While theory and practice are often discussed as two distinct silos in a discipline, in the field of adult education, Elias and Merriam (2005) articulate the need for theory as a foundation of practice. “Theory without practice leads to empty idealism and action without philosophical reflection leads to a mindless activism” (p. 4). Both theory and practice have evolved as a reaction to their historical context. Malcolm Knowles (1989) notes the continuing importance of adult education throughout and on history and described himself as being “part of a long and significant historical movement” (p. 72). Knowles (1989) credits a seminar led by Cyril Houle at the University of Chicago with initiating his own interests in the historical foundations of adult education. Building on Houle’s classic “The Inquiring Mind” in 1961, Tough’s seminal publications “Learning Without a Teacher” (1967) and later “The Adult’s Learning Projects” (1979) introduced the idea of self-directed learning and further influenced Knowles andragogical model. Tough’s (1979) discovery that adults were more successful learners if they knew the benefits from their learning and the negative consequences of not learning became one of Knowles assumptions about adult learners.