tips-tips menghadapi temuduga

. Monday, November 19
8 comments


Berdasarkan puluhan sesi mengendalikan temuduga semasa bertugas di industri korporat dan juga beberapa pengalaman rakan-rakan yang lain. Alhamdulillah, saya terlibat sebagai panel untuk menemuduga calon-calon yang punyai keputusan cemerlang seperti CGPA 3.5 ke atas, 'Mumtaz', 'First Class', 'Distinction' dan sebahagiannya mempunyai Ijazah Sarjana.

Malangnya, banyak kali saya dan rakan-rakan di sektor swasta dapati individu yang mempunyai kelayakan akademik cemerlang di Universiti tetapi ianya tidak banyak membantu calon semasa temuduga.

Saya bimbang degan fenomena kegagalan sistem peperiksaan di Universiti yang gagal melahirkan seorang yang kreatif, beryakinan serta berbakat. Selain dari pengalaman saya sendiri dan juga apa yang kerap saya dengari dari rakan-rakan, ada graduan cemerlang yang seperti 'batu' semasa interview dan ada juga yang langsung tidak mampu menjawab soalan panel yang berbentuk ujian emosi dan kreativiti menjawab. Mungkin kerana soalan itu tiada dalam silibus buku mereka agaknya.

Saya bimbang, munculnya graduan yang cemerlang atas kertas kerana kecekapannya menghafal silibus sahaja. Akhirnya, sekali dicuba di alam realiti, tersungkur jatuh dengan sekali cubaan sahaja. Kerana itu, bagi saya soalan peperiksaan perlu diolah dalam bentuk yang lebih praktical dan mementingkan kefahaman berbanding hafalan semata-mata.

Tidak dinafikan kita inginkan pelajar menghafal, tetapi adalah hafalan berserta kefahaman sehingga bila dibawakan satu soalan dan situasi mencabar, ia mampu menjawab dan mengadaptasikan formula hafalannya dalam konteks semasa. Mampu memperkembangkannya dan bukannya hafalan kosong.

Jika anda bagaimana seorang tukang masak biasa menjadi Chef yang hebat. Jawabnya, adalah dengan mempelajari dan menghafal resipi asal dari seorang guru, kemudian mencuba dan mempelbagaikan ramuan sendiri. Akhirnya lahirlah resipinya sendiri dan rasa tersendiri. Resipi asal hanya menjadi titik mula untuk menjadi kreatif. Itulah nilai tambah yang dikehendaki dalam proses menuntut ilmu. Iaitu memperkembangkan ilmu.

Mungkin kerana itu, pendedahan berpersatuan dan berprogram di universiti amat penting dalam pembentukan graduan yang cekap dan kreatif dalam menangani masalah dan soalan-soalan panel temuduga.

Melalui tulisan ringkas ini, saya akan cuba mencoretkan beberapa perkara penting yang perlu diambil perhatian oleh seseorang calon temuduga. Sudah pasti bukan semua aspek sempat untuk saya coretkan, terutamanya saya bukanlah seorang pakar bab pengurusan dan temuduga. Namun masih boleh berkongsi pengalaman.

Secara ikhlas, terdapat beberapa kelemahan nyata bagi kebanyakan calon-calon, kelemahan tersebut juga berulang-berulang.


Soalan Biasa

Tidak kiralah samada interview di dalam Bahasa Inggeris, Melayu atau Arab, soalan awal adalah :-

"Please introduce yourself" atau "Sila perkenalkan diri anda"

Ini adalah ayat biasa yang digunakan oleh panel untuk memulakan sesi temuduga.

Jawapan calon bagaimana?

"Saya berasal dari kampung sekian, sekian..adik beradik 11 orang, saya anak yang sulong, ibu bapa saya bekerja itu dan ini"

"saya sekolah tadika di..., "

"Saya sudah berkahwin dah punyai ....anak"

Bagi saya, jika calon menjawab seperti jawapan di atas, ia adalah suatu kekurangan pada minda calon dan 'disadvantages' buat calon tersebut.

Ini kerana calon sepatutnya memfokuskan pengenalan diri dalam hal yang berkaitan dengan kerjaya yang diminta sahaja.

Cukup memfokuskan kepada bahagian berikut :-

1) Kelulusan & Pendidikan formal: Pendidikan Sekolah Menengah dan Universiti sahaja serta kaitan apa-apa subjek yang diambil dengan kerja yang dipohon.

2) Tempat bertugas sekarang (jika bekerja, jika tidak sebutkan pengalaman di Universiti seperti Exco persatuan dan lain-lain)

3) Pengalaman dan kemahiran yang ada dan kaitannya dengan tugas yang dipohon.

