Adult learning theories examined through film character analysis

Education

Educating Rita

Exemplifying Adult Learning

Learning is said to be lifelong. This is why it is no wonder that we see adults learning all around, at work, in school, even in social settings. Adult learning, however, if in a university setting, follows certain processes that behaviorists describe in several stages, with regards to motivations. According to "Principles of Adult Learning," these include:

Adults are autonomous and self-directed.

Adults have accumulated a foundation of life experiences and knowledge that may include work-related activities, family responsibilities, and previous education.

Adults are goal-oriented.

Adults are relevancy-oriented.

Adults are practical, focusing on the aspects of a lesson most useful to them in their work.

As do all learners, adults need to be shown respect.

These principles of adult education are very important for many expect them to be inherently followed, and if this is done, the learning will be fruitful. This paper will examine a film relating to the topic through the eyes of B.F. Skinner. In order to do this, and see just how adult learning can be seen, the paper will first summarize Skinner's beliefs, as well as the plot of the film, after which it will provide a short analysis liking the two aspects.

Skinner's basic belief was that reinforcement mechanisms can strengthen or deter a behavior. This began with what is known as his "rat experiment" and this is exemplified in a short biography of the individual presented at the Skinner Foundation Website:

"Skinner invented the cumulative recorder […] This recorder revealed the impact of the contingencies over responding. Skinner discovered that the rate with which the rat pressed the bar depended not on any preceding stimulus (as Watson and Pavlov had insisted), but on what followed the bar presses […] Unlike the reflexes that Pavlov had studied, this kind of behavior operated on the environment and was controlled by its effects. Skinner named it operant behavior. The process of arranging the contingencies of reinforcement responsible for producing this new kind of behavior he called operant conditioning."

Skinner's philosophy is important, for it can shed light on the film as well. In Educating Rita, Susan (who calls herself Rita), is a woman who is not satisfied with the routine of her existing life, and seeks to improve her situation by attending a course in English Literature. Both teacher and pupil in this film are impacted and improved by their interaction. According to a review of the film, "Educating Rita' describes the trials and transformations that the young hairdresser has to go through to develop from a person with hardly any formal schooling at all into a student who passes her university exams with ease and distinction. In the course of telling this story, the film also suggests what the ultimate purpose of a liberal education may be."

Due to the above stated analyses of Skinner's beliefs and Rita's actual development in the film, it is clear that this character exemplifies adult learning. The character's learning occurs through several stages, and, as would be seen through the philosopher's belief, it is motivated by outcomes, which are positive, such as the possibility of a different life from that which the character is currently experiencing, which of course can be the greatest motivator. The character's motivation thus occurs through her primary wants: Rita desires, according to Bramann's review, the "clever speech of academics, the culture and tastes of the upper classes, and an escape from the trivia of down-to-earth life into a realm of ideas that seem more significant than the preoccupations of ordinary people."

Due to this, Rita always strives to learn, motivated by such an outcome of being an individual who has, in her words, "discovered herself."