Organizations need to come together to take a different approach to teaching adults. They need to understand learning strategies, which are appropriate for these adult learners. Malcolm S. Knowles is known for espousing the theory of “andragogy” (“andra” meaning “male or adult”). According to Knowles, teaching an adult is different from teaching a child, as the maturity levels between the two age groups differ greatly.
Anyway, coming back to the laws of adult learning, let’s discuss them one by one.
Law of Previous Experience
Adults are generally experienced and have a high degree of knowledge about the real world. Therefore, training programs need to be framed in such a way that they incorporate new learning with links to learner experiences.
law of relevance
Organizers must design courses in terms of their relevance to the learner’s life and work. You can include multimedia elements and role plays to increase the connections between the learning situation and the real world.
self-direction law
Adults are generally self-directed. Therefore, trainers should try to involve attendees in the training process rather than just lecturing on the topic of discussion. Also, mature students prefer to get involved in the training or learning situation instead of just sitting around listening to idle lectures.
law of expectations
Adults have high expectations of a meeting, conference, or training program. They will not attend events that do not have items to meet their needs. In the same way, they will participate in a specific class or event with the mission of meeting their demands and business objectives. As a trainer, you must plan and execute a program that leads to the highest expected satisfaction and ROI.
Active Learning Law
Adults love active learning. Therefore, you can include audiovisual and multimedia elements to make the learning process more interesting than simply arranging for mere reading or passive listening to lectures. Many organizations that host on-site and online educational classes or corporate training programs include text chats, online forums, etc. to discuss and share links to websites, videos and images with students.
Practice Law and Feedback
Adult learners like to do homework and repeatedly practice things they have recently learned. They also want to get relevant feedback and participate in surveys or question and answer sessions to gain in-depth knowledge about the new concepts discussed during the lessons.
Law of individual differences
Each individual has their own learning style. With this in mind, instructors need to prepare learning sessions accordingly to meet the needs of all participants. A general general learning strategy may not be successful when teaching a class full of heterogeneous people.