Saya kira, tiga point tadi sudah cukup, tidak perlu menghuraikan silsilah keluarga, nama emak, nama atuk, kahwin, anak, kampung dan lain-lain. Ia hanya menunjukkan ketidakmatangan calon.

Panel biasanya menyoal soalan ini untuk menilai tahap fokus calon dalam menjawab soalan dan kaitannya dengan kerja yang diminta. Bukan untuk berkenalan dengan calon.


Tahap Satu


Selapas soalan pertama, panel biasanyaakan cuba memperkembangkan soalan dari jawapan pertama calon, terutamanya dalam soal :-

1) Panel akan melihat keputusan peperiksaan dan subjek yang diambil calon di Universiti dan akan mengutarakan soalan berkenaannya. Justeru, calon mestilah cuba ulangkaji terlebih dahulu sedikit isi penting subjek yang berkaitan dengan tugasan yang diminta.

Sebagai contoh : Jika seseorang calon memohon jawatan Syariah Executive di sebuah Islamic Bank.

Sudah tentu panel akan cuba menguji ilmu dan kefahaman subjek Fiqh Muamalat yang diambil calon ketika di universiti. Demikian juga subjek Qawaid Fiqh dan lain-lain yang berkaitan.

2) Tugas yang calon lakukan sekarang (sekiranya ia sedang bertugas) dan kaitan yang boleh menyokong kerjayanya sekarang.

Tatkala itu, calon mestilah bersedia dengan segala point yang dapat mengaitkan kerjaya yang dipohon. Walaupun ia dari dua displin yang berbeza.

Sebagai contoh, calon seorang siswazah masih bertugas sebagai cashier di sebuah pasaraya (kerja sementara menunggu yang sesuai dengan kelulusannya), dan sekarang calon memohon tugas sebagai Eksekutif Akaun di sebuah syarikat swasta.

Maka calon mestilah berupaya mengaitkan faedah kerjayanya sebagai cashier dengan tugasan yang dipohon. Calon mestilah kreatif berfikir dan mengaitkannya, paling kurang pun sekurang-kurangnya sebutlah bahawa dengan kerjaya sebagai juruwang itu, anda sudah terdedah dengan suasana pekerjaan, membuat laporan, menerima arahan supervisor dan lain-lain"

Bagi saya, kemampuan calon untuk mengaitkannya dikira sebagai satu merit baik buat calon.

3) Mengapa memohon kerja ini sedangkan anda sudah bekerja sekarang.

Ini soalan yang amat biasa bagi semua jawatan. Setiap alasan anda adalah amat penting untuk panel menilai pemikiran anda dan perancangan kerjaya anda. Kematangan dalam jawapan pastinya banyak membantu,

Kenalan saya pernah memberitahu bahawa banyak calon bumiputra gagal memberikan jawapan yang baik dalam soalan ini. Malah hingga ada yang mengatakan :

"Tak pelah, jika tak dapat jawatan ni pun saya tak la kisah sangat pun sebenarnya"

Kata sebegini adalah satu kesilapan besar.

4) Mengapa kerap menukar kerja?

Soalan ini amat relevan dan penting bagi panel iaitu dalam situasi anda pernah bekerja di pelbagai syarikat dan organisasi sebelum ini, atau kata lainnya, 'melompat-lompat'.

Mereka pasti akan bertanya sebab-musabab banyak melompat, malah sebahagian Managing Director dalam sektor 'Oil & Gas' pernah berkata kepada saya :

"Semua calon yang dilihat banyak melompat dari syarikat ke syarikat dalam tempoh kurang setahun atau dua tahun, awal-awal kami dah reject"

Lihat, malah dalam kebanyakan sektor swasta mereka akan menilai tahap kesetiaan anda dengan satu syarikat. Mereka tidak mahu anda melakukan demikian kepada syarikat mereka nanti. Jawapan konkrit perlu anda sediakan.

Tanpa jawatan konkrit, kebanyakan majikan akan menggangap individu yang kerap melompat sebagai :-

1) Tidak setia kepada satu-satu organsasi.

2) Gila pangkat.

3) Jenis bermasalah dan pastinya masalah di tempat lama.

4) Pengejar kenaikan gaji secara rakus. Iaitu dengan cara melompat-lompat.

5) Kurang kemahiran khusus dalam satu bidang kerana asyik melompat.

6) Kurang kemahiran interpersonel.


