Profession andragog

Accepting the mission of “leading an adult” implies that Andragog masters the corresponding fundamentals of activity, which began with an understanding of the essence of the idea of ​​lifelong education as a person’s teachings throughout life. In this process, andragog plays a concomitant role. An adult, acting as an active subject of the educational process, himself determines the extent of his involvement in it and the degree of need for interaction with the teacher. The neglect of this fundamental position by the andragog usually leads to negative effects.

As already mentioned, for the first time the designation of the word "andragogy" in the field of activity related to adult education is found in the book of the German historian of the Enlightenment Alexander Kapp on the pedagogical views of Plato. Thus, the practice of adult education has as ancient historical roots as children's education and training. In fact, what, if not andragogy, were Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato, Jesus Christ, prophets and preachers, great philosophers, politicians, writers, scholars of all ages and peoples who contributed to the enlightenment and spiritual development of huge masses, engaged in their strength of their mind, spirit, emotions? For their direct students, comrades, followers, they were genuine Teachers.

Perhaps, the first of the positions of the andragog historically took shape precisely as an enlightenment, preaching towards other adults. This position cannot be assigned arbitrarily. To do this, it is necessary for the andragogue to have what is now called charisma, to have unconditional social and moral authority among a significant number of people, to be a carrier of innovative (revolutionary) ideas capable of gathering masses of followers around them. The main mechanism that ensures the emergence of the andragogical system of relations is becoming a conviction, a faith that unites people in one or another community inspired by a leader.

However, the profession andragogy many faces. The variety of positions that have taken shape in the experience of mankind among persons engaged in adult education could be broken down into certain groups: the monitor (from the Latin monitor, the one who warns, the supervisor); tutor (from the Latin. tutor- protector, patron, guardian); coach, instructor. All of them are carriers of a standard reference complex of knowledge and skills in the local educational field. The nature of the content that they broadcast implies its transmission through instructing, algorithmization, and programmed mastering of socially normalized actions and behavior. In this situation, the task of the andragog is reduced to a clear transfer of the required amount of content, the establishment of feedback, the assessment and correction of intermediate and final results. It is up to an adult who wants to study in such a system to submit to authority, the basis of which is an unconditional professional experience of an andragogue, to be ready for the routine repetition of the proposed operations, sometimes sometimes harshly treated by the teacher.

According to the above scheme, adults usually learn how to drive a vehicle, how to use various techniques, learn various kinds of sports, and learn a foreign language. That is, it is about mastering content that requires unconditional presentation of an external, substantive result and, as a rule, within a limited time frame. Interestingly, there is a fairly significant category of adults (this is especially true for those who have their own teaching or leadership experience) for whom it is extremely difficult to obey instructions or algorithms.

Andragog can assume the role of a mentor (from the Greek. Mentor- the name of the mentor Odyssey's son Telemak), advisor, mentor, consultant. To do this, he must have significant experience in a particular sphere of life and take a much higher level in the hierarchy of experience than his adult ward. A mentor performs a kind of accompaniment to an adult at a particular stage of his educational path, retreating into the background as soon as the necessary experience and level of competence is gained.

Andragog can also act in the positions of the animator (from lat. Anima - soul), the mediator (from lat. Mediator - mediator), the facilitator (from lat. Facile - simple). This group is positionally united by a common sense, focused on facilitating the educational process. An animator acts as a stimulus, bringing inspiration, becoming a kind of inducer, i.e. "trigger" the embodiment of educational or educational ideas and ideas. The mediator becomes an intermediary between adult and educational content. He organizes a meeting with a source of necessary information. The facitor performs primarily the function of psychological support for an adult in his educational efforts. He warns, softens, alleviates the difficulties and contradictions that he encounters on the educational path.

Another possible position of the andragog is the problematizer. (Figuratively - "an intellectual provocateur, teasing the interlocutor.") For the first time such a position was declared, most likely, by Socrates, the system of his problematic issues leading the interlocutor to the border of his ignorance. In the process of learning interaction, the problematiser ensures the birth of its own information requests, forms "scientific ignorance", helps in the formulation of cognitive problems and questions.

In contrast to the problematizer, the andragogue interpreter facilitates the answer to the questions arising in the course of education. Usually, he is an expert, recognized in his field, who has reached a methodological level of understanding the problems and is therefore able to stimulate the search for meaning, assist in interpreting the information or experience available to an adult, and is ready to answer his questions.

