Five Principles for Effective Adult Learning

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"I liked how the standards-depths of knowledge-learning intentions chart laid out the assessment process for me. I could visually see it, in a way that makes sense."

This was a comment from a participant at a recent professional learning session I facilitated.

I wish for consistently positive feedback like this on all professional development sessions I facilitate.

In fact, I’d like to forget a few presentations and workshops I hosted.

Reflecting on a session I ran several years ago, which a participant bluntly labeled a “disaster”, taught me a valuable lesson on the importance of adaptability and understanding in professional learning.

• The technology failed to work properly.

• I didn’t know my audience well enough.

• The goals and objectives for our time together weren’t clear.

While a few of the negative outcomes were beyond my control, I took responsibility and assured the partnering company they need not worry about my presenting fee.

Addressing a common challenge many literacy leaders face underscores the central question:

How can we consistently ensure meaningful and productive learning experiences for adults?

The dynamic nature of professional learning manifests across various settings—from staff meetings to informal online communities to traditional workshops. In each of these, the following principles from The Art of Coaching: Effective Strategies for School Transformation by Elena Aguilar (Jossey-Bass, 2013) can elevate the experience:

1.   Build on educators' current knowledge, experiences.

Aguilar notes that teachers and leaders are not coming to us as blank slates. They have experiences, which formed their beliefs about what works and what doesn’t.

But these beliefs can be held too tightly. Conversely, educators may not be clear regarding what they believe – they are dependent on resources and mandates.

Drawing from these experiences, I strive to balance acknowledging educators’ existing knowledge with deepening their understanding of the topic at hand.

For example, I asked participants to evaluate the current reality of their school’s assessment systems.

They put up sticky notes of what was weak, okay, and strong in their school regarding assessment. We then discussed the trends and patterns we were seeing across districts. This information enabled me to tailor the learning experience to the group’s needs.

2.   Provide choice and ownership in learning.

“Because they are not blank slates,” Aguilar continues, “adults want to be the origin of our learning and want control over the what, who, how, why, and where of our learning.”

Choice is a tenet of all learning that has any level of impact. This is especially true with adults. So much has been mandated on schools. Providing ownership in the work is received as a breath of fresh air in comparison.

With the assessment workshop, I had clear outcomes written out and referred to throughout our time together. But what the outcomes looked like and how they got there was largely on them. For example, educators were invited to practice developing assessment tasks based on a provided standard or a standard specific to their grade level or content area. The learning was the same.

3.   Ensure objectives are realistic and relevant.

This might be the biggest complaint I hear about ineffective professional learning: it isn’t meaningful to the day-to-day work teachers and leaders do in their schools.

One way to make the learning relevant is to see it in action. After reading about an effective practice, I’ve shared video of that practice applied during classroom instruction. Then I have asked the participants to discuss it: What did they like? What could have been done better?

I’ve even played recordings of me coaching someone else. I don’t edit out the less-than-stellar parts of my practice. I want them to see the imperfections and to appreciate the messiness of the work. It validates their own future mistakes.

4.   Opportunities to try it and apply it in context.

“We do not learn by simply hearing or reading about abstract theory; we need to apply the learnings fairly quickly” (Aguliar, p. 56).

Every workshop should end with some type of call to action. What are participants expected to do once they leave your session? By next Tuesday?

One way to improve follow through is to set up every participant with an accountability buddy from your session. Each pairing agrees to connect over Zoom or a phone call once they have tried and applied the new ideas. Ideally, a date and time are set for this call.

5.   Create an emotionally safe space.

When learning anything new, there is a moment of uncertainty born out of fear of making mistakes and looking incompetent.

We can acknowledge this throughout our professional learning by making it clear that mistakes are not only encouraged but expected. “If you are not making errors, you are not learning,” is one mantra to keep coming back to.

Also important is to have working agreements posted visibly. Have the workshop participants read through them aloud. They can be invited to select one they want to pay particular attention to during your time together. To ensure even greater adherence to safe space, ask one participant to oversee evaluating how well the group did as a whole in meeting the agreements.

Five questions for you:

• Reflect on your own professional learning experiences. What elements have made them successful or unsuccessful?

• What is one way you might apply these strategies to create a more meaningful and engaging learning environment in your own context?

• Can you think of a time when professional development failed to meet your needs? How could the situation have been improved with the strategies discussed here?

• What are some of the challenges you foresee in creating an emotionally safe space for learning, and how might you address them?

• Recall a moment when learning something new felt particularly challenging. How could the approach outlined in the fifth strategy have changed that experience for you?

Consider journaling your responses to these questions. If you are a full subscriber, you can also post your reflections in the comments.