Tahap Kedua

Tahap seterusnya, panel biasanya akan mula menguji sekaligus :-

1) Tahap kemahiran ilmu dalam bidang kerja yang dipohon.
2) Cara penyampaian jawapan termasuk cara pandangan mata, cara tangan semasa bercakap
3) Tahap keyakinan semasa menjawab soalan.
4) Tahap kedinamikan calon semasa menjawab.
5) Minat calon dalam kerjaya yang dipohon.
Ini adalah antara fokus utama seorang panel. Namun, jika jawatan yang dipohon adalah sebagai eksekutif sahaja. Biasanya panel akan bersifat lebih toleransi kerana jawatan eksekutif adalah satu jawatan yang masih dikira kecil di dalam sebuah organisasi dan syarikat. Justeru, tahap ilmu dan kemahiran tidaklah menuntut satu tahap yang tinggi.

Bagaimanapun, sesiapa yang mampu menunjukkan tahap kemahiran dan ilmu dengan cemerlang sudah tentu lebih baik.

Bagaimanapun point 2,3,4 dan 5 masih amat penting buat calon, walaupun hanya bagi jawatan eksekutif.

Banyak kekurangan dikenalpasti di kalangan graduan kita dalam hal ini. Antaranya :-

a-Tidak yakin dengan jawapan. Ada dua jenis soalan dalam temuduga, yang pertama soalan fakta dan yang kedua soalan bukan fakta.

Bagi soalan yang memerlukan fakta tepat, jika calon tidak mampu menjawab, mereka masih perlu menunjukkan keupayaan untuk merujuk kepada sumber-sumber tertentu.

Bagi soalan yang memerlukan pandangan bebas bukan fakta; keyakinan amat penting. Keyakinan itu perlu dizahirkan melalui cara dan intonasi bercakap, memek muka dan sedikit pergerakan tangan.

Ini tidak, bila ada yang tidak boleh jawab soalan fakta, mulalah terganggu pemikirannya sehingga semua jawapan selepas itu tidak yakin. Apatah lagi jika diprovokasi oleh panel seperti katanya,

"Anda sebenarnya tidak layak dan belum bersedia untuk jawatan ini"

b-Tidak menunjukkan bakat dan kemampuan untuk menyumbang. Ini adalah aspek penting dalam sebuah temuduga, calon mesti menunjukkan minat untuk menyumbang dan mempelajari jika diterima sebagai eksekutif, tunjukkan minat dan keghairahan untuk belajar, dan bukannya sekadar "InshaAllah" dengan lemah longlai serta ayat-ayat yang tidak bermotivasi.
Kebanyakkan panel temuduga ingin melihat bakat calon untuk diperkembangkan kelak. Mereka tidaklah mengharapkan anda sehebat orang yang punyai pengalaman 10 tahun. Apa yang diharapkan adalah kesediaan dan pembuktian bahawa anda adalah seorang calon yang berbakat.

c-Merendah diri. Benar, merendah diri adalah satu sifat yang terpuji dalam Islam tetapi semasa temuduga calon perlu menunjukkan dan menaikkan kebolehan diri. Bukan meninggi diri dalam bentuk melampau dan 'over' tetapi cukup sekadar menunjukkan kedinamikan diri dan kelayakan anda untuk jawatanyang dipohon.
d-Tidak Relaks & Kelihatan Tertekan. Calon perlu relaks dan kelihatan selesa semasa temuduga. Tenangkan diri dan jangan rasakan anda dalam sebuah temuduga. Ia mudah menganggu debaran hati dan jantung anda. Bayangkan anda sedang berbincang dengan guru sahaja.

Bagi sektor swasta, kemampuan calon menunjukkan ketenangannya dan relaksnya dalam temuduga mampu memberi kredit kepada calon. Ia membuktikan calon adalah orang yang boleh menanggung beban dan stress kerja swasta yang biasanya sibuk dan tertekan.


Tahap akhir

Sebagai ringkasan dalam tulisan ini, panel akan melihat kepada gaji semasa anda, dan gaji yang dipohon.

Ini sebenarnya adalah satu proses ujian kematangan yang hebat. Calon mesti berhati-hati agar tidak dihentam dan ditertawakan.

Justeru, 'expected salary' mestilah melihat kepada 'salary scale' di dalam pasaran dan gaji calon sekarang.

Untuk itu, calon mesti membuat kajian tahap gaji seorang eksekutif di bidang perbankan sebagai contoh. Atau sector pendidikan dan lain-lain. Jangan membuka kelemahan diri dengan memohon gaji seorang pengurus atau gaji seorang pekerja kilang sahaja.

Jangan letak terlalu tinggi dan jangan tersilap minta terlalu rendah berbanding kelulusan anda.

Jika anda seorang yang cemerlang dan punyai sarjana yang specifik dalam jawatan dan bidang tugas yang dipohon, lihat pula sektor apa, jika dalam sektor perbankan Islam sebagai contoh, jangan letak kurang dari RM 3000 sebulan.

