Mark K Smith explores how, in the context of the ‘new normal’, educators, pedagogues and practitioners need to offer hope to children and young people. This article is part of a series: dealing with the new normal • offering sanctuary • offering community • offering hope] contents: introduction • what is hope? • being hopeful • building hope …
Category archives: Lifelong learning and adult education
Thomas Coglan Horsfall and Manchester Art Museum and University Settlement
The first settlement to be established outside London, and an extension of its parent institution at Toynbee Hall in Whitechapel, Manchester University Settlement was nevertheless, explains Stuart Eagles, deeply rooted in the specific political and cultural history of Ancoats. It, and Manchester Art Museum, owed much to the work of Thomas Coglan Horsfall. contents: introduction …
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Ivan Illich: deschooling, conviviality and lifelong learning
Ivan Illich: deschooling, conviviality and lifelong learning. Known for his critique of modernization and the corrupting impact of institutions, Ivan Illich’s concern with deschooling, learning webs and the disabling effect of professions has struck a chord among many informal educators. We explore key aspects of his theory and his continuing relevance for informal education and …
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informal, non-formal and formal education – a brief overview of some different approaches
Many of the debates around informal and formal education have been muddied by participants having very different understandings of basic notions. Here we explore three different approaches commonly found in the literature. contents: introduction · looking to institutions: informal, non-formal and formal education · turning to process: conversation and setting · a question of style: …
Informal, non-formal and formal education programmes
In this piece Paul Fordham explores the emergence of the influential typology of education programmes as informal, non-formal and formal. The notions are considered in relation to the concern to foster economic development. Particular attention is paid to the characteristics of non-formal education in relation to participation, purposes and methods. Debates around ‘top-down’ and ‘bottom-up’ …
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Informal and non-formal education, colonialism and development
Informal and non-formal education, colonialism and development. The place of informal and non-formal education in development – the experience of the south. Contents: introduction · the indebted south · education in the south · the question of colonialism · non-formal and informal programmes · literacy programmes · conclusion: informal and non-formal education and development · …
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Informal learning: theory, practice and experience
Informal learning: theory, practice and experience. In recent years a number of researchers and policy pundits have rediscovered ‘informal learning’. But is there really such a thing? We explore the theory and practice of ‘informal learning’ contents: introduction · informal learning · non-formal learning · tacit knowledge · situated and distributed learning · informal education …
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Malcolm Knowles, informal adult education, self-direction and andragogy
Malcolm Knowles, informal adult education, self-direction and andragogy. A champion of andragogy, self-direction in learning and informal adult education, Malcolm S. Knowles was a very influential figure in the adult education field. Here we review his life and achievements, and assess his contribution. contents: introduction · malcolm knowles – life · adult informal education · …
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David A. Kolb on experiential learning.
