andragogy

Andragogy is the method and practice of teaching adult learners — a pedagogical approach distinguished from child-centered pedagogy by treating learners as self-directing agents whose lived experience is a primary learning resource, whose motivation is internally driven, and whose need for practical relevance governs engagement. Parameters: the andragogical model requires (1) a self-concept of self-direction, (2) an experience reservoir to draw upon, (3) readiness to learn topics that bear on real-life tasks, (4) a time perspective shifting from subject-centeredness to problem-centeredness, and (5) motivation rooted in internal factors such as self-esteem and quality of life. The concept persists through adult-education curricula, teacher-training programs, instructional design literature, and the sustained practice of educators who apply its principles. Without andragogy as a framework, adult education collapses into ad hoc instruction that ignores the structural differences between how adults and children learn.[formal: andragogy | substrate: behavior | horizon: a life | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.01]