Beyond Redemption? Locating the Experience of Adult Learners and Educators - theory and praxis in adult education

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Đào

The text continues an academic conversation on adult education by critically examining Denis O’Sullivan’s claims about “redemptive” discourses. It distinguishes theory from praxis and argues that adult educators should subject their assumptions and practices to scrutiny. Using examples from Irish adult education, it challenges the idea of vanguardism and limited learner agency, emphasizing learner-centred, group-based, emancipatory approaches where learners co-construct knowledge and define their own needs.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages5

Reading Time13 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction: theory and praxis in adult education

Dialogue with O’Sullivan on redemptive approaches

Praxis vs. theory and learner agency

Learner-centred and group learning perspectives

Previous Back to contents Next Beyond Redemption? Locating the Experience of Adult Learners and Educators anne b. ryan, bríd connolly, bernie grummell and fergal finnegan Introduction: theory and praxis in adult education Our aim is to continue the conversation initiated by Denis O’Sullivan in the 2008 issue of the Adult Learner. Any opportunity to critically reflect, to think anew and to re-imagine adult education through debate and dialogue is welcome and it is in that spirit that we respond. We wholeheartedly agree that ‘adult educators should not be outside the remit of their own theorising’(O’Sullivan, 2008, p.29), but subject their own ideas, assumptions and practices to critical scrutiny. O’Sullivan raises several important points about the nature of Irish adult education and the need to develop a rigorous theoretical basis for our work. We wish to engage with his observations on the prevalence of ‘redemptive’ discourses in Irish adult education. In particular we want to reflect upon O’Sullivan’s concern with how adult educators can ‘maintain a transformative role while respecting the integrity of our students as co-participants in the process’ (2008, p.14) . In our response, we will briefly outline how we understand the relationship between praxis and theory and how this shapes our conception of the role of the learner and the educator in adult education. In offering this analysis we understand that it is partial, necessarily incomplete and continuing the dialogue began by O’Sullivan. Previous Back to contents Next Beyond redemption? Locating the experience of adult learners and educators O’Sullivan’s critique of what he terms ‘redemptive’ approaches to adult education is based on its‘vanguardism, limited reflexivity and circumscribed student agency’(2008, p.21) . Such ideas and discourses are at work in adult education influenced by the pervasive influence of Catholic social teaching in Ireland that O’Sullivan describes. Just how deeply rooted this redemptive phenomenon is amongst religious and secular Irish educators has been critically explored by Hussey (1999, p.44) based on his experience in community theatre. I have asked participants to describe how they see themselves at work and to move towards a depiction of their vision of their role. The depiction is done visually by sculpting another participant into an image representing how they see themselves. By far the most popular image sculpted is that of a person standing, feet firmly grounded, head held high, with warm smile and wide, outstretched, inviting arms. So when asked to physically express their educational ideal many practitioners chose to hold their hands outstretched like the famous statue that towers over Rio De Janiero. Hussey calls this ‘The Jesus of Rio syndrome’ in which education is seen as a form of care and charity given from a position of dominance. We agree with O’Sullivan that critical reflexivity is absolutely necessary to overcome the temptation to see oneself as a redeemer. However, we are a little less certain about the way that O’Sullivan uses this critique to describe a whole range of diverse ideas and practices within the field. From our perspective the use of redemption as an overarching and all-encompassing discourse does not capture the diversity of developments that have taken place in Irish adult education over the past thirty years. In particular, we would point to the growth in critical, learner-centred education and the use of group learning in recent times. Group engagement in learning involves a radical re-positioning of learners, away from the individualist models promoted in mainstream education towards collective and transformative models of adult and community education. The critical perspective enables learners to actively reflect upon, politicise and re-shape their world. Radical and feminist educators attempt to embrace the direct experience of personal and political liberation as agents of chang

FAQs

What is the text’s main purpose in relation to O’Sullivan’s 2008 discussion?

It continues the dialogue initiated by O’Sullivan by reflecting on “redemptive” discourses in Irish adult education and examining how theory and praxis shape the roles of learners and educators.

How does the text critique “redemptive” approaches in adult education?

It argues that such approaches involve vanguardism, limited reflexivity, and circumscribed student agency, and it questions whether they accurately represent diverse practices in Irish adult education.

What learning principles do the authors highlight from learner responses?

Learners emphasize self-directed, learner-centred learning; the importance of experience; social equality; supportive learning through peer interaction; and more egalitarian relationships between tutors and learners.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Đào