Designing and managing a pattern of adult learning experience

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Designing and managing a pattern of adult learning experience

Makhynta Nataliya Volodymyrivna, PhD in Pedagogics, associate professor at foreign languages department, Cherkasy State Technological University

Анотація

Ключові слова: освіта дорослих; андрагог; організація освітнього простору; принципи організації; навчальний клімат; тип освітньої діяльності; оцінювання; мета навчання.

Designing and managing a pattern of learning experience

Makhynia Nataliya Volodymyrivna

Introduction. Adult education is the type of education that is free from rigidity (systems that are very strict or difficult to change) with regards to curriculum, learning materials, methodology, venue, duration or the length an individual takes to complete a particular instructional session. Adult learn in a variety of ways. Therefore, it stands to reason that there are a variety of educational delivery formats and teaching methods that should be employed to facilitate the learning process of adults.

The selection of teaching methods from one or a combination of the categories is dependent upon the intended outcome and the maturity (readiness level) of the learners, from a knowledge and skill perspective.

Purpose. The article is aimed to dwell upon designing the main principles of designing and managing a pattern of adult learning experience.

Results. The concept of adult education is interpreted as a continuous process of education throughout life based on the need to acquire new knowledge and skills. Since learning is a social process, a person is trained for three main reasons: for self-improvement; for the sake of competitiveness in the labor market (employment, better salaries, career opportunities, employer requirements, acquiring new skills); for the more successful social life (compassion, tolerance, decision making, protection of nature - those issues require collective solutions and people want to be involved, to express their own opinion).

There always exists a thorough dispute between two concepts - those of pedagogical and andragogical approach in teaching.

The andragogue sees his task as being two-fold: first, to design and manage a process for facilitating the acquisition of content by the learners; and secondly, to serve as a content resource (he perceives that there are many content resources in addition to his own - peers, supervisors, specialists and a variety of materials in the learner's environment, and that an important part of her responsibility is to keep up to date as to what these resources are and to link learners with them.)

The andragogue has to answer very different kinds of questions to come up with a process design. It is not a matter of the pedagogue's being concerned with content and the andragogue's not being concerned with it; rather, the pedagogue is concerned with transmitting the content and the andragogue is concerned with facilitating the acquisition of the content by the learners.

The questions raised by the andragogy have to do with implementing the following elements of an andragogical process design: 1) Climate setting. A prerequisite for effective learning to take place is the establishment of a climate that is conducive to learning. Two broad aspect of climate must be considered: institutional climate and the climate of training situation. People are more open to learning if they feel respected. If they feel that they are talked down to be embarrassed or otherwise denigrated, their energy is diverted from learning to dealing with these feelings. 2) Creating a mechanism for mutual planning. A basic law of human nature is at work here because people tend to feel committed to a decision or activity to the extent that they have participated in making the decision or planning the activity. 3) Diagnosing the participant's learning needs. Trainers can use organizations and communities for assessing training needs as perceived by individuals. These needs are the appropriate source of goals for a total program. But in a particular training event involving particular individuals, a learning need is not a need unless so perceived by the learner. 4) Translating learning needs into objectives. Having diagnosed their learning needs participants now face the task of translating them into learning objectives - positive statements of directions of growth. 5) Designing and managing the pattern of learning experience. Having formulated the learning objectives, the next task of the trainer and the participants is to design a plan for achieving them. This plan will include identifying the resources most relevant to each objective and the most effective strategies for utilizing these resources. 6) Evaluating the extent to which the objectives have been achieved. In many situations, institutional policies require some sort of «objective» (quantitative) measure of learning outcomes. The recent trend in evaluation research has been to place increasing emphasis on «subjective» (qualitative) evaluation - finding out what is really happening inside the participants and how differently they are performing in life. In any case, the andragogical model requires that the learners get actively involved in process of evaluating their learning outcomes.

Conclusion. Teaching adult learners can be very challenging. Andragogues are dealing with individuals who usually have a set of study skills, acquired in their previous schooling. They know perfectly well what it's like to attend classes, and the greater their commitment to their learning, the more organized they are, and the more skills they are willing to deploy. Taking adults into the process ofplanning activities and assessing them is vital for successful adult education models.

Key words: adult education; andragogue; organization of educational environment; organization principles; educational climate; type of educational activity; evaluation; purpose of training.

adult student education planning

Introduction. The rapid development of technology, increased competition and consumer demand lead to the need for lifelong learning, «... from early childhood to old age - and in different contexts: formal (at educational institutions), informally at work place informally in social life» [6].

Accents in education have largely shifted over the recent years. The system crisis arising from new challenges of our society encourages us to review and rethink both - goals of acquiring knowledge and educational time measurement.

Quick and unstoppable development of new technologies requires constant mobilization of forces and opportunities for learning and acquiring more and more skills. Knowledge is currently the center of activity and development of individuals and society in general. It is personal capital, special means to achieve success in life. Constant, continuous education promotes a deeper understanding of events and processes that prevent unemployment, humiliation and discrimination.

