Response to "Andragogy and Self-Directed Learning: Pillars of Adult Learning Theory"

          I was honestly surprised that so much of Teaching Adult Writers in Diverse Contexts centered on lifespan development and its relationship to how adults learn. I am aware that elementary and secondary school certification programs require a course in developmental psychology for their future teachers, but I had not anticipated discussing similar content to teach adult learners. I think that I had assumed that this content was less relevant for educators of older students because their role is less directly related to educating their students socially and emotionally. I was surprised andragogy even existed as a unique theory.

I was relieved that my uncertainty about accepting an isolated field of andragogy has been echoed in the works of scholars of adult learning. Sharan B. Merriam highlights the controversy of a dichotomous structure of andragogy versus pedagogy in her essay, “Andagogy and Self-Directed Learning: Pillars of Adult Learning Theory”. Like critics of the original version of Knowles’ theory of andragogy, I have a difficult time classifying adults as exclusively intrinsically motivated, and youth students as entirely teacher-dependent. I personally cannot even say that I always fit the template of an ideal adult learner based on Knowles’ criteria. I was very intrigued by the revision of Knowles’ philosophy that Merriam described,

That these assumptions [about an ideal adult learner] were not necessarily true of all adults led Knowles himself to revise his thinking as to whether andragogy was just for adults and pedagogy just for children. Between 1970 and 1980 he moved from an andragogy versus pedagogy position to representing them on a continuum ranging from teacher-directed to student directed learning. He acknowledged that both approaches are appropriate with children and adults, depending on the situation. (6)

I find that a variation of andragogy as a spectrum is much more in line with my personal experience both as a learner and as an instructor. I believe that some of the most memorable educational moments in my youth featured more elements of andragogy rather than pedagogy. I have always loved to write and I used this motivation to really excel at self-directed creative writing projects throughout my elementary and secondary education. When I work with teens in the pre-vocational skills class I teach, I ask them to be self-directed and identify their own goals, and lead many class activities. Generally, the more self-directed I ask my students to be, the more professionalism and engagement I get from them in class.  

I think pedagogy is relevant and necessary for learners of all ages, too. Children feel secure in positive, predictable environments with strong routines. Likewise, adults seem to need these foundations for their learning to be successful as well, particularly in writing and learning language. Though I tend to respond to opportunities for self-directed and reflective learning much better than teacher-directed techniques, modeling is an essential element of pedagogy that I find necessary for my learning style. I felt more confident about pursuing writing an ethnography, despite it being a new writing style for me, with the guidance of teacher and student-written models.

Since I have worked with learners of all ages and I am a strong proponent of the features of andragogy for youth I work with, I am excited to continue to learn more about andragogy, particularly in relation to pedagogy. I believe this will expand into a dynamic exploration of universal design theory, and how it can unite these two approaches to instruction. I also think that this exploration will create a unique and meaningful basis for me to build my philosophy of teaching upon.