When it comes to teaching children, there seems to be so much effort put into making lessons engaging, creative, and motivating for students. This effort tends to fall short with adult learners. In many scenarios where adults are required to learn, the setting includes a room full of adults with a notebook and a speaker with a powerpoint presentation at the front of the room. This is in no way how we would teach young children how to learn because it is not motivating in any sense. Do adult learners not deserve to be motivated?
One reason that this technique of teaching to adults may be used is that it is an easy way to get a plethora of information to a large group. Another reason may be that adult learners will learn the best in a mentoring environment (Papa, 2011, p. 103). Mentoring scenarios allow for collaboration and communication between adults. Adult learners become more productive when they are seen as colleagues by their leaders and both can learn together (Pullagurla, 2014). A mentorship can also target the way that each adult learns the best, this may be written or verbal, visually, kinesthetic, or auditory (Papa, 2011, p. 103). Mentorship relationships with adults are different than teaching children because adults have wide array of background knowledge. Each person can bring different insights and backgrounds to the conversation (Gaetano, 2016). When mentoring adults, the primary way to make sure learning and deep understanding occurs is to ensure that the adult is motivated. Adult learners are often motivated by how the information relates to previous experiences and the need to know new information. Papa (2011) states, “Contextual understanding by the education leader is as critical as the transfer of knowledge and how it is transferred through strategies and activities” (p.98). If we are to mentor other adults, we need to make sure that the information that we are trying to convey has context and is transferred in a way that is motivating to our mentee. A mentorship is not always available for all the information that leaders need to deliver to their staff, but there are a few points to keep in mind when thinking about the adult learner. Elena Aguilar (2011) says there are five components to keep in mind: adults need to be motivated and the experience should feel positive, they want to be in control of their learning, they need realistic and important objectives, need concrete experiences to apply what they learned, and adults have self-direction and past experiences. Mentoring adults and teaching children both require time and effort to make a lasting impact on learning. References: Aguilar, E. (2011, August 22). The Science Behind Adult Learning. Retrieved March 23, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/adult-learning-pd-elena-aguilar Gaetano, K. (2016, January 13). 5 Ways Adults Learn Differently than Children. Retrieved March 23, 2017, from http://learnkit.com/2016/01/13/adult-learning-needs/ Papa, R. (2011). Technology leadership for school improvement. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. Pullagurla, A. (2014, August 16). 6 Top Facts About Adult Learning Theory. Retrieved March 23, 2017, from https://elearningindustry.com/6-top-facts-about-adult-learning-theory-every-educator-should-know
2 Comments
Natalie
3/25/2017 02:59:45 pm
Yes, I agree, why can't there be more effort into engaging adult learners? I guess we are just expected to sit, listen and absorb the information like adults should do...
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Sarah K
3/26/2017 09:46:43 pm
I like the information you shared about making sure that adults are motivated to ensure that learning and understanding can actually take place. I wish there was more of a focus on this for professional development offerings. So often teachers are forced to attend trainings that offer little value to them in the classroom, so there isn't much motivation to learn the material, or even attempt to use it. I'm glad my district has started taking our ideas in consideration for professional development. Maybe more teachers will be motivated to learn, and will actually use the things they learn about.
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