Acquiring new knowledge is necessary for both professional work and leisure, since requirements to qualification are increasing, and therefore the value of knowledge in the process of personal self-realization increases, too. Due to the rapid aging of knowledge, people get into the situation when education received before is insufficient to fully participate in the social, industrial and individual processes. The issue of finding a solution in the situation becomes urgent.

Adult education is an integral part of lifelong learning. The rich history of adult education in Europe varies greatly by region and carries powerful elements of Enlightenment equity and access thinking. Recognition of adult learning has been grown since the min- nineties. It is vitally important to the European Social Model and to the standing of a strong Europe in globally competitive world [8].

Adult education is the type of education that is free from rigidity (systems that are very strict or difficult to change) with regards to curriculum, learning materials, methodology, venue, duration or the length an individual takes to complete a particular instructional session [10]. Adult learn in a variety of ways. Therefore, it stands to reason that there are a variety of educational delivery formats and teaching methods that should be employed to facilitate the learning process of adults.

The selection of teaching methods from one or a combination of the categories is dependent upon the intended outcome and the maturity (readiness level) of the learners, from a knowledge and skill perspective.

The purpose of the paper presented is to design the main principles of designing and managing a pattern of adult learning experience.

Presentation of key material. The concept of adult education is interpreted as a continuous process of education throughout life based on the need to acquire new knowledge and skills. Since learning is a social process, a person is trained for three main reasons:

- For self-improvement;

- For the sake of competitiveness in the labor market (employment, better salaries, career opportunities, employer requirements, acquiring new skills);

- For the more successful social life (compassion, tolerance, decision making, protection of nature - those issues require collective solutions and people want to be involved, to express their own opinion).

Adult education provides lifelong learning, improves skills in accordance with the requirements of the labor market and people's own needs. It combines formal and informal educations, develops both new and innate abilities.

The following benefits of adult education are distinguished: flexibility; diversity; availability in time and place of study [2].

It provides a continuous process of improving both the individual and society, ensures the requests of economic development of the state and civil society development.

There always exists a thorough dispute between two concepts - those of pedagogical and andragogical approach in teaching. When planning an educational activity, a pedagogue thinks in terms of drafting a content plan, and he has to answer only four questions to come up with a plan:

- What content needs to be covered? (the assumption being that they will only learn what he transmits, and therefore he has to cover it all in the classroom). So he draws up a long list of content terms;

- How can this content be organized into manageable units? (1-hour, 3-hour, etc. units). So he arranges the units in a sequence according to chronology (history, literature, political science) or from simple to complex (science, math);

- What would be the most effective methods? Choice will probably be lecture and assign reading; if unit 2 involves skill performance, the method of choice will probably be demonstration by him and drill, drilling by them [9].

By answering these four questions, a pedagogue ends up with a content-transmission plan. The andragogue, on the other hand, when he undertakes to plan an education activity, sees his task as being two-fold: first, and primarily, to design and manage a process for facilitating the acquisition of content by the learners; and only secondly, to serve as a content resource (he perceives that there are many content resources in addition to his own - peers, supervisors, specialists and a variety of materials in the learner's environment, and that an important part of her responsibility is to keep up to date as to what these resources are and to link learners with them).

The andragogue has to answer very different kinds of questions to come up with a process design. (Notice that it is not a matter of the pedagogue's being concerned with content and the andragog's not being concerned with it; rather, the pedagogue is concerned with transmitting the content and the andragogue is concerned with facilitating the acquisition of the content by the learners.)

The questions raised by the andragogy have to do with implementing the following elements of an andragogical process design [1]:

1. Climate setting. A prerequisite for effective learning to take place is the establishment of a climate that is conducive to learning. Two broad aspect of climate must be considered: institutional climate and the climate of training situation.

Among the questions that might be raised of a regarding institutional climate are:

- Do the policy statements of the institution convey a deep commitment to the value of human resources development in the accomplishment of the mission of the institution?

- Does the budget of the institution provide adequate resources for the support of significant human resources development (HRD) efforts?

- Is the HRD staff involved in the decision-making process as regards personnel policies and programs?

- Are adequate physical facilities for HRD activities provided?

- Does the reward system of the institution give credit for the achievement of personal growth on the part of individuals and their supervisor?

As regards setting a climate in a training situation, these are the conditions that are thought to characterize the climate that is conducive to learning, and the questions that might be asked in creating a process design to achieve those conditions.

A climate of mutual respect. People are more open to learning if they feel respected. If they feel that they are talked down to be embarrassed or otherwise denigrated, their energy is diverted from learning to dealing with these feelings.

There exist several things to try to bring the climate of mutual respect into being: First, provide name tents - 5 by 8 cards with their names printed on them with bold felt pens-so that they can start calling each other by name. Then, put learners into small groups of five or six persons (preferably sitting around tables) and ask them to share their «what's» (their work roles); their «who's» (one thing about themselves that will enable others to see them as unique human beings); any special knowledge, skill, or other resources.

They would be willing to share with others; and any questions, problems or concerns they are hoping will be dealt with in this program. It is also possible to ask one person in each group to volunteer to give a high-point summary of this information about each group. This hour is the most important hour in the whole training event, since it starts the process of creating a climate that is conducive to learning.