Jika calon meletakkan bawah dari RM 3000 dengan kreteria yang disebut di atas, ia menunjukkan calon kurang mengkaji dan kurang matang dalam sektor pekerjaan.

Jika calon punyai pengalaman 2 tahun, jangan pula letak gaji dipohon sebanyak RM 6000. Sudah tentu akan ditertawakan oleh panel, jika tidak di hadapan calon, dibelakang sudah tentu agaknya.

Sebenarnya banyak aspek yang perlu dilihat dalam meletakkan gaji yang dijangka. Termasuk aspek :-

1) Saiz Syarikat : Syarikat besar atau kecil, tempatan atau antarabangsa. Semuanya punyai 'scale' yang berbeza.

2) Jenis sektor : Kejuruteraan, Perbankan dan Kewangan, Pendidikan, Konsultan dan lain-lain. Ini juga banyak berbeza.

3) Jenis Kemahiran : jenis kemahiran khas atau biasa. Kemahiran yang mudah dijumpai di pasaran adalah lebih murah dan yang sukar. Sebagai contoh ; calon yang punyai kemahiran Fiqh Mualamat dan Perbankan Islam amat sukar ditemui dalam pasaran, hasilnya calon yang punyai pengalaman boleh meletakkan permohonan sedikit tinggi.

4) Jenis Jawatan : Ia amat banyak mempengaruhi gaji jangkaan. Termasuklah nama jawatan, iaitu eksekutif, Eksekutif Kanan, Pengurus, Pengurus Kanan dan lain-lain. Juga dari aspek, jawatan tetap, kontrak atau separuh masa. Semua mempunyai scale masing-masing.

Justeru, calon perlu merujuk kepada mereka yag berpengalaman untuk menentukan gaji jangkaan. Jangkaan yang tepat pula pastinya akan ditanya oleh panel,

"Mengapa anda layak dengan gaji sebanyak ini?"

Jawapan perlu disediakan dari awal. Elok juga disebutkan kepada panel bahawa ia terbuka untuk perbincangan. Tatkala itu, panel akan bertanya lagi;

"Berapa minimum yang anda boleh agaknya?"

Sekali lagi anda perlu menyiapkan jawapan dari awal.

Oleh kerana biasanya soalan ini di akhir temuduga, calon juga boleh menilai serba siedikit prestasinya dan respon panel temuduga dalam meletakkan aras minimum gaji yang dijangka. Jika panel kelihatan menyukai anda dan anda juga kelihatan 'performed' dalam temuduga, bolehlah anda nilaikan gaji minimum yang sedikit tinggi. Demikian sebaliknya.


Soalan Penutup

Biasanya, soalan penutup panel temuduga adalah:

"Do you have any question?" atau " Saudara/i ada apa-apa soalan?"

Kebanyakan calon akan mengatakan ‘Tiada soalan"

Bagi saya, ia sekali lagi satu tindakan yang kurang tepat.

Panel sebenarnya ingin menilai minda anda terhadap kerja yang dipinta. Justeru lebih baik anda bertanya, pastikan pertanyaan adalah standard dan menunjukkan anda seorang yang berpandangan jauh. Seperti tanya berkenaan masa depan syarikat, peluang karier bersama syarikat, tahap kestabilan syarikat dan lain-lain. Bagaimanapun, jika calon terlalu tidak 'performed' di peringkat awal temuduga, soalan-soalan besar ini mungkin tidak perlu kerana akan membosankan panel.

(sumber: http://www.zaharuddin.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=624&Itemid=72, 19 nov. 2007)

andragogy

. Friday, November 16
0 comments

andragogy


The notion of andragogy has been around for nearly two centuries. It became particularly popular in North America and Britain as a way of describing adult learning through the work of Malcolm Knowles. But what actually does it mean, and how useful a term is it when thinking about adult learning?

The term andragogy was originally formulated by a German teacher, Alexander Kapp, in 1833 (Nottingham Andragogy Group 1983: v). He used it to describe elements of Plato's education theory. Andragogy (andr- meaning 'man') could be contrasted with pedagogy (paid- meaning 'child' and agogos meaning 'leading') (see Davenport 1993: 114). Kapp's use of andragogy had some currency but it was disputed, and fell into disuse. It reappeared in 1921 in a report by Rosenstock in which he argued that 'adult education required special teachers, methods and philosophy, and he used the term andragogy to refer collectively to these special requirements' (Nottingham Andragogy Group 1983: v). Eduard Lindeman was the first writer in English to pick up on Rosenstock's use of the term. The he only used it on two occasions. picture of Malcolm KnowlesAs Stewart, his biographer, comments, 'the new term seems to have impressed itself upon no one, not even its originators'. That may have been the case in North America, but in France, Yugoslavia and Holland the term was being used extensively 'to refer to the discipline which studies the adult education process or the science of adult education' (Nottingham Andragogy Group 1983: v).

