Pedagogy/Andragogy

Pedagogy and andragogy are two different orientations to teaching, in which the age and developmental stage of the learners determine the educational methods used. Pedagogy is the art and science of helping children and adolescents learn; andragogy is the art and science of helping adults learn.

The distinction between these two approaches is mostly associated with the work of Malcolm Knowles, who developed a theory of adult education grounded in andragogical practices. (However, earlier references to the term exist in the work of Eduard Lindeman, one of the earliest American writers on adult education.) For Knowles, pedagogy is an approach to teaching in which there is a clear difference between learners' and teachers' levels of expertise; where learners need strong external direction; where the responsibility for ...