Adults resistance to learning in school versus adults competences in work: the case of mathematics

In adult education, resistance to learning is a well known phenomenon. There is an apparent contradiction between many adults’ problematical relationships with mathematics in formal settings and their noteworthy “mathematics-containing” competences in everyday life. However, there is very little research done on the subject, and resistance is often explained purely as a lack of motivation and the symptom described as non-learning. In order to investigate adults’ resistance to learning, we must take into account the set of conflicts between the needs and constraints in adults’ lives. In this paper people’s resistance is seen as interrelated with their motivation and their competence and thus as containing the potential to be a crucial factor in all types of learning.