In the minds of many around the adult education field, andragogy and the name of Malcolm Knowles have become inextricably linked. For Knowles, andragogy is premised on at least four crucial assumptions about the characteristics of adult learners that are different from the assumptions about child learners on which traditional pedagogy is premised. A fifth was added later.

1. Self-concept: As a person matures his self concept moves from one of being a dependent personality toward one of being a self-directed human being

2. Experience: As a person matures he accumulates a growing reservoir of experience that becomes an increasing resource for learning.

3. Readiness to learn. As a person matures his readiness to learn becomes oriented increasingly to the developmental tasks of his social roles.

4. Orientation to learning. As a person matures his time perspective changes from one of postponed application of knowledge to immediacy of application, and accordingly his orientation toward learning shifts from one of subject-centeredness to one of problem centredness.

5. Motivation to learn: As a person matures the motivation to learn is internal (Knowles 1984:12).

Each of these assertions and the claims of difference between andragogy and pedagogy are the subject of considerable debate. Useful critiques of the notion can be found in Davenport (1993) Jarvis (1977a) Tennant (1996) (see below). Here I want to make some general comments about Knowles' approach.
Some general issues with Knowles' approach

First, as Merriam and Caffarella (1991: 249) have pointed out, Knowles' conception of andragogy is an attempt to build a comprehensive theory (or model) of adult learning that is anchored in the characteristics of adult learners. Cross (1981: 248) also uses such perceived characteristics in a more limited attempt to offer a 'framework for thinking about what and how adults learn'. Such approaches may be contrasted with those that focus on:
* an adult's life situation (e.g. Knox 1986; Jarvis 1987a);
* changes in consciousness (e.g. Mezirow 1983; 1990 or Freire 1972) (Merriam and Caffarella 1991).

Second, Knowles makes extensive use of a model of relationships derived from humanistic clinical psychology - and, in particular, the qualities of good facilitation argued for by Carl Rogers. However, Knowles adds in other elements which owe a great deal to scientific curriculum making and behaviour modification (and are thus somewhat at odds with Rogers). These encourage the learner to identify needs, set objectives, enter learning contracts and so on. In other words, he uses ideas from psychologists working in two quite different and opposing therapeutic traditions (the humanist and behavioural traditions). This means that there is a rather dodgy deficit model lurking around this model.

Third, it is not clear whether this is a theory or set of assumptions about learning, or a theory or model of teaching (Hartree 1984). We can see something of this in relation to the way he has defined andragogy as the art and science of helping adults learn as against pedagogy as the art and science of teaching children. There is an inconsistency here.

Hartree (1984) raises a further problem. Has Knowles provided us with a theory or a set of guidelines for practice? The assumptions 'can be read as descriptions of the adult learner... or as prescriptive statements about what the adult learner should be like' (Hartree 1984 quoted in Merriam and Caffarella 1991: 250). This links with the point made by Tennant - there seems to be a failure to set and interrogate these ideas within a coherent and consistent conceptual framework. As Jarvis (1987b) comments, throughout his writings there is a propensity to list characteristics of a phenomenon without interrogating the literature of the arena (e.g. as in the case of andragogy) or looking through the lens of a coherent conceptual system. Undoubtedly he had a number of important insights, but because they are not tempered by thorough analysis, they were a hostage to fortune - they could be taken up in an ahistorical or atheoretical way.
The assumptions explored

With these things in mind we can look at the assumptions that Knowles makes about adult learners:

1. Self-concept: As a person matures his self concept moves from one of being a dependent personality toward one of being a self-directed human being. The point at which a person becomes an adult, according to Knowles, psychologically, 'is that point at which he perceives himself to be wholly self-directing. And at that point he also experiences a deep need to be perceived by others as being self-directing' (Knowles 1983: 56). As Brookfield (1986) points out, there is some confusion as to whether self-direction is meant here by Knowles to be an empirically verifiable indicator of adulthood. He does say explicitly that it is an assumption. However, there are some other immediate problems:

* both Erikson and Piaget have argued that there are some elements of self-directedness in children's learning (Brookfield 1986: 93). Children are not dependent learners for much of the time, ‘quite the contrary, learning for them is an activity which is natural and spontaneous' (Tennant 1988: 21). It may be that Knowles was using ‘self-direction’ in a particular way here or needed to ask a further question - 'dependent or independent with respect to what?'

