Learning new skills as an adult can feel like climbing a mountain in flip-flops. Here’s why:

Lack of Time—You’ve got a full-time job, maybe kids, maybe parents to care for. By the time you sit down with a textbook, your brain is begging for Netflix, not new assignments.

Self-Doubt—Many adults worry they’re “too old” or “too far behind.”

Neuroplasticity—We often hear that kids’ brains are like Play-Doh, easy to shape, while adult brains are more like semi-dry clay. Still moldable, but you’ve got to work it.

Competing Priorities—Even the best-designed lesson loses against job stress, childcare crises, or health emergencies. Timing isn’t just a scheduling issue—it’s often the biggest barrier.

Contradiction—Adult learners often confront ideas that clash with what they thought they knew. That requires mental flexibility—revising worldviews is one of the hardest forms of learning. Sometimes learning means unlearning.

Lack of Support—Trying to do it solo is brutal. Without a mentor or peer systems in place, it’s easy to drop out.

If we ignore these realities, adult education fails. But if we design learning around the five principles of androgogy (self-direction, experience, readiness, problem-centeredness, and motivation), we build systems that work.

Principle 1.

Self-Direction Isn’t Automatic

The myth: If adults enroll in a class voluntarily, they’re already self-directed learners.
❌ Choosing to sign up doesn’t mean they know how to set realistic goals, manage their time, or take initiative in learning without guidance.

Think of the most recent course or training you’ve taken and actually enjoyed — maybe it was for work, maybe for personal growth. Why did it work for you? Was it the teacher, the format, the timing… or something deeper?

Here’s my example: I’m currently working with a nutrition coach whom I have bi-weekly check-ins with. I do the rest of learning on my own, and the five factors that make self-directed learning possible are:

1. Independent Learning Activities – My coach curates targeted resources I can use at my own pace. I decide when and how I engage.

2. Self-Assessment & Reflection – Every learning activity comes with a mini-quiz, and the immediate feedback tells me what I’ve masters and what needs to be revisited.

3. Freedom of Choice – If one resource doesn’t resonate with me, I can try another from the resource library without being “graded” on it.

4. Micro-Goal Setting – Instead of “lose weight,” my micro-goals are tiny and trackable, like pause mid-meal and check if I’m satisfied. In an ESL classroom for example, instead of the overwhelming “be fluent in English,” micro-goals might look like: “Use the past tense correctly in three sentences today” or “Summarize one article/podcast in five sentences without notes.”

5. Progress Checks with a Coach – We reflect together. If something’s off, we adjust the plan and build on what’s going well.

The same holds true for adult learners in classrooms, workplaces, and community programs. Signing up doesn’t magically make someone “self-directed.” It’s these small structures — choice, reflection, micro-goals, progress checks — that transform a participant into an active driver of their learning.

The science backs this: Charles Duhigg explains that habits form around cue–routine–reward loops. We can design routines that make self-direction easier — immediate quizzes, quick wins, or self-reset features that put learners in the driver’s seat (Duhigg, 2012; Attia & Duhigg, 2025).

Ask for the adult student’s input in creating goals and revisit goals regularly.

Cat, Shawano County Literacy

I do this every time I first meet a student. Our first class is devoted to this.

Eric, Milwaukee Public Library

SMART goals and progress checks along the way

Asking students at the beginning of a course what they’re interested in, and using these topics throughout the class

Educators' Voices

Principle 2. Experience Is Fuel Not Luggage

The myth: The more life experience a student has, the easier it is for them to learn new skills.
❌ Experience is powerful, but if new learning isn’t explicitly connected to that experience, it can actually feel more overwhelming or disconnected.

Let’s take an example from a Digital Literacy class (Intro to Computers). How can we connect new learning to prior experiences if a student is newer to technology? Using a mouse is like steering a car or guiding fabric with a sewing machine while pressing the pedal. File management is just like organizing a closet: folders as drawers, subfolders as boxes, cloud storage as an extra storage unit down the street. New digital skills stick faster when tied to familiar routines.

