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I studied and passed exams that gave me Teaching Credits during my undergraduate career. The approach to pedagogy, special education and inclusion teaching; psychology; anthropology; general teaching methodologies and technologies have made me understand a lot also about the approach to have to deal with people in general in life.
Teaching adults is more difficult compared to children, teenagers. In this case, attracting attention and curiosity after a busy day at work must be done with a smile and in a way that can shake the stress off. Classes must ensure learning and practicing the target language but must give students the opportunity to choose to come to class to have fun while learning. One must always have respect and good knowledge of the various cultures present.
The Adult learner must realize that he or she is productive in that hour and that the target language can serve them in the future. I believe that doing exercises on Real Places, examples of recipes, being able to convey the culture-target can approach the interest of an adult, in addition to the study methodology to be applied not only in class but also at home.Adults clearly have a goal in time, dividing various tasks to be accomplished into certain time frames that we can call building blocks that by completing them reach, in certain sub-times, a part to complete the final goal.
Motivation in the adult in achieving their goal is personal while motivation in children must be guided since they still have to create a basic training for themselves.I believe that teaching adults can be easier compared to children, but this statement is not always true. The objective for which the student enrolled and the strong motivation can instead achieve formidable results. It is necessary to analyze the reasons for enrolling an adult to better understand the path to be supported. Those who need to study business and economics topics will be more motivated to pursue their goal compared to an adult who wants to take the course only for a personal addition while traveling. We must always try to maintain high attention and everyone’s participation.
I believe that teaching adults can be easier compared to children, but this statement is not always true. The objective for which the student enrolled and the strong motivation can instead achieve formidable results. It is necessary to analyze the reasons for enrolling an adult to better understand the path to be supported. Those who need to study business and economics topics will be more motivated to pursue their goal compared to an adult who wants to take the course only for a personal addition while traveling. We must always try to maintain high attention and everyone’s participation.Adults can be much more direct and can take it out even quicker for cultural reasons. Careful attention must always be paid to the lesson, without discrimination and respecting all cultures.With adults, who often lack imagination and creativity, it will be more difficult to create an artificial situation in role play. but this will be a test to show that a language course can also help.
Adult education
Children are obliged, while adults spontaneously choose to study a language, following their own expectations and motivations. A distinction must be made between a young adult, who is certainly more focused on the job aspect as a personal fulfilment, and a senior adult, who is usually more focused on cultural aspects for holiday or leisure purposes. That’s why it’s very important to develop a course by connecting it with the real-life aspects in which the language is used, arousing the student’s interest. Peer experience and practice, phases in which students interact more, are fundamental to increase the knowledge and broaden students’ perspective. The adult often uses his or her mother tongue in case of difficulty, and in this case the trainer plays a key role, guiding the conversation towards the target language.
Starting to learn a new language when you’re all grown up is not just about the classroom; it’s an exciting journey that goes beyond words. Language teaching for adults is like a dynamic pathway, giving people a chance to not only pick up a new language but also explore different cultures and grow personally.
Many adults decide to learn a new language to talk better in our connected world or connect with others in a deeper way. Language classes for adults get that grown-up learners need flexible schedules and lessons that fit their busy lives.
One of the strong points of adult language classes is they focus on using what you learn in real life. Lessons are designed to be useful in everyday situations, so you can put your new language skills to work right away. This approach affects their self confidence and self _esteem.
Technology is a big part of how adults learn languages today. Online tools, apps, and virtual classrooms, watching movies and series and listening to the podcasts make it easy for grown-ups to practice and interact with the language in different situations. These tools not only help with learning but also connect learners with speakers of the language from all around the world.
Learning about different cultures is also a big part of adult language classes. It’s not just about words and grammar; it’s about understanding customs, traditions, and viewpoints from different communities. This cultural awareness helps you become more open-minded and appreciate the diversity around you.