David A. Kolb on experiential learning. David A. Kolb’s model of experiential learning can be found in many discussions of the theory and practice of adult education, informal education and lifelong learning. We set out the model, and examine its possibilities and problems. Contents: introduction · david a. kolb · david kolb on experiential learning …
Ruth Kotinsky on adult education and lifelong learning. Building a life in common
Ruth Kotinsky made a number of important contributions to thinking about lifelong learning and welfare. Of particular interest was her exploration of adult education as an aspect of everyday life and working together to build a life in common. contents: introduction • life and contribution • adult education and the social scene • the nature of …
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Learning in the community and community learning
Learning in the community and community learning. The idea of learning in the community has been around for some time. But what is it, what does it involve, and how does it relate to the notion of community learning – popularized in Scotland? Contents: introduction · learning in everyday life and formal instructional settings · …
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Lifelong learning
Lifelong learning. Lifelong learning – along with ideas such as ‘the learning society’ – has become popular with politicians and policymakers in a number of countries. But what do people mean by it? Is the idea of lifelong learning helpful? Contents: · education is life · lifelong education · lifelong learning · conclusion · further …
Lifelong learning and adult education
for starters Adult education defined – discussion and guide. Learning in the community. Explore the idea of learning and education in the community. Lifelong learning. Lifelong learning is much talked about – but what does it mean? featured Non-formal education and colonialism. The place of informal and non-formal education in development – the experience of …
Lifespan development and lifelong learning
Lifespan development and lifelong learning. ‘Development’ is one of those familiar concepts that seeps almost unnoticed into the conversations of educators. They are self-evidently concerned with the development of people. But what is development? Are there particular stages that we pass through in our life course? Contents · introduction · development · stages · gender, …
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The learning organization: principles, theory and practice
The learning organization. Just what constitutes a ‘learning organization is a matter of some debate. We explore some of the themes that have emerged in the literature and the contributions of key thinkers like Donald Schon and Peter Senge. Is it anything more than rhetoric? Can it be realized? contents: introduction · the learning society …
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The theory and rhetoric of the learning society
The theory and rhetoric of the learning society. The idea of the learning society has featured strongly in recent pronouncements around adult and lifelong learning. But what actually is the learning society? How have notions of the learning society developed. We the theory and rhetoric of the learning society and provide an introductory guide and …
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What is learning? A definition and discussion
What is learning? A definition and discussion. Is learning a change in behaviour or understanding? Is it a process? Mark K Smith surveys some key dimensions and ideas. A definition for starters: Learning is a process that is often not under our control and is wrapped up with the environments we inhabit and the …
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The behaviourist orientation to learning
The behaviourist orientation to learning. The behaviourist movement in psychology has looked to the use of experimental procedures to study behaviour in relation to the environment. John B. Watson, who is generally credited as the first behaviourist, argued that the inner experiences that were the focus of psychology could not be properly studied as they …
The cognitive orientation to learning
The cognitive orientation to learning. Where behaviourists looked to the environment, those drawing on Gestalt turned to the individual’s mental processes. In other words, they were concerned with cognition – the act or process of knowing. Many psychologists were not happy with behaviourism. There was a belief among some that there was too much of …
The constructivist / social constructivist orientation to learning
Photo by John Salvino on Unsplash The constructivist / social constructivist orientation to learning. With its roots in the work of Dewey, Vygotsky, Bruner and others, this approach involves learning culturally shared ways of understanding and talking about the world. Coming soon
Humanistic orientations to learning
Humanistic orientations to learning. In this framework the basic concern is for human growth. We look to the work of Maslow and Rogers as expressions of this approach. A great deal of the theoretical writing about adult education in the 1970s and 1980s drew on humanistic psychology. In this orientation the basic concern is for …
The social/situational orientation to learning
The social/situational orientation to learning. It is not so much that learners acquire structures or models to understand the world, but they participate in frameworks that that have structure. Learning involves participation in a community of practice. Social learning theory ‘posits that people learn from observing other people. By definition, such observations take place in …
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Shared leadership
Shared leadership. Leadership can be explored as a social process – something that happens between people. It is not so much what leaders do, as something that arises out of social relationships. As such it does not depend on one person, but on how people act together to make sense of the situations that face …
Eduard C. Lindeman and the meaning of adult education
Perhaps best known today for his work in adult education, Eduard C. Lindeman (1885 – 1953) also wrote one of the first books on community development, was an early explorer of groupwork and worked to extend popular education. In this piece, we explore his life and classic work The Meaning of Adult Education. contents: introduction …
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William Lovett on education: Extracts from Chartism – a new organization of the people
