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Teaching
Adults: Is It Different?
Myths and Realities
by Susan Imel, ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career and Vocational Education
Columbus, Ohio
The adult education
literature generally supports the idea that teaching adults should be
approached in a different way than teaching children and adolescents.
The assumption that teachers of adults should use a different style
of teaching is based on the widely espoused theory of andragogy, which
suggests that "adults expect learner-centered settings where they can
set their own goals and organize their own learning around their present
life needs" (Donaldson, Flannery, and Ross-Gordon 1993, p. 148). However,
even in the field of adult education, debate occurs about the efficacy
of a separate approach for teaching adults. Some believe that adult
education is essentially the same process as education generally (Garrison
1994) and therefore does not require a separate teaching approach: that
is, all good teaching, whether for adults or children, should be responsive
in nature.
The question of
whether teaching adults is different remains ambiguous. For example,
research summarized in an ERIC Digest (Imel 1989) has shown that even
those educators who say they believe in using an andragogical approach
do not necessarily use a different style when teaching adults. Additional
myths and realities related to teaching adults are explored in this
publication. Two areas are examined: types of adult learning and what
learners themselves want from teachers.
Different Types
of Adult Learning
One way to approach
the question of whether teaching adults is different is by examining
the types of learning in which adults engage. Drawing upon the work
of Habermas and Mezirow, Cranton (1994) classified adult learning into
three categories:
Subject-oriented
adult learning --In adult learning contexts that are subject oriented,
the primary goal is to acquire content. The educator "speaks of covering
the material, and the learners see themselves as gaining knowledge
or skills" (ibid., p. 10).
Consumer-oriented
adult learning --The goal of consumer-oriented learning is to
fulfill the expressed needs of learners. Learners set their learning
goals, identify objectives, select relevant resources, and so forth.
The educator acts as a facilitator or resource person, "and does not
engage in challenging or questioning what learners say about their
needs" (ibid., p. 12).
Emancipatory
adult learning --The goal of emancipatory learning is to free
learners from the forces that limit their options and control over
their lives, forces that they have taken for granted or seen as beyond
their control. Emancipatory learning results in transformations of
learner perspectives through critical reflection (Mezirow 1991). The
educator plays an active role in fostering critical reflection by
challenging learners to consider why they hold certain assumptions,
values, and beliefs (Cranton 1994).
Of the three types
of adult learning, only emancipatory has been described as unique to
adulthood, but even that claim has been challenged (Merriam and Caffarella
1991). Subject-oriented learning is the most common form of learning
engaged in by youth. Collaborative and cooperative learning and other
types of experiential learning that are more consumer oriented are also
found in youth classrooms. However, according to Mezirow (1981), emancipatory
learning, with its emphasis upon learner transformation, can take place
only in adulthood because, "it is only in late adolescence and in adulthood
that a person can recognize being caught in his/her own history and
reliving it" (p. 11). In adulthood, "rather than merely adapting to
changing circumstances by more diligently applying old ways of knowing
. . . [individuals] discover a need to acquire new perspectives in order
to gain a more complete understanding of changing events and a higher
degree of control over their lives. The formative learning of childhood
becomes transformative learning in adulthood" (Mezirow 1991, p. 3).
As a result of the research and theory-building efforts of Mezirow-fully
described in Transformative Dimensions of Adult Learning (1991)-emancipatory
adult learning has become more commonly known as transformative learning.
Teaching Approaches
for Transformative Learning
If transformative
learning is unique to adulthood, does it require the use of teaching
approaches that are geared specifically to adults? This is not clear.
It is true that transformative learning requires that learners address
problems through critical reflection. Some strategies used to facilitate
transformative learning, e.g., such as journal writing, critical incidents,
and experiential methods, are used in other types of learning as well.
(See Cranton 1994 and Mezirow and Associates 1990 for a full discussion
of these and other methods that can be used to promote transformative
learning.)
What is clear is
that fostering transformative learning demands a different approach
by the educator. Although learners must decide on their own to engage
in transformative learning, educators who wish to promote transformative
learning have the responsibility to set the stage and provide opportunities
for critical reflection (Cranton 1994). When educators are operating
in the domain of transformative learning, they help learners examine
their beliefs and how they have acquired them by creating situations
in which they can debate how their values, assumptions, ideologies,
and beliefs have come to be constructed (Newman 1993). Instead of congratulating
themselves for having made their point when a learner says, "I never
looked at it that way before," educators can help learners engage in
transformative learning by responding with, "`How did you see things?'
and then, `What made you see things like that?' and then `If we can
understand how you came to have a set of ideas and attitudes then, let's
look at how you come to have the ideas and attitudes you have now'"
(ibid., p. 182).
Of course, not
all adult learning is transformative in nature; many adult educators
also do not believe that they have a role in helping adults engage in
critical reflection and, consequently, never operate in the transformative
domain. Those who do, however, perceive that teaching adults is different.
What Do Adults
Expect from Teaching?
Examining what
adult learners expect from teaching provides another perspective on
whether teaching adults is different. In this context, the question
might be more appropriately posed, "Based on adult students' expectations,
should teaching adults be different?" In an effort to answer this question,
Donaldson, Flannery, and Ross-Gordon (1993) combined and reanalyzed
research that examined adult college students' expectations of effective
teaching and compared them with those of traditional students.
