Adults are full of resources, given their life experience and work history. Many adult students juggle school, a full-time job, families and kids. Teachers should allow those experiences to become a part of the learning process, especially when their experience is relevant to the classroom lesson. Engage adult learners in classroom discussion, giving them ample opportunity to talk and offer advice to younger students in the class. If the class is about business ethics, adult learners can talk about facing moral dilemmas and making ethical decisions on the job and how (if applicable) they helped solve the issue.
Adult learners prefer a "hands-on approach" to learning instead of learning about academic theories and concepts, meaning they will learn how to directly apply what they learn in class. Lecture-based classes might work in the beginning, but courses oriented toward "doing" will interest students more and connect with them. Adults in an art history course would learn better by visiting a museum or watching slides or artwork rather than studying concepts in a book. Students in a creative writing course would learn descriptive writing better by visiting a farmers' market to observe human behavior than describing imaginary still life in their heads.
Self-directed learning means adults take ownership over their own education in how they learn, what they learn, how to set learning goals and how to assess their progress. Adult learners often know what they want to learn and will seek the help of instructors on how to accomplish those goals. As advisers, instructors help students attain those goals, often in a set period of time that is attainable and act as a source of inspiration. Teachers should serve as facilitators to adult students, encouraging them to do a good job and work hard to get what they want out of the course.
Independent studies allow adult students to work at their own pace while specializing in something tailored to their specific interests and needs. The independent study focuses on research while completing a project showing what they learned. An instructor can help guide students through the process of developing goals and objectives for a course and evaluate their progress throughout the course of a semester. An independent study gives a lot of flexibility to adult students while allowing an instructor to teach his area of expertise to a solo audience.