* the concept is culturally bound - it arises out of a particular (humanist) discourse about the self which is largely North American in its expression. This was looked at last week - and will be returned to in future weeks.

2. Experience: As a person matures he accumulates a growing reservoir of experience that becomes an increasing resource for learning. The next step is the belief that adults learn more effectively through experiential techniques of education such as discussion or problem solving (Knowles 1980: 43). The immediate problem we have is the unqualified way in which the statement is made. There may be times when experiential learning is not appropriate - such as when substantial amounts of new information is required. We have to ask the question, what is being learnt, before we can make judgements.

A second aspect here is whether children's and young people's experiences are any less real or less rich than those of adults. They may not have the accumulation of so many years, but the experiences they have are no less consuming, and still have to be returned to, entertained, and made sense of. Does the fact that they have 'less' supposed experience make any significant difference to the process? A reading of Dewey (1933) and the literature on reflection (e.g. Boud et al 1985) would support the argument that age and amount of experience makes no educational difference. If this is correct, then the case for the distinctiveness of adult learning is seriously damaged. This is of fundamental significance if, as Brookfield (1986: 98) suggests, this second assumption of andragogy 'can arguably lay claim to be viewed as a "given" in the literature of adult learning'.

3. Readiness to learn. As a person matures his readiness to learn becomes oriented increasingly to the developmental tasks of his social roles. As Tennant (1988: 21-22) puts it, 'it is difficult to see how this assumption has any implication at all for the process of learning, let alone how this process should be differentially applied to adults and children'. Children also have to perform social roles.

Knowles does, however, make some important points at this point about 'teachable' moments. The relevance of study or education becomes clear as it is needed to carry out a particular task. At this point more ground can be made as the subject seems relevant.

However, there are other problems. These appear when he goes on to discuss the implications of the assumption. 'Adult education programs, therefore, should be organised around 'life application' categories and sequenced according to learners readiness to learn' (1980: 44)

First, as Brookfield comments, these two assumptions can easily lead to a technological interpretation of learning that is highly reductionist. By this he means that things can become rather instrumental and move in the direction of competencies. Language like 'life application' categories reeks of skill-based models - where learning is reduced to a series of objectives and steps (a product orientation). We learn things that are useful rather than interesting or intriguing or because something fills us with awe. It also thoroughly underestimates just how much we learn for the pleasure it brings (see below).

Second, as Humphries (1988) has suggested, the way he treats social roles - as worker, as mother, as friend, and so on, takes as given the legitimacy of existing social relationships. In other words, there is a deep danger of reproducing oppressive forms.

4. Orientation to learning. As a person matures his time perspective changes from one of postponed application of knowledge to immediacy of application, and accordingly his orientation toward learning shifts from one of subject-centeredness to one of problem centredness. This is not something that Knowles sees as 'natural' but rather it is conditioned (1984: 11). It follows from this that if young children were not conditioned to be subject-centred then they would be problem-centred in their approach to learning. This has been very much the concern of progressives such as Dewey. The question here does not relate to age or maturity but to what may make for effective teaching. We also need to note here the assumption that adults have a greater wish for immediacy of application. Tennant (1988: 22) suggests that a reverse argument can be made for adults being better able to tolerate the postponed application of knowledge.

Last, Brookfield argues that the focus on competence and on 'problem-centredness' in Assumptions 3 and 4 undervalues the large amount of learning undertaken by adults for its innate fascination. '[M]uch of adults' most joyful and personally meaningful learning is undertaken with no specific goal in mind. It is unrelated to life tasks and instead represents a means by which adults can define themselves' (Brookfield 1986: 99).

5. Motivation to learn: As a person matures the motivation to learn is internal (Knowles 1984:12). Again, Knowles does not see this as something 'natural' but as conditioned - in particular, through schooling. This assumption sits awkwardly with the view that adults' readiness to learn is 'the result of the need to perform (externally imposed) social roles and that adults have a problem-centred (utilitarian) approach to learning' (Tennant 1988: 23).

In sum it could be said that these assumptions tend to focus on age and stage of development. As Ann Hanson (1996: 102) has argued, this has been at the expense of questions of purpose, or of the relationship between individual and society
Andragogy and pedagogy

As we compare Knowles' versions of pedagogy and andragogy what we can see is a mirroring of the difference between what is known as the romantic and the classical curriculum (although this is confused by the introduction of behaviourist elements such as the learning contract). As Jarvis (1985) puts it, perhaps even more significantly is that for Knowles 'education from above' is pedagogy, while 'education of equals' is andragogy. As a result, the contrasts drawn are rather crude and do not reflect debates within the literature of curriculum and pedagogy.