In the field of education, andragogues can act as a popularizer, translator of knowledge and experience created by other people. Its task is to translate educational (enlightenment) information into a more accessible language, to make it understandable to the general population, while retaining the original meaning.

If in the educational situation at the same time there are a sufficient number of people of high level of education and competence, it is advisable for the andragogu to take the position of coordinator. Its main task is to unite, integrate the educational efforts and experience of the participants in the cognitive-communicative processes.

Finally, the andragogical one is always the position of the master, that is, a person who has reached heights of perfection in his activity. Any act and fact of his life in this case becomes instructive for others.

The first step in building the logic of the andragogical process is positioning in the system of intersubject interaction. Semantic choice of position depends on a number of points:

- the initial targets of the participants;

- the nature of the content to be assimilated;

- a situation requiring a certain level of training at the exit;

- set the terms of training;

- personal characteristics of andragogue, style of his professional behavior;

- the degree of ownership of the content and cognitive-communicative situation;

- features of the subject of the teaching (age, gender, nationality, status, educational qualification, degree of acceptance of the apprenticeship position);

- existing cultural traditions and educational stereotypes.

Choosing this or that position, the andragogue should answer a number of questions: what can I become for these adults who have come to study? What is my professional baggage, to what extent can it be useful for them? What do I know about the needs and interests of the audience sitting in front of me? How can I be an interesting and useful learning partner for them? What difficulties should I expect? The position internally accepted as a result must be presented in one form or another outside, so that it becomes possible to reconcile this position with the requests of potential "students."

The next important step is the formation of a favorable socio-psychological climate in the learning space. Creating an appropriate emotional atmosphere and truly andragogical relationships helps what can be called "age empathy" or the ability (to sympathize and (co) experience the mood of age (youth, maturity, old age). Depending on the age of the andragogue and its social experience, the state of the audience can be memories, entering into emotional or intellectual resonance, "grasping" of the life rhythm, addition in contrast, mutual compensation (experience, information, etc.), diagnostics issues, updating age of meanings and values.

No less serious professional task is a sense of cultural context, characteristic of the audience gathered for training. It can be homogeneous, multicultural, the same or multi-level in the sense of a pre-sylochnoy educational base. In one case, initially you need to rely on the dominant cultural values ​​and realities - this will immediately attract your audience. In the other, to look for the meta level, which makes it possible to make the content of learning equally significant and interesting for representatives of different cultural spaces.

An important step in the organization of the andragogical educational process is the coordination of goals, meanings, core values ​​relevant to the participants in the training. The joint development of professional and personal perspectives of training, its terms and logic allows us to form a truly Andrago-system of relations, characterized by the openness of educational mechanisms.

In order for training to be successful, it is very important to choose the right educational strategy. It can be defined as the vector of development of professional behavior, which determines the nature of the formation of the educational system for a sufficiently long period. The strategy largely predicts the range of pedagogical results that can be obtained in a particular case.

The choice of educational strategy primarily depends on the purpose and content to be mastered by the audience. Within the framework of formal education, the content is regulation, which requires a step-by-step strategy. It is characterized by consistent work with "portions" of educational material and the establishment of constant feedback from the teacher (programming, modular training, etc.). Learning (formal or non-formal), based on the experience of adults, requires a different strategy — an interactive one. Dialogue, in turn, involves learning the culture of communication, organizing group activities, situations of reflection and interpretation. To obtain fundamentally new attitudes, relationships, experience, it is advisable to use the strategy of living with the organization of situations of immersion in the problem, educational marathons, various forms of simulation modeling and dramatization.

The meeting of the predetermined by the programs of educational content and the unique experience of students leads to the so-called integration agreement (Jordan), which involves the discovery of similarities and differences between the old and the new knowledge. This allows the old, already well-known to reflect in a new way, raising the importance of the knowledge and experience that a student has. Integration coordination provides a more relaxed entry of adults into the educational process, helps to overcome the rigid assignment of the content of education. With a certain organization, old experience becomes an essential component of the content of classes, expanding its boundaries. Interpretation by an adult of educational content in accordance with the inner context of the "I" is considered as an important effect of education. The orientation of education towards acquiring knowledge that makes it possible to understand situations of vital activity in a broad context and the adoption of this orientation by adults involved in education is essential.

