different to official concerns and discourses around recruitment, retention and achievement. If we start from the learner, then success is more about the journey than crossing an imaginary finishing line: it is about the hurdles, the timing and in some cases the stamina to finish what might feel like a gruelling race. It also allows us to appreciate that the journey is not always straightforward and it is often easier when travelling with others. It is much more than the bullet point statements often used to describe or monitor success. We started the day by thinking how learner and institutional perspectives on what counts as success may be different. Comments and discussion from participants suggested that although we know about these differences we often get drawn into organisational or official views of success, putting our own professional knowledge on the back boiler. People felt that professional...
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...In the article Helping Adult Learner Succeed: Tools for Two-Year College, it breaks down how Adult learners can Succeed and become successful. Jobs now are expecting more than ever some kind of college degree. Therefore Adult have no choice but to go to school to further there education. Many adult attend community college work related or training or just to obtain a degree. Need to say there can be many challenges and obstacles on how to help adult learners become their better selves. Often students needs maps to guide them with there courses. You have to understand adult learns transitions. In reading this article that has been a development of a non- credit program targeting adults to assist them in transitioning to college. This program...
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...(for use in the classroom only) ISSUES RELATING TO ADULT LEARNING Learning is the basic objective of all the training and development activities. If people have not learnt what they were suppose to learn from a HRD program; then the program should be called as a failure. It is, therefore, very important for HRD professionals to understand the major concepts and research findings related to learning. Learning may be defined as the process of acquiring, assimilating, and internalizing inputs for their effective and varied use when required, leading to an enhanced capability for further self monitored learning. It is any relatively permanent change in behaviour that occurs as a result of experience. The change often is an increased capability for some type of performance. Basic learning styles of the participants Every individual has a unique way of gathering, absorbing, processing and internalizing inputs for learning purpose. This constitutes an individual’s learning style. It must, however, be remembered that the learning style of an individual is neither always explicit nor enduring. An individual modifies it in light of the situations and experiences. Even in a training program, a participant may change the learning style, depending on the opportunities available for learning. It may be noted that a participant's learning style is not necessarily a measure of his/her intellect and learning abilities. It only suggests a preference for the manner in which...
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...learning success Procedural objective: the students will explore those factors that have promoted their success as language learners, making a chart and comparing it with other people Attitudinal objective: the students will develop a critical attitude towards the causal correlations between factors and learning success Attitudinal objective: the students will realize the need for further research A. Internal/ Individual B. External a. 1. Age 2. Aptitude 3. Motivation and Attitude 4. Personality 5. Cognitive Style 6. Hemisphere specialisation 7. Learning Strategies 1. Learning and Teaching Contexts 2.Teaching a second language: Effects 2.1. Input and interaction: How these elements affect learning A.1. AGE AND L2 LEARNING • Effects of age on RATE of second language learning ΚAdults are superior to children in rate of acquisition ΚOlder children learn more rapidly than younger children ΚWith regards to morphology and syntax, the adolescents do best, followed by the adults and then the children ΚGrammar differences diminish over time, and children begin to catch up, but adults outperform children in the short term Κ Where pronunciation is concerned, adults do not always progress more rapidly than children do Thus: adults learn faster than children, and this is more applicable to grammar than pronunciation, although in the case of formal learning situations adults seem to do better even in the pronunciation area. It is not clear when children start to catch up. b. GLA Factors...
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...Put into this perspective, the Open University's multi‐media approach to teaching has been judged one of the most important innovations ever in the global educational system. Open learning allows individuals to learn in their own place and time and at their own pace, and to learn quickly away from work and in a way that relates them to their work or self-advancement. Open distance learning is particularly relevant for adult learners who may be in full time employment and who may wish to upgrade the knowledge and skills. There is some flexibility in terms of duration of programmes. There is a minimum and a maximum (TEC,...
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...Impact of the lesson The key elements that will impact the implementation of the lesson are the following are who, what, where, and why. Who? The lesson will cater to the instructors at FSS and the needs that were assessed and evaluated by the Director. What? The lesson is composed of different segments that the instructors will become familiar with and in due course become subject matter experts. The lesson will cover 1. Creating pre and post assessments utilizing Survey Monkey 2. Analyzing and tracking assessment results using an excel spreadsheet 3. Skills on how to manage a classroom Where? The lesson will be held in the classrooms at FSS. All courses will take a two week break to ensure that all instructors are available to attend the training. Why? The director of FSS determined that there was a need for training through various assessments and evaluations of the instructors when they are teaching. These elements are imperative to the context of which learning will take place. It is important to be able to assess the needs of the audience before delivering the training to the intended audience. The purpose of the training is to ensure that the instructors understand and are able to proper perform their job functions. The potential impact that this lesson will have on the instructors at FSS is they will be charged with becoming more self-sufficient at the tasks and with the second training they will be able to attend the training with more experience...
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...Adult Learners and the Issues They Face When Making a Decision to Attend College Adult learners returning to college at some point in their lives is not a new concept in today’s society. Practically since the establishment of institutions of higher education, the class of student known as the non-traditional student has existed. There is no exacting definition of what a non-traditional student is, but most can agree that one is generally over the age of 24, have not enrolled in post-secondary education immediately after high school, have dependents other than a spouse or are a single parent, work full time while enrolled, or are financially independent from their parents (Kenner & Weinerman, 2011). Adult learners fall into the category of non-traditional student, and face many issues when it comes time to make the decision to return to college. Reasons for returning to, challenges to overcome while attending and type of school attended vary almost as widely as adult learners do themselves. There are an indeterminable number of reasons for an adult to decide to obtain a higher education, and they vary as much as does the diverse group of non-traditional students. As noted on the website back2college.com, some of the more significant reasons include updating personal skills and furthering career advancement, fulfillment of lifelong dreams or potential, achievement of a better life for themselves and their family, and the changing of careers (WD Communications LLC, 2011)...
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...for Tutorial 3 1. What is ethnographic research? State the difference between an ethnographic research and a psychometric research and give example from applied linguistic studies. 2. Find a report of an ethnographic research in applied linguistics and give your comments on the following points: * The research question * The contexts the research was conducted * What is group or case under study? * What conceptual and theoretical frame works inform the study? * What field techniques were used? For how much time? In what contexts? What were the roles of the ethnographer? 3. Find a report of an ethnographic research in applied linguistics and give your comments on: * What field techniques were used? For how much time? In what contexts? What were the roles of the ethnographer? * What analysis strategies were developed and used? what levels and types of context were attended to in interpretation? - What recurrent patterns are described? - What cultural interpretation is provided? - What are the stated implications for teaching? Question 1.What is ethnographic research? State the difference between an ethnographic research and a psychometric research and give example from applied linguistic studies. ------------------------------------------------------------- Ethnographic research is one form of qualitative research which concerns with studying human behavior within the...
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