Adult education may occur in the workplace, at a secondary school, in an adult learning center at universities or at community colleges. Over the past few decades, researchers have found that adult pupils are very different from children in how they learn and what they need from an instructor. This collective body of research is known as the “adult learning theory.” Many well-known psychologists have written on this topic, which has recently come into the spotlight since so many male and female adults are looking to further their education, acquire new computer skills and advance in the workforce.
The first adult learning styles writings were published by adult learning theory pioneer David Kolb in 1984. He argued that there are four distinct learning styles: Diverging, Assimilating, Converging and Accommodating and that there are also four phases for each style, which are Concrete Experience, Reflective Observation, Abstract Conceptualization and Active Experimentation. “Divergers” are sensitive and emotional, prefer to watch rather than do, enjoy brainstorming and information gathering, and are receptive to feedback. “Convergers” love technical tasks and problem solving, can easily apply practical uses for theories, are less interested in social-personal issues, and like simulations or new ideas. “Assimilators” need clear explanations and logical reasoning, they’re good at organizing data, they are less focused on people and more interested in abstract concepts, and they like readings and analytical models to further their understanding. Lastly, “Accommodators” are hands-on and intuitive, they like to use other people’s experiences, they love new challenges and experiences, they like working in teams and they prefer to work in the field. Once new information has been absorbed, adults will then make observations based on their experiences, create concepts and actively test these concepts in the real world.
According to psychologist and adult learning theory pioneer Malcolm Knowles, there are several key ways that adult learners differ from child learners. First of all, adults “are autonomous and self-directed,” meaning that they like leadership positions, they like to choose their learning path and they like to cover topics of interest to them. Secondly, adults arrive with “life experiences and knowledge,” which may include work experience, prior education and child rearing, so they can find added value in learning about topics that relate to their lives in a meaningful way. Thirdly, adults are “goal-oriented,” so they must see how their coursework will help them achieve their goals. Fourth, adults are “relevancy-oriented,” so they must be able to choose projects in their area of interest and see how their adult learning training relates to the real world. Fifth of all, adults are “practical,” which means they only want to learn material that will help them and they don’t want their time wasted with information just for information’s sake. Lastly, adults must be treated with respect and encouraged to voice their opinions during class. By following these guidelines, training adult learning instructors will have better outcomes with their students.
Adult learning theory takes into account that different people learn most effectively by different methods. For instance, a visual-spatial learning student can look at a map and remember all the geographic information on it. By contrast, a verbal learning student would need to read a book describing where things are located and providing some context for the locations to grasp the concepts. Musical learners often use mnemonic devices to remember data, whereas logical learners would use a mathematical formula or pattern to recall. Researchers have found that taking these differences into consideration and modifying teaching styles has had tremendous success in treating ADHD in adults and individuals with perceived adult learning disabilities.
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