No less important in the andragogical process is the determination of the scale of the subject, which is most appropriate to form to achieve a particular educational goal. For example, training in specific professional skills and technical skills (driving, working on the machine, computer typing, etc.) is productive in an individual form (or a pair with an instructor), since only an individual result makes sense here. The development of communication skills and abilities, on the contrary, is impossible alone and requires group activities. The same applies to club forms of education. The technological potential of the group is made up of the influence of natural and socio-cultural mechanisms that link people according to the "law of the communicability of human souls and states" (MK Mamardashvili).

Most of the effective changes in the attitudes and inner world of the individual occur in a group context. Most often, for educational purposes, the opportunities of a small group (from 2 to 7 participants) are used as a community of people who are in direct psychological contact with each other.

The quality of a group does not come down to the sum of the qualities of its individual participants, but gives a new level of perception and experience of reality (community of experience, emotional resonance, similar skills).

Corporate training options are designed for collective types of work with content that provides for a clear distinction between the functions and orientation of the material. Technologies that involve working with a collective entity necessarily include ways of shaping the rules of internal relations in the postulates that help create a collective image of the future, preserve and develop this community and the state of belonging to it. The collective result is the integration, or summation, of each effort, and its effectiveness is based on the systemic division of functions in the performance of socially significant activities aimed at achieving a common goal.

Indicators of a properly chosen professional position and educational strategy for andragogue are:

- openness and trust of the adult audience in relation to the teacher;

- a high degree of internal involvement of students in the work;

- sustainability of cognitive activity throughout the entire period of study;

- a favorable psychological atmosphere developing between the listeners;

- sincere appeal of students for help to each other and the teacher;

- a benevolent reaction to difficulties and problems arising in the course of learning from any of its participants;

- Presentation of their problems for joint discussion in the course of employment;

- free presentation of own position;

- productivity of joint reflective activity;

- interest and respect for the personality of the andragogue and his professional position;

- desire to listen to the opinion of the teacher;

- building up information needs and manifestations of creativity as you progress through the educational program

(course);

- manifestation of the effect of developing content due to bringing into the educational space the experience of adult learners;

- the ability to solve professional and personal problems

as a result of training;

- satisfaction with the results of training at the individual and group levels;

- the desire of students to continue mutual contacts after graduation.

There are certain risks in the work of the andragog, for example, the danger of going beyond the limits of his competence. Therefore, it is necessary to be able to identify and identify for themselves and the client these boundaries. It happens that a specialist, regardless of the profile of activity, is needed by an adult who is experiencing difficulties only as a psychological outlet. He does not intend to work with himself, getting a kind of “object” in the face of the andragog, to which he simply “dumps” his problems. In this case, you should try to enter the interaction in the learning direction or refuse to communicate. For the andragogue, it is also important to be able to psychologically get out of the situation of learning interaction, which always requires taking on both internal stress and concentration of efforts.

Answering the question of who is an andragogue, some experts are inclined today to give this notion an extended interpretation. They include andragogues not only specialists directly working in educational institutions for adults (advanced training institutes, evening schools, various types of courses, etc.), but also representatives of other fields of activity capable of influencing the education of an adult. Among them are heads of institutions, cultural workers, social workers, leisure and tourism organizers. В процесс приобщения взрослых к новой интерпретации их опыта постоянно включаются работники собесов, служб занятости, врачи, юристы и др. Потенциал соотнесения деятельности этих специалистов с ее андрагогической функцией кроется в осознанном включении в просвещение взрослых, с которыми они профессионально связаны; в определении круга информации, необходимой для оказания помощи своим подопечным в диагностике индивидуальных возможностей; в улучшении своего социального самочувствия.

Рассмотрим несколько примеров того, как андрагогические функции тесно переплетаются с должностными обязанностями различных специалистов.

Андрагогами вполне можно считать руководителей и управленцев разного уровня практически во всех профессиональных сферах. Одна из их прямых задач - создание условий для (саморазвития профессионального и личностного потенциала персонала своего учреждения. Руководитель может выступать как андрагог по отношению к отдельным сотрудникам, группам работников, коллективу (корпорации) в целом. В концепции обучающейся организации, широко распространяющейся сейчас в международной практике, именно руководству отводится особая роль в стимулировании обучения коллектива.