At the conference, one participant mentioned her immigrant students were lost during a “laundry” lesson — not because they didn’t know English, but because washing machines and detergent types were not part of their living environment and new concepts altogether. Context is everything.

When we show that students existing knowledge, their backgrounds, their life experience counts and that they can use what they already know to gain new skills — it changes everything.

Suddenly, they’re not starting from zero.

They’re starting from halfway.

In rolling out new initiatives, that same principle applies. For example, teachers are asked to adopt a new framework like Universal Design for Learning (UDL). At first it feels like “one more thing,” but when leaders show how UDL builds on what teachers already do — offering graphic organizers, mixing discussion with visuals, or giving students multiple ways to demonstrate understanding — the shift feels less like starting over and more like naming and expanding familiar practices. The same holds in corporate training: when managers introduce project-management software or CRM, employees are more willing to use it once they see it as a digital version of the sticky notes, planners, or email threads they already rely on.

By anchoring the new concept in familiar experience, resistance drops and adoption speeds up.

The science backs this: Michael Kilgard’s work on neuroplasticity shows that learning sticks when paired with meaningful, real-world signals. Adults appreciate when we recognize that experience and existing knowledge and build on them. Tlohe brain is primed to retain it. And it doesn’t have to be formal experience. It might be parenting, budgeting, moving countries, navigating the health system — all of that counts.

When we connect new learning to their world, retention, engagement, and confidence — all of this goes up.

Have people tell stories or answer questions about family members.

-RB

Tell me what do you know about xyz? Or Have you ever heard…? Have you seen any short story in YT or TT about xyz?

Tell me your story and hopes, it’s okay if is in their own language.

-AD

Principle 3. Readiness to Learn Depends on Timing, Not Just Relevance

The myth: If you make a lesson relevant to a student’s personal life, they’ll automatically be ready to learn.
❌ Relevance matters, but readiness is also tied to timing, confidence, and life circumstances — even the best lesson can’t compete with a family emergency or job stress.

Adults are most motivated when learning feels relevant. That usually depends on four factors:

1. Recognized need/problem—A life trigger like a career shift, or difficulty navigating systems, or language/literacy barriers in daily life causing confusion sparks the urgency to learn.

2. The material must connect directly to personal, family, or professional goals.

3. Timing—Even useful skills get ignored if the timing isn’t right. Dropping out often isn’t about difficulty — it’s about competing priorities or other pressing issues that need to be dealt with.

4. Adults engage more when the environment feels safe, encouraging, and designed for their success. Recently increased fear, rumors, and stress among immigrant and refugee clients impacts learning not only in a way of access but because it’s hard to focus and retain information in stressful situations.

One administrator at the conference reminded us: when a student disappears mid-semester, it’s rarely because the content is “too much” or “too little.” More often, it’s life — tax season, childcare demands, overtime shifts. And with diverse classrooms, creating awareness around cultural traditions and holidays is important because they can also affect attendance and focus. That’s why it’s important to reassess your “learner avatar” not just once a year but quarterly. Timing kills more learning than lack of interest.

For some learners, readiness isn’t just about work schedules or childcare — it’s also about safety. Many programs create trauma-informed policies, review rights, and avoid practices like posting photos without consent. These measures ensure that learners feel secure enough to stay engaged; without that baseline of trust, timing and motivation don’t matter.

The science backs this: As Dr. Andrew Huberman explains, willpower is a finite resource. The environment (timing, stress, fatigue) determines whether learners can engage fully. Smart educators design contexts that minimize unnecessary effort and maximize focus (Huberman Lab Podcast, 2023).

Principle 4. Orientation to Real Problems, Not Just Credentials

The myth: Adult learners are mostly motivated by passing tests and earning certificates.
❌ While credentials help, adults are primarily motivated by solving real-life problems and achieving personal goals.

The principle of Orientation to Problem-based Learning reminds us that adults are most motivated when what they’re learning helps them solve immediate problems or complete real tasks. They don’t want theory for theory’s sake — or fun for fun’s sake. They want tools they can use right away in their jobs, homes, or communities.