Ofcourse, there are challenges in learning a language as an adult, like finding time. But the flexible nature of adult language classes means you can learn at your own pace, fitting it into your busy life.
The supportive community in adult language classes is a big advantage. Your classmates are all working toward the same goal, creating an environment where everyone encourages and learns from each other. This teamwork makes the learning experience better and helps you overcome challenges together.
In the end, learning a language as an adult opens up exciting possibilities. Practical learning, using technology, exploring cultures, and having a supportive community make it a complete language adventure for the grown ups.
When working with adult learners it is important to consider why they want to learn a language. It could be for work purposes, but also personal enrichment and to travel. Most of these people will have the motivation to try and do their best. It might be tricky to incorporate a lesson to suit everyone’s needs, but the most course books will have a big variety of topics, it should suit all the learners. The people who learns language for personal enrichment might not be as motivated as someone who learns the language to better their career. The trainer should be ready to have those learners in the class as well and should try to motivate them to do their best. When teaching children, especially in a school, they don’t really have a goal in mind other than to pass the class. Adults on the other hand it totally different. They could improve their lives with the new language. Like mentioned above, they could get a new job or a raise or promotion when they mastered the language. They would like to be heard and I can imagine that they would prefer a lesson where they can feel an improvement. The good thing about teaching adults is they already have a lot of experiences and knowledge about life. They know what they want and it is easier to incorporate the experiences, likes and dislikes into a lesson to make it more personal. It is important to respect each learner and provide each individual with the care and knowledge they need.
Teaching adults means taking their needs into account and adapting to them.
You need to know whether they’re there for pleasure or out of necessity. Adults often have busy schedules. What they learn has to be useful and meaningful to them.
Sometimes they know themselves well, and know the best way for them to learn. I don’t teach children, so I can’t compare, but adults are less receptive to learning through play in general, and they like to take notes, structured courses and manuals.When we talk about adult education, we need to take into consideration different factors. Their motivation, needs, and goals are different from the ones we find with younger students. But also their schedules, which are often very busy, and how fast they learn. Adult learners present unique challenges and opportunities, requiring educators to adopt the right approaches to meet their diverse needs and motivations.
Motivation serves as the driving force behind adult education endeavours. If young students find motivation in external factors like grades or parental pressure, adult learners typically possess intrinsic motivations rooted in personal growth, career advancement, or intellectual curiosity. Recognizing and tapping into these intrinsic motivators is necessary for creating a good learning environment. Trainers can achieve this by aligning course content with learners’ goals, providing opportunities for self-directed learning, and offering meaningful feedback that acknowledges progress and achievement.
Conducting a comprehensive needs analysis is another critical aspect of adult education. Unlike younger learners, adults bring prior experiences, skills, and knowledge to the learning environment. Therefore, understanding their specific learning needs and preferences is essential for designing relevant and engaging lessons. Needs analysis involves gathering information through surveys, interviews, or informal discussions to identify learners’ strengths, weaknesses, interests, and learning objectives.
Moreover, understanding how adult learners learn is fundamental for creating effective teaching methodologies. Adult learners often exhibit diverse learning styles and preferences. Some learners may thrive in hands-on, experiential learning environments, while others may prefer a more reflective or collaborative approach. By incorporating a variety of instructional techniques such as lectures, group discussions, role-plays, and multimedia presentations, educators can accommodate different learning styles and enhance learner engagement. Unlike traditional classroom settings, adult learners often seek practical, applicable knowledge that they can immediately integrate into their personal or professional lives. Integrating real-life case studies, simulations, and problem-solving activities not only reinforces theoretical concepts but also empowers learners to develop critical thinking skills and apply their knowledge in authentic contexts.
