Beginning with Behaviorism, Watson and subsequently the famous B.F. Skinner believed that behaviorism was the key to learning through the use of positive or negative stimuli. Behaviorism is limited in its range for addressing adult leaner needs as it does not consider cognitive and affective processes.

Numerous perspectives have contributed to cognitive constructivism. Piaget viewed cognitive construction as having 4 stages. For the purposes of the textbook, we are focused on stage four, Formal Operations for ages 11 to 15 which assumes that this age reaches adult cognition and conceptual reasoning abilities. Knowledge from this point forward is constructed through individual experiences. Some credit the work with children that Piaget did, as the inventor of the field of cognitive development (Gardner, 2006). Criticism of Piaget has been found in his lack of acknowledging individual differences and in minimizing cultural, social, and ignoring motivational factors.

Bruner is considered to have been one of the original thinkers in cognitive constructivism. Learning is an active process. Learners construct new ideas based upon their existing knowledge. Bruner (1983) stated, “Knowing how something is put together is worth a thousand facts about it” (p.183).

Parallel to Piaget and Bruner, personality theory from the mid 1950’s in adult research began to take the view that all learning does not end with adolescence. In personality theory, Erik Erikson’s eight stages of life expanded Freud’s view of five stages and challenged the notion that development ended with adolescence. Erikson took Freud’s original five stages and expanded them to eight to include adult development. These additional stages are: Stage 6-young adult (late teens through twenties) characterized by intimacy vs. isolation, seeking partners and friends; Stage 7-middle adult (thirties to fifties) characterized by generativity vs. self-absorption, seeking a meaningful home and workmates; and, Stage 8-old adult (sixties and beyond) characterized by integrity vs. despair.

Bloom’s (1965) contribution to learning was to define the cognitive (knowledge) domain in unison with the affective (attitudes, beliefs, values) domain. His taxonomy for educational objectives is widely used today for developing and helping students categorize test questions.

Lave and Wenger (1991) have defined their learning research as adult learning theory. They have recently identified that as we grow older engaging in communities of practice increases our ability to analyze our experiences. They call this intentional reflection. This is a commonly used process today in adult learning.

For Vygotsky (1978) learner development occurs first at the social level and later on an individual level. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development is the potential for learning when children participate in social behavior. His work which began in the 1920’s was embraced during the later part of the 20^th century for its contribution to cultural understanding in how we learn.

Approaching it from another perspective Bandura’s (1986) observational learning has motivation at the heart of the theory. His four steps are attention, retention, reproduction, and motivation.

Humanistic learning theory focuses on the emotional and affective aspects of the learner. Maslow’s research was centered on the need for experiential learning. Experiential learning emphasized ones ability to choose, encouraged our creativity, values, and self realization. Personal dignity in learning was at the heart of this theory. Rogers also believed that learning should be at the personal level. Learning should include ones feelings and emotions along with the cognitive. Overemphasis of the cognitive was not conducive to good learning.

Motivation impacts learning in interesting ways. Glasser’s (1990) Control Theory is a theory of motivation that ties learning to what a person wants most at any given time. Brown (1996; 1990) identifies the internal or external motivators that drive a person’s locus of control. This locus of control impacts how a person attributes success or failure and thus, what their motivation is to learn. Dewey’s (1938) theory found experiential learning leads us to more learning. Experiential learning motivates us to learn. Rogers (2004) stated that motivation is the single most important factor for the learner. She said, “Unless you are motivated you will not and cannot learn,” (15). Adult learning combined with personality psychology continued to expand during the 1980’s. Levinson’s seminal work (1978) Season’s of a Man’s Life andCarol Gilligan’s In a Different Voice brought further attention to adulthood relative to age, gender, and culture. Female development up to this time had been researched as though complete adult development was inaccessible to the female by virtue of gender characteristics. These studies countered that thinking and elevated that girls do learn differently than boys.

Guilford (1950) believed that the intellect was comprised of operations, content and products. His interest was focused on creativity and how one develops this ability. Creativity and how we engage the learner is supported by Gardner’s (1983) multiple intelligences theory. He has to date identified nine intelligences:

Gardner’s work continues to redefine the learner and what attributes he has identified has led to specific learner strategies. Influences from Bruner and Piaget are found in Gardner’s work.

The founding father of adult learning is often attributed to Knowles. Knowles (1990) uses the term andragogy for adult learning distinguished from pedagogy which is children based. Knowles suggested an endpoint to adulthood, as noted by (Rogers, 2002) that adulthood is attained when individuals perceive themselves to be essentially self-directing. Knowles (2002) identified the following principles:

Learning for adults should be problem-centered vs. content-oriented.

