                               4.  FACILITATING ADULT LEARNING 
        
               In defining what how best to work with adult learners, the
        educator must first define what is learning.  
        
               Kenneth Benne (1965) identified three main uses for
        learning:
               1. Learning may be thought of as acquisition and mastery
                  by a person of what is already known on some subject.
               2. Learning may also be though of as an extension and      
                 clarification of meanings of one's own individual       
                  experience.
               3. Learning is a process (in which) one tests ideas and
                  generalizations relevant to some delimitable problems,  
                 and tests them in some more or less objectified and     
                  controlled experiences designed for the purpose.  
        
               One of the most useful descriptions of the adult learner
        was written by theorist, John Dollard: "The adult learner is a
        person who wants something; the adult learner is a person who
        notices something; the adult learner is a person who does
        something; the adult learner is a person who gets something"
        (Kidd, 1973, p.  15).
        
                In his investigations in the 1950's at the University of
        Chicago, Cyril Houle (1951) found there were three types of basic
        adult learners:
               1. The goal-oriented learners who use education for
                  accomplishing fairly clear-cut objectives.  These
                  individuals usually did not make any real start on
                  their continuing education until their         
                  middle-twenties and after--sometimes much later.
               2. The activity-oriented learners who take part because
                  they find in the circumstances of the learning a
                  meaning which has no necessary connection with the
                  content or the announced purpose of the activity. 
                  These individuals begin their sustained          
                  participation in adult education at the point when
                  their problems or their needs become sufficiently
                  pressing.
               3. The learning-oriented learners who seek knowledge for
                  its own sake.  Unlike the other types, most
                  learning-oriented adults have been engrossed in
                  learning as long as they can remember (pp. 24-25).
        
               Tough's (1970) research was concerned not only with what
        and why adults learn, but how they learn and what help they
        obtain for learning.  He found that adult learning was a very
        pervasive activity.  "Almost everyone undertakes at least one or
        two major learning efforts a year, and some individuals undertake
        as many as 15 or 20.  It is common for a man or woman to spend
        700 hours a year at some learning project.  About 70% of all
        learning projects are planned by the learner himself, who seeks
        help and subject matter from a variety of acquaintances, experts,
        and printed sources (p.  1).  He found that his subjects
        organized their learning efforts around "projects", defined as a
        series of related episodes, adding up to at least seven hours. 
        In each learning episode more than half of the person's total
        motivation is to gain and retain certain fairly clear knowledge
        and skills, or to produce some other lasting change in himself
        (p.  6).  Tough found that his subjects anticipated several
        desired outcomes and benefits.  Some of them are immediate:
        satisfying a curiosity, enjoying the content itself, enjoying
        practicing the skill, enjoying the activity of learning.  Others
        were long-run: producing something, imparting knowledge or skill
        to others, understanding what will happen in some future
        situation.  Pleasure and Self-esteem were critical elements in
        the motivation of his subjects (p.47).  He described how the
        adult learner proceeds through several phases in the process of
        engaging in a learning project, and speculated that helping them
        gain increased competence in dealing with each phase might be one
        of the most effective ways of improving their learning
        effectiveness (p.  48).
        
               Gagne (1965) specified eight component functions of the
        instructional situation, representing the ways in which the adult
        learner's environment acts upon him that must be managed by the
        instructor:
                      1.    Presenting the stimulus.
                      2.    Directing attention and other learning
                            activities.
                      3.    Providing a model for terminal performance.
                      4.    Furnishing external prompts.
                      5.    Guiding the direction of thinking.
                      6.    Inducing transfer of knowledge.
                      7.    Assessing learning attainments.
                      8.    Providing feedback.
        
