This article explores the importance of sustaining a rich and vibrant discourse of theory to inform the practice of adult education. Beginning with a brief overview of factors that have shaped the development of theory in adult education, the article then explores reasons why educators may not spend as much time teaching and learning about theory as they have in the past. For educators working from a social justice perspective, theory provides an important analytical lens to counter injustice and shape social action. Using a critical feminist perspective, the argument is made that ensuring that adult education is a practice informed by theory enables educators to understand the complexity of the teaching and learning process, encourages students to explore the ways in which power shapes our personal and social learning contexts, and fosters the development of a more critically literate and engaged citizenry.

中文翻译：

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花时间学习：理论对成人教育的重要性

本文探讨了维持丰富而充满活力的理论论述对成人教育实践的重要性。首先简要概述了影响成人教育理论发展的因素，然后探讨了为什么教育工作者可能没有像过去那样花太多时间在理论教学上的原因。对于从社会正义的角度开展工作的教育者来说，理论提供了一个重要的分析视角，以应对不公正现象并塑造社会行为。使用批判的女权主义观点，提出了这样的论点，即确保成人教育是一种理论指导下的实践，使教育工作者能够理解教学过程的复杂性，鼓励学生探索权力塑造我们个人和社会学习环境的方式。 ，