Ways Adults Learn

How do adults learn? Everyone who teaches adults has an answer to that question. However, one question is much more critical in the development of an approach to helping adults learn: Why do adults learn? By answering this question, we will develop a more usable answer to the question, how do adults learn?

Learners enter an educational environment for a variety of reasons. Each learner has a primary motivator for engaging education, whether vocational training or a Bible study. Adult learners want to know how the educational setting is going to address their motivation for being there. Basically many adults walk into a classroom asking, "What's in it for me?"

Foundational Elements to Adult Learning

Adult learners have the following five foundational elements that better enable teachers to facilitate adult learning.

1. Adults have a need to know. In today's hectic society the fact that an adult learner is in the classroom indicates he or she has a purpose for being there. One of the greatest challenges for the teacher is helping learners identify the gap between personal knowledge and biblical principle. Adults sometimes fail to differentiate the two, seeing their personal opinion as biblical truth.
   
   
2. Adults want to be treated as if they can learn on their own. Adults resist situations in which they feel as if they are being manipulated by the leader. Teachers of adults need to design educational experiences to capitalize on learners' desire to discover things for themselves. Questions should be asked to evoke reflection not a specific, obvious answer.
   
   
3. Adults want to relate their personal experiences to the educational setting. Within a group of adults are a variety of experience levels. Experiences can positively contribute to the learning environment through activities such as group discussion, simulation exercises, problem-solving activities, and case studies. Personal experiences, however, can have a detrimental impact on the learning situation when they lead learners to develop habits, biases, and presuppositions that close the minds of learners to new ideas, fresh perceptions, and alternate ways of thinking. Critical self-reflection enables learners to open habits, biases, and presuppositions to reevaluation.
   
   
4. Adults enter the learning environment from a life-centered perspective. Adults will devote themselves to an educational experience they perceive to be beneficial in dealing with problems and tasks they encounter in their life situations. Adults tend to learn best when new knowledge or skills are presented in response to real life situations.
   
   
5. Adults enter the learning environment for a variety of reasons. For example, a life crisis often causes adults to participate in a study group related to that crisis. However, the normal motivation to learn might be hindered by lack of confidence, time constraints, or the unavailability of quality resources to guide the learning experience.

Learning Approaches

In regard to how adults learn, consider the following biblically based learning approaches:

1. Relational—activities that focus on interaction and cooperation with others.
   
   
2. Musical—activities that focus on music, learning, and performing.
   
   
3. Logical—activities that focus on analogies and problem solving.
   
   
4. Natural—activities that focus on exploring elements of the natural world.
   
   
5. Physical—activities that focus on active involvement in projects.
   
   
6. Reflective—activities that focus on self-expression and personalizing biblical truths.
   
   
7. Visual—activities that focus on visual images and representations of what is being learned.
   
   
8. Verbal—activities that focus on reading, writing, speaking, and listening.

Most educators agree that certain learning approaches are more applicable to adults than are others. Children, adolescents, and adults have certain primary learning approaches. These primary approaches do not mean that other learning approaches are inappropriate for a specific age group. It simply means that each age group tends to be more responsive to certain approaches to learning.

For instance, children can learn musically more effectively than they can learn reflectively. Their mental capacity does not allow them to experience the full benefit of reflective learning. At the same time many adults find learning musically inappropriate for certain educational settings.

Habermas and Issler (Ronald Habermas and Klaus Issler, Teaching for Reconciliation: Foundations and Practice of Christian Educational Ministry [Grand Rapids: Baker, 1992] 162.) identify primary learning styles for each age group. Habermas and Issler state that children tend to learn environmentally. Adolescents learn relationally. Adults learn dialogically. If the eight approaches to learning are subdivided into the categories of learning styles proposed by Habermas and Issler, the following broad categorizations apply:

1. Environmental—natural, physical, and musical.
   
   
2. Relational—relational and visual.
   
   
3. Dialogical—verbal, reflective, and logical.

Based on the work of Habermas and Issler, we can assume primary and secondary learning styles for each age group. For children the primary learning approaches are those associated with the environmental category. For adolescents the primary learning approaches are those associated with the relational category. For adults the primary learning approaches are those associated with the dialogical category.

