Psychology of the Adult Learner

Abstract

Literacy for all by the year 2015 could be only a reality if a number of issues are raised as the majority of the disadvantaged groups are adult. We need to understand their ways of learning since learning is human being’s primary mode of adaptation. If we don’t learn we may not survive, and we certainly won’t prosper. Learning is complex and multifaceted, and should not be equated with formal education; all human activity has a learning dimension. People learn, continually, informally and formally, in many different settings: in workplaces, in families, through leisure activities, through community activities, and in political action (Mamman, 2006). Part of being an effective instructor involves understanding how adults learn best. Compared to children and teens, adults have special needs and requirements as learners. In this context, adult learners who are most vulnerable in the society termed as the special target groups are persons whose psychology of learning need to be understood if they are to succeed and attain literacy by the year 2015.