Satisfying adult students

Lieb suggests that adults are "autonomous and self-directed", meaning that instead of constructing the lesson on tight schedules, they prefer to be actively involved in the learning process. This is seen in how my tutor at the language school is always flexible with the lessons. She shows that she does not mind getting side-tracked for a while as the topics are students' interest and it is important to keep them motivated. The tutor also negotiate with students what to do for the homework. Like today, students were confused with the use of "even though" and the tutor photocopied a two-pages long grammar exercise. As Speck suggests:

1. "Adult learners need to see that the professional development learning and their day-to-day activities are related and relevant."
2. "Adult learners need direct, concrete experiences in which they apply the learning in real work."

So it seems like maintaining motivation by allowing them to apply or link what they have learnt in the classroom to outside the classroom is a key to the success of teaching adults.