Table of Contents

Introduction

• How to Use this Guide (Full-text)
• List of Handouts/Materials

Sessions

Introduction and Goals

• What is Literacy? (Full-text)
• Materials
• The Learner in the Community: Investigative Activities
• The Big Picture: Adult Education in Massachusetts and Beyond
• Reflection on Learning
• Evaluation
• The Learner in the Community: Problem Posing
• Techniques and Methods
• How Adults Learn as Individuals
• How Adults Learn as Individuals (alternative activity)
• Assessment
• Reflection on Learning
• Evaluation
• The Learner in the Community: Learner-Centered Approach
• Connecting to Resources and Support Systems
• Planning Lessons
• Final Evaluation
• Experience of Being an Adult Educator: Realities and Ideals
• Reflecting on Learning and Future Goals

Appendix

• Handouts
• Alternative Agenda
• Model for Orientation Reunion

Introduction: How to Use This Guide

This guide was developed to aid facilitators in delivering the Orientation for New Adult Education Staff. The Orientation can be delivered in 14-16 hours in a variety of configurations, depending on the time and number of Orientation sessions offered. It was designed to cover 10 topics which will provide new adult education staff with a basic introduction to the knowledge, skills and approaches to working with adult learners. These 10 topics are each covered in separate "sessions" which can be sequenced in different ways.

The order of the sessions presented in this guide represents one sequence for delivering the Orientation over a three-day period, five hours each day. Other agendas representing different sequencing are included in the Appendices for the facilitator's ease in adapting the Orientation to the specific time allotted and the particular nature of the group or region in which the Orientation is delivered. However, some of the sessions build upon one another, so facilitators should take care when re-arranging the sessions to ensure that each is presented at appropriate times.

The order of sessons presented in this book is as follows:

Day 1 (3 hours, 55 minutes)

1. Introduction and Goals (40 min.)

2. What is Literacy? (45 min.)

3. Materials (45 min.)

4. The Learner in the Community: Investigative Activities (90 min.)

5. The Big Picture: Adult Education in Massachusetts and Beyond (15 min.)

Day 2 (3 hours, 55 minutes)

6. The Learner in the Community: Problem-Posing Activitiies (90 min.)

7. Techniques and Methods: Peer-Teaching Jigsaw (105 min.)

8. How Adults Learn as Individuals (45 min.)

9. Assessment (45 min.)

Day 3 (4 hours, 10 minutes)

10. The Learner in the Community: Learner-Centered Approach (45 min.)

11. Connecting to Resources and Support Systems (15 min.)

12. Planning Lessons (90 min.)

13. Final Evaluation (5-10 min.)

14. Experience of Being an Adult Educator: Realities and Ideals (75 min.)

15. Reflecting on Learning and Future Goals (15 min.)

Each session description lists the time the session takes, the materials needed, the objectives for the session and the steps involved in the sesson's activities. The first step of each session is a quick introduction by the facilitator, "framing" the session within the context of the whole Orientation and providing a rationale for why the session is included and what it hopes to accomplish. This is an important first step; otherwise, participants will not see the Orientation as a whole but rather as a series of uncoonnected activities, unrelted to the themees upon which the Orientation is built.

In addition, suggestions are included for conducting daily oral and the final written evaluations at the end of each day (10-15 min. each).

The handouts for the Orientation are all included in the Appendix by session, for ease of removal for photocopying.

Unless otherwise noted, newsprint, markers and tape will be needed at each session. It is also helpful to have scissors handy. There should be enough newsprint and markers for small group work, as well.

Times for each sesson do not include breaks or lunch, but two 15-30 minutes breaks should be scheduled into each day of training.

To Do Prior to Day One

As part of the session on Learner in the Community: Investigative Activities, there is an activity which involves the use of the "Information Gaps Grid." This activity requires the participants to get information about their fellow participants by asking questions. Some information (name, organization, job role) is included about each participant already. Prior to the training session in which this activity appears, the facilitator should find out and fill in some information about each participant before photocopying this grid for use in the activity. See the session on Learner in the Community for more information.

Session: What is Literacy?

TIME: 45 min.

