A Book Review of Lindeman’s: The Meaning of Adult Education
The Meaning of Adult Education was written in mid-1926 by Eduard Linderman and is a literary proof of his stance to unite education and the social science system. By his sheer will, he put himself through college at a mature age when his literacy skills were sub-par. It was then that his interest in adult education underwent a ‘‘formal’’ resuscitation. By the time his degree at Michigan State College was nearing fruition, his creative streak was commendable. After his degree, he took it upon himself to write the book currently under review in this essay, a precursor to the years leading up to his work as an adult educator. Often, education is claimed to be the tool to enlighten society, but so little is said about adults being coterminous with it. It is the work of writers like Linderman that shines a light on this grey area, to teach us of the dichotomy of educational possibilities, regardless of age.
In his foreword, Linderman talks of the importance of a well-rounded opinion regarding adult education matters. For a person to comment intelligibly on the subject, they need an in-depth knowledge of philosophy and psychology, among other variables. He mentions the enlightenment learning brings with the inclusion of the book written from a personal perspective. As briefly stated in the introduction above, Linderman started formal schooling at an advanced age after spending his childhood working in the ‘’informal’’ sector. In the prologue, he expresses the need to clear the confusion experienced due to a lack of literacy. Today, there is an urgent need to free education from stifling formal and institutional rituals. Inexperience in the industry’s ways was not a barrier for him, as the young man had paid his part in the thriving American industries at the time. He sees all people going back to the classroom in a bid to reunite with his Danish roots. He comments on how the Danish took up education to all its citizens, regardless of age (Linderman, 1926, xiv-xvii). This experience and the resultant comparison to the American culture which influenced learning with age groups. By starting his book with these concepts, he informs the reader of the personal and professional excesses it took to write off this fantastic work.
Most education circles emphasize education for their youth to give them a head start in life. For the adults who want to achieve the schooling standards as those of their younger peers, they experience a lot of difficulties. Sometimes, there is stigma directed towards the older students as they start class. As Linderman says in his second chapter, “Adult education presents a challenge to static concepts of intelligence” He encourages everybody to aspire for the highest level of education despite their advancement in age (Linderman, 1926, 26-27). Perhaps, this encouragement is best deserved by those who know of the benefits an enlightened society offers. Linderman notes the reluctance of the youth to pursue other matters relevant to the course they studied after they complete their studies. At the beginning of the book, Linderman states that “Advanced age should be considered a blessing, a definition of maturity in its highest celebration” (Linderman, 1926, chapter 2). Education is a continuous circuit, and those who are privileged to be a part of it should aspire for more. The term adult in the book’s title means a person who needs to be a learner, one whose youth or age does not blind them to intellect. An extension of the educational facilities one has maybe slightly conjoined to the idea of intelligence. If anybody wants to pursue the ideal a classroom gives them, they should do so without the impediment of years.
Vocational training is considered the climax of any practice, but adult education gives the option of a reversal of this climax. A worker who has spent considerable time improving their trade stands to benefit more than one who has spent a lifetime perusing books. The former is likely to have motivation in pursuing education rather than the latter person who sees it as nothing more than a decoration. If I am allowed to say, past societies incorporated teaching into apprenticeship teachings for the youth. The result was a community that understood the reason behind their culture and healthy development of curiosity to learn more from their experienced seniors. Even in Linderman’s time and today, the education system is clogged with the fastest methods to spew out its graduates, wet behind the ears to a hostile environment. For the adequate development of adult education, there is a need for enriching the system with quality, not quantity (Linderman, 1926, 45). It is quite unconventional in this system as the lessons are geared more towards the individuals’ needs and not the students for the system. This approach is considered the best option as the students already know what they want to acquire. The basic of adult education classes is the teaching of literacy skills like reading and writing. These individuals understand the exact purpose of their tutorials, unlike their younger predecessors who go with the flow.
One of the questionable norms people have about adult education is that it is for people in lack. These analyses may be accurate or erroneous, depending on the perception of the person holding it. For Linderman, he says, “The view of intelligence as a constant evolutionary process that sometimes favours the adult rather than the child” (Linderman, 1926). He uses the work of psychologists and philosophers like John Dewey to back up his theory. Rational action is the bane of a prosperous society, one that finds peace and purpose to improve things for better. By taking actionable and well thought out a movement to empower the “working” people in the Danish community, the country made strides to improve their thinking. Linderman comments on the essence of a farmer, painter, and many others who started life in labour being given a chance granted to “intellectuals.” Their response to the stimuli education gives them is more than satisfactory, and governments had better take note of this ignored commune. Some of the memorable chapters in the book happen to be the first few ones. In these chapters, he lays the foundation for intelligent banter, seeing things, and applying it to him.