A comparison of the assumptions of pedagogy and andragogy following Knowles (Jarvis 1985: 51)


Pedagogy Andragogy
The 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

The 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




We need to be extremely cautious about claiming that there is anything distinctive about andragogy. In his reference to romantic and classic notions of curriculum Jarvis (1985) brings out that what lies behind these formulations are competing conceptualizations of education itself. Crucially, these are not directly related to the age or social status of learners. There are various ways of categorizing strands of educational thinking and practice - and they are somewhat more complex than Knowles' setting of pedagogy against andragogy. In North American education debates, for example, four main forces can be identified in the twentieth century: the liberal educators; the scientific curriculum makers; the developmental/person-centred; and the social meliorists (those that sought more radical social change) (after Kliebart 1987). Another way of looking at these categories (although not totally accurate) is as those who see curriculum as:

* the transmission of knowledge,
* product
* process, and
* praxis.

Viewed in this way - Knowles' version of pedagogy looks more like transmission; and andragogy, as represented in the chart, like process. But as we have seen, he mixes in other elements - especially some rather mechanistic assumptions and ideas which can be identified with scientific curriculum making.
Andragogy - the continuing debate

By 1984 Knowles had altered his position on the distinction between pedagogy and andragogy. The child-adult dichotomy became less marked. He claimed, as above, that pedagogy was a content model and andragogy a process model but the same criticisms apply concerning his introduction of behaviourist elements. He even added the fifth assumption: As a person matures the motivation to learn is internal (1984: 12). Yet while there have been these shifts, the tenor of his work, as Jarvis (1987b) argues, still seems to suggest that andragogy is related to adult learning and pedagogy to child learning.

There are those, like Davenport (1993) or the Nottingham Andragogy Group (1983) who believe it is possible to breathe life into the notion of andragogy - but they tend to founder on the same point. Kidd, in his study of how adults learn said the following:

[W]hat we describe as adult learning is not a different kind or order from child learning. Indeed our main point is that man must be seen as a whole, in his lifelong development. Principles of learning will apply, in ways that we shall suggest to all stages in life. The reason why we specify adults throughout is obvious. This is the field that has been neglected, not that of childhood. (Kidd 1978: 17)

If Kidd is correct then the search for andragogy is pointless. There is no basis in the characteristics of adult learners upon which to construct a comprehensive theory. Andragogy can be seen as an idea that gained popularity in at a particular moment - and its popularity probably says more about the ideological times (Jarvis 1995: 93) than it does about learning processes.
Further reading and references

Here I have listed the main texts proposing 'andragogy' - and inevitably it is the work of Malcolm Knowles that features.

Knowles, M. (1980) The Modern Practice of Adult Education. From pedagogy to andragogy (2nd edn). Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall/Cambridge. 400 pages. Famous as a revised edition of Knowles' statement of andragogy - however, there is relatively little sustained exploration of the notion. In many respects a 'principles and practice text'. Part one deals with the emerging role and technology of adult education (the nature of modern practice, the role and mission of the adult educator, the nature of andragogy). Part 2 deals organizing and administering comprehensive programmes (climate and structure in the organization, assessing needs and interests, defining purpose and objectives, program design, operating programs, evaluation). Part three is entitled 'helping adults learn and consists of a chapter concerning designing and managing learning activities. There are around 150 pages of appendices containing various exhibits - statements of purpose, evaluation materials, definitions of andragogy.

Knowles, M. et al (1984) Andragogy in Action. Applying modern principles of adult education, San Francisco: Jossey Bass. A collection of chapters examining different aspects of Knowles' formulation.

Knowles, M. S. (1990) The Adult Learner. A neglected species (4e), Houston: Gulf Publishing. First appeared in 1973. 292 + viii pages. Surveys learning theory, andragogy and human resource development (HRD). The section on andragogy has some reflection on the debates concerning andragogy. Extensive appendices which includes planning checklists,policy statements and some articles by Knowles - creating lifelong learning communities, from teacher to facilitator etc.

Nottingham Andragogy Group (1983) Towards a Developmental Theory of Andragogy, Nottingham: University of Nottingham Department of Adult Education. 48 pages. Brief review of the andragogy debate to that date. Section 1 deals with adult development; section 2 with the empirical and theoretical foundations for a theory of andragogy; and section 3 proposes a model and theory.

