ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we engage the reader in acquiring new understandings of how to effectively use adult learning principles. More specifically, we elaborate upon a critical idea: The learning principles we advocate for coaches to employ in learning situations among their adult athletes are the same principles that coach developers can use to enrich the coach education process. Adult athletes are commonly known as Masters athletes (MAs), a broad cohort of adults who are typically aged 35 and older, registered for organized sport, and who prepare in order to participate in sport, often with a coach. In a line of research exploring the nuances of coaching MAs, we have found that coaches who frequently apply adult learning principles are highly effective in meeting the needs and interests of this cohort (for more information, see Callary, Rathwell & Young 2015, 2017, 2018a). Outside of sport, these same principles for adult learning have proven effective when applied by learning facilitators to students in adult education (Knowles, Holton & Swanson 2012).
