Learning from Our Lives: Using Educational Biographies with Adults

Educational biography is a promising new approach to helping adult learners understand what they already know, how and why they learned in the past, and what motivates them to pursue new educational opportunities. Through the process of talking in groups and writing their histories, participants can not only reflect on their learning experiences, but enhance their critical thinking, collaborate in their own educational journeys, and build their awareness of such situational influences as family, work, and community.
Learning from Our Lives is the first professional guide to using educational biography with adult learners. It offers engaging anecdotes and narratives, insightful interpretations and analyses, and numerous examples of different biographical approaches. Written for practitioners who conduct adult educational programs in formal or informal settings, this book can help teachers, trainers, career counselors, and human resource professionals to empower learners in assuming greater responsibility for their education and development. Author Pierre Dominicé draws valuable lessons from his work with educational biography to describe the multiple ways in which adults think and learn. His explorations help educators to stay focused on learning and not just teaching.

Spis treści:
Learning as an Active Search for Meaning.
Understanding Biographical Approaches to Learning.
From Life History to Educational Biography.
How Adults Educate Themselves.
Exploring Adults′ Ways of Thinking.
Learners′ Needs, Motivations, and Dreams.
Helping Learners Put Words to Their Lives.
Giving Evaluation Another Meaning.
Conclusion: Creating Conditions for Successful Learning in Adult Life.

Nota biograficzna:
PIERRE DOMINICE is professor of adult education at the University of Geneva, Switzerland. He is also president of the International Association of Life History Applied to Adult Education (ASIHUIF) and a member of the steering committee of the European Society for Research in the Education of Adults (ESREA).

Okładka tylna:
Educational biography is a promising new approach to helping adult learners understand what they already know, how and why they learned in the past, and what motivates them to pursue new educational opportunities. Through the process of talking in groups and writing their histories, participants can not only reflect on their learning experiences, but enhance their critical thinking, collaborate in their own educational journeys, and build their awareness of such situational influences as family, work, and community.
Learning from Our Lives is the first professional guide to using educational biography with adult learners. It offers engaging anecdotes and narratives, insightful interpretations and analyses, and numerous examples of different biographical approaches. Written for practitioners who conduct adult educational programs in formal or informal settings, this book can help teachers, trainers, career counselors, and human resource professionals to empower learners in assuming greater responsibility for their education and development. Author Pierre Dominicé draws valuable lessons from his work with educational biography to describe the multiple ways in which adults think and learn. His explorations help educators to stay focused on learning and not just teaching.