               These components complement Knowles' (1978) perspective
        regarding the adult learning experience.  The technology of
        andragogy Knowles (1970) was promoting flowed from this
        difference in the adult's orientation to learning.  
               1.      The Orientation of Adult Educators - The adult
                       educator must be tuned to concerns of individuals
                       and the institutions they serve.              
                       Andragogy calls for adult educators who are
                       person-centered and who don't teach subject matter
                       but rather help persons learn.
              2.       Organization of the Curriculum - Because adults
                       tend to be problem-centered, the appropriate
                       organizing principles for
                       sequences of adult learning is problem areas not   
                      subjects.
               3.      Design of Learning Experiences - The problem
                       orientation of adult learners implies that adult
                       educators start with the concern most adults on
                       their minds.  "What do I hope to get from this
                       course?" (p.48).
        
               Kidd (1973) maintained, there would be effective adult
        learning when certain psychological conditions were met:
               1.      Stimulus and security:
                       The result of a strong stimulus without something  
                      else may be rebellion, withdrawal, rejection, or   
                       apathy.  The something else needed is a condition  
                      of security.  By this, Kidd meant that the
                       learner needs to feel at home with himself,        
                      sufficiently confident that he can meet the        
                       challenge successfully, or he may make no
                       effort at all (p.  120).  
               2.      Dependence and independence:
                       The learner wants to lean on the parent or         
                      teacher, to be guided by him.  H would like to     
                       have the hard tasks done by someone
                       else.  At the same time, he wants to assert        
                      himself; he wants to dominate, to have people know 
                       that he is capable of learning alone (p.  120).
               3.      Reorganization of previous experience:
                       It is not just experience itself that is a         
                      "teacher", but what the experience was and how     
                       much experience the person had and what meaning   
                       and how it affects the self that is important.    
                       The human being is active when learning.  He      
                       reaches out, he sees, he selects experience, and  
                       relates and integrates the new experience into    
                       himself (p.  120).
               4.      Relevance of relationships:
                       Children expect to have to learn things, whether   
                      or not they see any meaning in the learning;       
                       adults are much less ready to accept learning      
                      without clear relevance.  Kidd suggested that
                       one of the 3 R's might just stand for Relevance    
                      when referring to the adult learner (p.  121).
               5.      Satisfaction in terms of the learner:              
                      Continued learning depends upon the achievement of
                       satisfaction.  The satisfaction must be felt in   
                       terms of the learner's own expectations and needs.
                       Both interests and attitudes are examples of      
                       learned motives.  If experience in a              
                       particular activity did not occur, with           
                       satisfaction, in the first two or three decades of
                      life, the development of that interest in          
                      an older person would be far from automatic.  But  
                      interest can be created and can be changed, if the 
                      initiation of interest is undertaken with care (p. 
                      121).
        
               Carl Rogers (1969) made the sharpest breaks with the
        scientific theorists when he wrote:  "Teaching is a vastly
        over-rated function (regarding adults).  The imparting of
        knowledge made sense in an unchanging environment.  "If there is
        one truth about modern man, it is that he lives in an environment
        which is continually changing," and therefore, the goal of
        education must be the facilitation of learning (p.  104).  
        
               The usual method of an active trainer providing
        information to a passive participant was being challenged by
        Rogers (1965) and others as the new information age flowed into
        every educational milieu.  The facilitative approach balanced the
        focus and responsibility of training.  Participants were
        valued input with an investment in training.  A facilitative
        atmosphere was established in the first few moments of training. 
        Four strategies that nurture facilitative training were:
        neutralizing the trainer-participant relationship;
        forming a class community using small groups; identifying initial
        objectives and encouraging learners to formulate post-training
        learning objectives (Streit & Stein, 1986).  The new information
        age demanded an interdependence of sharing information between
        trainer and learner (Carkhuff, 1984).  As this interdependence to
        share information and experiences with others continues to
        grow, traditional roles and relationships would change (Warren,
        1979).  It was essential that in the first few minutes of
        training, there was a need to establish a relationship of
        "working partners" between trainer and learners (Gibbs,
        1982).  Using discussion groups or dyads in the training setting
        helped support and make the transition to a facilitative approach
        in the adult learning environment (Spitzer, 1982).
        