In conclusion, effective adult education is based on understanding of motivation, needs analysis, and learning styles. By understanding learners’ intrinsic motivations, conducting thorough needs assessments, and adopting diverse instructional strategies, educators can create enriching learning experiences that empower adult learners to achieve their personal, professional, and academic goals.The process of offering educational opportunities to individuals who might not have had the opportunity to pursue formal education or who want to continue studying after completing their basic education cycle is known as adult education. First of all, adult learners come from various educational backgrounds, and their educational requirements and goals may differ greatly. Some people seek new skills for job success, while others pursue education for personal enrichment or to fill gaps in their previous schooling. Second, unlike the education provided to them in schools and universities, this kind of learning depends on their availability and not that of their trainers. Thirdly, many grown-ups enroll in this type of education for professional development. They can also earn additional certifications to improve their job skills. Besides, adult education emphasizes lifelong learning, recognizing that learning should not be limited to a specific period but must continue throughout life. It promotes personal growth. Moreover, with the headways in innovation, grown-up training frequently consolidates online classes. Furthermore, as adult education trainers, we have a key role to play in providing an environment that encourages, engages, and motivates adult learners.
All things considered, adult education is a dynamic and developing profession that is essential to empowering people, advancing social development, and meeting the changing demands of the labor market.Adult language learners face many challenges on their language-learning journey, yet their overall experience can be profoundly rewarding. As adults embark on learning a new language, time constraints emerge as a primary obstacle. Balancing work, family, and social commitments makes finding consistent practice time difficult. Moreover, adults may feel self-conscious about making mistakes, hindering their progress. Retaining new vocabulary and grammar rules poses another hurdle, as cognitive differences between adult and child learners affect language acquisition. Adults often rely on established learning strategies that may not align with language acquisition techniques. Moreover, cultural barriers further complicate the language learning process. Understanding cultural nuances is crucial for effective communication, but adults may struggle to grasp cultural references and social cues, particularly without exposure to the target culture. Developing cultural competence requires immersion and an open-minded attitude.
Despite challenges, adult language learners benefit from their maturity, life experiences, and intrinsic motivation. They can make meaningful connections between existing knowledge and the new language.The attention in adult learners is higher as they can remain focused on an activity much longer as opposed to children who can stay focused for much less. While children need a constant change of pace, entertaining and some level of discipline and reward, adults can generally control and motivate themselves. Children are usually obliged to learn as opposed to adults who choose to learn. This changes everything in terms of teaching approaches.
Adult learners are self-motivated and generally want to improve their overall proficiency in a language. Aside from being forced by their company to follow lessons, adult learners are generally internally motivated, goal oriented and want to improve their fluency and accuracy in particular domains of interest. It is now up to the trainer to provide an environment that keeps them interested and engaged. Adult learners have experiences the trainer can draw upon and a learner may eagerly be able to participate in more complex conversations. The trainer therefore requires to know their adult students fairly well (why are they learning English?; what are their interests?; Where do they come from?; What do they do for a living?, etc.). With this prior knowledge and personalized insight, the trainer can prepare a particular focused lesson with topics that trigger conversation and convivial learning. Focused preparation will also enhance the opportunity for adult learners meet their language goals, which indirectly will hopefully satisfy their personal quest for noticeable results. Lessons need to be interesting, real-world and practical. The adult learner must also be respected and treated with diligence. The trainer needs to be motivating and enthusiastic, but the activities should not appear to be contrived.
Adults also have the benefit of self knowledge. They already understand their strengths and weaknesses and can freely share them with a trainer. Consequently, their trainer doesn’t need to waste time trying to figure them out. Adults have also the freedom of asking for particular topics to be covered or even different methods to be used that are helpful for them personally. This will help the trainer to prepare more concise vocabulary material and focused lessons that will entitle the learner to feel not only respected, but also included in any discussion.
Adult education differs from child education in a number of ways. In pedagogy, learning activities tend to focus on memorization. In andragogy, on the other hand, learning activities are based on experiential techniques that focus on problems and are linked to life experiences. The focus is on the learner’s experience, readiness to learn, orientation to learning and motivation to learn. This creates diversity in the course and makes it more enriching. However, the teacher must take into account each person’s experience and background so as not to create an awkward or inappropriate situation. The teacher must create an ideal atmosphere for learning the language and motivating the learners.