Previously, each
of the authors had conducted investigations that looked at aspects of
this question. Donaldson (1989) used a case study approach to examine
student letters recommending faculty members for an excellence in off-campus
teaching award. Flannery (1991) interviewed 68 returning students during
the first semester back at school, asking them what they expected of
instructors in the classroom. Ross-Gordon (1991) used the Critical Incident
Technique to collect examples of the best and poorest instructors that
respondents had encountered during college. Data for Ross-Gordon's study
were collected through a questionnaire mailed to a randomly selected
sample of adult undergraduates. The results from all three studies suggested
that adult students might have "different" expectations for teachers
that in some ways paralleled the assumptions underlying an andragogical
approach, but each researcher also found some similarities to expectations
for a teacher-directed approach. By combining the results of their studies,
the researchers were able to confirm and extend their individual results
and also add an element that compared the expectations of adult students
to those of traditional students as reflected in the literature.
In the combined
results, the six most frequently mentioned attributes adult learners
expected of effective instructors were as follows (Donaldson, Flannery,
and Ross-Gordon 1993, p. 150): to be knowledgeable; to show concern
for student learning; to present material clearly; to motivate; to emphasize
relevance of class material; to be enthusiastic.
Thus, the adult
learners in this study demonstrated preferences for characteristics
associated with both student-centered (e.g., relevance of material,
concern for student learning) and teacher-directed (e.g., knowledge,
clarity) instruction. When adult expectations for good teaching were
compared with those of traditional students, many similarities existed
in how the two groups characterized good teaching. However, four teacher
characteristics mentioned by adults that were not among the top items
for undergraduates were as follows: creates a comfortable learning atmosphere;
uses a variety of techniques; adapts to meet diverse needs; dedicated
to teaching.
Donaldson, Flannery,
and Ross-Gordon (1993) point out that the first three of these items
are congruent with the principles of instruction found in the adult
education literature. Perhaps, as suggested by the researchers, when
it comes to teaching adults, "the issue is not to continue to promote
an either/or approach with regard to teaching expectations of adults,
but rather to concentrate on the particular attributes which adults
consistently select as important for effective teaching" (ibid., p.
150).
Conclusion
Is teaching adults
different? Based upon the literature discussed here, the answer is both
yes and no. Perhaps a better way to frame the question would be "Should
teaching adults be different?" The answer to that would, of course,
depend upon the purpose of the teaching-learning situation, including
what approach and methods seem to be appropriate, as well as the needs
of the learners. Many of the myths related to teaching adults emerge
from an uncritical acceptance of the theory of andragogy. Unfortunately,
the assumptions underlying the theory are still largely untested through
research. Pratt (1993) also points out that adult educators need to
examine the philosophical assumptions underlying andragogy in order
to clarify "the underlying values and beliefs and . . . central concept
of [adult] learning" (p. 87).
References
Cranton, P. Understanding
and Promoting Transformative Learning: A Guide for Educators of Adults.
San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1994.
Donaldson, J. F.
"An Examination of Similarities and Differences among Adults' Perceptions
of Instructional Excellence." Paper presented at the American Educational
Research Association Conference, San Francisco, California, March 1989.
(ED 308 750)
Donaldson, J. F.;
Flannery, D.; and Ross-Gordon, J. "A Triangulated Study Comparing Adult
College Students' Perceptions of Effective Teaching with Those of Traditional
Students." Continuing Higher Education Review 57, no. 3 (Fall 1993):
147-165.
Flannery, D. "Adults'
Expectations of Instructors: Criteria for Hiring and Evaluating Instructors."
Continuing Higher Education Review 55, nos. 1-2 (Winter-Spring 1991):
34-48.
Garrison, D. R.
"An Epistemological Overview of the Field." In Research Perspectives
in Adult Education, edited by D. R. Garrison. Malabar, FL: Krieger Publishing,
1994.
Imel, S. Teaching
Adults: Is It Different? ERIC Digest No. 82 . Columbus: ERIC Clearinghouse
on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education, Center on Education and
Training for Employment, The Ohio State University, 1989. (ERIC Document
Reproduction Service No. ED 305 495)
Merriam, S. B.,
and Caffarella, R. S. Learning in Adulthood. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass,
1991.
Mezirow, J. Transformative
Dimensions of Adult Learning. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1991.
Mezirow, J. "A
Critical Theory of Adult Learning and Education." Adult Education 32,
no. 1 (Fall 1981): 3-24.
Mezirow, J., and
Associates. Fostering Critical Reflection in Adulthood. San Francisco,
CA: Jossey-Bass 1990.
Newman, M. The
Third Contract: Theory and Practice in Trade Union Training. Sydney,
New South Wales, Australia: Stewart Victor Publishing, 1993.
Pratt, D. D. "Andragogy
after Twenty-five Years." In An Update on Adult Learning Theory. New
Directions for Adult and Continuing Education No. 57, edited by S. B.
Merriam. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, Spring 1993.
Ross-Gordon, J.
M. "Critical Incidents in the College Classroom: What Do Adult Undergraduates
Perceive as Effective Teaching?" Continuing Higher Education Review
55, nos. 1-2 (Winter-Spring 1991): 14-33.
This ERIC Digest
was published in 1995. The project was funded at least in part with
Federal funds from the U.S. Department of Education under Contract No.
ED-99-CO-0013.
