6/22/2009

ADULT LEARNING STYLES:

HOW TO COMMUNICATE TO GET
RESULTS

Tracy Qualmann

When learning a new task or

skill, adults prefer life
experience examples
verses data-supported
evidence?

True or False

False

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Adults prefer to be given

direction and allowed to go on
their way verses the
opportunity
t it tot engage ini
relevant dialogue regarding
the situation.

True or False

False

Motivation carries no weight

in adult learning.

True or False

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False

OBJECTIVES
| Truths about adults and adult learning
| Things we know about adult learning
| Motivation

| Barriers to motivation

| How to be an effective facilitator

| Differences in gender communication

| How to ask the questions to get the answers

Truths about adult learning

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MALCOLM KNOWLES
GRANDFATHER OF ADULT LEARNING

| Adults should…
y Acquire a mature understanding of themselves
y Develop an attitude of acceptance, love, and respect
toward others
y Develop
e e op a dy
dynamic
a ca attitude
ude toward
o a d life
e
y Learn to react to the causes, not symptoms, of behavior
y Acquire the skills necessary to achieve the potentials of
their personalities
y Understand the essential values in the capital of human
experience
y Understand their society and should be skillful in
directing social change

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| What does learning mean…

Learning can be defined formally as the
act, process, or experience of gaining
knowledge or skills.

| Learning strengthens the brain by building new

pathways and increasing connections that we can
rely on when we want to learn more.

| Adults are on auto drive and are self-directed.

| Connect life experiences to learning
| Adults are goal-oriented

| Adults must see the relevancy

| Learning must have real-world application

| Adults demand respect

Things we know about adult

learning

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THINGS WE KNOW ABOUT DESIGNING ADULT

LEARNING

| Focus
| Integration
| Conflicts require time

| Conceptual overlap

| Take it slow

| Want to get it right the first time

| They take it personally
| Know your audience

| Address age-centered viewpoints

| “Anchor” concepts

| Self-directed, their pace

| Non-human media
| Application

| No isolation

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THINGS WE KNOW ABOUT THE LEARNING

ENVIRONMENT

| Comfortable
| Loosing one’s self
| Predetermine expectations

| Learn from one another

| Use open-ended questions

| Active participation
| Facilitator must maintain control
| Make connections

| Integration

| Situational leadership/facilitation

THINGS WE KNOW ABOUT MOTIVATING

LEARNERS

| Seek experiences with relevance

| More change, more we want
| Relationship to self

| Transitional experiences

| Learning is a journey

| Increases self-esteem

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Motivation

SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS
| Make new friends
| Meet a need
| friendship

EXTERNAL EXPECTATIONS
| Compliance
y Instructions
y Formal authority
| Fulfillment
y Expectations
y Recommendations

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SOCIAL WELFARE
| Improvement
| Service community
| Participation

PERSONAL ADVANCEMENT
| Higher status
y Job
y Family
y Friends
| Security
y Professional advancement
y Household
| Competition
y Job
y Trends
y advances

ESCAPE/STIMULATION
| Relieve…
y Boredom
y Tension
y Monotony
| Contrast
y Newness
y Curiosity

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COGNITIVE INTEREST
| Learn for learning's sake
| Seek knowledge
| Inquiring minds….

Barriers to Motivation

BARRIERS
| Lack of time
| Money
| Confidence

| Interest

| Lack of information

| Scheduling

| Home life

| Perception of “can’t teach an old dog new tricks”

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BEST WAY TO MOTIVATE ADULT LEARNERS…

Enhance Decrease
reasons for barriers
learning

Differences in Gender
Communication

WHAT IS GENDER?
| Gender is characteristics
y Masculine
y Feminine
| Sex
y Male
y female

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GENDER STEREOTYPES
| Masculine male
y Body builder
y Man’s man
| Feminine male
y Florist
y Gay
| Feminine female
y retail
y Girlie girl
| Masculine female
y Athlete
y lesbian

COMMUNICATION STEREOTYPES
| Masculine/male characteristics
y Direct questions will get direct answers
| How are you today? Good. Bad. Ok. Fine.
y Open-ended questions will get a bit longer answer
| Tell me about yyour day…
y I had a nice day.
y Got everything
y g
done I wanted to accomplish.
y Body language
| Less eye contact
| Take up more physical space
| Head nod means agreement

| Feminine/female characteristics
y Direct questions will get detailed answers
| How are you today? Wow! Was it a day! At work we had these
meetings that lasted forever. Once I got home, laundry had to be
done, dishes washed and the little ones had to get to T-ball. Busy,
busy day.
y Open-ended questions will get even longer answers
| Tell me about your day… Wow! Was it a day! At work we had
these meetings that lasted forever and really never addressed any
issues I wanted to talk about. My one co-worker overtook the
meeting and made it her very own arena to air her concerns. Once
I got home, laundry had to be done, dinner had to be made,
dishes washed and the little ones had to get to T-ball. Once home
I had to give them a bath. These days never seem to end. Busy,
busy day. I could go on and on….
y Body language
| More eye contact – reassures honesty
| Take up less physical space, but more animated
| Head nod means “I hear you”, not agreement

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WATCH THE BODY LANGUAGE…

93% of communication
is non-verbal
non verbal

How to ask questions

to get answers

OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS
| Not expecting a particular answer
| Open discussion
| Wide-range of answers

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CLOSED QUESTIONS
| Yes or no questions
| Limited detail

FACT FINDING QUESTIONS

| Aimed question
| Looking for specific answers

FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS
| Looking for more information/detail to a previous
question
| Elicit an opinion

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FEEDBACK QUESTIONS
| Asking what makes a difference
| Looking for opinion
| What was achieved

| Wrap up time

WHAT WE’VE DISCUSSED…

| How adults learn
| What motivates adults to learn
| How to communicate to adults

| Best ways to garner information from adults

| How to ask the right questions

| Next…how to integrate this information into your

daily workings….

LEADING BY EXAMPLE

“You should be spending, at

a minimum, 50 hours
annually on personal and
professional development”
The Leadership Challenge
Kouzes & Posner

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| Adults do not learn things immediately

| Need to see relevance to their lives
| Practice, practice, practice

I cannot teach anybody

anything, I can only make
them think
think.
Socrates

The art of teaching is the art

of assisting discovery
discovery.
Mark Van Doren

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One must learn by doing the

thing; for though you
think you know itit,
you have no certainty,
until you try.
Sophocles

REFERENCES
| Knowles, Malcom (1950) Informal adult education. Assocation Press.
Chicago.
| Kotelnikov, Vadim (2001). Getting Responses You Need: Types of
Questions.
http://www.1000ventures.com/business_guide/crosscuttings/communicati
on_questions.html#Types
| Kouzes, James & Posner, Barry. (1997) The Leadership Challenge.
Jossey-Bass,
y , San Franciso.
| Lieb, Stephen (1991). Principles of Adult Learning. Vision, fall 1991.
| N.A. (2007). The NonVerbal Dictionary of gestures, signs and body
language cues. Betterbooks.
| Peterson, Deb (n.d). Inspirational Quotations for the Teacher of Adult
Learners: Inspired Teachers Change Lives. About.com
| Robbins, Stephen (2001). Organizational Behavior. Prentice Hall, New
Jersey.
| Stewart, Lea, Cooper, Pamela, & Stewart, Alan (2003). Communication
and Gender. Allyn & Bacon. Boston.
| Zemke, Ron and Susan. 30 things we now for sure about adult learning.
Innovation abstracts, vol. WI, no 8, 1984.

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