I believe holding the focus of the student during class is very important. One way to do this is by using an interactive student response system that engages the students through technology. I also like to give students encouraging statements before, during, and after class.
Thank you for this post, Joel. I find this interesting becasue I would have thought the culinary arts would have less objectives that might be perceived as "irrelevant" by adult students. I stand corrected.
Jeffrey Schillinger
Adult learners need to see relevance in what they are learning. Some of the techniques or dishes we teach in culinary school can be very "old fashioned". Adults learners should be able to see and adapt these dishes to modern times. Sometimes it takes the educator to help them see a modern version.
Great post, Michael. You did a nice job providing a model for other teachers to follow. There is always time to customize the course while still meeting the objectives. (How did the bagels turn out?)
Jeffrey Schillinger
Instructors need to be flexible, allowing themselves to slightly deviate from their lesson plan if by doing so will engage the students more. For instance, recently several of my students asked if we were going to make bagels
sometime during the course. When told that they wouldn't I could sense their disappointment. I slightly rearranged the lesson plan so that the bagels could be worked into the curriculum (without sacrificing course objectives), and the students were pleased that I had done so. Adult learners often bring with them their own "objectives" that they'd like to accomplish in a course, and I seek to oblige them when possible.
It's helpful for instructors to realize that adult learners bring with them a wealth of life and work experiences that can be utilized in the classroom. When I have students that are currently working in "the industry", I like to ask them if they use the same procedures or techniques where they work as we do in class. If they say "yes" it reinforces to the rest of the class that what they are being taught is relevant, and if they state that they do something a bit different it demonstrates that oftentimes there is more than one approach that can to used to accomplish a task.
You make a good point here, David. I started as the first general education instructor at a career college that focused only on technology. The most important thing for me to get across to my students was how what I was teaching them was going to make a difference for them.
Jeffrey Schillinger
I teach communications, which can be a bit abstract and term laden (I make class more about discussions/activities/videos as I can)
But part of my role is to make those terms easier to understand. I always try to hit three points when I'm teaching them.
1) -- "What" The term/concept actually is.
2) -- "So What" -- What that term actually helps us understand better.-- basically why does anyone even care.
&
3) -- "Why/How" -- Why/How understanding that actually matters to the people in my class.
I've found that many people think that 2 & 3 are the same, or they see 1 & 2 as the same. But they aren't. Some teachers just teach the what, but don't even say why people should care.
Others teach what it is, and tell people why they should know about it-- but forget to actually tell them more than what the name is.
The reality for me is that 1 & 2 are what my expertise in the discipline, or a textbook, can tell them-- 3 is based on my relationship with them, and my knowledge of their goals as individuals and as a group.
I've also found this to be a good test to see if a concept really deserves to be on the syllabus: If I don't think it is worth the time to answer those three questions for my students, then that topic/concept can't actually be that important to them.
Hi Joseph,
In theory I agree with your post whole-heartedly. I teach General Education courses at a school that students attend for training in a field that is not academic so I quickly learned to answer demands 1 & 2 in general terms in my opening remarks on the second day of each term.
On day one, I we cover the basics, and I set my expectations, and let them know what I bring to the table early, and then most of my activities are designed to get them active, doing what we'll be doing in class all term (working in groups, researching answers from sources provided, public speaking) and an ice breaker activity that gets them to drop their guard and let me know a bit about who they really are.
With that in hand (and some survey answers that they must complete before the second class), I can position my class based on them, and what they are there to learn. I generally teach multiple sections of the same class per term, so I have to keep things similar, but I try to connect with each group early.
That said-- As an instructor, and as a trainer in a corporate setting I see a continuing trend to "make things consistent." This is usually accompanied by the buzzword "best-practices."
I am all for sharing approaches and activities to improve classes or give me something that I could use at a later date if I have a group I think it would fit-- but this isn't usually how these are communicated.
I understand that for accreditation purposes (and even for HR documentation in work-settings) that a consistent approach to the course and its content can be required.
