Everyone is a life-long learner, as a non-traditional student in a classroom setting, continuing education for their profession or training that enhances their work performance. Are Adult Learners Different?

 Adult learners are able to understand complex theories  Use life experiences and diverse educational backgrounds to associate learning  Are motivated to learn  Due to the diversity that adult learners bring into the classroom, teaching needs to embrace those experiences and education. By expounding on their previous knowledge, learning can occur at faster rate, be multifaceted, and encourage students to learn from other students.

 This discussion will provide information on strategies to use when teaching adults.  The educator will gain insight on the differences adult learners require for optimum learning and comprehension.

 Treat them like the adults they are.  Adults have life experiences that add to the classroom either in discussions of "real- life” situations or as mentors to their younger classmates.  Make allowances for structure that they may not be familiar with.  Focus on content but take time to instruct individuals on certain aspects of course they may not know such as APA writing guidelines or new technology.

 Consider and acknowledge the technology gap.  May not be as computer-savvy but have longer attention spans and able to concentrate on complex material longer.  Be efficient with lessons and activities.  Move fast and don’t waste time. Take into consideration that many adult learners have jobs and family.  Allow time in class to finish requirements that are important to the instruction

1. Want to know why they should learn something. 2. Are autonomous and self-directed. 3. Are task-oriented 4. Are goal- oriented 5. Have life and professional experiences that are beneficial to course content or could bias their openness to new ideas

 Instructor may have to change direction during course by revising course objectives, activities, examples, assignments, discussion and communication strategies to fulfill students needs.  Adult learners should be actively involved in what they want to learn and how to go about it.

Recognize that learning is a social activity.  Incorporate the use of small groups and community building activities  Students may need coaching in specific group skills  Set ground rules, assign roles, have mixed or similar ability groups, give clear assignments, monitor groups so that learning is taking place.

Integrate learning into life Use student’s background to incorporate course work into a context they can relate to by using analogies and examples. This provides positive reinforcement when the student can understand “why” they need to learn something.

 Enable learning by doing Practice is the best way to gain mastery of subject, skill or concept by:  Answering and creating questions, doing projects, discussions, summarizing, taking notes or journaling, hands-on activities, doing worksheets or teaching another student  Use memory techniques to enhance retention and retrieval.

 Encourage learning by research  Student will retain information longer when they are given the opportunity to develop and understand the material on their own terms.  Students enhance their own learning when they “think about thinking” or metacognition.

 Remember that everyone learns differently and may start from a different level of knowledge  Try to find out as much as you can about your students so that you are able to give them what they need without “dummy-down” teaching or assuming that they know more than they do.

 Make learning fun  Keeps learners engaged and involved resulting in non-threatening environment encouraging questions,answers and discussion.

 Build in assessment but do not mislead yourself into thinking you can measure learning Quantitative assessment becomes more difficult when content complexity increases. Progress can be translated not only in terms of outcomes by also by improvement of processes. Use peer feedback and individual reflections as assessment instead

 Adult learners are motivated by personal growth.  Unlike younger students who are accustomed to being compared by test scores, adult learners are challenging themselves. Encourage growth from the beginning of the session to the end of the session in ability and/or skills by including this as part of the actual grade.

 This video demonstrates how Active Learning happens in a traditional setting or an online class.

 Allow time in class to finish requirements that are important to the instruction  Be extremely flexible-build safety nets that allow for limited number of late assignments to maintain flexibility, accountability and expectation of work.  Be creative- use activities that engage or entertain.  Pair highly motivated students with less skilled to increase peer encouragement, interest & attendance.

 Analyze what is important for students to know  Base lesson or instruction on time availability, background knowledge, specific learning and teaching strategies needed, and metacognitive monitoring that students need for comprehension.

 To be an effective communicator and instructor to adult learners, it is necessary to incorporate on the previous knowledge that the learner brings to the classroom and build on that knowledge.  Metacognition is needed to enhance learning.  Make learning an enjoyable experience by incorporating small groups, discussion, and assessing on what and how students learned the information.

 I incorporated four different resources to provide information on adult learners. These articles and booklets gave insight on the differences of adult learner versus younger students. One article was based on technical learning, while another emphasized online learning and course writing. The other two based their findings on what works best for adult learning but could also be used for students at any age. The you-tube video demonstrates how active learning happens. For the most part, all the resources integrated the use of the seven strategies that I have included here.

 strategies/tips-for-teaching-adult-students/ strategies/tips-for-teaching-adult-students/ ngOnline.pdf  b/even_start/adult_reading_instruction/adult_learners.pdf b/even_start/adult_reading_instruction/adult_learners.pdf  AT%20Manual/RTATSection7.pdf AT%20Manual/RTATSection7.pdf  d d