Beyond Andragogy: New Directions in Adult Learning Theory

While andragogy is here to stay, we have moved beyond centering it at the heart of adult learning theory. Five other ways to understand adult learning will be presented in this symposium: transformative learning, spirituality and adult learning, embodied knowing, the neuroscience of adult learning and narrative learning

How cultural values shape learning in older adulthood: the case of Malaysia

Culture shapes the meaning people make of their life as well as how people experience movement through the life course. Although there is some literature on how one's culture influences the experience of older adulthood, there is little on how culture defines the nature of learning in late life. The purpose of this study was to understand how cultural values shape learning in older adulthood in the Southeast Asian country of Malaysia. A qualitative research design was employed to explore this question. Nineteen men and women between the ages of 60 and 83 were interviewed as to their experience of aging and their learning activities. Using the constant comparative method of data analysis, three themes were inductively derived from the interview data. First, older adult learning in Malaysia is nonformal and experiential Second, learning is communal. Third, much of the learning is religious or spiritual in orientation

Aging and Learning in a Non-Western Culture: The Case of Malaysia

A case study on older Malaysian men and women revealed that from their perspective, aging is seamless and a period of contentment. They are concerned about their health, spiritual, and community. They learn informally to meet the changing demands of their life. The learning is shaped by their cultural value

Transformational Learning in Botswana: How Culture Shapes the Process

Transformational learning as presented by Jack Mezirow has been critiqued for its Western, rational/cognitive orientation. This study was conducted in the African nation of Botswana and examined how that culture shaped the process. The TL experiences of 10 adults were constructed in terms of spirituality and the metaphysical world, community responsibilities and relationships, and gender roles

Methodological Challenges in Studying Transformative Learning

First discussed are philosophical perspectives in relation to the research design and methodology for studying transformative learning. Second, several promising research designs for studying this phenomenon are reviewed including narrative analysis, arts-based research, critical approaches, and action research. Finally, we conclude with a discussion of methodological challenges at this point in the evolution of the knowledge base of transformative learning

Perspectives on Adult Learning: Framing Our Research

Based on a review of the literature we describe the assumptions and salient concepts of two major perspectives on adult learning: the individual and the contextual. We then argue that although research should continue to be grounded in these two perspectives, we should expand our research efforts in a third paradigm consisting of an integration of these two perspectives

Witches Ways of Knowing: The Adult Learning Process in Joining Social Groups

This study explored what motivates adults to engage in learning that leads to membership in a marginalized social group and the nature of their learning process. By interviewing a sample of Wiccans, we discovered an intense internal motivation that endures over years and an integrated, holistic learning process

Dancing As Gracefully As I Can : A Developmental Model Of Coping Strategies In Successfully Adapting To Hiv Infection

The purpose of this study was to understand the use of coping strategies in successfully adapting to HIV infection. Data analyzed from 18 interviews revealed that coping strategies employed immediately after diagnosis differed from those used later. An underlying developmental process in the use of coping strategies was also uncovered

Perspective Transformation Over Time: A Two-year Follow-up Study of HIV-Positive Adults

This study investigated the stability of a perspective transformation over time. The findings confirmed that perspective transformations, at least in our sample, are irreversible; we also discovered that meaning schemes continue to change

Teaching Hispanic restaurant workers: Translanguaging as culturally sustaining pedagogy

In this article, we make a case for incorporating translanguaging pedagogy into the framework of Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy (CSP). Drawing on data from a one-year ethnographic study of an adult ESL program, we show how teachers believed in and attempted to create spaces for translanguaging and CSP, but in practice fell short. We conclude that translanguaging is most powerful when understood as a component of CSP but call for more research in this area.Accepted manuscrip