Adult learning principles and presentation pearls

Although lectures are one of the most common methods of knowledge transfer in medicine, their effectiveness has been questioned. Passive formats, lack of relevance and disconnection from the student's needs are some of the arguments supporting this apparent lack of efficacy. However, many authors have suggested that applying adult learning principles (i.e., relevance, congruence with student's needs, interactivity, connection to student's previous knowledge and experience) to this method increases learning by lectures and the effectiveness of lectures. This paper presents recommendations for applying adult learning principles during planning, creation and development of lectures to make them more effective.