Principles of Adult Learning

We all have our first exposure to learning in classes designed for children and adolescents. When we are asked as adults in business or academic settings to teach other adults, we may try to apply the only paradigm we know--the one we learned in school when we were often the unknowing and unwilling.

Teaching adults is qualitatively different. The article cited below contains a good summary of adult learning principles and practices. I have only included the topic titles.

clipped from honolulu.hawaii.edu By Stephen Lieb from VISION, Fall 1991 Part of being an effective instructor involves understanding how adults learn best. Compared to children and teens, adults have special needs and requirements as learners. Despite the apparent truth, adult learning is a relatively new area of study. The field of adult learning was pioneered by Malcom Knowles. He identified the following characteristics of adult learners: Adults are autonomous and self-directed. Adults have accumulated a foundation of life experiences and knowledge Adults are goal-oriented. Adults are relevancy-oriented. Adults are practical, focusing on the aspects of a lesson most useful to them in their work. As do all learners, adults need to be shown respect. Motivating the Adult Learner Barriers and Motivation Learning Tips for Effective Instructors