Andragogy refers to learning strategies which help adults to learn more effectively. It is a term that was first used by Alexander Kapp in 1833 and later expanded by Malcolm Knowles to fit the needs of adult education. The concept is contrasted with pedagogy in which the child is lead through the learning process by the teacher. In andragogy most of the learning is self-directed and the teacher is a facilitator in the learning process.
Pedagogy is more content-oriented.
Andragogy is more process-oriented.
This is essential in medical education due to the fact that by the time we reach medical school we are less receptive to teacher-centered education and are already in a phase where learning is more independent. Although I had already come across this concept a while ago, this concept was covered in an educator's conference put together by Rob Rogers, MD (@EM_Educator). I followed this conference via twitter and Livestream in mid-November and it was great. (Link to blog and tweets from the conference.)
Knowles identified six characteristics that motivate adult learners (1)
| Need to Know | Adults need to know the reason for learning something |
| Foundation | Experience (including error) provides the basis for learning activities |
| Self-Concept | Adults need to be responsible for their decisions on education; involvement in the planning and evaluation of their instruction |
| Readiness | Adults are most interested in learning subjects having immediate relevance to their work and/or personal lives |
| Orientation | Adult learning is problem-centered rather than content-oriented |
| Motivation | Adults respond better to internal versus external motivators |
I think this concept should help us to become more effective educators because it provides a better look into the mind of the adult learner. It really shows that we are not satisfied when we are given a simple answer such as “because I said so” - an answer that might work with children.
Here are a few examples where you can find andragogy in medical school and residency:
- Problem Based Learning (PBL): A group of trainees gather together to solve clinical problems.
- Clinical Problem Solving: This makes learning more relevant to real life experiences.
- Trainees have different backgrounds and they bring these experiences with them to a learning group and facilitate learning.
- When the trainee looks up information without being prompted by the trainer it shows the learner is self-reliant.
A comparison of the assumptions of pedagogy and andragogy following Knowles (Jarvis 1985: 51) (Adapted from table)
Pedagogy
|
Andragogy
| |
| Learner | Dependent. Teacher directs what, when, how a subject is learned and tests that it has been learned. | Moves towards independence. Self-directing.Teacher encourages and nurtures this movement. |
| Learner’s experience | Of little worth. Hence teaching methods are didactic. | A rich resource for learning. Hence teaching methods include discussion, problem-solving etc. |
| Readiness to learn | People learn what society expects them to. So that the curriculum is standardized. | People learn what they need to know, so that learning programmes organised around life application. |
| Orientation to learning | Acquisition of subject matter. Curriculum organized by subjects. | Learning experiences should be based around experiences,since people are performance centred in their learning. |
Of course this concept is not without its criticisms and even Knowles recognized that this concept can also apply to children. It is clear that when we reach adulthood we should move to a more learner-oriented system and move away from teacher-oriented system. In the end during our training the learning process is a team project where the exchange of information can be interchanged between the trainer and the trainee. After training it is still our responsibility to become independent effective learners and stay up to date with the medical literature. If these concepts are applied effectively during our training the process will help us to become more effective long life learners.
I would love to read your comments on this topic. Are you a content-oriented, a process-oriented, or both type of learner?
References
- Wikipedia; Andragogy; Last update: Sept 17, 2012
- Smith, M. K. (1996; 1999) 'Andragogy', the encyclopaedia of informal education, Last update: May 29, 2012.
- Instructional design; Andragogy (Knowles)
- Dr. Shawn Bullock; Introduction to Andragogy, YouTube Video, Posted Sept 17, 2012
Image 1 source: http://collections.infocollections.org/ukedu/uk/d/Jh0414e/5.1.html
Image 2 source: http://i.ytimg.com/vi/6JbN16oL3Ho/0.jpg
I've been thinking about andragogy and the flipped classroom recently.
ReplyDeleteI come from a background of PBL. I love the concept and it works for my memory; hanging theoretical knowledge onto memorable cases aids recall, just as we can readily remember our own ED patients, especially when there were learning points to be made. But I learned at med school through PBL which lacked direction. We had a curriculum, but the wealth of #FOAMed resources was not available to me and our discussion PBL sessions were simple regurgitations of facts from books. And where it fell down most - anatomy. It is nearly impossible to gain a firm foundation in 3D anatomy from a book and even with 2hrs a week in the dissection room there was little structured teaching; we were expected to know the anatomy already.
This week I facilitated a flipped classroom session on traumatic cardiac arrest in my ED. As many of the consultants (attendings) and registrars (residents) who could attend did so, and they had been sent links to two EMCrit podcasts and my StEmlyns blog post in advance. Some hadn't accessed the resources: most had. In under 60mins we discussed varying experience of traumatic cardiac arrest, skill levels in the context of performing thoracotomy, and settled on a consensus approach to traumatic cardiac arrest in our ED. Learning outcomes achieved.
I find myself wishing I could be at med school now with a PBL course and the fantastic teachers of #FOAMed at my disposal. I need the time to match the enthusiasm I now have for learning. Self motivated learning is one thing, self directed is quite another. The andragogical approach is revolutionised by #FOAMed.
Great post. Let's be the teachers of the future.
P.S. this was a lot more eloquent when I first wrote it!
Wow, great comments. Kudos to you for successfully flipping a classroom in medical education. It takes a skilled facilitator to be comfortable with guiding a non-scripted conversation with the goal of teaching and learning. Perhaps the first step is to get more educators comfortable with this skill set (being a facilitator).
DeleteFlipping a classroom doesn't necessarily guarantee that learning will occur.
Hi Nat,
DeleteThanks for letting us know about your teaching experiences. It's good to know you are aware of other non-traditional tools of learning. It looks like you are also aware that andragogy is a great concept to help learners become independent competent life-long learners.
Keep us posted on your future teaching experiences.
I absolutely agree that the power of the internet, the freedom of sharing information, and educational materials that are created through FOAM makes education more interesting, engaging, and ultimately fun. FOAM really is the key to andragogy and empowering learners!
ReplyDeletePerhaps "teachers" should be renamed "learning enablers".
DeleteAgree 100% with you Nikita. We just need to measure the impact these tools have on the learners. It's already being done in general education, now we need to apply it to medical education.
Delete