Andragogy, the process of helping adults learn, is outlined by Malcolm Knowles with six principles. First, adults transition to being more self-directed and independent as they mature (Castellon & George, 2017). This means that adults want more control over what, when and how they learn (HR Development Info, n.d.). My experience of learning as an adult has had much more freedom than when I was a high school student. When I was in college I was able to complete a few courses online instead of having to attend class, much as I am able to currently in this Masters program. Online learning not only gives me freedom in how I learn, but also in when I learn. I am able to manage my own schedule and complete the work while balancing my other responsibilities.

Second, adult learners have life experience, which enhances their learning because it is a resource (Castellon & George, 2017; Bartle, 2013). My experience in this Masters program is that we have not been learning theory alone, but rather we have been asked to take the theory and supplement it with examples from our own lives. In this way, our lives become part of the “lecture”. Furthermore, because we write out of our own life experiences and are asked to interact with colleagues’ content, we are able to learn from one another’s life experiences as well.

Third, adults’ readiness to learn is related to their perceived need of what they need to know in order to address life situations (HR Development Info, n.d.). As I was deciding whether to pursue higher education or not, a significant factor in my decision was that I realized if I wanted to continue to grow as a leader I needed more formal training. I have faced challenges and identified problems that I have not had solutions before because of lack of knowledge. This largely impacted my readiness to enrol in this Masters program.

Fourth, adult learners are problem focused in their learning as opposed to subject focused because they want to immediately apply knowledge to problems rather than use it for future application (Castellon & George, 2017). In this course, we have often been asked to immediately apply what we are learning to our lives, rather than simply memorize and regurgitate information. This facilitates the immediate application of knowledge that adult learners are looking for.

Fifth, the primary motivators for adult learning are internal rather than external (Castellon & George, 2017). As I mentioned above, when I was deciding to pursue this Masters a significant factor was in response to problems I was facing, however, my underlying desire was not to simply be equipped to address these problems, but it was an internal desire to want to continue to grow as a leader and to become more effective in any leadership position I might find myself in. In this way, one of the primary motivators for me was this internal desire to improve myself as a leader.

Sixth, adults have a desire to understand why they are learning something (Merriam & Bierma, as cited in Castellon & George, 2017). When we were completing our Orientation Course, we had to learn how to record audio and integrate sound effects into the recording. To be honest, I was a bit frustrated by this experience. Once I understood that the reason I was being asked to learn this was for an assignment in this course, I was much less frustrated than I had been.

Overall, my experience as an adult learner, both through this course and when I look back on my college courses, has operated under these six principles in various ways.

References:

Bartle, M. S. (2013). Andragogy. Research Starters: Education (Online Edition). Retrieved from https://ezproxy.student.twu.ca/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ers&AN=89164070&site=eds-live

Castellon, A. & George, I. (2017). In Penfold Navarro, C. (Ed.), Leadership 500: Unit 6 notes [course materials]. Retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/ldrs500/unit-6/unit-6-notes/

HR Development Info. (n.d.). Malcolm Knowles and the six assumptions underlying andragogy. Retrieved from https://hrdevelopmentinfo.com/malcolm-knowles-and-the-six-assumptions-underlying-andragogy/