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Journal of College Teaching & Learning – December 2011 Volume 8, Number 12
© 2011 The Clute Institute 53
Effective Strategies
For Engaging Adult Learners
Belinda Dunnick Karge, Ph.D., California State University, Fullerton, CA, USA
Kathleen M. Phillips, Ph.D., California State University, San Bernardino, CA, USA
Tammy Jessee, Dodson Middle School, Ranchos Palos Verdes, CA, USA
Marjorie McCabe, Ph.D., California State University, San Bernardino, CA, USA
ABSTRACT
Innovative methods in teaching should be used in every college classroom to enhance student
engagement, support any teaching environment and encourage inquiry among learners. Adults
learn best by participation in relevant experiences and utilization of practical information. When
adult students are active in their learning they are able to develop critical thinking skills, receive
social support systems for the learning, and gain knowledge in an efficient way. The authors
highlight several exemplary strategies for adult learners including, Think-Pair-Share, Tell -Help-
Check, Give One, Get One, and the Immediate Feedback Assessment Test.
Keywords: Strategies; Engagement; Adult Learners
he average college student is used to multitasking and processing a variety of information at once.
Regardless of how one views the university classroom, the instructor is on stage from the moment
he/she steps in front of the class (Schwartz & Karge, 1996). It is critical to use proven and
innovative methods in teaching at all levels of education. Furthermore, understanding the adult learner will enhance
instruction and ultimately motivate the student. This article will highlight some of the key concepts related to adult
learning and focus on several easy to use research based effective teaching methods for college instruction.
Knowles, Holton and Swanson (2005) have extensively researched the principles of adult learning. They
coined the term, “andragogy” to signify the science of teaching adults to learn (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner,
2007). Knowles et. al. purport that adult learners have a need to know, a readiness to learn and an orientation to
learning; this combined with motivation creates a healthy environment to acquire knowledge. Adults learn best by
participation in relevant experiences and practical information. Adult learners need to be respected and valued.
Recent studies in neuroscience have validated these principles (Jensen, 2005).
The traditional faculty/student relationship must be altered to facilitate effective adult learning (Knowles,
Holton, & Swanson, 1998). The faculty members’ instructional practices influence the education goals that students
adopt. The choices that faculty make about issues – such as introducing and teaching course content, grading student
work, grouping of students, and how students are recognized for their successes – all influence the types of goals
that students adopt. In turn, these goals affect a number of important motivational outcomes.
Intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation play key roles. Students who are intrinsically motivated will
engage in an academic task to learn for the sake of learning. Students who are extrinsically motivated engage in
academic tasks in order to earn some type of reward, to avoid an externally imposed punishment, or to make a
decision based on something they desire. This can be further explored by looking at the works of Julian Rotter
(1966). Eric Schaps, founder of the Developmental Studies Center, documents “a growing body of research
confirms the benefits of building a sense of community…students with a strong sense of community are more likely
to be academically motivated’ (2003, p. 31).
When students are active in their learning they are able to develop critical thinking skills, receive social
support systems for the learning, and gain knowledge in an efficient way. Faculty must enhance traditional lecturing
T
Journal of College Teaching & Learning – December 2011 Volume 8, Number 12
54 © 2011 The Clute Institute
with carefully constructed effective teaching strategies designed to enhance skills and gain content knowledge
(Feger, Woleck & Hickman, 2004).
One strategy for enhancing learning in the college classroom is Think-Pair-Share. This strategy was
developed by Lyman (1987, 1981). For example, immediately following a lecture or assigned textbook reading, the
instructor asks a question related to, describing, or interpreting something. After giving the students a few minutes to
think of an answer, have them turn to a partner and share, i.e. pair and share their response. Then ask the entire class
for volunteers who might want to share an answer.
There are many variations of this active learning technique. A favorite of many educators is Think-Write-
Pair-Share. In this scenario, students listen while the teacher poses a question, problem, concept or a task. As
indicated above, the students are given quiet time to respond to the question in writing. Students are then cued to
pair with a neighbor and discuss their responses, noting similarities and differences. It is important to give students
enough time to share their answers and how they arrived at the answers with their classmates. After rehearsing
responses with a partner, students are invited to share publicly using language for reported speech (e.g. My partner
pointed out…; My partner mentioned that…; We agreed that; We decided that…). There are many advantages to
Lyman’s technique. The personal interaction motivates students and engages the entire class. Quiet or shy students
are more likely to answer the questions or complete the task with a partner instead of having to stand in front of the
entire class. The instructor can easily assess student understanding by listening in on several groups during the
activity, and by collecting responses at the end. Fisher, Brozo, Frey and Ivey (2007) offer another variation, the
Read-Write-Pair-Share. They indicate that the strategy provides students with a scaffold experience. The student
reads a passage independently, and then composes his/her reactions in writing. These ideas are shared with a
partner. The scaffold is enhanced by the discussion and expansion of the thoughts with another classmate and they
indicate that some may feel confident once they have rehearsed it by sharing with a peer and may volunteer to share
with the entire class. They note that use of this strategy assures the instructor that everyone is engaged and using
academic vocabulary in both written and verbal form.
Tell-Help-Check (Archer & Gleason, 1994) is an excellent strategy that provides adult students
opportunities to review and confirm their understanding of critical information. Through interaction with partners,
students are able to participate, either orally or in writing, in an activity that will assist in filling in knowledge gaps
of information. First, the instructor numbers the students as 1’s and 2’s. The instructor poses a question to which
the 1’s respond. This may be done either in writing or orally. The amount of time allotted to answer the question
depends on the depth of the question. Generally one or two minutes are sufficient. Once the question has been
answered, 2’s provide help with the answer by adding information or editing existing information. Once both te am
members have given input on the answer, they check the text to determine accuracy. The interactive nature of this
activity helps adult students maintain interest in the topics covered. It also offers an avenue for students to tap into
related background knowledge. This strategy provides an excellent opportunity for the instructor to assess student
knowledge of the given topic. While the teams are working on the questions, the instructor can circulate the room to
determine the level of understanding of individuals and the group as a whole. This time also provides an opportunity
for the instructor to provide feedback to individual students.
