Andragogy is meant to help understand the role of the learner’s experience in adult education. The distinctions between andragogy as education for adults and pedagogy as education for children need to be understood to help both the teacher and the student succeed. The challenges of going back to school at 41 while also working full time as part of an incredible staff team in a senior leadership position has given me fresh eyes as both a learner and a leader.
Malcolm Knowles’ six assumptions about andragogy give some clarity to help understand both the overarching experience of an adult learner as well as to my own experience of andragogy.
- As a person matures, his or her self-concept moves from that of a dependent personality toward one of a self-directing human being.
The fact that I’m in this program now is evidence of the truth of this assumption! Although I attended university after high school, my own personal motivation to further my own education now is a result of 20 years of maturity, life experience and a desire to continue to move forward. Understanding now why I am continuing my education is very much a self-directed decision. - An adult accumulates a growing reservoir of experience, which is a rich resource for learning.
When it comes to leading others, part of my desire is to help equip people where they are able to take on the work they are doing without my direction. As a learner grows in their experience they should grow in competency but also in their understanding of how they can become better as they grow. Helping adult learners move beyond simply gaining skill has been a key function of my own leadership. - The readiness of an adult to learn is closely related to the developmental tasks of his or her social role.
As children, students learn because they are required to go to school or there may be family pressures toward pursuing education. For adults, the requirements of a job or a desire for future opportunities mean that the function of education is much different.For myself, the requirements of my current job as well as what I would like to pursue in the future have helped to influence and shape my readiness for this program. My focus isn’t on simply completing the courses or doing the work but in developing as a leader and becoming better in my role. - There is a change in time perspective as people mature – from future application of knowledge to immediacy of application. Thus, an adult is more problem than subject centered in learning.
As a leader, helping an adult who serves as a musician on our worship team means teaching them how they help us solve the problem of leading the congregation in worship every Sunday across our church’s three locations. The reality of family, work and other responsibilities means adults only have a narrow bandwidth when it comes to learning new tasks, resulting in an increased focus in helping to solve the immediate problem in front of them. - Adults are mostly driven by internal motivation, rather than external motivators.
As a pastor this has been something I have had to learn as a leader. When it comes to motivating people to be involved in ministry we are very dependant on growing internal motivation simply because the resources for external motivation are simply not available. Internal motivators such as achieving goals, helping to launch new locations of our church, becoming a more skilled team of musicians and to see the impact in the lives of people in our congregation are all examples of how I have helped adults learn as they participate in different volunteer teams in our church. - Adults need to know the reason for learning something.
This assumption has become very clear to me even in the first half of this course. Because I understand the reasons for the learning I’m doing in this program I am more motivated, dedicated and focused. The learning I’m doing is not specifically for the benefit of understanding the content but in becoming a better leader, growing in current and future opportunities.
I’m grateful for these six assumptions of andragogy and how they help to give language and understanding to my own experience as both leader and learner when it comes to adult education.