               Building on Erikson's principles, Rogers (1951) wrote that
        "in a general way, therapy is a learning process."  He developed
        nineteen propositions for a theory of personality and behavior
        which evolved from the study of adults in therapy.  This process
        led him to conceptualize student-centered teaching as parallel to
        client-centered therapy (pp.  388-391).  Rogers formulated five
        learner-centered approaches to adult education:
             1.   We cannot teach another person directly; we can only
                  facilitate his learning.
             2.   A person learns significantly only those things which
                  he perceives as being involved in the maintenance of,
                  or enhancement of, the structure of self.
             3.   Experience, if assimilated, would involve a change in
                  the organization of self tends to be resisted through
                  denial or distortion of symbolization.
             4.   The structure and organization of self appear to become
                  more rigid under threat; experience of self can only be
        
                  assimilated the current organization of self is relaxed
                  and expanded to include it.
             5.   The educational situation which most effectively
                  promotes significant learning is one in which a threat
                  to the self of the learners is reduced to the minimum
                  and differentiated perception of the field is
                  facilitated (p. 144).
        
               Rogers (1969) advanced these guidelines for the
        facilitation of adult learners:
             1.   The facilitator has much to do with setting the initial
                  mood or climate of the group or class experience.
             2.   The facilitator helps to elicit and clarify the
                  purposes of the individuals in the class as well as the
                  more general purposes of the group.
             3.   He relies upon the desire of each learner to implement
                  those purposes which have meaning for him, as the
                  motivational force behind significant learning.
             4.   He endeavors to organize and make easily available the
                  widest possible range of resources for learning.
             5.   He regards himself as a flexible resource to be
                  utilized by the group.
             6.   In responding to expressions in the classroom group, he
                  accepts both the intellectual content and the emotional
                  attitudes, endeavoring to give each aspect the
                  approximate degree of emphasis which it has for the
                  individual or the group.
             7.   As the acceptant classroom climate becomes established,
                  the facilitator is able increasingly to become
                  aparticipant learner, a member of the group, expressing
                  views as those of one individual only.
             8.   He takes the initiative in sharing himself with the
                  group--his feelings as well as his thoughts--in ways
                  which do not demand or impose but represent simply a
                  personal sharing which students may take or leave.
             9.   Throughout the classroom experience, he remains alert
                  to the expressions indicative of deep or strong
                  feelings.
             10.  In his functioning as a facilitator of learning, the
                  leader endeavors to recognize and accept his own
                  limitations (pp.  164-166).
        
               Regarding facilitation of adult learning programs, Kidd
        (1973) recommended that adult educators consider the physical
        limiting factors affecting adults as they age by:
               1.      Increasing the level of stimulation (such as
                       illumination) to compensate for declining vision;
               2.      Giving the adult learner time to anticipate or
                       preview the new conditions or stimuli;
               3.      Allowing the adult learner to choose his own pace;
               4.      Giving immediate knowledge of results;
               5.      Eliminating or reducing environmental factors that
                       produce discomfort, fatigue, and stress;
               6.      Reinforcing his successful behaviors;
               7.      Encouraging the individual to become increasingly
                       self-managing (pp.  68-70).
        
               Some differences of opinion still exist, Kidd (1973)
        wrote, in regard to the maintenance or decline of intellectual
        capacity, or learning aptitude, throughout life.  But there has
        been a dramatic reversal in the trend of interpretation. 
        Increasingly research supported the view that adults of all ages
        can learn effectively, "that age has no veto power over
        learning."  In respect to tests of vocabulary, adults showed
        improvement and not decline as they aged.  In giving the same
        test taken earlier to adults a decade or so later, the
        individuals usually registered a better performance when older. 
        This seemed to be true for individuals of limited as well as of
        excellent intellectual ability.  The amount of schooling modified
        considerably the performance in such tests.  Indeed, a critical
        factor in many tests of ability seemed to be the amount of
        practice of the particular task.  When people "keep in training"
        in intellectual as well as physical tasks, their capacity was
        maintained (p.91).
        