Secondary learning styles can be determined by investigating developmental issues related to each age group. For adults the dialogical category contains the primary learning styles for adults. This category includes verbal, reflective, and logical learning approaches. The secondary learning styles are drawn from the relational category. This category includes relational and visual learning approaches. In light of our culture, it can be observed that music plays an important role in the lives of people of all ages. Therefore, we can include musical as a preferred learning approach for adults. The exclusion of the learning approaches in the environmental category does not negate the appropriateness of natural and physical learning approaches with adults.

Within each learning approach are certain methods a teacher can use to facilitate learning. The following chart includes methods associated with each learning approach.

Basic Principles of Adult Learning

John had several years of formal education and on-the-job training and was considered to be one of the authorities in his field. Generally, when John spoke, what he said was authoritative. Bill was new to the company and brought with him some research into some new approaches to John's area of expertise. Soon Bill publicly was discussing his ideas. John refused to accept Bill's work since it contradicted much of what he already knew.

Adults cannot learn what they believe they already know. The same idea applies to biblical principles. Certainly the principles never change, but our understanding of the principles is subject to all kinds of external influences. From discussions about various versions of the Bible to interpretation of specific passages of Scripture, we find our faith built upon personalized interpretations of the biblical facts. Think about the traditional nativity scene. Mary, Joseph, Jesus, the Magi, a couple of shepherds, and assorted farm animals all gathered in a wooden structure something like an open-face barn. Is this traditional representation of the nativity scene biblically accurate? Would it ruin your Christmas if I told you that most scholars believe the manger actually was housed in a cave and that the Magi never arrived at the manger? Would it further complicate the issue if I challenged the inclusion of three Magi?

When you read the biblical passages, you will find the Magi arriving in town and visiting Jesus at His house. You will also see that there were three gifts, but there is no indication of the number of individuals bringing those gifts. Suddenly tradition comes face-to-face with fact. This is when learning can take place.

Adults must be led to the point where they recognize that their knowledge level is insufficient. This gap between what they know and the truth empowers adults to learn. Unless adults see a gap, they are unlikely to learn, regardless of the creativity of the teacher. We often make the mistake of assuming that adults will grasp anything that is packaged creatively. The need to know drives the learning situation for adults.

Practical Application

Not only do adults need to recognize the need to know; they also must have a practical application for what they learn. Our televisions flood our minds with stuff. Most of what we see and hear has no direct application to our lives. That is why we have a remote control. How many times have you looked through a hundred channels of digital excitement only to conclude that there is nothing on television?

When did you learn to change a flat tire? My father taught me the basics of tire changing, but I never really learned how to change a flat tire until I experienced a flat tire. It was at that point that I recognized one of the truths of tire changing: There always is one lug that is too tight to be loosened with the tools you have on hand! Once I made practical application of the information, I was able to learn how to change a tire.

Adults in your class are no different. We have a limited amount of time in which to communicate information that can help adults make it through the difficult aspects of life. If we invest that time showcasing our own knowledge and study skills, students are not being provided the help they came seeking. This leads to one of the most important questions a teacher can be asked: Are you a student-centered teacher, or are you a teacher-centered teacher?

Teacher-centered teachers tend to lecture more than they interact with students. They project the attitude that their lesson plan is the priority. Teacher-centered classrooms tend to be more formal and structured. Student-centered teachers tend to evaluate student needs and mold the classroom experience to meet those needs. A student-centered classroom is less formal and more interactive. A student-centered teacher is prone to venture away from the lesson plan if there is an obvious need to do so.

Most of us were raised in teacher-centered environments. We might understand the need to become more student centered, but something in our makeup prevents us from engaging a new method. Most teachers who are taught a new way of teaching will revert to a more comfortable method unless the new method is routinely reinforced. If teachers of adults are going to be effective, they must continually evaluate themselves in light of the biblical standard demonstrated by Jesus. He taught so that lives would be changed. Is that the focus of your teaching?

