Natural Adult Learning

Research points to at least four key factors releasing inner motivation in adult learners. The catalytic interconnection of all four accelerates learning and inspires Christians to become lifelong life-learners.

1. Relevance: Demonstrating value by relating learning to life: This desire to find meaning is fundamental to all humanity. In particular, adult learners dislike busywork. Propel learning out of the formal setting into our real-life experience, connecting truth with daily life. Jesus’ whole world was a learning laboratory. We cannot respond to life and remain unchanged. Adults possess a strong need to shape the course of our lives in relevant ways. Bringing these experiences back to debrief in group releases life and learning in us and in others. Such an environment where meaning-making promiscuously roams about births surprising changes.

2. Joy & Fun: Nurturing positive attitudes towards learning: Our attitude predisposes us in a certain direction, positively or negatively. Particularly since many western Christians have negative past experiences with learning, positive, realistic expectations are essential at the beginning. Encourage in one another a favorable outlook towards learning. This often comes as a playful sense of joy and expectancy is re-introduced. Provide a basis for hope. This perspective engages their will to take ownership, a key to learning, releasing pleasure…and fun!

3. Belonging: Connecting with each other accelerates growth: God designed us as social beings. On the horizontal plane, perhaps nothing is quite as powerful as community. Creating a safe environment of mutual cooperation in which we all feel respected and valued develops a relaxed, stimulating place to learn. As mutually-accepting, encircling partners, we care as much about the learning of our peers as we do about our own. This fluid, playful, inclusive collaboration with one another develops a different relationship with discovery, frees us to tell our 1^st-person stories, enhances retention, opens up rich possibilities for relevant action, and maximizes growth as we become influence-able influencers.

4. Competence: Experiencing growing competence in skills, values, and/or character powerfully motivates learning: As image-bearers, God created us to rule (Genesis 1:26-28). We explore and perceive, evaluate and change our surroundings like a thermostat, not a thermometer that only measures the surrounding environment. Growing competence taps into our God-given yearning to promote positive effects and to experience significance. Success to learn something useful cultivates expectancy for continued success. So early-on in the process, encourage incremental, easy-to-learn, “quick-hits” success. Success begets success.

This is Reflection #37 in my book, Foundation Stones. I also have a web-site with tools, books and "more than Bible studies" that have helped me to live out of this spiritual DNA, www.JimFredericks.com