Some critiques of the notion of andragogy - and more particularly the work of Knowles can be found in:

Davenport (1993) 'Is there any way out of the andragogy mess?' in M. Thorpe, R. Edwards and A. Hanson (eds.) Culture and Processes of Adult Learning, London; Routledge. (First published 1987). Jarvis, P. (1987a) 'Malcolm Knowles' in P. Jarvis (ed.) Twentieth Century Thinkers in Adult Education, London: Croom Helm. Tennant, M. (1988, 1996) Psychology and Adult Learning, London: Routledge. Other references Boud, D. et al (1985) Reflection. Turning experience into learning, London: Kogan Page. Brookfield, S. D. (1986) Understanding and Facilitating Adult Learning. A comprehensive analysis of principles and effective practice, Milton Keynes: Open University Press. Cross, K. P. (1981) Adults as Learners. Increasing participation and facilitating learning (1992 edn.), San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Dewey, J. (1933) How We Think, New York: D. C. Heath. Hanson, A. (1996) 'The search for separate theories of adult learning: does anyone really need andragogy?' in Edwards, R., Hanson, A., and Raggatt, P. (eds.) Boundaries of Adult Learning. Adult Learners, Education and Training Vol. 1, London: Routledge. Humphries, B. (1988) 'Adult learning in social work education: towards liberation or domestication'. Critical Social Policy No. 23 pp.4-21. Jarvis, P. (1985) The Sociology of Adult and Continuing Education, Beckenham: Croom Helm. Kidd, J. R. (1978) How Adults Learn (3rd. edn.),Englewood Cliffs, N.J.:Prentice Hall Regents. Kliebart, H. M. (1987) The Struggle for the American Curriculum 1893-1958, New York : Routledge. Merriam, S. B. and Caffarella, R. S. (1991)Learning in Adulthood. A comprehensive guide, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

How to cite this article: Smith, M. K. (1996; 1999) 'Andragogy', the encyclopaedia of informal education, http://www.infed.org/lifelonglearning/b-andra.htm. Last update: October 23, 2007.

© Mark K. Smith 1996, 1999

(source: http://www.infed.org/lifelonglearning/b-andra.htm, 16 november 2007)

pedagogy vs andragogy: intro

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Pedagogy , the art or science of being a teacher, generally refers to strategies of instruction, or a style of instruction. The word comes from the Ancient Greek (paidagōgeō; from (child) and (lead)): literally, "to lead the child”. In Ancient Greece, was (usually) a slave who supervised the education of his master’s son (girls were not publicly educated). This involved taking him to school or a gym, looking after him and carrying his equipment (e.g. musical instruments).


The Latin-derived word for pedagogy, education, is nowadays used in the English-speaking world to refer to the whole context of instruction, learning, and the actual operations involved therein, although both words have roughly the same original meaning. In the English-speaking world the term pedagogy refers to the science or theory of educating.

Pedagogy is also sometimes referred to as the correct use of teaching strategies (see instructional theory). For example, Paulo Freire referred to his method of teaching adults as "critical pedagogy". In correlation with those teaching strategies the instructor's own philosophical beliefs of teaching are harbored and governed by the pupil's background knowledge and experiences, personal situations, and environment, as well as learning goals set by the student and teacher. One example would be the Socratic schools of thought.

An academic degree, Ped.D., Doctor of Pedagogy, is awarded honorarily by some American universities to distinguished educators (in the US and UK earned degrees within the education field are classified as an Ed.D., Doctor of Education or a Ph.D. Doctor of Philosophy). The term is also used to denote an emphasis in education as a specialty in a field (for instance, a Doctor of Music degree "in piano pedagogy").

(source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedagogy, 16 november 2007)


Andragogy is the process of engaging adult learners in the structure of the learning experience. The term was originally used by Alexander Kapp (a German educator) in 1833, was developed into a theory of adult education by the American educator, Malcolm Knowles , (April 24, 1913 -- November 27, 1997).

Knowles held that andragogy (from the Greek words meaning "adult-leading") should be distinguished from the more commonly used pedagogy (Greek: "child-leading").

Knowles' theory can be stated as four simple postulates:

1. Adults need to be involved in the planning and evaluation of their instruction (Self-concept and Motivation to learn).
2. Experience (including mistakes) provides the basis for learning activities (Experience).
3. Adults are most interested in learning subjects that have immediate relevance to their job or personal life (Readiness to learn).
4. Adult learning is problem-centered rather than content-oriented (Orientation to learning).

Knowles' work (most notably the book Self-Directed Learning: A Guide for Learners and Teachers, published in 1975) has been controversial. To some, his proposed system states the obvious, to others, he has merely proposed an adaptation of existing child-learning theories.

The term has been used by some to allow a discussion of the difference between self directed and 'taught' education. However as the attitudes of society towards young people change, the differences in educational methods will tend to diminish. (Self directed education is encouraged in earlier age groups).

(source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andragogy, 16 november 2007)