The book takes on a slight political tone with the approach of power concerning knowledge. The hold of external forces making a person or people seeks domination is usually an Achilles heel most human beings fall prey to. A thin line usually exists between reasonable expectations and illusions about the specifics of the education and the people it affects. Based on the human history of education, theories over the reception of knowledge over different age groups are as diverse as they are varied. The benefits of education triumphs advanced age at any time as given by Linderman and other associates in his field. Age is just that, nothing but a number. About this aspect, Linderman enquires on whether adult education will have a profound success if supported by evidence relating knowledge to power (Linderman, 1926, 42-43). Maybe in such a case, there is a need for the study of cognitive benefits awarded to a person’s intellect if they study later in their life. In an ideal world, accolades are given to a person with the highest credentials in applying their intellectual prowess. However, this ideal does not exist as society presents tend to favour those with vast monetary resources. Linderman poses the question of how dominant our community would be if they gave the illiterate the power to read for themselves. It would save a lot of resources wasted in “saving a sinking ship.” Revolutionary propaganda in the education sector is irrelevant when this issue is seen as a social movement, unbound by the classroom. A revolution of the mind is needed, not just in the higher circles of the well-learned but for the working class who deserve better.
One would note the sour taste Lenderman regards education for the immature person. According to him, education is a gift dished out to the deserving. In the section to follow, a reader can sense the distaste he has for individuals who regurgitate lessons. More so, he spares no kindness for the person who looks down on acquiring more knowledge, simply because of their age. “Adult education is a continuous process of evaluation” goes a quote in The Meaning of Adult Education (Linderman, 1926, 134). Knowledge is power and is undoubtedly the precursor to an acquaintance to all things pleasant. To be an individual means that a person should be able to express themselves as succinctly as a clear day. How lucidly a person interprets or acquiesces their aspirations may, unfortunately, depend on their quality of education. In his analogy, a keen reader should note that Lenderman does not refer to the level of education a person has. He prefers to lean on the quality given and how well or poorly, it serves their judgment. What is the goal of a person’s education? He asks this question to let the reader discern why they decide to take up vocational training or that further degree. Of what use is it if it cannot expound the mind beyond its ignorant borders?
Freedom is a term widely used in the many illustrations in this book. The Meaning of freedom is explained in great lengths, and it boils down to flexibility. Freedom within to explore the endless possibilities a vocation and institutional training offer is one of the essential essences of life. Drawing an example of a quote to this effect would be, “To be educated is to find illumination in informed living” (Linderman, 1926, 171). What this quote means is that a higher mental process is one of the most significant benefits accorded to man over other animal species. Having a faculty where one reasons and does not let themselves fall to unreasonable discrepancies is what should be every student’s aspiration. Re-education is the term best used to describe this phenomenon. Simply stated, it is a situation where an expansion of the mind leads to renewed energy, which replenishes personal as well as communal efforts. People like this seek the light, and when they find it, they illuminate the people around them.
Of course, Linderman agrees that the discussion on adult education is subjective as it goes. To some extent, I agree with his ideologies. Towards the end of his chapters, he addresses the issue, which I rephrase as subjectivity vs. objectivity. In this spectrum, he states that the biggest beneficiaries, if such a system were to be institutionalized, are the students and their teachers. The humility needed to pass on information to students who may be older than you and to do so in a non-patronizing manner is commendable. Unfortunately, not many governmental and non-governmental organizations are geared towards the provisions of these programs. Regardless of the notion that the potential learners have lived a majority of their lives working, there are many diverse causes. Some of them include learners with common learning disabilities who were segregated into their youth by comparison to their “able” companions. For a teacher to be successful, they have to recognize the challenges faced by their adult learners and have the capacity to help them (Linderman, 1926, 189). The mutual benefit received from the incorporation of a student-teacher schedule accelerates the enjoyment only education gives.
Throughout his book, Linderman makes a compelling case on the importance of adult education. He uses his personal life, quotes from philosophers and educationists to add to his narration. This book was written a while back, but it does not affect its relevance. It is quite impressive when a writer finds inspiration from his life experiences as an adult student but more so when he puts it in prose. The Meaning of Adult Education is one such book, and though long, it breaks its ideas into substantial paragraphs. For a more than 200 page book, it could benefit from a few compilations of the chapters. However, the consolidation of the chapters would take away the fluidity seen throughout the book. Eduard Linderman questions the reader on some of the perceptions they have. From my perspective, adult education offers a refreshing change to the education sector to teach its people.
Then, in Linderman’s words, it is left to the students to absorb that knowledge, by all means, necessary and improve their lives and the community around them. As he ends in his book, one must not forget that regardless of age, education is life (Linderman, 1926, 204).
References
Lindeman, E. (1926). The Meaning of adult education”