Why are adults in your classroom? When I was a minister of education, I often saw new classes begin with great enthusiasm. However, in many cases the attendance declined to a few regular attenders. Why was this the trend?

 The answer has to do with the adult learner's motivation to learn. Adults tend to be internally motivated to engage the learning situation. Those who enter the learning situation because of internal motivation are more likely to stay involved in the class. For instance, if a parent is having difficulty communicating with her teenage son, a class dealing with communicating with teenagers might seem helpful. This is an internal motivation.

However, many of our tools for reaching out to adults are external. We encourage learners to attend a class because of the expertise of the author of the text or because we have enlisted the best teacher in the church to lead the class. These are external motivators. These might appeal to a few people, but if the internal needs of the adults are not addressed, many adults will choose to disconnect from the learning environment.

In today's society adults seldom attend church activities out of a sense of obligation. More and more adults are evaluating their calendars and making choices based on their perceptions of the personal application of the specific event. If our church groups are boring and lecture oriented, some parents might view the time spent at the soccer field chatting with other parents as more beneficial. There is an inherent motivation to engage those things from which you receive support and encouragement. Many parental discussions around the soccer field meet that need better than some church study groups.

We must begin to understand why adults are in our classrooms. Getting to know the learners in a class is critical. Most adults will not share publicly their deepest concerns. But an intuitive teacher can get to know adults so that he or she can get a basic understanding of the issues certain adults are facing. When you begin to understand adults' motivation for being in the classroom, a creative, student-centered teacher can adapt the material to meet the needs of the participants. Without grasping the motivation of the learners, we are likely to see the attendance decline week after week.

The church scene has been inundated with "mega-teachers" and "mega-classes." Week after week large groups gather to watch a video or learn from a specially trained teacher. Weeks turn to months, and months turn to years. Some individuals boast about having been in a particular Bible study for 10 or more years.

What would happen if leaders of a church-based educational activity were required to carry out a ministry within the local community? Students want an opportunity to put to use the principles they are being taught. Principles that are not reinforced with action are quickly forgotten. The fact remains that adults will learn best when what they learn is reinforced with action.

Many of us are the beneficiaries of excellent church-based educational programs. But what are we doing to prepare the next generation to take our places? Most church rolls verify that we are not reaching young adults. Some people blame the young adults. If they would get right with God, they would come back to church! Other people look at the situation more realistically. We still are using 1960s methods to reach today's younger generation.

How would your life change if you discarded all of the changes we have experienced since 1960? No microwave, satellite dish, DVD player, cordless phone, computer in the den, and the list goes on and on. Yet in our churches we expect today's young adults to embrace methods rooted in our personal educational experiences, dating back to the 70s, 60s, 50s, and earlier.

If adults are to learn, we must understand where they are coming from. Today's 30-year-old faces a different world than many of us faced when we were 30. Adults in our churches aren't learning because we have failed to create an environment conducive to learning.

Effective classes find themselves creating new classes and producing new leadership year after year. These classes can review their histories and see the impact they have had on their community and church. Adults learn when we allow them to learn. Are you a guide or an obstacle?

For teaching suggestions use the resource Teaching Adults: A Guide for Transformational Teaching by Rick Edwards (Nashville: LifeWay Church Resources).      For curriculum resources, consider the following:

Sunday School (available by calling 1-800-458-2772)
     Explore the Bible Series
     Family Bible Study for Adults Series

Discipleship Training (available by calling 1-800-458-2772)
      Baptist Adults

Adults on Mission (available by calling 1-800-968-7301)
      Dimensions
      Missons Mosaic

Women on Mission (available by calling 1-800-968-7301)
      Missions Mosaic

Baptist Men on Mission (available by calling 1-800-448-8032)
      Missions in Motion

Here's a Thought: Consider how the five foundational elements of learning are true for each of the young adults in your group. Identify the primary learning approaches preferred by each person.

Written by Dr. Terry Hadaway, multimedia designer, Adult Sunday School Ministry Department, Sunday School Group, LifeWay Church Resources.