hen dealing with adults, which this article will focus on, one of the mistakes I have made in the past is determining what they want to learn. If we are truly trying to create the best learning environment we can, we need to reverse our thinking. We need to ask them what they want to learn.

So, why is that so important? The reason is adults learn differently from kids or adolescents. Many studies have shown that adults are more active in the education process. They want to be active and "do," rather than just sit back passively and "listen" to a lecture, video, demonstration, etc. Also, as we get older, rather than taking things at face value, we are influenced by our past experiences, as we incorporate that into what is being taught. Finally, adults need immediate application (rather than postponed application) of knowledge, and learning is problem-centered rather than subject-centered, which means get very specific rather than generalize.

So what? What does that all mean?

Continued...