ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

Continuing Education—XVIII

Human beings engage in a remarkable amount of highly deliberate learning. Librarians— particularly those who work in college and research libraries—might be interested in the fresh picture that has recently emerged about deliberate learning.

About 90 percent of all adults and young people conduct at least one major learning effort each year. Indeed, the typical learner conducts five quite distinct learning projects in a year, focusing on five distinct areas of knowledge and skill (Tough, 1979).

The typical learner spends an average of 100 hours per learning effort—a total of 500 hours per year. Almost 10 hours per week!

In whose hands is the day-to-day planning of what and how to learn? Only about 20 percent of all learning projects are planned by a professional—someone trained, paid, or institutionally designated to facilitate the learning. About 73 percent are planned by the learner himself or herself, and the other 7 percent by some other “amateur” (Tough, 1979).

These figures point out the enormous importance of librarians, both now and potentially in the future. Within continuing education, there is some evidence of a shift of focus. The traditional focus has been to provide education or instruction, usually in a group. The emerging focus is to facilitate relevant learning, through books and other materials as well as in groups.

This fresh picture of human learning suggests three implications for librarians.

1. Librarians should become committed to fostering the entire range of major learning efforts and feel a kinship with the total helping enterprise devoted to facilitating the person’s efforts to learn and change.
2. Librarians should experiment with providing printed materials and possibly individual counseling to help people thoughtfully choose their learning goals and become aware of the vast panorama of opportunities and methods available.
3. Librarians should try to improve as learning consultants and helpers; for example, they can read about learning projects, study their own learning, read about being an effective helper, and seek constructive feedback.

Self-planned learning is an area and an activity that librarians should consider when thinking about continuing education.—Allen Tough.

Editors Note: Allen Tough is an associate professor of adult education at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education and at the University of Toronto.■■