The adult learner
Adult learners are nervous in comparision to peers due to age. I see it in my classroom often. They feel they have been out of school to long & cant learn as quick, they need a lot of reinforcement and support to get over this learning curve. Once they do they feel accomplished and it builds their confidence.
Michelle Callaghan
Frank,
This is a good strategy to use. This way the students can share their knowledge while learning more about each other. It isn't long before they forget about the age differences and concentrate on the problems or case studies they are working on. This is when you know you have achieved success with them.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I notice that alot of my adult learners will actually feel intimidated by the young ones. The adults will state that they have children close to the same age. I try to mix them all together preventing any "age groups " banding together . I have been told that although awkward at first this tears down the walls of discomfort. It tends to add a new level of confidence in learning .
Christopher,
Good point about adult learners having a case of the nerves when first coming back to school. They need early success in a course to help them become engaged and focused on being able to compete in and complete the course.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Adult learners are apprehensive to enter a program after many years away from schooling. They are definitely nervous early on. Once they have done some good work and seen it validated then they calm down and assimilate more.
Marilyn,
This is a common situation from most classes. Once the adult learners realize they in fact can be successful in the class and they refresh their note taking skills they get comfortable with the setting and start making valuable contributions to the class.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I have had the same situations in my classroom at first, then after a few days of interacting with the younger students, they finally feel they can learn from them on how to study, take notes, etc.
Belinda,
You approach is so reinforcing to these students. You are showing them that if they will put forth the effort you will be there to support them as they move toward their career goals. This sets the stage for building student confidence and competence.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I have also noticed in my classroom that the adult students do have a harder time. If I see any of my students struggling I will sit and talk to them to see where they feel the pinch. Once we figure this out I always let them know I am available to assist in whatever they may need help with. So far this strategy has helped me keep my students interested and in the classroom.
Michelle,
This is what I see with my adult learners as well. They need success early on in the course to reinforce the fact that they can pass the course. I give a case study the first class meeting and put the students in groups to come up with solutions to the situation. I mix my older students with my younger students (3-5 students per group) and everyone gets to work together. What happens is the the life experiences of my adult students help them to come up with solutions and they start to realize that they can be successful in the class in spite of being out of school for a number of years.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
