MODERN TECHNOLOGY ON THE ADULT LEARNER

This paper reviewed the effects of modern technology on the adult learner. Technological advances offer hope for the development of solutions to the adult education issue than will satisfy both the learners and society.

Based on the review presented in this paper, one can conclude that modern technology provides the tools that permit educators to develop instructional programs that fulfill the needs of both adult learners and the greater society. One of the problems that society likely will encounter in the future is a problem that exists today. This problem is that many adult learners do not possess the familiarity with modern technological tools that permits then to use technology with confidence. Thus, it addition to adapting technology to the needs of adult learners, there also is a need to prepare adult learners to use technology with confidence.

Formal education is widely recognized as a valuable asset for citizens and for the organizations in society that offer productive employment opportunities for citizens. As society becomes more complex, the educational qualifications demanded of individuals by employing organizations continues to increase. Enhanced educational qualifications benefit both the individual and the employing organization (Dunderstadt, 1999).

Consideration of the data illustrated in Exhibit 1 (on the following page) enables one to appreciate the value of a college

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eschi, 1987). The major differences between andragogy and pedagogy may be best understood through a consideration of the four main assumptions of the andragogical approach to education (Knowles, 1995). These assumptions are as follows: 1. Changes in self-concept occur as one ages. When a person reaches a self-concept of self-direction, he or she becomes, psychologically, an adult. This change in self-concept means that education must be learner-directed, as opposed to teacher-directed, which is characteristic of pedagogical learning (Lewis, Schaps, & Watson, 1995). This characteristic implies that technology-based approaches to learning will serve adult learners well. 2. As an individual ages, her or his range and depth of experience develop as a resource with which to relate new learnings. In this context, the individual becomes a source of learning. Pedagogical teaching is based on the fact that, to a child, experience is something that happens to her or him. Andragogical learning, by contrast, is based on the fact that the self-definition of an adult is made within the realm of individual experience. 3. As an individual ages, her or his readiness to learn is based more upon developmental tasks required for the p
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Approximate Word count = 2431
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page)

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