1. Handouts for small group activities:
      a) government notice written in Spanish (Group 1)
      b) worksheet page from textbook (Group 2)
   
2. Handout: "Literacy: What Do the Definitions Tell Us?" (Appendix)
3. For optional activity: Handout: "Definitions of Literacy" (Appendix)

OBJECTIVES:
This session will help participants to: Examine how they use literacy in their lives and how literacy is taught in the classroom, and to understand how that shapes their definition of literacy and affects the nature of what they (or others) do in the classroom.

STEP 1:
Brainstorming personal and classroom literacy practice: Divide participants into two groups. Give Group 1 the real-life literacy activity (form in Spanish) and Group 2 the worksheet from a textbook. Give both groups 5 minutes to perform activities. Participants may work as a group or individually within the group.

While still in these groups, ask each group to brainstorm other literacy practices:

Group 1: brainstorm other real-life literacy activities (in addition to filling out forms) and record on newsprint: "How do you use literacy in your daily life?"
Group 2: brainstorm literacy in classroom activities and record on newsprint: "How do you and the learners use literacy in the classroom?"

Note: If there are a significant number of counselors and/or support staff in attendance (4-to-5-plus), facilitator can ask them to form a separate group in order to list literacy activities which they conduct with learners: "How do you and the learners use literacy in your work together?"

STEP 2:
Bring whole group together again. First, process the activities they did. Ask each group to give a quick description of what their activity was.

Write on newsprint (or put up pre-prepared) the following three phrases:

Discuss and evaluate what participants did using the following categories of questions as a guide:

SKILL AT TASK: Identify, then evaluate the skills used in this task: How would you rate yourselves on the skill you possess to accomplish these literacy activities? Is it necessary to be totally skilled in all aspects? How do you compensate when your skill is deficient? How do you develop skill? What skills/activities are most important to you?

APPROACH TO TASK: Identify, then evaluate how you approached the task. Did you skim? Focus on main points? Figure out activity in head? Read in-depth? Sound out? Read the fine print? Question the accuracy? Look up definitions in dictionary? How did you deal with difficult parts?

SHARING OF TASK: Identify, then evaluate what assistance you needed or used in completing the task: Did you do all literacy activities alone? Did you rely on others for help? When? How? Do you get less out of an experience when someone else is the main literacy actor? When do you want literacy to be solitary? When do you want it to be social?

STEP 3:
Then, look at newsprints each group did. Compare; discuss differences. Ask the whole group for any conclusions about literacy inside and outside of the classroom.

To conclude session, ask participants to think about the following questions:

• How do you define literacy?
• What implications does your definition have for teaching literacy skills to adults?
• What kind of "fit" is there between your definition and the materials/curriculum you use (or are required to use) in the classroom?

Explain that these questions do not need to be answered in this Orientation, but are presented to the participants as food for thought.

Hand out reading selection, "Literacy: What Do the Definitions Tell Us?"

Mention that, in the next session on materials, participants can think about how the materials they use can help or hinder the acquisition of real-life literacy skills that adult learners need.

STEP 4:
Ask participants to identify the various techniques used in this session: (1) "small group work" on literacy tasks; (2) "brainstorming" real life and classroom literacy tasks. List on newsprint titled TECHNIQUES AND ACTIVITIES. Elicit from participants what some of the benefits are for using these techniques and how they could adapt them in working with adults.

Optional addition to Step 3 above:
"Definitions of Literacy." Ask participants to take a few moments silently to write down their own definition of literacy.

Read aloud (or show) to participants the definitions of literacy, one by one, from the handout (Appendix). After each one, discuss the implications of that definition for a literacy program or classroom: "If this were your definition of literacy, what would your program or classroom look like?"

Then, ask each participant to look again at their own definition and see if they would like to make any changes. Ask if anyone would like to share their definition with the group. Discuss the influence of a definition of literacy on one's teaching or work as an adult educator. Add 20 minutes to the session if using this addition.

Top of Page

The excerpts above constitute merely a portion of the full SABES Orientation. Each SABES Regional Support Center has copies of the Orientation which you may borrow and photocopy or, if you'd like to purchase your own copy ($25.00, including both the Curriculum Guide and the Appendices), please contact:

Heather Brack
SABES/World Education
44 Farnsworth St.
Boston, MA 02210-1211
617-482-9485