Even so, I have found it to be difficult to balance these competing obligations at times. I'm a professional, so I never share this with my students/trainees directly, but there have been more than a couple of times where I've personally felt that something required is actually counter-productive to student learning because I am not encouraging personalized learning opportunities.
What tips/insights/observations do you, or does our facilitator here, have to share about finding out where to strike this balance in environments that are emphasizing "consistency" over "learning outcomes"?
Paul,
Nice post. Thanks for your insight and humor.
Jeffrey Schillinger
In the course presentation you say "Quality instructors are activators, supporters, enhancers, and maintainers of learning." I agree with this and would like to add to the list. Coaching, facilitating and leading.
Why coaching; there are times when the learner is stuck in having to make decisions about continuing on or dropping out of the course. The quality instructor can put on the coaching hat and help the adult learner work thru the decisions. More person to person and hands on approach.
Why facilitating; The instructor has a room full of cats, and they may not all play well together or communicate well. the quality instructor has to manage these learners, especially during group discussions where everyone has a correct opinion or the correct answer. Being able to facilitate will help instructors negotiate the litter box and bring all the cats together. (Note: LOL but I hope you will accept my point of view.)
Why being a leader; people need someone to look up to, we all need leaders in our lives. Quality instructors are leaders. They issue guidance, give direction, and listen well. Many times adult learners need to hear the instructor supports and believes in them and some times they need to be encouraged to reach higher to achieve.
Daniel,
Many of my students are in chool to change careers. They have little experience in the area in which they are studying. What are some ways you relate to these types of students?
Jeffrey Schillinger
Hi Ann Marie,
I completely agree. I just dropped a course because I could see no relevance to what I do. While it was actually interesting, I simply could not apply the information to my current job.
One characteristic that a good instructor must have would the ability be to relate to the student when speaking directly about the field of study. Instructors should be able to use their experience to help students working in their area of expertise. For example, if a student brings up a problem or situation they have at work that directly related to a topic in school the instructor should be able to shed some positive light on the situation. Weather it is expertise in handling a situation or insight as to what is going on. Most adult educators are dealing with students who work, some full time and some part time, in the field of study at hand, so being able to relate to and expand on topics relevant to the adult learners “work†life is essential.
Joseph,
Thanks for this post. Well said.
Jeffrey Schillinger
Instructors of adult learners must understand their students have two major demands. 1. Don't waste my time. 2. What's in it for me. An instructor of adult learning cannot get in front of a class and teach the material the same time after time. The students in each class are not the same and do not bring the same lifetime experiences. The instructor must take the time to get to know their students so they can revise their teaching plan to meet the needs of their students.
Daniela,
What are some of the most effective ways you help students to "discover?"
Jeffrey Schillinger
Creating a participatory environment that empowers and challenges adult learners to "discover" and make direct contributions to (rather than passively "learn") the subjectmatter is very important, and highly dependent on the teacher's willingness to engage students' individual learning styles. Most adult learners are very experienced at synthesizing new information and skills with their existing knowledge base.
Tiffany,
This is a great post. Thanks for sharing it.
Jeffrey Schillinger
A quality instructor should not only provide a supportive envioronment for the adult learner to build trust and a positive experience, but should also be conscious of stimulating learning and ensuring that all students learn. The instructor should definitely balance out the teaching methods to ensure that all students are able to learn; whether it be creating games to help those students who learn in an intuitive, holistic way or by creating things like powerpoints and such for visual learners. It is hard to create a balance for all learning types, especially for a hands-on learner; I know this because that is how I learn and there were several classes that I did not do well in because the instructor simply read notes off of their sheet and expected us to copy them, so I got bored and wasn't able to retain the information being taught and did not do well in that class.
One of the biggest characteristics is to be more patient, not that instructors aren't patient enough, it just takes some more with adult learners. There are times where a concept being discussed will take more time for the adult learner to grasp and understand it completly. They may ask many questions until then.