What’s more, adults start a language course with more experience than children. They also have different objectives, expectations and motivations. There are many reasons why adults want to learn a language, both personal and professional. For example, learning English for work enables you to communicate internationally, French helps in certain areas, particularly cultural, Mandarin gives you access to the Chinese market, Arabic can be used for business with the oil-producing countries of the Gulf, and it can also be linked to a new professional challenge, for example. On a personal level, you can choose to learn a language for travel, for religion, to communicate with your family abroad or simply out of interest in a language or culture, or out of linguistic curiosity. What’s more, it’s important to be efficient and to achieve the objectives set, because adults have less time available than children and their objectives are clear. With children, the objectives to be achieved often extend over a longer period of time, as they form a body of knowledge to be acquired over the long term. It is therefore important for adults to feel that they are making progress at the end of each lesson, to encourage them to make the time to learn the language. It is also important for them to be able to put their learning to good use on a daily basis, whether in their work or in everyday tasks. To help them learn and progress, they can watch films or series in the target language, talk to a native speaker, create vocabulary lists or listen to podcasts, for example.Adult Education
Thanks to my teaching experience, during these years I have met many people interested in learning a foreign language. In this period of time, I have worked with people of all ages, from the youngest (children) to the oldest (adults). I have always been pleasantly impressed by how much passion and commitment adults put into lessons. During this period, I realized how teaching adults is truly a great journey, not only for the student but also for the teacher when begins to see the results of his or her work. As we know, adults are certainly more open to learning something new, even if this means spending hours and hours studying. When we grow up, we understand that in life we never stop learning if we want to improve, and I think it is precisely for this reason that adult learners are more focused on the goal. Thanks to the hours I spent teaching and the moments of conversation I had with my students, I understood that for them, learning is a long-term process that goes well beyond learning only a language. The majority of them always bring lots of personal experiences from everyday life to class; they told me about experiences they have had abroad, holidays, trips, and how easy it’s for them to learn something they truly like. This was extremely helpful during different stages of lessons to elicit from them all the target language I needed for a specific topic, but not only.Thanks to listening to their daily experiences, I began to have an idea of what method could be the best to help them learn the language, in such a way as to see in their faces the same enthusiasm as when they spoke to me about their passions. All this leads me to say that although adults have greater experience in the field of learning and are more open, with a positive attitude towards learning something new, this does not mean that it is easier for the teacher to teach adults, instead than children. Teaching adults represents a real challenge, as many of them want to use “their own learning method.” They already think they know what works and what doesn’t. They are very often linked to the concept that studying a language, especially during a lesson, consists of 90% studying just grammar without considering other important aspects such as reading, vocabulary, listening, and conversation. All this leads them to have difficulties relying on the teacher, who would like to show them other fundamental aspects of the language. However, this does not represent an insurmountable obstacle; on the contrary, both the student and teacher can find a meeting point to ensure that both achieve their goals by working in a calm and positive environment, thus leading the students feeling more confident and at ease in using the language in real-life situations. Seeing a student satisfied and confident in using the language after all the work done in class is one of the most rewarding things.
To talk about adult motivation, it’s very different of the children motivation.
Kids doesn’t have the choice to learn, but it doesn’t mean that they are note motivated. They need to learn with practice and affordable examples. I had the opportunity to do class for little one and adults.
Adults bring experience life with them and their own motivation to learn. It can be useful for the trainer. He can adapt lessons to the learners need and feeding with their own experience.
The process of acquiring a language not differ so much for both. It could be a little childy for an adult to start a learning. All is in the way of teaching !
Adults come to you self-motivated (job, relationship, travel) they’re focused on the lesson and appreciate come back next time. They are aware of their progress.
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