Andragogy
Andragogy, which is both a method and practice of instructing adult students, is a term that was popularized in the 1960s by Malcolm Knowles (Fox, 2020).
Knowle’s 6 Adult Learning Assumptions
1. Need to Know - Adults must understand why they are studying and how it will benefit them (Fox, 2020).
2. Self-concept—people learn better if they can work autonomously, therefore create a collaborative, self-directed learning environment with some direction (Fox, 2020).
3. Learner Experience—having more life experiences—influences motives, needs, interests, and goals. Students need help setting goals and self-reflecting (Fox, 2020).
4. Readiness to Learn – Since adult learners want to apply what they learn to real life, courses should include activities and projects that encourage independent research and exploration of the subject matter to give them firsthand experience (Fox, 2020).
5. Learning orientation: focusing on the task and problem and questioning how doing so can help one solve them. Adult students must see how their studies relate to their life. Case studies, role playing, and self-evaluation help learners (Fox, 2020).
6. Drive for Learning - Adults must discover their own drive to learn by having a valid reason for participating in each activity and being aware of the skills they will gain from completing it. Relevance matters (Fox, 2020).
The basis of andragogy is the belief that all people have the capacity to learn independently and are interested in doing so. This presumption may not hold true for every learner, especially as some adults learn better with a greater degree of structure and direction. This is something I have seen firsthand in my line of work.
Digital Accessibility
Digital accessibility means students with disabilities have the same access rights to this digital information and online teaching as students without disabilities. This includes students who have visual, auditory, motor, or cognitive impairments. Yet, despite being required by law, schools and institutions frequently do not provide these students with the same level of access to online learning and digital content (SREB, 2018).
Teachers often give their students with disabilities subpar accommodations because they are rushed to make last-minute changes to the curriculum after learning that a student with an impairment has enrolled in their class (SREB, 2018).
In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and the requirements of any other applicable regulations, raise awareness, provide training, and implement best practices in order to make e-learning content and websites more accessible to students who have disabilities (SREB, 2018).
Shareable Content Object Reference Model - SCORM
SCORM is a standard for online learning. It aids the learning management system (LMS) collaborate with the learning content. Before SCORM getting these two elements to work together was difficult, and the course content didn’t work on a variety of devices. To remedy this issue, SCORM was developed as a blueprint with a collection of technical requirements that would allow trainers and content developers to cooperate and use multiple tools to move course content to different systems (Anderson, 2021).
Lastly, keep in mind that even though a product claims to be SCORM compliant, that simply means that vendors only need to follow to the required elements of the specifications and not the optional ones. When looking for a SCORM compliant learning management system, you want to be sure that the compliance covers all elements of the specifications and not just the required specifications (Anderson, 2021).
Educational Technology Policy
Unfortunately, new ways of teaching and learning are sometimes stymied by laws that are intended to be beneficial but ultimately useless (SREB, 2018). Schools and districts become perplexed, make errors, repeat duties, or leave them unfinished when local or state policies contradict with federal regulations. Schools and institutions that lack staff and funding are burdened by these errors (SREB, 2018).
The recommended solution is to conduct a frequent evaluation at the state level of legislation and policies relating to technology on education standards, access, and infrastructure to ensure that these policies are adequate, aligned, essential, and integrated (SREB, 2018).
Keep in mind that educational technology policy can have a disproportionate influence on low-income or historically marginalized groups, reinforcing existing power systems and inequities. Corporate interests, such as the promotion of the usage of particular commercial products or services, can potentially have too much of an impact. It's possible that the interests of profit will supersede those of students and teachers in these policies.
Resources
Allison, N. (2018, October 18). Build an inclusive website with Digital Accessibility. Sevaa. Retrieved May 7, 2023, from https://sevaa.com/blog/2018/11/digital-accessibility/
Anderson, D. V. (2021, May 12). What is SCORM? 5 essential scorm facts you should know. eLearning Industry. Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://elearningindustry.com/what-is-scorm-5-scorm-facts-know
Fox, P. (2020, July 22). Adult learning theory: Knowles' 6 assumptions of Adult Learners. YouTube. Retrieved August 3, 2022, from https://youtu.be/SArAggTULLU
Reynolds, L. (2020, October 22). How to implement Adult learning theory (andragogy) in the workplace. YouTube. Retrieved May 7, 2023, from https://youtu.be/biIpXQKQpMI
SREB. (2018, February). 10 issues in Educational Technology. Southern Regional Education Board. Retrieved April 1, 2023, from https://www.sreb.org/10issues
COMMENT BY: Francisco Sanchez
FOR: EDU6381
Hello Alicia,
We finally made it to the last week of this course. I enjoyed reading your blog post. Your condensing of the content covered while also offering critical inputs was refreshing. I wanted to point out the last paragraph of your andragogy section that stood out to me. Your last paragraph states, “The basis of andragogy is the belief that all people have the capacity to learn independently and are interested in doing so.” You later mention how you have witnessed cases where adult learners may not want to learn. Either way, I am generally an upholder who always works hard and really buys into the “American Dream” and the concept sold to…