2016 Annual Conference

The focus of this roundtable conversation is a critical reflection on the current and future states of adult and lifelong learning inspired by Malcolm Knowles’ dream of the field of adult education in 2016. Presenters will share current trends and issues presciently described by Knowles in 1991.

This session will appeal to attendees interested in a retrospective look at the study and practice of adult learning over the last twenty-five years as well as futurists with ideas to share on what the next twenty-five years will bring.

Malcolm Knowles wrote the epilogue to Adult Education, a 1991 publication edited by Peters, Jarvis, and Associates and sponsored by AAACE. In it, as he had in The Adult Education Movement in the U.S. in 1962, Knowles shared his dreams for the future of adult education. He visualized an “energy-releasing system” with technology allowing for communication between a global citizenry engaged in lifelong learning. Knowles imagined collaborative spaces staffed with professionals who assist adult learners in creating self-directed learning plans and locating information resources. Universities were integrated into the lifelong learning ecosystem of the community and the physiology of learning was a major research focus in 2016. Although not exactly as Knowles pictured, some of his predictions can be seen in current trends in adult education, particularly in the field of educational technology. Formal and informal virtual learning spaces can support the democratization of teaching and learning and the access to subject matter experts as lifelong learning resources. Knowles even seemed to describe emerging trends such as augmented and virtual reality. During this roundtable discussion, the presenters will facilitate a reflection on Knowles’ predictions for 2016 and elicit thoughts on the next twenty-five years in the field of adult learning.