TEACHING STRATEGIES AND METHODS

Studies in adult learning theory show that adults prefer courses that focus heavily on
application of concepts to relevant issues. To retain and use new information they need to be
able to integrate the information with what they already know. Tasks must be slow to moderate
pace and not complex or unusual to avoid interference with adult learning. Adults prefer a
personalized learning environment with focused effort on concept application where they can
solve problems and take personal responsibility.

Use Self-Directed Learning

Design programs for all generational groups because there will be different viewpoints and value
sets in a learning environment. Concepts should be explained from more than one viewpoint and
appeal to adult learners in different age groups. Adults prefer self-directed learning over group
learning. Self-directed learning does not mean isolated learning; it involves using other people as
resources, subject matter experts, guides and encouragers. Adults prefer more than one method
of learning. They like learning via auditory, visual and kinesthetic means.

Set Expectations Upfront

Set expectations at the beginning of the class. Since adults have learning and classroom
expectations, it is vital that the instructor clarifies and thoroughly articulates all expectations
before discussing the content. The instructor's and the learners' expectations should be
discussed and noted. The instructor can assume responsibility only for her expectations, not
those of the learners. One expectation that a good instructor will have is for learners to actively
participate in the learning process. A good instructor knows that new and old knowledge have to
be integrated and applied to achieve knowledge retention and learning success

Use Life Experiences

Tap into the broad range of life experiences that each learner brings to the learning environment.
Life experience is a valuable asset that should be acknowledged and used because adults learn
well when they share experiences with one another. One of the best ways to pull knowledge and
experience from learners is to use open-ended questions to draw out relevant knowledge and
experience. An open-ended question is one with more than a one-word answer; the answer has
to be expounded upon to thoroughly address the question.

Create a Comfortable Environment

Teach adults with books, television, programmed instruction, "how-to" content and applications.
Adult learners positively rate short seminars and lectures as a preferred learning method
because these venues give them face-to-face and one-on-one access to an expert. The lectures
must be short because adults tend to have a high level of irritability if they have to sit for long
periods in a learning environment. The environment must be physically and psychologically
comfortable, and they should have time to practice what they are learning
Feedback and Practice
Provide feedback during skills practice sessions. Learners depend on the instructor to give them
feedback to let them know how they are doing, if they are grasping the concepts and ideas, and
for confirmation. Likewise, the instructor is dependent on learners for feedback about curriculum
and her classroom performance. This valuable information gives the instructor the opportunity to
make midstream changes to positively affect the learning environment if needed.

Balance Time and Discussion

Allow adult learners to somewhat control the pace of the class and start and stop time without
losing control of the class. A good instructor knows how to balance time, presentation, discussion
and debate and still go with the flow, while maintaining facilitative control. An adult learner does
best in an environment in which the instructor acts as orchestrator using facilitative skills and
control to keep disagreements civil, protect and connect opinions and ideas, and suggest
solutions to problems.

12 TYPES OF CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES FOR ADULTS/ EXAMPLES TO

ENGAGE LEARNERS IN LEARNING SESSIONS

What Kind of Activities Can You Run to Engage your Learners?

The best way to engage learners and help them remember and understand information is to
make sure that they actively participate.
So, you do not want to talk at them all the time, but you want them to actively contribute in
some way.
To do so, there are many types of classroom activities you can use in your classes or workshops
that are perfect for adult learning.
The trick is using the activities that are most suited to the learning objective you are trying to
achieve and using a variety of activities, in order to engage as many learning styles as possible.

1. Quizzes
 Quizzes are a fun way to engage learners and there are many types of quizzes you
can devise, such as multiple-choice, true/false or fill-in-the-blank quizzes.
 You can ask participants to do quizzes on their own, or you can ask them to work in
groups and even set a quiz up as a competition, whereby the group that gets most
questions right wins.
 When designing a quiz, it is important to keep it simple. A quiz should lighten the
mood, rather than feel like a test. When to use quizzes: Quizzes are useful when you
 want your learners to revise a topic and also when you want to check their
understanding.