               Accepting that many older learners students have suffered
        some loss in confidence, Kidd (1973) noted that many adult
        education programs plan for reinforcement of the learner by
        helping him understand why "he feels less confident, to realize
        that he can achieve by helping him relax and reduce tension, and
        by helping him improve in his study skills" (Kidd, 1973, p.  99).
        
               Goodwin Watson (1961) summarized his own "guidelines for
        the facilitation of adult learning":
               1.      Behavior which is rewarded--from the learner's
                       point of view--is more likely to recur.
               2.      Sheer repetition without reward is a poor way to
                       learn.
               3.      Threat and punishment have variable effects upon
                       learning, but they can and do commonly produce
                       avoidance behavior--in which the reward is the
                       diminution of punishment possibilities.
               4.      How "ready" we are to learn something new is
                       contingent upon the confluence of diverse--and
                       changing--factors, some of which             
                       include:
                      a.    adequate existing experience to permit the
                            new to be learned (we can learn only in
                            relation to what we already
                             know);
                      b.    adequate significance and relevance for the
                            learner to engage in learning activity (we
                            learn only what is appropriate to our
                            purposes);
                      c.    freedom from discouragement, the expectation
                            of failure, or threats to physical, emotional
                            or intellectual well-being.
               5.      Whatever is to be learned will remain unlearnable
                       if we believe that we cannot learn it or if we
                       perceive it as irrelevant or if the             
                       learning situation is perceived as threatening.
               6.      Novelty (per 4 and 5 above) is generally
                       rewarding.
               7.      We learn best that which we participate in
                       selecting and planning ourselves.
               8.      Genuine participation (as compared with feigned
                       participation intended to avoid punishment)
                       intensifies motivation, flexibility,             
                       and rate of learning.
               9.      An autocratic atmosphere (produced by a dominating
                       teacher who controls direction via intricate
                       punishments) produces in learners apathetic
                       conformity, various--and frequently devious-
                       kinds of defiance, scapegoating (venting hostility
        
                       generated by the repressive atmosphere on         
        
                       colleagues), or escape...An autocratic atmosphere 
        
                       also produces increasing dependence upon
                       the authority, with consequent obsequiousness,    
        
                       anxiety, shyness, and acquiescence.
               10.     "Closed" authoritarian environments (such as are
                       characteristic of most conventional schools and
                       classrooms) condemn most learners to continuing
                       criticism, sarcasm, discouragement, and
                       failure so that self-confidence, aspiration (for  
        
                       anything but escape), and a healthy self-concept  
        
                       are destroyed.
               11.     The best time to learn anything is when whatever
                       is to be learned is immediately useful to us.
               12.     An "open" non-authoritarian atmosphere can, then,
                       be seen as conducive to learner initiative and
                       creativity, encouraging the learning of attitudes
                       of self-confidence, originality, self-reliance,
                       enterprise, and independence.  All of which is    
        
                       equivalent to learning how to learn (pp.  21-22).
        
               Houle (1972) proposed the facilitation of an adult
        educational program be founded upon his seven assumptions which
        supporting the principles of andragogy as defined by Knowles
        (1970).  They were:
               1.      Any episode of learning occurs in a specific
                       situation and is profoundly influenced by that
                       fact.
               2.      The analysis or planning of educational activities
                       must be based on the realities of human experience
                       and upon their change.
               3.      Education is a practical art (like architecture)
                       which draws on many theoretical disciplines in the
                       humanities, the social and biological sciences.
               4.      Education is a cooperative rather than an
                       operative art.  A cooperative art works in a
                       facilitative way by guiding and directing a
                       natural entity or process.  The farmer, physician,
                       and educator are three classic examples of         
                      cooperative artists.
               5.      The planning or analysis of an educational
                       activity is undertaken in terms of some period
                       which the mind abstracts for analytical            
                      purposes from the complicated reality.
               6.      The planning or analysis of an educational
                       activity may be undertaken by an educator,
                       learner, an independent analyst, or             
                       some combination of the three.
               7.      Any design of education can best be understood as
                       a complex of interacting elements, not as a
                       sequence of events (pp.  32-39).
        