Problem-Based Learning(PBL) (Barrows &Tamblyn, 1980) presents an avenue for students to actively
engage in learning communities by solving complex, challenging problems/scenarios.By following the prescribed
steps, students collectively and creatively reach problem resolution. The PBL process utilizes the students’ prior
knowledge and experience as well as curriculum and research abilities to address problems/scenarios.
Problem Based Learning requires the instructor to facilitate rather than direct and the students to take a lead
in developing solutions to real world problems. It is a curricular approach to learning where students are encouraged
to take on the responsibility for their learning; even directing that learning process by utilizing their experience, their
research, and their collaboration. Students are provided with an “ill-structured” real life situation or problem. They
are given guidelines as to how to solve the problem while working collaboratively with peers.
The specific steps to PBL begin with the instructor introducing a problem or scenario to the class. It is
important that the instructor create the problem carefully so that students have a concept of the problem solution but
Journal of College Teaching & Learning – December 2011 Volume 8, Number 12
© 2011 The Clute Institute 55
cannot simply solve the problem using only prior knowledge. The situation should be pertinent and should
challenge traditional knowledge. Using experiential knowledge along with provided factual information, students
write what they know about the problem. Once the students have all of the factual information compiled, they create
a statement of the problem. This can be refined as more details are revealed. The students then collectively decide
what further information they need in order to fully understand the problem and to begin to devise a solution. At
this point, the students should become acutely aware of the importance of the curricular information and research
potential for resolving the problem. Students engage in the necessary inquiry required to supplement the information
they already have and record any possible recommendations, solutions, actions, or hypotheses. Finally they
formulate a solution. Once the group has a consensus on a suitable solution, the students present their findings and
recommendations.
PBL engages students in active learning. They become involved in the critical analysis of a problem and
collaboratively research possible solutions while also providing input from relevant past experience and knowledge.
As the students gather the necessary factual knowledge that is required, research skills are developed and students
become self-directed learners. These skills can then be applied to other contexts and students become motivated by
seeing the relevance and applicability of what they have learned (Savory, 2006).
Think-Pair-Share, Tell-Help-Check, and Problem Based Learning are all engagement strategies designed to
ultimately expand learning. The term engagement signifies that the student is sufficiently active. Engle & Conant
(2002) remind us that evidence of productive engagement requires that the activities lead somewhere and that the
instructor document student learning. One way to do this is to give a test on the information most recently taught.
A good test should be more than just an assessment of knowledge. It should offer a meaningful learning experience.
The Immediate Feedback Assessment Test (IFAT) (Epstein, Lazarus, Calvano, Matthews, Hendel, Epstein, &
Brosvic, 2002) provides just such an experience by allowing students to immediately view the accuracy of their
responses and participate in a collective dialogue regarding the content. The IFAT protocol is simple to use for both
the instructor and the students. First, the instructor creates multiple choice questions relating to the content
knowledge the students should have acquired. Each student independently takes the multiple choice test in the
traditional manner. Once the individual has completed the test, he or she is placed into a group. The group is given
one IFAT answer sheet.
The IFAT form is similar to a Scantron form that is used with many multiple choice tests. For each
question, the students compare their answers and collectively agree on the correct choice. One student scratches off
the opaque coating corresponding to the chosen answer; if the choice is correct, a star appears in the box and the
group goes on to the next item. If the choice is incorrect, a blank space appears. The blank space signals the group
to discuss the rationale for a better answer. In this way, students engage in meaningful discussions and develop a
deeper understanding of the content. The group’s final choice is always the correct answer ensuring that each
student leaves the testing session with knowledge of the correct information.
Pedagogically, the IFAT has several advantages over traditional multiple-choice test procedures. First,
traditional multiple tests are generally graded after the student leaves, thus delaying feedback for the test items. The
IFAT is graded by the students immediately after each answer is given. Since the feedback is corrective, the student
leaves the testing situation knowing the correct answer rather wondering if s/he was right or wrong. IFAT provides
a simple and fair way for the instructor to give partial credit. Because of this, students can still earn points even if
their first choice is not accurate. Finally, students leave the testing situation already aware of their overall test score.
Epstein (2002) demonstrates that the experience of using the IFAT system increases the students’ level of
content knowledge. DeBattista, Mitterer, and Gross (2004) found that university students strongly prefer the IFAT
to the more commonly used Scantron form, with 83 per cent saying that they would like to be able to use the IFAT
in all of their courses. The likeability of IFAT was not related to student characteristics or test performance
variables. Students learn more with the system and actually prefer it to more traditional multiple choice tests.
Instructing adult learners is invigorating and challenging. The use of these strategies to enhance
engagement will support any teaching environment and encourage inquiry among learners.
Journal of College Teaching & Learning – December 2011 Volume 8, Number 12
56 © 2011 The Clute Institute
AUTHOR INFORMATION
Belinda Dunnick Karge, Ph.D. is a professor at California State University, Fullerton.
E-mail: bkarge@fullerton.edu
Kathleen Phillips, Ph.D. is a lecturer at California State University, San Bernardino.
E-mail: kathiep@csusb.edu
Tammy Jessee is a middle school teacher at Dodson Middle School in Ranchos Palos Verdes, Ca.
E-mail: tammy_jessee@yahoo.com
Marjorie McCabe, Ph.D. is a professor at California State University, SanBernardino.
E-mail: mmcabe@csusb.edu
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