Adult Learning

This chapter begins by situating the emergence and progression of foundational and contemporary theories of adult learning in the broader landscape of traditional learning theories. It focuses on adult learning to andragogy and foundational theories including self-directed, transformational, and experiential learning. Systematic studies on how adults learn were spawned in the early 20th century. The role of experience becomes apparent in this summary of four foundational theories of adult learning: andragogy; self-directed learning; experiential learning; and transformative learning. Notwithstanding the criticism, andragogy has had a profound impact on current understandings of adult learning, taking its place in university courses on adult learning and in the practices of adult educators. Contemporary adult learning theories broadly captured under the umbrella terms of integrated ways of learning and narrative spaces of knowing, explicate the multiple ways with which adult learners engage. Because integrative ways of learning involve the body, emotions, and spirit, the authors offer a brief overview of these dimensions.