Research On Lindemann's Thoughts On Adult Educatio

Eduard Lindeman is regarded as “the father of the spirit of American adult education”.His representative work,The Meaning of Adult Education,is selected as one of the most important books in the field of American adult education.His thought has laid a theoretical foundation for the development of modern adult education.Although Lindeman’s adult education thought has been studied and concerned,some key concepts and fields,such as integrated personality and social change,still need to be explored and deepened.The domestic researches on Lindeman’s adult education thought are still relatively weak.Using the methods of literature research,historical research and comparative research,and based on the collation and analysis of a large number of first-hand documents,this study discusses the core content,contemporary value and enlightenments of Lindeman’s adult education thought from the perspective of individual and society.This study is helpful to deepen researches about Lindeman’s adult education thought and the development of adult education.Through the research,it is found that The Meaning of Adult Education,as the main foundation work of Lindeman’s adult education thought,puts forward two core topics: integrated personality and social change.Based on this,in order to seek the evolution context of the two core issues,starting with Lindeman’s life and ideological origin,this study believes that the progressive educational thought,the thought of the The Inquiry and its members,Grundtvig’s educational thought and folk high schools movement are the main sources of his thought.At the same time,integrated personality and social change were also regarded by Lindeman as the dual purpose of adult education,and Lindeman’s researches in his later years focused on the sociality of adult education,but this achievement has not been paid attention to.This study focuses on two core issues,discusses and understands its integrated personality from the constituent elements,formation purpose and formation media,and analyzes the relation btween adult education and social change by adult education from two aspects of social essence and social function.Specifically,integrated personality consists of intelligence,power,self-expression,freedom and other elements.Adult education promotes the accumulation and reorganization of experience,and urges adults to jointly obtain these elements and live a creative and appreciative life;with the help of the concepts of social adaptation,social self and social experience,this study understands Lindeman’s view of the social essence of adult education,and explains Linderman’s view of the social function of adult education from four aspects: improving social fashion,developing social education for the purpose of social change,experimental democratic experience and solving social problems.Lindeman linked the integrated personality with social change through new individualism which advocated social responsibilities to emphasize the unity of body and mind and the unity of individual and society.Lindeman,as a social philosopher,tried to build a democratic society through adult education.He regarded social education as an ideal form to achieve the dual purpose of adult education,and pointed out that the real adult education is social education.Furthermore,this study puts forward Lindeman’s social education system.He regarded social education as continuous learning and adjustment,aims to form a democratic community and build a democratic society,takes the discussion method as the social education method,and takes conference as the specific practice method,so as to stimulate and guide individuals to take collective social action.Lindeman’s thought on adult education has a wide and far-reaching influence.Taking the academic achievements and social practice influenced by Lindeman as examples,this study illustrates that the contemporary value of Lindeman’s adult education thought is reflected in inheriting the tradition of the social purpose of adult education and advocating the role of adult education in the construction of a democratic society,making it clear that adult education is social education for the purpose of social reform,using discussion as the main method of adult education.Drawing lessons from Lindeman’s adult education thought from the perspective of individual and society is more in line with China’s national conditions.This study puts forward the enlightenment of the purpose,means and methods of adult education,including that China’s adult education should promote the all-round development of individuals in order to improve the democratic society;China’s adult education should strengthen social education and promote the coordinated development of individuals and society;China’s adult education should reasonably use the discussion method to serve the democratic community.