Andragogy and Pedagogy in Learning Theories

Abstract

A good question human resources development (HRD) and human resources management (HRM) practitioners ask is “why do we explore learning theories?” The simple answer is we want quality learning in our organizations. HRD, HRM interventions, and management policies are congruent with the assumptions about human nature and organizational life. Naturally, learning theories about human behavior carry with them assumptions about human nature, the purpose of training, and desirable values. Understandably then, a better understanding of the various learning theories will result in better decisions regarding learning experiences and more desirable outcomes (Knowles, Holton III, & Swanson, 2005). Without a doubt, learning theories will contribute to long-term gains in our human capital. The purpose of this article is neither to solely outline existing learning theories in contemporary human resource management settings nor to present an analysis of the theory of helping adults (andragogy) vs. the theory of teaching children (pedagogy). It is rather an attempt to incorporate andragogy and pedagogy into effective teaching/facilitating methods of human resource development and human resource management in contemporary organizations. The collaborative use of and ragogy and pedagogy is believed to lead to better learning outcomes in any organization (Knowles et al.,1998, 2005). In e-HRM, it does not necessarily require that andragogical approach be used. The collaborative or single use of andragogy and pedagogy depends on a plethora of factors: organizational differences, individual differences, and subject matter differences(Knowles et al., 1998, 2005). To address the above pertinent issues associated with HRD, HRM and e-HRM, it is necessary and important to look into two important terms, namely, andragogy and pedagogy and how these two different approaches affect effective teaching/facilitating methods of HRD, HRM, and e-HRM in today’s learning organizations.