A climate of collaboration rather than competitiveness. The above sharing exercise causes the participants to start seen themselves as mutual helpers rather than rivals. For many kinds of learning, the richest resources are within their peers, hence the importance of making these resources is available.

A climate of supportiveness rather than judgments. It is possible for an andragogue to set this climate by being supportive in their own behavior but the opening exercise also tends to establish peer-support relationships.

A climate of mutual trust. In order to reduce the instinctive mistrust with which people typically react to authority figures, in presenting an andragogue had better try to emphasize who he is as a human being rather than as an expert, and he urges them to call him by his first name.

A climate of fun. Learning should be one of the most joyful things we do and so, being involved in teaching adults, try to do everything possible to make the experience enjoyable. It is also helpful to make a lot of use of spontaneous humor.

A human climate. Learning is a human activity; training is for dogs and horses. So try to establish a climate in which people feel that they are being treated as human beings not objects, try to care for their human needs. Comfortable chairs, frequent breaks. adequate ventilation and lighting, availability of coffee or cold drinks, and the like.

The first questions an andragogue asks in constructing a process design, therefore, is «what procedures should I use with this particular group to bring these climate conditions into being?»

2. Creating a mechanism for mutual planning. A basic law of human nature is at work here because people tend to feel committed to a decision or activity to the extent that they have participated in making the decision or planning the activity. The reverse is even more true. People tend to feel uncommitted to the extent they feel that the decision or activity is being imposed on them without their having a chance to influence it.

In planning a total program for all the course workshops, seminars of an institution, the usual mechanism is a planning committee, councilor task force. To be effective, it is critical that it be representative of all the constituencies the program is designed to serve. For a particular program, such as a course or workshop, it is also possible to use teams of participants, with each team having responsibility for planning one unit of the program.

The fullest participation in planning is achieved, however, through the use of learning contracts, in which case the learners develop their own learning plans.

The second question the andragogue answer in developing a process model therefore, is «what procedures will be used to involve the learners in planning?»

3. Diagnosing the participant's learning needs. The HRD literature is rich in techniques. Trainers can use organizations and communities for assessing training needs as perceived by individuals. These needs are the appropriate source of goals for a total program. But in a particular training event involving particular individuals, a learning need is not a need unless so perceived by the learner. One of the highest arts in training is creating the conditions and providing the tools that will enable learners to become aware of their training needs and therefore translate them into learning needs'. A new body of technology being developed for facilitating this process, with emphasis on such self-diagnostic as simulation exercise, assessment centers, competency-based rating scales, and videotape feedback.

So the third set of questions the andragogue asks in constructing a process design is «What procedures will be used in helping the participants diagnose their own learning needs?»

4. Translating learning needs into objectives. Having diagnosed their learning needs participants now face the task of translating them into learning objectives - positive statements of directions of growth. Some kinds of learning (such as machine operation) lend themselves to objectives stated as terminal behaviors that can be observed and measured. Others (such as decision-making ability) are so complex that they are better stated in terms of direction of improvement.

So the fourth question the androgogue asks is «What procedures can I use for helping participants translate their learning needs into learning objectives?»

5. Designing and managing the pattern of learning experience. Having formulated the learning objectives, the next task of the trainer and the participants is to design a plan for achieving them. This plan will include identifying the resources most relevant to each objective and the most effective strategies for utilizing these resources. Such plan is likely to include a mix of total group experiences including input by the trainer, subgroup (learningteaching team) experience, and individual learning projects. A key criterion for assessing the excellence of such a design is, how deeply involved is the participants in the mutual process of designing and managing a pattern of learning experiences?

So the fifth question the androgogue asks is «What procedures can I use for involving the learners with me in designing and managing a pattern of learning experiences?»

6. Evaluating the extent to which the objectives have been achieved. In many situations, institutional policies require some sort of «objective» (quantitative) measure of learning outcomes. But the recent trend in evaluation research has been to place increasing emphasis on «subjective» (qualitative) evaluation - finding out what is really happening inside the participants and how differently they are performing in life. In any case, the andragogical model requires that the learners get actively involved in process of evaluating their learning outcomes.

The sixth question, therefore, that the andragogue asks is «What procedures can I use to involve the learners responsibly in evaluating the accomplishment of the learning objectives?»

By answering these six sets of questions the learning facilitator emerges with process design - a set of procedures for facilitating the acquisition of content by learners [4].

In the last decades, our society accumulated more research based knowledge about adults as learners than was known in all of previous history. In the past decade, the body of knowledge had at least doubled.

Conclusion. Teaching adult learners can be very rewarding, but very challenging as well. Teachers should remember they are dealing with individuals who have their own lives outside of school, some with very busy schedules. But adult learners are also better equipped for dialogue and exchange. They come to class with a set of tools and information that can be of great use to educators.

When we teach adults, we're dealing with individuals who usually have a set of study skills, acquired in their previous schooling. They know perfectly well what it's like to attend classes, and the greater their commitment to their learning, the more organized they are, and the more skills they are willing to deploy.

References

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3. Eurostat. The Life of women and men in Europe, A statistical portrait, 197 pages, ISBN 92-894-3569-2, EUR 30 (in Engl.)

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