Огромное значение в плане андрагогического влияния на сотрудников имеет профессиональный имидж руководителя. С его помощью предъявляются и транслируются эталонные модели профессионального поведения и общения, специфика культуры учреждения. Стиль поведения руководителя способен ненавязчиво продемонстрировать окружающим, какие черты он хотел бы видеть в своих коллегах (пунктуальность, порядочность, творчество, стремление к образованию и др.). Таким образом, имидж может выполнять важнейшие андрагогические функции профессионального воспитания и стимулирования.

Руководитель обучающейся организации как андрагог становится в центре разработки стратегических линий обучения внутри коллектива, способствуя созданию в своем учреждении информационно-образовательной среды того или иного типа. Он всячески стимулирует появление образовательных целей и мотивов у своих сотрудников, определяя при этом целесообразность формирования субъектов обучения различного масштаба (обучение всего коллектива для поддержки конкурентоспособности; дополнительное образование и переподготовка творческих групп, обеспечивающих инновационное развитие; индивидуальное повышение квалификации, ориентированное на карьерное продвижение).

Руководителю приходится выступать в роли андрагога-конфликтолога, проводя индивидуальную и групповую работу с кадрами по предотвращению, снятию конфликтов, развитию культуры деловой коммуникации. Для этого ему необходимы специальные социально-психологические знания и умения. Он также выполняет воспитательно-наставнические функции по отношению к молодым сотрудникам, резерву руководящих кадров, персоналу. Кроме того, на руководителе лежит ответственность в первую очередь за воспитание корпоративного духа учреждения, который воплощается в традициях, системе организации труда и досуга, атмосфере межличностного общения. Андрагогические аспекты работы руководителя связаны с его экспертной позицией в системе деятельности учреждения. Именно руководитель в конечном итоге оценивает качество кадров и результаты деятельности своего коллектива. Именно он решает вопросы делегирования ответственности тем или иным сотрудникам. Все эти качества руководителя, безусловно, играют профессионально-воспитательную

role.

Для современного общества очевидна принадлежность к когорте андрагогов огромной армии социальных работников. Выделение андрагогического аспекта их деятельности объясняется ее ориентацией не только на оказание помощи людям, нуждающимся в социальной защите, но и на способность "опекаемых" взрослых к осознанию собственного жизненного потенциала, поддержку их стремления к самореализации и саморазвитию. В этот же ряд представляется возможным поставить и других специалистов, занятых в социальной сфере, обслуживании населения не эпизодически, а в течение довольно длительного времени.

Развитие сферы социальной защиты взрослого населения привлекает в число андрагогов новые категорий людей. В качестве примера можно привести волонтеров (от фр. volontaire - доброволец, voluntas - воля, желание, готовность), которые участвуют в работе со взрослыми, нуждающимися в социальной защите и интеграции в общество. С одной стороны, волонтерство рассматривается как "серьезный досуг" (Р. А. Стеббинс), позволяющий личности реализовать себя вне работы, приобрести специальные знания, стать социально полезным. В этом смысле оно само по себе несет андраго-гическую нагрузку. С другой стороны, работая со взрослыми, волонтеры способны в ходе общения благотворно влиять на восприятие опекаемыми людьми их позиции в нелегкой жизненной ситуации, оказывать им помощь в позитивной интерпретации своего опыта, что вполне соответствует функции андрагога.

Большими возможностями для образования взрослых располагают различные общественные движения. Перспективным является выделение андрагогического аспекта в деятельности руководителей, инициаторов, активистов этих движений. Это предполагает их специальную ориентацию и подготовку как андрагогов. Для организаторов и активистов общественных движений важно не только владеть организационными навыками и пропагандистски-ми умениями, но понимать и раскрывать перед коллегами по общему делу возможности их личностного развития и творческого самовыражения в совместной деятельности.

Self-education in adulthood, regardless of the desire of the person himself, always takes on an andragogical hue. As part of the informal education, he also becomes "his own andragogue". To do this, it is necessary to clearly represent your educational potential, to comprehend your educational needs, goals, motives; represent the structure of the learning process; be able to reflect on its results. All this is connected with volitional efforts and the ability to self-organize.