               Tough's (1979) was fascinated with the self-initiated
        learning projects of adult learners.  He focused on the "helping
        role" of the facilitator or resource person.  His investigations
        produced a fairly consistent composite picture of the ideal
        facilitator:
               1.      He is warm and loving, accepts and cares about his
                       learners,and takes their work seriously.
               2.      He is confident the learner can and will plan and
                       arrange for his own learning.
               3.      He views his interaction with the learner as a
                       dialogue, an encounter in which he listens as well
                       as talks.
               4.      He helps because he has affection and concern for
                       the learner.  He is open in a positive way, and
                       expects to gain as much as he gives.
               5.      The ideal helper is an open and growing person,
                       not a closed, negative, static, defensive,fearful,
                       or suspicious sort of person.  He tends to be
                       spontaneous and authentic, and to feel free to     
                      behave as a unique person rather than in some      
                       stereotyped way (pp.  181-183).
        
               This facilitative approach, Gessner (1956) wrote, "is one
        of the chief distinctions found between pedagogical and
        andragogical education.  In an adult class the student's
        experience counts for as much as the teacher's knowledge.  Both
        are exchangeable.  In some of the best adult classes it is
        sometimes difficult to discover who is learning the most, the
        teacher or the students.  This two-way learning is also reflected
        in the management of adult-education enterprises.  Shared
        learning is duplicated by shared authority.  In conventional
        education the pupils adapt themselves to the curriculum offered,
        but in adult education, the pupils aid in formulating the
        curricula.  Under democratic conditions authority is of the
        group.  This is not an easy lesson to learn, but until it is
        learned democracy cannot succeed" (p.  166).
        
               One important factor in the communication process between
        learner and facilitator is how reliable the learner feels the
        facilitator is.  If there is disbelief the audience may not
        respond.  In one celebrated presentation in "Is Anybody
        Listening", Whyte (1952) warned business men that millions of
        dollars spent in providing information to their employees would
        all be wasted unless the employees had some trust, otherwise the
        words would fade away unheard and unread.  One of the most
        alarming aspects of the many confrontations at universities
        involving students, faculty, and administration was the lack of
        trust, which endangered or impeded many attempts to bring
        about acceptable solutions.
        
               When working with adults, Whiting (1988) listed the
        following considerations the adult education facilitator:  (1)
        define the course goals and objectives clearly; (2) include an
        appropriate amount of material, avoiding too much or too little;
        (3) schedule the class lessons to include time for questions,
        participation, and enjoyment; (4) limit the number of facts,
        figures, or points presented at one time; (5) provide an adequate
        amount of time for discussions; (6) design the scope of the
        course with the learners in mind; (7) limit the student
        preparation time required prior to class; (8) smile, nod, and use
        positive reinforcement to encourage students; and (9) use
        open-ended remarks and comments to stimulate more discussion. 
        The author cited the following specific theories of adult
        development to defend her position: Maslow's hierarchy of needs;
        Rogers' fully functioning person; Kohlberg's stages of moral
        development; Nelson's steps in becoming self-directed; Erikson's
        stages of psychological development; Levinson's life structure;
        Loevinger's stages of ego development; and Piaget's developmental
        stages.  
        
               In facilitating adult learning, Brookfield (1988)
        discussed the general nature of adult learning and six principles
        of effective practice for facilitative learning: (1) voluntary
        participation; (2) mutual respect; (3) collaborative
        spirit; (4) action and reflection; (5) critical reflection; and
        (6) self-direction.  
        
