Adult Education has to respond
constantly to changes that occur within society and is, therefore, a barometer
of it. The focus of adult education is based upon political, social and
economic exigencies. This combination of factors determines the specificity of
adult education.
The purpose of this paper is to
introduce few theories of adult education, the types of adult learning from the
perspective of the organization and the individual and the changing nature of
work in the workplace.
Theories of adult learning
Learning is a process of gaining
and storing experiences, resulting in new forms of behaviour and action or a
modification of behaviour and action previously gained. Learning is an adaptive
process in which people have a tendency to perform a particular behaviour which
is changed by their experience. (Buskist, 2010)
People can be divided into groups of learners such as; Behaviourist-
learning basic things by touching, Cognitive –engagement with the brain to see
and remember and to understand,
Experiential- learning is active if doing things for example by socialising
with people. (Learning theories, 2012).According to studies people learn by
what they remember:
10% of what they read
20% of what they hear
30% of what they see
50% of what they hear and see
80% of what they say
90% of what they do
(Glasser, 2010)
The obvious thing is that people
can learn practically all life skills but that adults learn differently to
children. Adults are more demanding because they understand the importance and
value of what they learn, they have their own experience and knowledge gained
in a practical way, and they want to be active, engaged and have an influence
in the learning process. Adult’s brain should be continually habituated to
learn new things because people are physically more active, tolerant and now
maintain mental acuity for longer.
Differences between children and
adults learners arise from their different phases of development, social
experience, changes in intellectual and social roles. These differences are
divided into two studies called:
1.
Pedagogy- children teaching: the teacher decides
what, when and how they are taught and verifies the knowledge acquired by
students.
2.
Andragogy-adult teaching, the teacher (coach)
encourages and shapes the learners’ aspirations for independence. The learning
methods are dominated by discussion, problem solving. (RU Training, 2011)
According to Knowles
(1984) theory andragogy is based on four assumptions for adults:
1.
In the
process of growing, the concept itself is changing.
2.
Increases
in the process of growing up and accumulate resources experience, which becomes
increasingly important source of human learning
3.
In the
process of growing up ready to learn more and more orientated to age-specific
developmental tasks
4.
Adult
altered perception of time - with age there is a greater orientation to
learning which is able to take advantage of accumulated experience and
engenders a different attitude to learning. ( Marvin,I. 2011)
There are many concepts and
models of learning. The most interesting and widely used is Kolb’s theory. This
theory is mostly used in planning different types of training. Kolb identified
four basic stages of the learning process:
·
Activist- challenging, flexible, open,
optimistic
·
Theorist- objective, logical, consistent
·
Observer-reflectivity , in the shadow, prudent
·
Pragmatist- experiment ,new solutions, action person
According to Kolb
people are able to learn when involved in an action and can look critically at
their own activity to examine its progress and effects, and to account for its
results through their own behaviour change. Learning is a process from
observation and experience, defined as a change in behaviour resulting from
experience. Specificity of learning by experience is based on the assumption of
people’s own reflection, observation and understanding. Someone else’s opinion,
comment and judgment are only important if related directly to personal
feelings. In Kolb’s opinion, to adjust the way of learning to the preferences
of one’s own style is very important from the point of view of the efficiency
of that process. (Businessballs, 2010)
Another learning theory called
cognitive dissonance was introduced by researcher Leon Festinger (1957).He defined as non-compliance dissonance between
two cognitive elements. The cognitive element is a thought, feeling, belief or
knowledge about something. Every person has many beliefs about themselves and
the world around them. An example of such a cognitive element is the statement:
‘I am honest man’ or ‘I like dress in green’. Cognitive elements may include
even the smallest matters of daily life. Sometimes the cognitive elements are
contradictory. For example, such a conflict as smoking cigarettes (cognitive
element-I smoke knowing that they are harmful). According to Festinger’s
definition of non-compliance, the cognitive elements manifest themselves as
psychological tension and a sense of discomfort. This kind of psychological
tension is called dissonance. This theory is based on the simple thing that a
person will be motivated to change their behaviour or beliefs only if there is
an incompatibility between their behaviour and/or thoughts. For example, a
person who believes that their every action is successful, will, after failing
an exam say, be motivated to succeed at the next exam or change the perception
of himself. (Canberra, 2012)
Honey and Mumford were inspired by Kolb and used his model to
design Learning Style Questionnaire with the population of middle/senior
managers in business. They created two adaptations:
1.
The stages in the cycle and experiences of
decision making and problem solving
2.
The styles and how they were contacted to the
stages in the cycle.
