Kegan’s Theory of Development Applied to Community College Students

Abstract

The current study applies the developmental learning theory of Robert Kegan to the community college classroom. In focusing on the work of community college students, the authors will reflect on the observed cognitive abilities of incoming students and proceed to chart their growth as learners. While acknowledging that community college students represent an extremely wide range of age and experience, the authors chose to study “emerging adults,” those students who, in their late teens, are just at the cusp of achieving a complex view of themselves and others. The authors hope to show that such learners stand a much better chance of evolving into complex thinkers and effective problem-solvers when given a support structure (a bridge) to smooth their way.

The role of community college-based transfer programming in transfer student success.

“…Interpretation of Kegan's Bridge Metaphor integrated with Dewey's (1916) Ideas of Active Learning (as cited in Blimling, et aI., 1999). Kegan's (1982; constructive-developmental approach has been successfully utilized with community college students (Gabb, Tinberg, & Weisberger, 2011;Tinberg & Weisberger, 1998), and his theory,joined with the bridge metaphor and notion of active learning (Blimling, et aI., 1999;Dewey, 1916), is important to this study and the concept of the Ultra Transfer Program for two primary reasons: First, in the traditional use of the theory, it is important for college faculty and staff at both the two-and fouryear institutions to recognize that students will enter at varying levels (or orders) of development. For these students to succeed, their ways of knowing and making meaning should be recognized and respected.…”