A Holistic Approach To Adult Learning

The University of Phoenix: A Holistic Approach to Adult Learning

University of Phoenix

Certification Workshop

July 7, 2003

The University of Phoenix: A holistic approach to adult learning.

The University of Phoenix offers professional students in training an opportunity to further their education at an accredited institution, facilitated by working professionals who together develop reciprocal relationships. The purpose of this paper is to define the University of Phoenix Philosophy and purpose of learning teams. This paper will also identify advantages to and outcomes of the learning team's group process.

The University of Phoenix Philosophy

The mission of University of Phoenix is to educate working adults to develop the knowledge and skills that will enable them to achieve their professional goals, improve the productivity of their organizations, and provide leadership and service to their community. To fulfill this mission, instruction must consist of both theory-based and of immediate practical relevance (Noone& Swenson, 2003). Theory-based instruction is comprised of a group of related hypotheses, concepts, and constructs, based on facts and observations, that attempt to explain a particular phenomenon (Barker, 1991). Instruction that is of immediate practical relevance is part of the professional education of students, in which they apply the knowledge and skills acquired primarily through the classroom experience to direct practice with organizations and clients (Baker, 1991). This philosophy demonstrates the universities commitment to the adult learning experience.

The purpose of Learning Teams

The purpose of a learning team is to work collectively to achieve common goals. Achieving these goals require groups to identify and move through the group's structure. Shaw (1981) defined group structure as "the pattern of relationships among the differentiated parts of group" (p.236). As such, the group's structure may be likened to a snapshot of the group from which inferences can be drawn about relationships in the group at a given moment in time. Because of the forces that maintain stability in the group, patterns may remain stable for substantial periods (Garvin, 1985).

It is through the group process that group members sustain interpersonal learning, self-understanding, cohesiveness, and acquisition of knowledge and skills (Yalom, 1983).

Interpersonal learning is based on our knowledge about the critical nature of people's social needs; about how human development thrives under conditions of constructive relationships. Group members can learn from each other. In the group, members can work through distortions and develop understanding of their relationships, and it is through a combination of support and challenges among members that this occurs. Self-understanding is the process through which the observations of others, reflective thinking, and feedback from other members, persons develop understanding of their own patterns of feeling, thinking and behaving and the impact of these patterns on their relationships with others and on their competence in role performance. Next, cohesiveness is the group bond. It is a necessary condition for effective group achievement. In a cohesive group, there is a high degree of mutual acceptance, support, and aid. There is the feeling of belonging, or being accepted for what one is which is prevalent when members can live through the inevitable conflicts that occur from time to time. Finally, group members sustain the acquisition of knowledge and skills. This is the actual learning of new information and skills which are essential to effective social functioning.