Lemma Degefa

Omega Graduate School

Dr. Sara Reichard

 

 

 

July 20, 2024

 

 

 

Assignment #3 – Essay

1. Write a 5-page paper based on one (1) of the three (3) items below:

● List and discuss the fundamental principles of adult education theory. Identify elements of the OGS degree program that correspond to each principle.

● Explain Jack Meirow's transformative learning theory. How does the OGS approach to transformative learning promote critical reflection for transcending barriers to personal growth and social impact?

● Assess Jane Vella's 12 Twelve Principles for Effective Adult Learning and the application of quantum thinking. Discuss how OGS promotes quantum thinking (holistic, integrated, spiritual, and energetic).

2. Paper Outline a. Begin with an introductory paragraph that has a succinct thesis statement.

b. Address the topic of the paper with critical thought.

c. End with a conclusion that reaffirms your thesis.

d. Use a minimum of seven scholarly research sources (two books and the remaining scholarly peer-reviewed journal articles).

 

 

 

 

Introduction

The work environment has become increasingly unpredictable making the conventional leadership and management wisdom quite irrelevant. Scholars attempt to describe the current context as volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous, which requires leaders to exert uninterrupted effort to be able to navigate through the rather startling wave (Nowacka & Rzemieniak, 2022).

According to Emily, Aykens, Lowmaster, and Shepp (2024), unprecedented disruption will to continue to unfold in 2024 and beyond where leaders must upsurge their leadership capabilities to be able to remain relevant and effective. Needless to say, thus, leading the modern workplace requires commitment to routine learning, maximum flexibility, and strategic reimagination. That is why scholars propose the adult learning approach as an alternative solution for leaders to practice so that they may remain equipped for the challenging duty that they discharge. 

It may, thus, be said that adult education approach contributes toward leadership effectiveness by offering flexible opportunity for continuous personalized learning. This essay discusses how adult education approach becomes instrumental for leaders to remain consistently effective in the inconsistent landscape of our time. In the final analysis, the essay briefly describes the imperfection of adult learning approach, which alerts adult learners to look for creative ways to optimize their learning experiences creatively and in a contextually appropriate manner.

 

Discussion

The current complex and defiant working environment is creating a need for those in leadership roles to constantly upgrade their skills and knowledge. Studies suggest that those in leadership positions must engage themselves with continuous learning in order to be effective in discharging their duties (Stojanovic, 2022). According to Kurtul & Arik (2020) most leaders are working adults, thus, need a flexible, independent, and tailor-made approach to meet their leadership capacity gaps at the pace that best suits their context. That is why scholars argue that andragogy, a self-directed learning that promotes critical thinking and problem-solving skills, stands out to be the most effective approach for adult learners.

 

Rothwell (2020) presents adult learning as an effective remedy to leadership uncertainty as a result of today’s fast-paced ever-changing realities of life and responsibilities. According to this source, adult learning is usually dependent on exploration, transformation and the search for making life more meaningful. In this sense, learners’ experiences and learning goals should have the highest value.

In modern education, learner-centered approaches are utilized to cultivate dynamic and varied learning settings for adult learners that promote active participation to achieve better learning outcomes that result in greater leadership effectiveness. The adult learning approach involves experiential learning, project-based learning, adaptive classroom designs, and technology-infused instruction, ensuring leadership effectiveness in today’s chaotic world (Alisa & Dashew, 2023). Apparently, adult learners come into educational environments with systems of knowledge firmly embedded in their approach to life and learning (Bleiler, 2023). According to this source, therefore, creating an atmosphere of trust and mutual engagement with adult learner enhances the correct setting and tone for transformative learning, which results in leadership effectiveness.

That is why the shift has been made from the traditional teacher-led pedagogical education system to a learner-led andragogical learning approach. The self-directed learning adult learning approach emphasized the significance of relevance in the learning journey, emphasizing autonomy, problem-solving, and active engagement (Singha, Rema, & Thomas, 2024). Therefore, the adult education philosophy provides a customized learning alternative to adult learners. The approach suits to the needs of adults in that adult learners have specific needs, tested experiences, basic knowledge, and unique context that they deal with.

