ANDRAGOGY AND SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING

ADULT EDUCATION: ANDRAGOGY AND SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING

Duration: 5 days
Course Fee: 400€

“The central question of how adults learn has occupied the attention of scholars and practitioners since the founding of adult education as a professional field of practice in the 1920s. Some eighty years later, we have no single answer, no one theory or model of adult learning that explains all that we know about adult learners, the various contexts where learning takes place, and the process of learning itself. What we do have is a mosaic of theories, models and sets of principles, and explanations that, combined, compose the knowledge base of adult learning. Two7c important pieces of that mosaic are andragogy and self-directed learning. Other chapters in this volume focus on some of the newer approaches to understanding learning; the purpose of this chapter is to revisit two of the foundational theories of adult learning with an eye to assessing their "staying power" as important components of our present-day understanding of adult learning” (Sharan B. Merriam)
Andragogy: In 1968, Malcolm Knowles proposed "a new label and a new technology" of adult learning to distinguish it from preadult schooling (p. 351), The ANDRAGOGY AND SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING 5 European concept of andragogy, which he defined as "the art and science of helping adults learn," was contrasted with pedagogy, the art and science of helping children learn (Knowles, 1.980, p. 43). Andragogy became a rallying point for those trying to define the field of adult education as separate from other areas of education.

Learning Outcomes
All the participants will
- Have an independent self-concept and who can direct his or her own learning,
- Have accumulated a reservoir of life experiences that is a rich resource for learning,
- Get learning needs closely related to changing social roles.
- Be motivated to learn by internal rather than external factors.

Objectives of the course

- Understanding
- How some adults remain self-directed in their learning over long periods of time
- How the process changes as learners move from novice to expert in subject matter and learning strategies
- How issues of power and control interact with the use of SDL in formal settings
- Discussing whether being self-directed as a learner has an impact on one's instructional and planning activities

- Defining
- What the role is of public policy in SDL
- What the critical practice of SDL looks like in practice
- Contextual factors interact with the personal characteristics of self-directed learners


- Analyzing
- The numerous possibilities for how future research on self-directed learning might enrich adult education practice as well as contribute to theory in adult learning
- In the scope of the course these two approaches will be defined in detail and tried to be
understood the applicability of them.

Methodology
- Discussions,
- Brainstorming,
- Analyzing and defining

Target group
- Adults, teachers, trainers, educators, school administrators, etc.

Preparation
Before the course,
- A detailed pre-course questionnaire to indicate their level of experience, teaching backgrounds, and training will be completed by participants.
- They will also prepare a presentation to reflect their own teaching method.

Validation
- A course participation certificate will be given to all participants.
- A Europass Mobility Certificate will be given if the participant demands it, as well.