Managing time as an adult learner Research Paper

Managing time as an adult learner - Research Paper Example Adult learners are nowhere placed as target audience/reader/listener. Research journals on time management are also found to target mainly the managers. In this paper I attempt to identify the area observable for research on time management among adult learning community. Understanding the adult learning methods in vogue becomes mandatory to evolve feasible time managing techniques for adult learners. Review of literature throws light on the basic qualities of adult learners. Time management knacks are not new to them. However, inability to adhere to the techniques of time management by adult learners is found to have been caused not merely by their situational factors but also by the training modalities. Further researches are extensively required especially by the psychologists and teaching community in this regard. Literature on time management and literature on adult learning focus their targets in two different but parallel trajectories. While academic journals on time managemen t are very less in number, literature on adult learning too is meagre. (Dorothy MacKeracher, 2004) The efforts being carried out by NIACE (National Institute of Adult Continuing Education) is note worthy. However, the institute focuses its attention purely on developing Adult Education on macro level to sustain the growth and overall development of Great Britain. Adult learners, unlike youngsters who have specific goals, always have specific and ready-to-fire goals that are tangible such as qualification for current job/up skilling for promotion/ career change .1. To locate the research-deserving area with regard to time management by adult learners, the following research questions are framed: a)While time management is a universally acceptable tool for success, is it specifically adaptable to adult learning community as a whole? b)What are the causes that restrain adult learning community from adhering to time managing techniques? Understanding the course of time management as wel l as that of adult learning becomes prerequisite. Time management nuances are contained in broad classification of focussing, planning, organising, acting and learning (Dodd and Sundheim, 2008). Adult learning, as formulated by androgogy specialists is classified in to the following steps namely planning, applying and understanding(Trivette C.M et al, 2009). 1)While time management is a universally acceptable tool for success, is it specifically adaptable to adult learning community as a whole? 1.1 Interactive training: Adult learning theorists have much focussed on the teaching community enabling them to give out fruitful training to adult learners. Most of the literatures on adult learning are in the type of a trainers training module. Review of those literatures reveals that nuances of time management for adult learners are embedded here and there. By selecting a training session designed interactively, which contains application opportunities, a learner can actively take part in the learning process. Through interactive application methods one can score more learning outcomes. In contrast, content oriented sessions that render didactic sermons consume quite a long time to bring to achieve learning objectives. (Foley, 2004, p.91) 1.2 Devising ones own learning objective: Having clear cut and tangible goals in hand they (the goals) can