The concept of learning is a key point in both the development and execution of educational material and programs across all levels of Academia. However, while much of this theory focuses on the development of children and the acquisition of knowledge between formative years and adulthood, there is a growing body of work dedicated to educating adults and a variety of different fields and the subsequent trials and tribulations associated in this area of expertise. In An Update on Adult Development Theory: New Ways of Thinking About the Life Course, a variety of different aspects of educating adults and the need to understand how working with grown students are analyzed in terms of both life experience and also how they will absorb new information in relation to their larger body of knowledge when compared to children. When comparing this work with others, it is clear that while adult learning is something that is a detailed and extensive field of Interest but it also takes a variety of different stances on the best way to interact with students who are adults because of the fact that the same life experiences that make them more apt to learn a new field also can lead to a more difficult method of streamlining information for absorption in an educational setting.
While some pieces on the subject of educational theory and on adult learning in particular focus on the perspective of a single author or piece collaborated on by a multitude of contributors, this is not always the most effective approach to analyzing such a diverse subject as adult education and learning theory. An Update on Adult Development Theory: New Ways of Thinking About the Life Course acts as a collection of different essays and subject matter that give the reader unique perspectives on different aspects of learning as a whole but, in particular, on how adults will compartmentalize and relate information gained through life experiences and a different kind of perspective in terms of personal narrative, spiritual perspective, and thematic elements in one’s personal life story. By focusing on the key points an adult learning, the authors are able to focus the idea of acquisition of knowledge by adults as a causal relationship between the idea of understanding of the self in relation to new material. Children, in contrast to adults, are students who can be termed tabula rasa or a blank slate or as adults are heavily influenced by the life experiences that have shaped them into the people that they are and their daily lives. This means that while children can often be instructed in new material through a specific regimen that can be tailored to a broad audience, adults will interact with new material in a different way. In particular, the authors focusing on spirituality as well as those who focus on the concept of self as a narrative showcase the fact that as adults are, as the phrase goes, the sum of their parts in relation to the experience which they have so do the means of acquiring new knowledge need to take into account these unique perceptions on information and interpersonal communication. By compiling different fields of study in the concept of adult learning theory, the authors are able to analyze a subject from a diverse body of research which mirrors the same diversity in the adults that are being studied.
While Clark and Caffarella utilize a number of useful sources and points of view to give an overarching analysis of the subject of Adult Development Theory, there are some drawbacks to the means of compiling the data in this manner. The primary concern and difficulty in utilizing this style of compilation when creating a new piece on any area of research is that it can often lead to a weaker main point for the entire composition. In particular, the different kinds of research completed by the individual authors within the entire book means that there are a number of different points of view that can only muddle the overarching theme of how Adult Development Theory can be analyzed in the context of real world applications. When looking closer at individual sections, a clear difference of interpretation on how to deal with Adult Development Theory can be seen in terms of how the individual person being studied will interpret their own life. In Understanding Adult Development as Narrative by Rossitter, for example, the idea is that a person can look at their own life as a sort of narrative that can lead to a deeper understanding of how they can grow and change. This means that the very life that is being analyzed is meant to give the basis for growth and change through organic growth and change. In contrast, Tisdell points out the idea of spirituality and looking at the world through the lens of a miraculous set of meaningful experiences that are not created by the individual but instead affect the individual to shape how they see the world itself. Instead of the self being the focus of growth and change, the growth then comes from outside influences that are out of the direct control of the person. These differing perspectives can be seen in the multitude of authors’ points of view which, while giving numerous reasons that growth can occur also leads to a lack of focus on one particular point of reference for growth and change in the average adult.
When looking at An Update on Adult Development Theory: New Ways of Thinking About the Life Course as a definitive narrative into the field of Adult Development, it is important to look at it in the context of other research into the field and how it can be used to effectively help people with their own attempts to grow and evolve. In Adult Learning: Linking Theory and Practice by Merriem and Bierema, the reader can see parallels in how the research is laid out and how it is analyzed in the context of Adult Development Theory. Just as with the various perspective on Adult Development as explained by Clark and Caffarella, Merriem and Bierema approach the subject from a number of different directions in an attempt to provide a holistic overview of the entire field. As explained in the piece, “An adult is in a different position in the life span than a child. A child is dependent on others for care, learning is a child’s major activity in life, and much of this learning is in preparation for assuming the tasks and responsibilities of adulthood” (Merriem & Bierema, 2014). This is important because while the Clark and Caffarella compilation do give a basis for the reason of analyzing the field of Adult Development from a variety of perspectives, this gives a solid grounding on why so many perspectives exist. For children and the instruction of adolescents in any field, it is possible to create a centralized mode of teaching that can be tailored to virtually any child with ease since they do not have experiences that could affect their acquisition of knowledge, hence tabula rasa. For adults, each person will have to address new information and changes in their lives in relation to not just one life experience but, instead, in relation to a variety of experiences and sets of knowledge already understood by the individual. For example, a person from an affluent family with a six figure salary will address change and learning new information from a drastically different perspective than someone who dropped out of high school and only makes minimum wage. When looking at both pieces with this in mind, the second piece actually reinforces the style of authorship and compilation utilized in the piece by Clark and Caffarella.
When using this knowledge in real world applications, it is important to remember that there is not a single method of instructing and pushing adults to grow and evolve that will work in an identical way to everyone in a classroom or work setting. Due to the unique experiences that every person has, it is important as an educator or influencer to find the way that people relate their experiences to knew knowledge and events that they encounter in life. The idea is to find something which the receiver of new information can relate to and then expound upon that tidbit to try and create a solid means of relating new stimuli to growth and development. An example of this could be as simple as teaching someone a new spreadsheet program. If teaching someone a program such as Excel, a twenty year old would have more tangible experience with similar software while a 60 year old might have more experience with tabulation on a traditional spreadsheet. By using the different perspectives and life experience from narrative, spiritual perspective on their place in the world, or any other number of factors that influence their unique outlook on life, every person can be taught in individualized ways. It leads to a greater understanding of the new material being consumed and then allows for the teacher and the student to more accurately utilize this information to create positive changes and growth in any number of areas in personal and professional realms.
Overall, the different perspectives shown in both pieces allow for the reader to gain a greater understanding of the overall theory of Adult Development as a field but also as a practical means of change in the lives of individuals in any number of settings. By remembering that there is not a single, tried and true means of conveying new information, instructors and influencers have a better chance of finding a different means of conveyance for each person. This makes the entire subject more difficult to grasp for many people than the similar field of Child Development Theory and education because of the breadth of perspectives on effective instruction, but for an educator who takes the time and puts in the effort to create a beneficial education plan it can be extremely useful.
References
Clark, M. And Caffarella, R. (1999). An Update on Adult Development Theory: New Ways of Thinking About the Life Course. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education. (84).
Merriem, S. And Bierema, L. (2014). Adult Learning: Linking Theory and Practice.
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