Loeng (2020) asserts that adult learning has its roots in humanistic assumptions, which regards each human being as unique with preferred individualized approach to learning. Thus, the adult learning approach promotes self-directed learning where adult learners take the responsibility to learn and teachers play facilitative roles. Such approach not only enhances the relevance of the learning content, but also promotes effectiveness in acquiring desired knowledge and skill toward performance effectiveness.  

Kurtul & Arik, (2020) note that the shift in the learning approach from a pedagogical style, which is primarily concerned with transmitting knowledge, to one that prioritizes active involvement and learner independence has enhanced creative learning and improved leadership. This shift has resulted in a more dynamic and individualized learning experience, which flexible techniques to cater to the developing demands of learners in a constantly changing world. Therefore, adult learning approach has contributed toward overall effectiveness of learning and its outcomes.  

Conceptually, the adult learning assumes that learners make personal decisions in daily life which mostly affect other individuals. They are also presumed to determine their learning goals self-directedly. Adults are self-oriented learners who add rich experiences to the learning process making it different from pedagogy, which is instructive by nature (Knowles, Holton, Swanson, & Robinson, 2020). Scholars argue that adult learners want to know the reason they are learning, prefer to learn experientially, and immediate application of lessons. To this effect, adults need to be involved in the planning and evaluation of the learning process. This source emphasizes that adults prefer self-directed and self-designed learning over group-learning experiences and select more than one medium for learning, and they desire to control pace and start/stop time. Consequently, adult learning approach has resulted in a transformative learning experience, even creating continued desire to lifelong learning (Rothwell, 2020). 

In the final analysis, the criticality of learning as a foundational aspect of leadership effectiveness has been well documented (Corbett & Spinello, 2020). It’s further emphasized that continuous learning is the hope for leaders to cultivate their leadership effectiveness. The self-directed adult learning enhances critical thinking and problem-solving skills, ultimately leading to overall effectiveness (Singha, Rema, & Thomas, 2024).  In short, effective leaders are lifelong learners, and adult learning offers leaders unlimited access to learning more and leading better.

Despite the popularity it has gained among many scholars, the essence of the adult education theory is still debated. Some scholars argue that the principles of adult education reflect some deficiencies. For instance, Kurtul & Arik (2020) reveal that there is still debate whether adult education is a theory or an assumption. Others studies note that andragogy makes generalizations about adults. According to some scholars, not all adults can be dependent and not all adults are motivated to learn, and some life experiences can be barriers to learning (Johnson, 2023). Others add that learning preferences for adults could vary from people and cultures (Roessger, Roumell, & Weese, 2022). There are scholars who argue that adult learning is not as efficient and effective as it appears; it’s time consuming and even difficult to the momentum of learning (Lewis & Bryan, 2021).  Although many agree that andragogy promotes independent learning, there are those who argue that motivation and learning can be achieved through collective learning (Singh, 2022). It’s also noted that research in the field of andragogy is lacking (Ahmad, Mehar, Siddique, & Khan, 2021).

Evidently, andragogy is not a perfect learning approach. Yet, the flexibility it offers and its ability to unleash individual potential to learning cannot be undermined. Adult learners can creatively optimize their learning experiences as it fits into their felt needs and unique context.

Conclusion

I have personally experienced both pedagogy and andragogy in my school life. I studied pedagogy as a major course. As a primary school teacher at Ethiopian public schools for seven years, I applied pedagogical methods to teach students. There was standard text book and the teacher chooses what and how the students must learn. The students were taught contents and expected to memorize what they were taught. As a matter of fact, the entire process was known as teaching process.

As I continued my study in one of the Ethiopian universities, the process was called teaching-learning process, and education was perceived as an interaction between teacher and students. After completing my study, I became a teacher at one of the high schools, and I remember doing some lecture and assigning time for students to reflect and interact. That way, students demonstrated better understanding and commitment to learn.  

At this junction, I’m experiencing learning through the adult education approach at OGS. I’m responsible for my own learning, yet, enjoying minimal but meaningful support from my professors. The entire procedure is suitable to my learning goal and personal context. Had it not been for the andragogical approach, which gives me flexibility and freedom of learning, I wouldn’t be able to pursue the study at OGS. When I look at the time pressure on my part due to competing priorities, my personal goal of learning, and other contextual factors, the adult learning methodology is the best option for me to study.