2. Buzz Groups
 Buzz groups are short discussions that are done in pairs or groups of three people at
the most. They are called buzz groups because, as participants start talking, they
will generate a buzzing noise in the class with their chat.
 Ask your students a question; ask them to solve a problem or to agree on a
definition. Other good types of questions for buzz groups include asking participants
to find similarities and differences between concepts; discussing pros and cons or
discussing the participants’ opinions on something.
 The question needs to be simple and to the point. Write the question somewhere
where the participants can easily see it, such as on a board, a PowerPoint ppt slide
or a handout
 Buzz groups are best when they are kept short, so give your participants up to 5
minutes and try to limit it to that timeframe.
 At the end, ask each pair to report their answers to the rest of the class and then
you summarize them.
When to use Buzz groups: Buzz groups are useful to engage participants who are shy
and are not comfortable working with big groups. They are also good for participants to
start reflecting on a topic.

3. Snowballing
 This is a follow up from buzz groups and it consists in combining small groups into
bigger groups.
 So, for example, after a buzz group, ask pairs to combine into groups of four and do
a follow-up activity from the discussion they had in the buzz group. You can then ask
the groups of fours to combine into a group of eight for another subsequent activity
When to Use Snowballing: Snowballing works best when the activities are connected
and expand on each other. You can use snowballing when you want to guide your
participants into developing a project, for example.

4. Brainstorming
 Brainstorming consists in encouraging participants to come up with ideas to solve a
problem or answer a question.
 Brainstorming is done quickly as participants are encouraged to say whatever first
comes to their minds. The aim here is not quality but quantity. The ideas will be
analyzed and discussed later.
 During brainstorming, ideas are not judged and the flow of new ideas is instead
preferred. All ideas are welcomed.
 You can run a brainstorming session with the whole class at once, as you write down
the answers, or in groups, so each group writes down their answers and then they
present them to the rest of the class so the ideas can be combined or improved.
 At the end, the most useful ideas are chosen
 When to use brainstorming: Brainstorming is very useful for problem-solving. Also,
you can use a quick brainstorming session to introduce a new topic, so that participants
come up with their own solution first before you explain the topic to them.

5. Discussion and Group Learning

 When introducing a discussion, make sure that the topic meets one of the learning
objectives of the course.
 In order to be useful, a discussion needs to be structured and very focused
 You start a discussion with one question, and then you can have a series of follow
up questions if it is useful to delve deeper into a topic, whilst maintaining focus. For
instance, as you facilitate the discussion, you can ask probing questions, such as
‘Can you say a little bit more about that?’
 The question needs to be clear and concise and always use open questions. A
closed question only requires a yes or no answer and does not lead to any
interesting discussions.
 For example, if you ask ‘Is team-work important?’ participants may just answer yes
or no and that is the end of the discussion. If, instead, you ask, ‘Why is teamwork
important?’ they will elaborate.
 Also, good questions are personal and/or controversial. A personal question requires
the participants to express their personal opinion or to tell something that they
experienced.
 If you are looking for an in-depth discussion, ask participants to work in small
groups as smaller groups encourage everyone to participate.
 At the end of the activity, ask each group to summarize their discussion to the rest
of the class (they can nominate one person to present) and then reflect with the
whole class to summarize everything that all the groups have discussed.
When to use discussions: Discussions are useful when you want participants to
reflect on something in-depth and for topics that involve attitudes and awareness, rather
than factual information.

6. Debates
 Whereas a discussion encourages participants to cooperate and to explore a topic,
debates are competitive. Groups or individuals are pitched against one another to
put their argument forward.
 There are many ways for you to organize a debate but, just like a discussion, a
debate needs to be well structured. Unless participants are already well informed
about the arguments on a specific topic, give them a scenario or a case study to
debate.
 You can ask participants to debate in pairs or in groups. After a pair or two groups of
participants debate, the other participants listen and make a decision at the end as
to which argument was stronger.
 Another way to run a debate is to ask each person or group at the opposite sides of
the debate to switch sides at the end of the debate
When to use debates: A debate is useful when you want learners to understand
alternative viewpoints.

