Lean Thinking as applied to the adult education environment

Lean production has transformed into applications loosely called Lean Thinking and spread to areas such as health care, construction, distribution and service industry. Lean Thinking looks at the value chain and posits: How can work be structured so that the function under consideration does nothing but add value, and does that as rapidly as possible? This paper examines broader interpretation and adaptation of Lean Thinking to adult education. Applying Lean Thinking practices to course design and delivery requires instructors to challenge current views regarding how and what they teach. Some examples of application are suggested.