Sharing something of a similar political tradition to Robert Owen – but coming a different social position – William Lovett – has a significant place in the development of ideas around schooling and lifelong learning. Here we reproduce extracts from Chartism – A New Organization of the People (1840) – written with John Collins ____________ William …
Karl Marx and education
Karl Marx and education. What significance does Marx have for educators and animateurs today? An introduction and assessment by Barry Burke. contents: introduction · life · Karl Marx as a thinker · Karl Marx and the class struggle · the communist manifesto · Karl Marx’s relevance to knowledge and education · further reading · links …
Howard McClusky and educational gerontology
Howard McClusky and educational gerontology. The development of interest, knowledge, and professional involvement in educational gerontology has been evolutionary. Roger Hiemstra explores Howard McClusky’s advocacy of limitless human potential throughout life and, in particular, his ‘theory of margin’ – the need to balance in the later years those stresses and demands (load) on a person …
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Henry Morris, village colleges and community schools
Henry Morris, village colleges and community schools.His vision of the village college – and his capacity to realize his ideal – have made a profound impact on our understanding of what is possible in schooling Temporary piece Life: (outline prepared by Tony Jeffs) 1889 Born Southport, Lancashire 1903 Office boy then reporter – The Southport …
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Muscular Christianity
The notion of Muscular Christianity was an important feature of some key discourses around work with boys and men in the second half of the nineteenth century. Here Clifford Putney explores the origin and use of the term. contents: muscular christianity · bibliography · how to cite this article Muscular Christianity can be defined as …
Museums and informal education
Photo by Joshua Rawson-Harris on Unsplash Chandler Screven examines the possibilities for informal education within museums. There has been a strong tradition of thinking about informal education in museums and centers in north American – especially in relation to science – and Screven provides some important guidelines. contents: introduction · communication in the informal education …
Michael Newman: Adult education: throwing out the balance with the bathwater
Michael Newman argues for the jettisoning of the concept of balance in adult education. ‘Balance’ allows the teacher to adopt an amoral or even immoral stance; to refuse to take sides even in the face of the unpleasant, the gross and the unjust. contents: introduction · in the company of others · what do I …
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Michael Newman, adult learning, social action and activist education
Michael Newman, adult learning, social action and activist education. Michael Newman’s work and writing has, for many years, offered an important, grounded and refreshing alternative to much of what has passed as the mainstream in adult education and lifelong learning. In this piece we explore his contribution and the possibilities it offers for ‘activist educators’. …
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Michael Newman: Maeler’s regard: images of adult learning
This book, originally published in 1999, provides an original insight into ‘the mysterious and complex process of learning’. Written by Michael Newman, it covers a range of themes, including experience, critical and uncritical thinking, consciousness, forms of power and social control, social movements, civil society, social action, resistance and protest, learning as social beings, and …
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Michael Newman: Defining the enemy – adult education in social action
This book, written by Michael Newman and originally published in 1994, won the Cyril Houle Award for Outstanding Literature in Adult Education from the American Association of Adult and Continuing Education. links: maeler’s regard: images of adult learning (michael newman) · the third contract: theory and practice in trade union training (michael newman) · throwing out the balance with the …
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Michael Newman: The third contract: theory and practice in trade union training
This book, originally published in 1993, won the 1993 Cyril Houle Award for Outstanding Literature in Adult Education from the American Association of Adult and Continuing Education. links: maeler’s regard: images of adult learning (michael newman) · defining the enemy – adult education in social action (michael newman) Michael Newman (1939- ) has made a significant contribution to our appreciation of …
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Looking again at non-formal and informal education – towards a new paradigm
Looking again at non-formal and informal education – towards a new paradigm. Alan Rogers explores the confused usage of the terms non-formal and informal education and suggests a way forward. Contents: introduction · defining non-formal education · non-formal education in the field: from the 1980s to today · non-formal education and lifelong learning/education · towards a …
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Robert Owen: An address to the inhabitants of New Lanark
New Lanark – the institute is towards the back of picture, and has a small tower. This famous address on the significance of education for social change was delivered by Robert Owen on the opening of the Institute for the Formation of Character on January 1, 1816. contents: preface · dedication · an address to the inhabitants of new lanark · how …
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What is pedagogy? A definition and discussion
Pedagogy is often, wrongly, seen as ‘the art and science of teaching’. Mark K. Smith explores the origins and development of pedagogy and finds a different story – accompanying people on their journeys. Teaching is just one part of what they do. contents: introduction · the nature of education · pedagogues and teachers · the …
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Popular education
Popular education. An introduction to practice plus an annotated booklist. There is no one definition of popular education in the South American context. It is usually associated with political movements and is aimed at groups of people excluded from full participation in the political process. Hernadez (1985, quoted by Hamilton and Cunnigham 1989: 443) describes …
what is praxis?