7. Presentations
  Presentations consist in dividing participants into small groups and asking them to
design a short presentation together and deliver it in front of the class.
 The presentation can be produced as a result of research, or simply as a result of a
short group discussion.
 The difference between asking participants to just share their discussion with the
rest of the class and doing a presentation is that the latter is more formal.
 For a presentation, participants come to the front of the room and each person in
the group takes turns to deliver a part of the presentation.
 Depending on the resources and time available, they can use visuals such as
PowerPoint slides or a sheet of A1 paper or simply speak in front of the rest of the
class.
 To do a presentation, participants really need to focus on the topic; they need to
work well together and it is a good way for them to take ownership of their learning.
When to use presentations: They are very useful, of course, if you are teaching
presentation skills, as a way for participants to practice. They are also good for teaching
other topics though, as another way to involve students actively.

8. Role-play
 With role-play, you give your participants a scenario and they act it out with each
participant playing a different role.
 Commonly, you run role-plays in groups of three, where two participants play a role
each and one participant acts as an observer (if the class is not divisible by three,
there can be two observers). You can run the role-play more than once for the same
group so that participants can rotate roles
 Alternatively, you can have just one performance, with one group of participants
acting out the roles, while the rest of the class observes.
When to use role-play: Role-play is very useful for any type of training that involves
interpersonal skills. For example, it is good for teaching how to give feedback, how to
handle conflict and communication skills.

9. Training Games for Learners

 There are many games that you can do for your training sessions, too many to list
here.
 Games are usually fun activities that can involve the use of props; they can be
competitive or at least present a challenge, and are usually done in groups. Some
games can be done sitting down and others standing up or moving around.
 There are a couple of things you need to be aware of though when it comes to using
games for training.
 Firstly, every game must be connected to a learning objective. Asking participants
to do random games that have no connection with the topic can be
counterproductive (as participants will wonder what the point is) and a waste of
time.
 Secondly, make sure you use games that all your participants are comfortable with,
based on variables such as their age, gender, the culture of belonging and job role.
When to use games for Classroom Training: You can use games at the start of a
training session to allow participants to become familiar with each other (the so-called
icebreakers), or during the session when you want to re-energize your participants.
 10. Problem-solving Activities for Learners
 Problem-solving consists in giving participants a problem to solve such as a scenario
that poses a problem, a practical task to solve, a puzzle or an enigma
When to use problem-solving: Problem-solving is useful when you want to
encourage creativity; for practical topics that require hands-on involvement or for
scientific subject

11. Case Studies in Lesson Plans

 Case studies consist in practical scenarios, which reflect a real-life situation
involving people (they do not have to be situations that really happened, but they
need to be believable and realistic).
 Rather than being an activity in itself, a case study is something that can be used as
material for another activity.
 The beauty of case studies is that they give participants real-life examples, which
are relatable and bring a topic to life, making it relevant
When to use case studies: Case studies are useful for presenting participants
scenarios that can be used for discussions, debates, problem-solving or role-play.

12. Asking Questions

 Asking questions is not an activity as such, but it is a very important tool for a
trainer to engage participants.
 Instead of explaining an idea straight away to your participants, lead them to that
idea by asking questions. It does not matter if they give wrong answers as you will
guide them and explain the concept later.
 The important thing is that the emphasis is on understanding rather than simply
knowing something
 So, for example, if you are teaching presentation skills, instead of just explaining
straight away what the main qualities of a good presentation are, ask your
participants ‘What do you think the three best qualities of a good presenter are?’.
 You can also ask a series of questions to delve deeper into a topic.
 You can also ask your participants’ questions after you have covered a topic, as a
way of checking if they understood.
When to use questions: Every time you are introducing a new topic and whenever
you want to reinforce the participants’ learning or test their understanding.

Bonus Idea: Using Visuals

You can use visuals as a starting point for another activity. For example, you can use pictures or
videos to start a conversation. Likewise, you can ask participants to produce visuals as an
activity.
For instance, you can ask them to draw a picture to express a concept, to draw a diagram or to
take a photo (depending on the situation).
Another type of visual you can ask participants to draw is a mind-map. Mind-maps are a useful
way to separate a topic into sub-topics or to look at the same topic from different points of view