Andragogy and Adult Education (Essay Sample)

Andragogy and Adult Education Name Institution Andragogy and Adult Education The roots of andragogy as an area of inquest go as far back as the 1950’s in Europe. Subsequent to which Malcolm Knowles, an American consultant and adult education theorist, pioneered the idea as a theory and model from the 1970s (Merriam, 2001). In so doing, Malcolm defined andragogy as the art and science of helping adults acquire education. Essentially, andragogy is but a concept that holds a set of molds on how adults mug up. As opposed to the conventional didactic approach to learning, andragogy uses approaches that are both collaborative and problem-based. Moreover, the theory also emphasizes on more equality between the learners and the teacher. On Juxtaposition to pedagogy, andragogy comes across as more conducive theory of adult education. In pedagogy, the learner’s role is increasingly dependent. It is upon the teacher to dictate both the content and context of what a learner needs to learn, besides whether or not it is essential for them to learn it. In retrospect, andragogy acknowledges the fact that it is the norm for an individual to move from dependency to increased self-directedness in the process of maturation. Although the rate at which this occurs, along with the time, differ from disparate individuals, it a teacher’s responsibility to nurture and encourage this undertaking. The most compelling assumption of the andragogy theory is that an individual, in achieving a self-concept of essential self-direction, they become adults, albeit psychologically. Part of being an effective adult educator entails a comprehension of the preeminent and most effective learning practices. Adult learners are more predisposed to resisting learning the instance they start feeling and viewing it as nothing more than ideas, actions, and information imposed on them (Knowles, Holton III, & Swanson, 2012). More often than not, adults have a deep psychological need to be self-directing, although...