1. Problem-based—Adults lean in when learning solves a challenge they actually face.

2. Practical—Content should feel useful and directly tied to their world.

3. Task-oriented—Lessons that end with a task or goal connect new knowledge to real responsibilities.

4. Contextualized—Case studies, stories, and hands-on practice make the relevance obvious.

5. Immediate application—When adults can walk out of class and use a new skill the same day, motivation and retention both rise.

When instruction is anchored in their real-life goals — filling out forms, managing money, supporting their kids in school, improving communication at work — motivation skyrockets because learners feel that what they’re doing counts.

When we design instruction that connects directly to real-life goals, we tap into that motivation — students feel like what they’re doing matters.

The science backs this: Research by Goodwin, Rouleau, and colleagues (2020; 2022) highlights that adults learn best when instruction emphasizes problem-solving, practice, and feedback loops rather than passive absorption. Newell & Simon (1972) nailed this decades ago in Human Problem Solving: problem-centered learning drives persistence and transfer.

Educators' Voices

Often times students want to learn English for their job or to communicate better with native speakers.

Eric, Milwaukee Public Library

Reflection in what could this class contribute in their day to day and work life.

-RD

Principle 5. Motivation Is Fluid, Not Fixed

The myth: Motivation is fixed — you either have it or you don’t.
❌ Motivation isn’t a trait, it’s a state. Motivation grows with reinforcement, quick wins, visible progress, support, and feedback.

Adults are motivated by internal factors like personal growth, career advancement, and the desire to improve quality of life. They’re also influenced by external factors such as job requirements, certifications, or recognition. But the real driver is when learning connects to clear, meaningful goals that feel both important and realistic.

Quick wins matter. Timely feedback matters. And the more learners can see their own growth, the more their motivation snowballs.

The science backs this: Here’s a study that illustrates habit formation beautifully. On The Peter Attia Drive Podcast (Ep. 360, Aug 11, 2025), Charles Duhigg described the study on saving money. Two groups were asked to deposit savings weekly:

• Control group: They were told all the logical reasons to save (college tuition, a new truck, long-term security).

• Experimental group: Same task, but every time they came, a bank teller said:
  “That’s x weeks in a row — I’m impressed. Your kids are going to thank you someday.”

The second group saved far more. Logic doesn’t sustain behavior, but timely feedback, reinforcement, and visible progress do. The same applies in adult learning. If learners get encouragement, see their progress, and feel that their effort is noticed, their motivation compounds.

Yes motivation is always changing! It's based on the person's life and goals.

Eric, Milwaukee Public Library

Building and creating self-confidence activities/opportunities. (Student “mentor” another student while practicing, share a tip that had helped you, etc.)

-AD

Final Thought

Whether you’re teaching adults basic literacy, onboarding employees, or leading workshops, the fundamentals don’t change. The Wisconsin Literacy Conference reminded me that no matter how many new tools, apps, or strategies we encounter, the fundamentals never get old. Self-direction, experience, readiness, problem-centered learning, and motivation are the filters that make everything else work.

Next time you design a lesson, training, or workshop, pause and ask:
Which principle does this support?

References

Attia, P., & Duhigg, C. (2025, August 11). How to change your habits: why they form and how to build or break them (Podcast episode 360). The Peter Attia Drive. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-peter-attia-drive/id1400828889?i=1000721454257&r=3771

Duhigg, C. (2012). The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business. Random House.

Goodwin, B., Gibson, T., & Rouleau, K. (2020). Learning that sticks: A brain-based model for K-12 instructional design and delivery. ASCD.
Goodwin, B., Rouleau, K., Abla, C., Baptiste, K., Gibson, T., & Kimball, M. (2022). The new classroom instruction that works: The best research-based strategies for increasing student achievement. ASCD.
Huberman, A. (2023). Huberman Lab Podcast [Podcast].
Kilgard, M. (2014). Research on neuroplasticity and learning. University of Texas at Dallas.
Medina, J. (2011). Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School. Pear Press.
Newell, A., & Simon, H. (1972). Human problem solving. Prentice-Hall.