Andragogy (eh?)
SELF DEVELOPMENT
Andragogy is the formal name for self directed adult learning. Not the most catchy I have to say.
I have always been passionate about learning and helping people learn. As a practicing Psychologist I am now also formally trained and assessed for teaching and training.
These days it feels like self development opportunities are more available than ever, to the point of us possibly having too many options for podcasts, self help books, online learning and audiobooks (and knowing what’s good!).
‘Which podcasts do you listen to?’ definitely feels like a big social judgement of the type of person we are compared to just a few years ago when podcast listeners were a minority of people.
It took me to being in my mid-twenties to pick up reading for enjoyment and now I read 365 days a year without fail (and love podcasts on the move). Yet most friends, family and colleagues enjoy lots of learning styles and generally it doesn’t matter too much how you choose to develop yourself with such rich and varied opportunities if you feel you are developing.
But have you ever listened to a podcast or read something and thought ‘I enjoyed that’ or ‘I learned loads from that’ but then can’t really remember what or it doesn’t change anything for you on the subject matter?
The latest research on adult learning suggests this might be due to the need for ‘active learning’ (Glance et al, 2018) and learner engagement (Lombardi & Shipley, 2021) as essential considerations for effective learner outcomes.This broadly means not just passively reading or listening without action related to the content.
Joe’s top tips for supporting active learning and engagement.
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Stop, pause and take notes and actions in real time as something important lands for you
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When you finish learning a piece of content, spare some time to take notes on the key points
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Reflect on the learning and come back to it. Make points on previous learning before moving on to the next element.
Follow for more insights.
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