Innovative Online Ideas: Front-loading Your Relevance

Most of us understand the principle of andragogy that says adults need to know why they're doing what they're doing. In today's blog post, I'll talk more about this concept and the strategy of front-loading your relevance and how you can practically do that in your online courses.

I was listening to a Faculty Focus podcast episode that was discussing the idea of front-loading your content's relevance. The speaker told the story of a teacher who gave a lecture on Martin Luther and then gave a quiz about it, and every student failed! He then asked the students if they knew who Martin Luther King was. All the students raised their hand. When he had his next group of students that he was supposed to give the same teaching on Martin Luther to, he decided to start differently. He started by asking them if they knew who Martin Luther King was and every student raised their hand. Then he asked if they would like to know why he was named Martin Luther and began to give the same lecture on Martin Luther, and then gave a quiz. Every student passed that quiz.

Even though this story took place with a class of 4th graders, it reminded me of one of the basic principles of andragogy and that adult learners need to know the reason why they are doing what they are doing. This means, you should provide some relevance for the content you are teaching and the assignments you are giving. This can be easily accomplished in an online course through the following interventions:

• Use of a Module overview section where you provide a description of the module, its purpose and relevance to each student.
• Provide real-world examples to help students understand how the concepts relate to their life and practice
• Include a summary of key concepts at the end of each lesson to reinforce what has been learned.
• Provide opportunities to conduct hands-on activities like individual or group projects or even interactive simulations. 

By implementing these strategies, you will provide your adult learners with an understanding of why they are learning the concepts being presented in class and how they can apply it in their professional and personal lives. Remember, it's important for learners to understand that what they are doing is meaningful and has relevance for their lives. 

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this topic. Share them in The Online Educator Facebook Group!