Cronbach and Snow (1977) identified attitude at the heart of their theory. Learning they said is best achieved when strategies are geared directly to the learners specific abilities. Their theory is called Attitude Treatment Interaction.

Adult learning contains critical reflection characteristics which require analysis for the learner (Freire, 1972) and are action based for the learner (Knowles, 1990). As stated by Alan Rogers (2002), “Freire…suggested that learning is accomplished by critically analyzing experience and acting on the basis of that analysis… [and for] Knowles…action is an essential part of the learning process, not a result of the learning process,” (107).

Patricia Cross’s Characteristics of Adults as Learners model (CAL) wrote guidelines for adult education programs. These guidelines are practical and situational on adult learning with attention to characteristics such as, full time versus part time; required (compulsory) or voluntary, etc. Cross’s three principles to adult learning are: (1) Learning should capitalize on one’s experience; (2) Age of the learner is a factor; and, (3) Challenge the adult to continue to grow. Choices on how the learning is organized are important to the adult learner.

The former role of the educational leader, the benevolent authoritarian, is now being transformed to the mentor/coach. Papa (Papa-Lewis, 1987; 1983) has researched extensively as an organizational theorist how mentoring adults influences their learning. Mentoring, teaching, coaching, facilitating and other such similar descriptors describe a process for adult learning. Building upon the work of Maslow, Rogers, Lave, Erikson, Glasser, Levinson, Gilligan and Vygotsky cultural, linguistic, and gender nuances are additional factors that comprise the adult learner and that the educational leader must understand when working with adults. In understanding the communication patterns of the individual the following eight stages represent in descending order of ability how adults communicate both at work and in their personal lives: Mentoring; negotiating; supervising; diverting; persuading; speaking-signaling, and serving. Mentoring is considered the most complete human skill to acquire immediately followed by negotiating and instructing (1983; 1987; 2002). Papa’s research combines adult learning, Knowles and Cross, and characteristics of mentoring in the following manner.

Shifting the educational leader’s role from passive to engagement of the learner forces the educational leader to understand the role of mentoring adults. Papa (2002b) has adapted Knowles’ work on how adults learn best: some adults learn best by listening and taking notes: some adults learn best by group work with other students; some adults learn best by reading rather than listening to lectures; and, some adults learn best by doing specific assignments based on the material covered.

When combined with mentoring skills the educational leader should (Papa, 2002a): (1) Provide alternative models, showing how a problem can be approached from a variety of ways: (2) communicate questions, to aid in comprehension of the issues; (3) try to give a sense of the various strategies they rejected as well as those they adopted, as one sometimes imagine that educational leaders lead without reference to situation, context, people involved, etc.; (4) share your intentions. How do you analyze the problem? What are you trying to accomplish? Why are you adopting this strategy? Don't just let them observe you, explain in advance the context, what you understand the problem to be, what you expect to accomplish, what obstacles you anticipate, etc.; (5) Mutual debriefing, with the leader willing to share mistakes as well as successes; (6) An opportunity for both of you to learn; (7) Work at the relationship. It does not just "happen;" (8) Provide successful experiences for those involved; (9) Recognize this is not cloning. You must preserve a fundamental respect for the views, experiences, and sensitivities of those you are leading; and, (10) Develop mutual trust and befriending. Peer-to-peer instruction or mentoring based leadership are skills the educational leader should practice.

Great teaching is defined by the ability to inspire learners. Motivate the learner and you will grab their attention. Keeping their attention is more difficult. Educational leaders need many strategies at their fingertips to keep other’s attention.

Adult learners by the nature of their characteristics will learn best when in a mentoring environment. In this environment the educational leader acknowledges that they are a learner as well. Figure 2 describes how adults can be taught reaching all learners. This chart has the educational leader understand that by changing the strategies for the learner, all adult learners are engaged. Hearing something said, saying something, doing something and seeing something acknowledges that adults learn differently. The goal is to keep the learners attention: to optimize engaged learners demands the use of strategies and techniques that support the varied learning styles of adults.

To say one leads the way we were lead is not entirely true. More precisely, we lead the way we learn best. How we learn best keeps our attention. It may not keep the attention of those we are trying to lead. Introducing concepts from a variety of strategies ensures all learners are engaged. Papa’s practices (2000b) for adult learners are easy to remember: See the concept; hear the concept; say the concept; and apply the concept. The following table describes the strategies that can be used for each of these four areas. Hear It focuses on the learner that needs to read and write the concepts in order to learn the content. See It offers a visual for the learner, such as writing on a board or using power point. Say It refers to learners that must talk about the concept and are frequently those that ask a lot of questions. This strategy is good for peer-to-peer work and group work. Do It is the hands-on application that allows for trial and error. It is especially important that we discuss mistakes.

Figure 2: Adult Learning Characteristics