               Between 1969 and 1984, the number of adults participating
        in educational programs increased 79 percent and the number of
        adult education activities doubled.  Imel (1988) described the
        following facts which should be considered when developing
        instructional programs for adult learners: (1) individuals can
        learn throughout their lives; (2) adult life cycles influence
        learning; (3) adults learn what they consider important; (4)
        adults are often time-conscious learners; (5) what is important
        varies among adults, and adults generally (but not always) wish
        to be treated as such: and (6) biological changes may affect
        learning.  Creating a learning environment that meets the
        needs of adult learners is a key element of successful adult
        education programs.  Some strategies for accomplishing this are
        as follows: (1) establish adult-to-adult rapport; (2) create a
        participatory environment, facilitate adult independence; (3) and
        provide for individual differences.  Although many adult learning
        activities do not require formal evaluation procedures, adult
        learners need to learn how to identify and evaluate their own
        resources, abilities, and knowledge realistically.  When formal
        evaluation is required, adult students are best evaluated by
        using a collaborative approach.  Recommended collaborative
        approaches include group decision making, learning contracts, and
        grading contracts.  
        
               As the new information age approaches, teaching adults
        more effectively is a concern common to business, industry,
        professionals, and educators.  Wendell (1988) examined research
        dealing with effective teaching and found that six functions can
        be identified and followed as steps in the instruction of adults:
        (1) review of previous learning and skills; (2) initial
        presentation of material through an overview; (3) guided
        practice; (4) corrective feedback from the instructor; (5)
        independent work by the students; and (6) frequent review of
        material.  These six teaching functions serve as
        organizers for planning and conducting continuing education for
        adults.  The sequence is easily applied to adult needs and
        provides opportunities for more positive self-development through
        skill demonstration.  At each step, adults are reinforced with
        the successful accomplishment of tasks, leading to good
        feelings about learning and reinforcing motivation to learn.
        
               Kidd (1973) proposed the following ten commandments for
        the adult educator/facilitator to consider in interactions with
        adult learners.
                                TEN COMMANDMENTS FOR EDUCATORS
        
        1.   Thou shalt never try to make another human being exactly
             like thyself; one is enough.
        
        2.   Thou shalt never judge a person's need, or refuse your
             consideration, because of the trouble he causes.
        
        3.   Thou shalt not blame heredity nor the environment in
             general; people can surmount their environments.
        
        4.   Thou shalt never give a person up as hopeless or cast him
             out.
        
        5.   Thou shalt try to help everyone become, on the one hand,
             sensitive and compassionate, and also tough-minded.
        
        6.   Thou shalt not steal from any person his rightful
             responsibility for determining his own conduct and the
             consequences thereof.
        
        7.   Thou shalt honor anyone engaged in the pursuit of learning
             and serve well and extend the discipline of knowledge and
             skill about learning which is our common heritage.
        
        8.   Thou shalt have no universal remedies or expect miracles.
        
        9.   Thou shalt cherish a sense of humor which may save you from
             becoming shocked, depressed, or complacent.
        
        10.  Thou shalt remember the sacredness and dignity of thy
             calling and, at the same time, "thou shalt not take thyself
             too damned seriously" (Kidd, 1973, p.  306-307)
        
               Knowles (1970) summarized his beliefs regarding the
        psychology of adult learning, or andragogy, by stating the
        learning process involved the following phases in both levels of 
        application (teaching and learning):
        
               1.      Establishment of a climate conducive to adult
                       learning.
               2.      Creation of an organizational structure for
                       participative planning.
               3.      The diagnosis of needs for the adult learner.
               4.      The formulation of directions of adult learning
                       (objectives).
               5.      The development of a design of activities.
               6.      The operation of the activities.
               7.      The re-diagnosis of needs for learning
                       (evaluation).  (p.54).
        
               Corey (1963) wrote that most great teachers have
        associated learning with "light."  Illumination, opening up the
        dark patches, these were the constant themes for Bishop Gruntvig,
        found of the Danish folk high schools.  "I can always tell a good
        teacher," Dr.  M.M.  Coady once said.  "All I have to do is to
        speak to him of some transforming idea and then watch him light
        up just as an electric bulb does when the current is connected."
