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Aaron Kapaun

By: Aaron Kapaun on June 30th, 2016

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Adult Learners - Meeting their needs in the association world.

Professional Development & Education

mailto:demo@example.com?Subject=HighRoad Solutions - interesting article

With the workforce seeing an ever-growing multi-generational gap of adult learners, it’s important to understand the common characteristics of adult learners and how you can best meet the needs of working professional students. 

About adult learners

There is a common saying that “you can’t teach old dogs new tricks.”  While this isn’t quite exactly true, adult learners are typically less open-minded to new concepts, techniques and technology. This is not to say that they are intentionally being difficult, rather they commonly prefer to have more control over their learning which can give the impression of resistance to things that are new.

This isn’t without reason.  While trying to balance the challenges of career and education, adult learners want information to be relevant to their professional goals and therefore lean towards practical information they can obtain and implement quickly. 

One advantage adults bring to learning situations is their professional and life experiences.  Think about any job you have started - there is always a learning curve.  It takes time to get to know the ropes.  Adults bring an experience level that can lend to more meaning and deeper learning.

Another advantage adult learners bring is their motivation.  Most times, adults seeking additional education and/or training do so out of personal choice.  Sometimes that choice comes out of necessity due to job related requirements in which case, the struggle to gain new skills can be elevated if there are negative forces driving the change. 

Why is this important in the association world?

Most associations offer courses to membership either to help them propel in their career or meet re-licensure requirements.  You want to make sure you’re meeting the needs and expectations of your membership by being ahead of the game when it comes to offering the best courses and events possible. This is a great way to generate marketing opportunities such as drilling down to specifics for each member and making better personal connections with your membership. By better understanding your audience, you will be better equipped to meet their needs and expectations. 

So what can you do to help meet the needs of adult learners and make your organization stand out from the rest?

  • Provide them quick and attainable practical information that is easily applicable to their everyday responsibilities. While cognitive-based learning theories lead to deeper and more meaningful learning, they can take longer in to implement into course curriculum. Adult learners need to be able to get information quickly so they can start using the information immediately. 
  • Be direct and to the point by setting clear expectations. Bulleted outlines of what they can expect to learn and do will better help them decide if the juice is worth the squeeze.  Remember that it’s ok everyone doesn’t sign up for your offerings.  You want to make sure that those who do are the right fit so they promote the success they obtained from your organization.
  • Remember they are professionals, so use their experience to enhance the learning experience. Assist them in making use of what they know as a starting place.  This means that you should do some pre-assessment to better determine your learners starting level of knowledge in terms of subject matter.
  • Adults prefer self-direction in their learning, so provide them opportunities to go deeper with questions about ‘why’ and ‘how.’ Make sure you allow some time to do address questions they may have as it may lead to interesting conversation.
  • Adults are selective about what they will learn and will take away what is meaningful for them. They will not be as successful learning something they are not interested in. Don’t get discouraged by this.  Simply know that you will not be able to reach 100% of people 100% of the time and that’s ok.  Make sure to do a follow up evaluation and ask what the 3 most important things the learner will take away from the course.  This will help you identify what content your delivering well and what content may need more attention. 

 

Unlike traditional student learners and learner situations, it’s important to provide adults with more control over their learning by providing them appealing options and opportunities to gain new skills and knowledge. By keeping some of these concepts in mind while developing and marketing courses, your organization will be on the right track to empowering successful learning and promoting a progressive educational approach.