Most importantly, the contextualization aspect of the assignments has enabled me to apply the knowledge that I acquired to my actual leadership responsibilities. Since my role involves equipping leaders through non-formal and informal training activities, I have been able to review and improve my philosophy of education and practice of developing leaders. I have seen the need to diminish my role to facilitation, while the learners take more responsibility to do their own learning with minimal guidance.

In summary, the adult education approach contributes toward better learning experience for adult learners, thus, ensure their continuous development resulting in overall leadership effectiveness.

 

 

Works Cited

Ahmad, S., Mehar, S., Siddique, N., & Khan, M. A. (2021). Global research on andragogy: A bibliometric analysis. Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal). 112 (4), 1-22. https://doi.org/digitalcommons. unl. edu/libphilprac/5575.

Alisa Belzer and Brain Dashew (Eds.), (2023). Understanding the adult learner: Perspectives and practices. Stylus Publishing. https://doi.org/ 10.4324/9781003448471    

Anna Nowacka and Magdalena Rzemieniak (2022) The impact of the VUCA environment on the digital competences of managers in the power industry. Energies, 15 (185), 2-17. https://doi.org/10.3390/en15010185

Corbett, F., & Spinello, E. (2020). Connectivism and leadership: harnessing a learning theory for the digital age to redefine leadership in the twenty-first century. Heliyon, 6(1). 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e03250

Echezona-Johnson, C. (2023). Critical analysis of two andragogy assumptions. Academia. https://www.academia.edu/9544119/critical_analysis_two_of_andragogy_assumptions

 

Emily R. McRae, Peter Aykens, Kaelyn Lowmaster, and Jonah Shepp (2024). Nine trends that will shape work in 2024 and beyond, Harvard Business Publishing Education. https://hbr.org/2024/01/9

Knowles, M. S., Holton, E. F. III, Swanson, R. A., & Robinson, P. A. (2020). The adult learner: The definitive classic in adult education and human resource development (9th ed.). Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429299612

Kurtul, N., & Arik, S. (2020). Andragogy: A theory in practice in higher education

Journal of Research in Higher Education, 4(2):54-69. https://doi.org:10.24193/JRHE.2020.2.4

Lewis, N., & Bryan, V. (2021). Andragogy and teaching techniques to enhance adult learners’ experience. Journal of Nursing Education and Practice, 11(11), 31-40. https://doi.org/10.5430/jnep.v11n11p31

Loeng, S. (2020). Self‐directed learning: A core concept in adult education. Education Research International, 2020(1), https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/3816132

Loueda B. Bleiler (2023). Transformative learning theory as applied to worship studies (Publication No. 4198 [Doctoral dissertation, Liberty University]. Thesis submitted to the faculty of the School of Music

Roessger, K. M., Roumell, E. A., & Weese, J. (2022). Rethinking andragogical assumptions in the global age: How preferences for andragogical learning vary across people and cultures. Studies in continuing education, 44(1), 14-38. https://doi.org/10.1080/0158037X.2020.1732335

Rothwell, W. J. (2020). Adult learning basics. Association for Talent Development. https://www.amazon.com/Adult-Learning-Basics-Atd-Training/dp/1950496147

Singha, S., Rema, M. K., & Thomas, L. (2024). Comparing pedagogical and andragogical approaches in education: Fostering crisis management and creative problem-solving skills in educational leadership. IGI Global, 72(2), 49-75. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-6684-8332-9.ch00

Singh, A. (2022). The cultural gap in andragogy and a comparison with the gurukula system of education. International Education & Research Journal, 8(4), 28-30. https://ierj.in/journal/index.php/ierj/article/view/2442/2463

Stojanovic´, M. (2022). Book Review: The adult learner: The definitive classic in adult education and human resource development by M. S. Knowles, E. F. Holton III, R. A. Swanson, & P. A. Robinson. Adult Education Quarterly, 72(2), 216-217. https://doi.org/10.1177/07417136211045695