For an adult who wants to engage in self-education at the level of professional, general cultural, educational development, there are a number of significant personal characteristics:

- the ability to navigate the world of information;

- mastering yourself as a cognitive "tool";

- the formation of a communicative culture that allows you to interact with other people;

- mastering information educational technologies that make the learning process productive;

- the organization of time and space of vital activity, in the structure of which constantly must remain a part for continuing education.

Взрослому человеку, занимающемуся самообразованием, присуще умение противостоять информационному хаосу через его упорядочивание. Этому сопутствуют избирательность источников, способность отсекать лишнее (целенаправленный отбор радио- и телевизионных передач, периодических изданий и др.); понимание того, что полнота информации по отдельной проблеме сегодня не может быть достигнута. Достаточно сказать, что за последние 30 лет, по наблюдениям ученых, объем информационного поля увеличился ровно настолько, как за предыдущие 5000 лет. Для того чтобы успешно продолжать обучение в любом возрасте, человеку необходимо выбирать оптимальные для себя поисковые модели, включающие систему создания и работы с базами данных, осуществления информационного поиска в каталогах, глобальных сетях, накопления, хранения и интерпретации нужных сведений.

If you are seriously going to engage in education during life, you have to constantly deepen the knowledge of their capabilities and features as a "student person." What is important to find out about yourself?

It is necessary to conduct (self) diagnostics of the dominant type of information perception (modality). This will help to find out what is characteristic for you: visual, audial, kinesthetic way of working with information; (right) left hemisphere training option. The data obtained will facilitate the search for the most convenient for you models for working with text and the oral flow of information. It is useful to imagine what type of memory you have prevails: mechanical, imaginative, associative, emotional. Knowledge of this will determine the selection of optimal ways to memorize and retrieve from the memory of any information.

It is important to determine their own socio-psychological preferences in the learning process and their causes. Analyze when and why you are more comfortable to learn: alone, in a group, in the corporate community, on the Internet; whether you prefer to be in the position of a person conveying experience and knowledge that is in the center of attention of the audience, or are you more willing to learn from others; whom you prefer as an andragogue: a representative of your own or of the opposite sex; a peer, a person younger (older) than himself.

Think about when you tend to be most active in working with information: early in the morning, during the daytime hours, late in the evening; how it is easier for you to learn: in a regulated hard mode, under external control or in complete freedom.

Переходя от одной формы обучения к другой, полезно осознавать, что для вас наиболее ценно в процессе образования: знакомство с новым фактическим материалом, возможность глубже осмыслить происходящие вокруг процессы; повышение образовательного ценза; интересное общение, возможность познания как такового или что-то еще. Не менее важно систематически анализировать причины, мешающие вам стать или находиться в позиции взрослого ученика. Всегда полезно выяснить, почему нет желания учиться, почему трудно усваивать тот или иной материал, ибо это помогает преодолеть преграды, возникающие на пути к самосовершенствованию с помощью образования.

For an adult student, one of the most important andragogical skills is the establishment of feedback. This implies an independent development of evaluation criteria and performance indicators for their participation in educational programs and promotions.

As reference points for feedback, we can recommend:

- change in the system of life and educational attitudes, values, relationships;

- the acquisition of new knowledge, skills, experience;

- getting new experiences;

- change of social status, relations in the service;

- obtaining specific creative results;

- increasing the degree of freedom in communication;

- the solution of certain problems in the family, in the service, etc.

An adult learner usually looks for forms that help him organize his life experience, analyze the process and results of self-development. Not without reason, most of the people whose names remained in history, had extensive correspondence, diaries, memoirs. The above points are able to assist in mastering the position of an autodidact, i.e., a person capable of learning. Anyone who has learned to lead their own educational advancement is much easier to become a real andragogue.

Tasks for self-control

1. Formulate universal principles of andragogical activity.

2. Make for yourself the "Taboo andragogue", the initial phrase of which will be: "Educating adults, I will never ...".

3. If you want to learn about the features of your thinking and learning style or to help your friends find out about it, use the materials given in Appendices 11 and 12.

4. Try to find the andragogical aspect of the activities of a journalist, TV presenter, image maker, coach, public transport driver, tax inspector, police officer, seller of a bookstore.

Recommended literature

Andragog workbook / Ed. S. G. Vershlovsky. - SPb., 1998.