4 points of Effective Learning for Adults

Malcolm Knowles was a widely known and influential professor of adult education. He said that classroom lecture formats will not work with adults because adults learn in a different way from kids.

Malcom Knowles

Malcom advocated :

1. Adults need to be involved in the planning of their instruction.

Get your people involved in the training outlines. Ask what problems they are facing and what they like to learn.

2. Experience (including mistakes) provides the basis for learning activities.

Think beyond classroom formats. Would a hands-on workshop and free-styled discussions on relevant business examples be more effective?

3. Adults are most interested in learning subjects that have immediate relevance to their job or personal life.

Involve the trainer early to create relevant learning topics.


4. Adult learning is problem-centered rather than content-oriented.

Rather than learning 10 topics that does not apply to your work, just focus on a few that really matters to you and solves practical problems.

The next time you are planning for a training program, take a leaf from Malcom. Why settle for a 3-day packaged class crammed with 20 topics and a computer exam to serve your training goals? Be bold. Go raise your expectations and see which training centers can match them!

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