Malcolm Shepherd Knowles (August 24, 1913 – November 27, 1997) was an American adult educator, famous for the adoption of the theory of

andragogy Andragogy refers to methods and principles used in adult education. The word comes from the Greek ἀνδρ- (''andr-''), meaning "man", and ἀγωγός (''agogos''), meaning "leader of". Therefore, andragogy literally means "leading men", wher ...

—initially a term coined by the German teacher Alexander Kapp. Knowles is credited with being a fundamental influence in the development of the

Humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...

Learning Theory and the use of learner constructed contracts or plans to guide learning experiences.

Biographical information

Born in

Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...

to Dr. and Mrs. A. D. Knowles, Knowles was an avid

Boy Scout A Scout (in some countries a Boy Scout, Girl Scout, or Pathfinder) is a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement. Because of the large age and development span, many Scouting associations have split ...

in his youth. The family moved to

West Palm Beach West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, a ...

, and he graduated from Palm Beach High School in 1930. He earned a scholarship to

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

, where he graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in 1934. Shortly afterwards, he worked with the

National Youth Administration The National Youth Administration (NYA) was a New Deal agency sponsored by Franklin D. Roosevelt during his presidency. It focused on providing work and education for Americans between the ages of 16 and 25. It operated from June 26, 1935 to ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, and was married to Hulda Fornell, whom he met while studying at Harvard. In 1940, he assumed the position of Director of Adult Education at the Boston YMCA until he was drafted into the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

in 1943. In 1946, he moved to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

to work as the Director of Adult Education at the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams (philanthropist), Georg ...

while working on his

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. ...

at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...

, which he earned in 1949. From 1951 to 1959 he served as executive director of the Adult Education Association of the USA and pursued his

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper ''Piled Higher and Deeper'' (also known as ''PhD Comics''), is a newsp ...

at the University of Chicago. In 1959, he accepted a faculty appointment at

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original c ...

as an

associate professor Associate professor is an academic title with two principal meanings: in the North American system and that of the ''Commonwealth system''. Overview In the '' North American system'', used in the United States and many other countries, it is ...

of adult education with

tenure Tenure is a category of academic appointment existing in some countries. A tenured post is an indefinite academic appointment that can be terminated only for cause or under extraordinary circumstances, such as financial exigency or program disco ...

. He spent 14 years there. He became a member of the faculty of Education at

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universi ...

in 1974 to complete his final four years of academic work prior to retirement. After retiring, he remained active in the field into the 1990s. He taught at

Fielding Graduate University Fielding Graduate University (previously Fielding Graduate Institute and The Fielding Institute) is a private graduate-level university in Santa Barbara, California. It offers postgraduate and doctoral studies mainly in psychology, education, a ...

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coa ...

(which offers degrees in

clinical psychology Clinical psychology is an integration of social science, theory, and clinical knowledge for the purpose of understanding, preventing, and relieving psychologically based distress or Mental disorder, dysfunction and to promote subjective mental ...

and related subjects) and at the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

. He died in Fayetteville, Arkansas, of a stroke.

Selected bibliography

During his career he authored over 230 articles and 18 books, some of which include: * *Knowles, M. S., & Knowles, H. F. (1955). ''How to develop better leaders''. New York: Association Press. *Knowles, M. S., & Knowles, H. F. (1959). ''Introduction to group dynamics''. Chicago: Association Press. Revised edition 1972 *published by New York: Cambridge Books. *Knowles, M. S. (1968). Andragogy, not pedagogy. ''Adult Leadership, 16''(10), 350–352, 386. *Knowles, M. S. (1973)
''The adult learner: A neglected species''

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. Revised Edition 1990. *Knowles, M. S. (1975). ''Self-directed learning: A guide for learners and teachers''. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall/Cambridge. *Knowles, M. S. (1977). ''The adult education movement in the United States''.

Malabar, FL Malabar is a town in Brevard County, Florida. The population was 2,757 at the 2010 United States Census. It is part of the Palm Bay– Melbourne– Titusville Metropolitan Statistical Area. Government Malabar has a strong council fo ...

: Krieger. *Knowles, M. S. (1980). ''The modern practice of adult education: From pedagogy to andragogy.'' Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall/Cambridge. *Knowles, M. S., ''et al.'' (1984). ''Andragogy in action: Applying modern principles of adult education''.

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

Jossey-Bass John Wiley & Sons, Inc., commonly known as Wiley (), is an American multinational publishing company founded in 1807 that focuses on academic publishing and instructional materials. The company produces books, journals, and encyclopedias, in ...

. *Knowles, M. S. (1986). ''Using learning contracts''. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. *Knowles, M. S. (1989). ''The making of an adult educator: An autobiographical journey''. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. *

References

External links

Website about Knowles
* Smith, M. K. (2002)

the encyclopedia of informal education * Fiorini, Deborah (2003)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knowles, Malcolm S. 1913 births 1997 deaths Harvard University alumni University of Chicago alumni Brown University faculty North Carolina State University faculty Boston University faculty People from Livingston, Montana YMCA leaders United States Navy officers United States Navy personnel of World War II New Deal in Massachusetts American Unitarian Universalists

Biographical information

Selected bibliography

See also

References

External links