The historiography of adult education has painted an almost entirely optimistic picture of enlightenment until today. The actors are defined as people who are willing to learn and capable of being educated. Thanks to the advances in the enlightenment process they mature into responsible citizens. Sources based on individual history, like the ones presented in the “Magazin zur Erfahrungsseelenkunde” (1783-1793), are not taken into consideration. In his role as editor of the periodical magazine, …
The report outlines the 50-year history of the statistics on adult education centres published by the German Institute of Adult Education and its predecessors since 1962. The chronology of events is depicted in a chart, whereas the tool‘s various characteristics, which generated key problems since the beginning and still do until today, are discussed in the text. The author fathoms future chances and challenges of input-oriented institutional statistics in a time with a tendency towards output …
Qualifizierte Adressatenforschung ist eine wichtige Voraussetzung für eine teilnehmer- und bedarfsorientierte Planung und Gestaltung von Weiterbildungsangeboten. Die vorliegende empirische Studie zu Weiterbildungsverhalten und -interessen der Münchner Bevölkerung erforscht aus der Perspektive der Milieuforschung erstmalig den Zusammenhang von sozialer Lage, Lebensstil und Weiterbildung in einer Metropole. Sie orientiert sich in Theorie und Empirie an neueren Arbeiten zur Sozialstruktur Deutschl…
Research on learning - a retrospective The history of empirical research on adults’ learning reaches back until the twenties of the last century. This contribution evokes some interpretative research on the pedagogy of learning and teaching for adults. It seems that the adult education sciences’ disciplinary memory is underdeveloped as many instructive older analysis seem to have fallen into oblivion. Recent studies mostly don’t pay attention to the linkages and continuity of the questions. …
The mature adult who participates voluntarily in free educational programmes is a basic assumption, which equally often supports theories and practices of adult education as it is empirically challenged. Neither supply nor demand is consistently characterized by voluntariness. Up to a certain degree, programmes and participation are mandatory. The assumption that responsible adults do not want to, should not and cannot be taught is also considered to be problematic. The article reveals good rea…
Die konstruktivistische Erkenntnis, dass der "lernende Erwachsene" ein Konstrukt bleiben muss, die Tatsache, dass empirisches Wissen über Teilnahme und Nicht-Teilnahme an Weiterbildung zu gering ist und viele Aspekte mehr rücken die Teilnehmenden in das Zentrum des Interesses. Diese Ausgabe der Zeitschrift REPORT greift das Thema aus der Perspektive wissenschaftlicher Zugänge auf und nimmt gleichzeitig Empirie und Theorie in den Blick.
Professionalization in adult education and the memory culture The discussion of the adult education and its history opens for a closer look at the process of its professionalization. The position of the temporal delimitation and the focusing on the contents come into focus. It turns out that the history of woman education is not represented explicitly in textbooks on the history of the adult education. Focussing on historical factual knowledge and experience knowledge, the analysis of memor…
In today’s societies literacy is regarded as the prerequisite for participating in the professional and private spheres of everyday life. It is regarded as a human right, a tool for personal empowerment and a tool to influence the behaviour of individuals, families and communities. Despite the international consensus that literacy skills determine opportunities and provide access to today’s information-based societies, many adults in both industrialized and developing countries find themselves …
