The Factors That Influence Adults Learning

Adult learning encompasses practically all experiences of mature men and women by which they acquire new knowledge, understanding, skills, attitudes, interests, or values. It is a process used by adults for their self-development both alone and with others, and it is used by institutions of all kinds of growth and development of their employees, members and clients. It has been viewed as a process of being freed from the oppression of being illiterate, a means of gaining knowledge and skills, a way to satisfy learner needs, a process of critical self-reflection that can lead to transformation. The phenomenon of adult learning is complex and difficult to capture in any one definition. (Cranton P, 1994) ¿Understanding learning in adulthood is like piecing together a puzzle; there are many parts that must be fitted together before the total picture emerges¿ (Merriam &Caffarella, 1999). The individual learner, the context in which the learning takes place, and the learning process are all parts of this puzzle. ¿Indeed, adult learning is the ¿glue¿ holding together a field [adult education] that is diverse in content, clientele, and delivery systems¿ (Merriam, 1993).