Pedagogy versus Andragogy
Pedagogy is the art and science behind helping children learn, and andragogy is the art and science of helping adults learn. When designing a course, it is important that you understand the difference between the two and design your course and materials to engage and motivate adult learners.
The following matrix compares pedagogy and andragogy.
| PEDAGOGY vs. ANDRAGOGY |
| |
Pedagogy |
Andragogy |
| The Learner |
- The learner is dependent on the instructor for all learning.
- The teacher assumes full responsibility for what is taught and how it is learned.
- The teacher evaluates the learning.
|
- The learner is self-directed
- The learner is responsible for their own learning
- Self-evaluation is a characteristic of this approach.
|
| Role of the Learner’s Experience |
- The learner comes to the activity with little experience that could be tapped into as a resource for learning.
- The experience of the instructor is most influential.
|
- The learner brings a greater volume and quality of experience.
- Adults are a rich resource for one another
- Different experiences assure diversity in groups of adults.
- The experience becomes the source of self-identity.
|
| Readiness to Learn |
- Students are told what they have to learn in order to advance to the next level of mastery.
|
- Any change is likely to trigger a readiness to learn
- They need to know more in order to perform more effectively in some aspect of their life.
- Ability to assess gaps between where one is now and where one needs to be.
|
| Orientation to Learning |
- Learning is a process of acquiring prescribed subject matter
- Content units are sequenced according to the logic of the subject matter
|
- Learners want to perform a task, solve a problem, and live in a more satisfying way.
- Learning must have relevance to real-life tasks
- Learning is organized around life/work situation rather than subject matter experts
|
| Motivation for Learning |
- Primarily motivated by external pressures, completion for grades and the consequences of failure
|
- Internal motivators: self –esteem, recognition, a better quality of life, self-confidence, and self-actualization.
|
Source: Unknown
