Adult learning is one of the key elements that should be in put into consideration whenever a country is talking about regional development. The title of the article being reviewed is found in the review of the book, “Globalization, diversity, and the search for culturally relevant models for adult education.” By Patricia K Kubow, from the University of Bowling Green Sate. The article implies that there are a lot of individuals who are interested in advancing their careers in vocational and adult education. Therefore, it suggests that they should be able to understand that the curriculum is changing and they also have to advance in this field. From the article, one will realize that there are a lot of scholars who also support this new approach for curriculum change. It is for this reason that the article caught my attention as it looks at how the curriculum advancement is adopted globally. This is not only done in the US but also among the Asian countries.
The article breaks down the parts and chapters in the book. The first part of the book that has got three chapters is titled “curriculum development in the global context.” In this chapter, one is made to understand that there is a great influence in adult learning in relation to the demographic. It suggests that different demographic require different approaches in adult learning. Moreover, the article implies that the reason for this is that people from different communities in the world have different perception on adult learning so it is better if they can be made to learn in the manner in which they feel comfortable. This is one of the best approaches that can be suggested to anybody who is concerned about the adult learning. This approach can be supported because the multicultural literature in the world has affected the adult learning program. Therefore, if people are made to learn in the culture that they can relate to, it can be easier for them to learn. The learners will also be comfortable as they will interpret the learning experience in their own world. The article also makes it clear that the marginalization of the adult learners is made possible if there is a democratic learning environment that they can relate to.
From the article, one will be able to understand that the interest of adult learners is based on socio-cultural context which is explained throughout the remaining part of the article. This is one of the reason why it should be taken into consideration in the field of adult education as this approach can help in the marginalization of adult learning across the whole globe. This approach can also be made possible to the immigrants of different countries. Most of the immigrants need orientation in the educational system of their host country, that is why they have to go back to learn. Therefore this approach would be appropriate for them to gain knowledge. Moreover, adult education is very essential to the individuals from developing countries that have a chance of joining the developed countries. Therefore, if the approach can be taken, the learner will have a problem of coping with the host learning system due to cultural shock.
From the preceding evaluation, we see that this article relates to the trends of our time, whereby the global world is working hard to ensure that literacy is made possible to everybody. Therefore, this approach is one of the elements that will make it clear that illiteracy is being eradicated all over the world. Moreover, people are made to learn in relation to what they already know. It is difficult to make individuals in the third world to learn and cope up with the thing that are happening in the first world nation. That is why they will be in a position to learn from the things that they can relate to and understand better.
References
- Bentley, T. (1998) Learning beyond the Classroom: Education for a changing world, London: Routledge.
- Courtney, S. (2009) ‘Defining adult and continuing education’ in S. B. Merriam and P. M. Cunningham (eds.) Handbook of Adult and Continuing Education, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Source of the Article
https://trace.tennessee.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1006&context=internationaleducation&sei-redir=1#search=%22Adult%20Education%20Adult%20Learning%20Development%20-%20Globalization%22