However, their learning cycle is slightly different from
Kolb’s; having an experience, reviewing the experience, concluding from
experience and planning the next steps. Based on the result, they can move
round the circle again, jump to any part of the cycle and then quit when the task
is learned. Their models include four types of learners; Reflector,
Pragmatists, Theorist, Activist. (NWLInk, 2011)
Cross (1981) was influenced by theoretical frameworks of adult
learning such as andragogy and experiential learning. Cross identified two
classes of variables that represent differences between children and adult
learners. (Lifecircles, 2012)
Learning at the
workplace
The changes in the global economy
and the growing complexity and unpredictability in the current environment,
forces companies to seek new ways to provide advantages for employees to gain
better qualifications in the workplace. One of those ways is to introduce a
variety of teaching techniques and training. Companies are increasingly likely
to recognize the necessity of training and development of their staff. The
introduction of innovation and new training systems for employees can be a way
to gain competitive advantage through such an operation and may lead to the
application of new technologies. In organizing training or different kind of
learning an organisation must take into account the diversity of its employees
and the types of course that will suitable and profitable for them. All
employees are different and this diversity reflects all aspects of their
learning process. Among many others this diversity can be defined in terms such
as sex, race, energy, efficiency that are visible and: experience, knowledge,
skills, competencies, personality, beliefs and culture that are invisible.
According to Kolb differences
between people have a significant impact on the way they learn, work or are
perceived on the basis of both the employees’ private and professional life.
Understanding and taking into account existing differences of employees in
organization helps maximize the ability to learn and consequently can improve
the results in terms of quality and performance in achieving goals and also greater
involvement of employees to pursue them.
In term of my own experience, in
relation to this research and my own working life, show that organisations
facilitate learning by using the most popular techniques, such as: internal or external training, e- learning by
using internet technology, coaching by teaching or supervising people as a
trainer or coach, home learning, workshops, social learning key studies, formal
education, placement, self-learning, mentoring, training courses the use of
simple but effective methods of learning by:
·
Lecture - this method is mostly used in shaping
the attitudes of employees to effect
positive change in the company
·
Conference- in contrast to the lecture allows
active participation
·
Seminars-held on the topic
·
Analysis of case studies - the presentation to
trainees certain situations, real or fictional,
that may occur in the company.
·
Rotation in the workplace - a change of position
within a specific group of employees.
The advantage is that the employee receives an overall impression of the
company, and understands the relationships between different units of the
organization and the processes taking place in the company.
·
Participation in project work - a group of
employees assigned to a task beyond the normal scope of responsibilities of
individual team members. This enables the assessment of the organizational and
interpersonal abilities of group members.
·
Coaching - individual training. Enabling the development
and the achievement of certain competencies and skills through an assessment of
practice-oriented activities.
According to Festinger, this method may be
categorised as a cognitive dissonance because the method aims at increasing the
efficiency of the use of knowledge already possessed by the employee. It
allows, therefore, that the employee tries to solve their own problems, even if
sometimes this could mean failure. But, at the same time offers the employee the
opportunity to learn his/her own mistakes.
The above methods are not the
only full extent of learning opportunities for employees. Paying part of the
fee for individual learning can make staff more motivated because there is a
clear individual benefit from this form of training. The company can then
benefit from new perspectives that the employee can bring. Providing training linked with some kind of incentive
for its successful conclusion can reinforce the ties between the individual and
the company and can improve general relations prevailing in the company.
As a result of the changing
nature of work and the work place, employers should focus on the continuation
of their employees’ education. The massive changes in technological innovation
and constant changes in the global market render this a necessity to maintain
competitiveness. The field of employee education is a constantly expanding one
with new theories and discoveries in the processes involved in learning and
cognition being made all of the time in fields as diverse as psychology and
biology. Applied sciences and a greater understanding of brain function, should
help to show the way for a more efficient and beneficial learning experiences
for the employee and greater efficiency for the employer. (Merriam,s. 2007)
In business development, owners and
managers are planning to invest in workers who are the foundation of every company.
One way to improve the qualifications of people employed in the company is to
delegate them for training, seminars, conferences or paying the fees for those
entering postgraduate or masters studies. This type of conduct in addition to
the broadening of knowledge gives the opportunity to establish best possible efficiency
the employee’s area of work. All forms
of investment in training reinforce the relationship between company and
employee with mutual benefits for both. The innovative use of in-house
training, in addition to traditional qualification routes such as O and A
levels, combined with incentives and individual/group rewards, has been shown to have salutary results for
all concerned. Activities such as, tours,
shooting, paintball, skydiving, etc. reinforce a group ethic and help to build
a more positive environment in which to work leading to potential benefits such as increased productivity,
information flow and interaction between departments, and the empowering of
workers themselves.
The effectiveness and efficiency
of adult learning depends on the underpinning of structure and the
appropriateness of the knowledge acquired, in relation to the qualities already
possessed by the employee. This impacts
directly on how skills are utilised and in terms of shaping an employee’s
attitude to their tasks and environment. Adults learn best when the
process relates to their own experience
in dealing with emerging problems or achieving goals. Learners need to
understand the importance and value of what they learn and have an input in the
process. It is crucial is that individuals and their experiences are recognised
as valuable and useful in the workplace, and that they can express themselves without
fear. The making of mistakes should be
an opportunity to learn from them without being judged.
The dynamic nature of work and
workplaces means that continuing education has become a more important factor
in employee development and company competitiveness. Changes in technological
innovation and communication, competition in the market and a constant need to
adjust these changes make learning a continuing requirement.
References
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Accessed on 20 December 2011
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January 2012
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