Few educators speak of praxis. Those that do tend to link it to the work of Freire. Yet while praxis may not be part of many workers overt vocabulary, practice, a pale derivative, is. So what is praxis and why should educators be concerned with it? contents: · theory and practice · practical reasoning · …
‘Race’ and difference – developing practice in lifelong learning
‘Race’ and difference – developing practice in lifelong learning. What strategies are used to deal with ‘race’ and difference in lifelong learning? How is theory and practice to be developed? Contents: ‘race’ and ethnicity · multiculturaism and anti-racism · culture · culture and agency · voice and difference · further reading bell hooks begins her …
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Radical community education
Tom Lovett explores the development of radical community education and explores different models of practice. Different models of recent work are reviewed and some ways forward suggested. This article was first published in 1994. Contents: introduction • historical and international background • The American Labour Movement • Highlander • The Antigonish Movement • The WEA …
Will Reason: Settlements and education
Will Reason – pictured on the cover of the issue of Social Service Monthly that contained his obituary Will Reason: Settlements and education. This piece first appeared in Reason, W. (ed.). (1898). University and Social Settlements. London: Methuen and Co. Will Reason (1865-1926) was a Congregational minister who worked and campaigned for social justice. He …
Reflection, learning and education
Reflection, learning and education. What constitutes reflection – and what significance does it have for educators? The contributions of Dewey, Schön and Boud et. al. assessed. Contents: Dewey – and How We Think · Boud et. al. – reflection: turning experience into learning · Schön – reflection in and on action · further reading When …
Relationship, learning and education
Relationship, learning and education. What is a relationship, and what special qualities are present in social pedagogy and informal education? We suggest that the focus on learning, mutuality and the emotional bond between people are important features of the sorts of relationships that social pedagogues and informal educators are involved in. Contents: introduction · relationship …
Oscar Romero of El Salvador: informal adult education in a context of violence
Oscar Romero of El Salvador: informal adult education in a context of violence. John Dickson explores Oscar Romero’s place and impact as a socially involved educator. He examines key aspects of the social and historical background; the means and extent of Oscar Romero’s teaching ministry; and Romero’s confrontation with the dilemma facing all authentically revolutionary …
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Jean-Jacques Rousseau on nature, wholeness and education
Jean-Jacques Rousseau – wikipedia commons – pd Jean-Jacques Rousseau on nature, wholeness and education. His novel Émile was the most significant book on education after Plato’s Republic, and his other work had a profound impact on political theory and practice, romanticism and the development of the novel. We explore Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s life and contribution. contents: …
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John Ruskin on education
John Ruskin on education. John Ruskin altered the way we look at art and architecture, and was an influential social critic and advocate of economic change and reform. His desire to advance reform and to deepen people’s appreciation of art inevitably brought him to teaching and to education. His work was to have lasting significance. …
John Ruskin: Modern education
Image: John Ruskin – Wikimedia pd ‘Modern education’ first appeared as an appendix to John Ruskin’s The Stones of Venice [Volume III] in 1853. In it he defines one of his key educational principles: education according to aptitude and circumstance. For full discussion of John Ruskin’s educational ideas – and his approach as an educator …
Donald Schon (Schön): learning, reflection and change
Donald Schon (Schön): learning, reflection and change. Donald Schon made a remarkable contribution to our understanding of the theory and practice of learning. His innovative thinking around notions such as ‘the learning society’, ‘double-loop learning’ and ‘reflection-in-action’ has become part of the language of education. We explore his work and some of the key themes …
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