Designing Contextualized Instruction

  • What is the role of the teachers in the program?

The role of the teacher is to help the learner find and apply knowledge in the real world.

  • How would you describe the teachers' attitudes toward teaching contextually?

Teachers had a positive, supportive attitude for teaching contextually.

  • What methods are used to deliver the instruction?

Hands-on methods are the preferred way to deliver instruction, but there is also some traditional teaching.

  • How would you describe the reactions of the learners to contextual teaching methods and strategies?

Learners in the video showed satisfaction and some showed surprise that they could learn math, for example.

  • How do their comments compare with those of your learners?

This question does not apply to my type of classroom.

  • To what do you attribute the attitudes of learners in the video?

I attribute their attitudes to the increased motivation students get from contextualized instruction.

Comments

The role of the teachers in this PD's contextualized learning is to help students learn, retain, and transfer relevant knowledge to the skills needed for their careers.  The skills are job-specific. Though the goal of my students is to attain their high school diploma equivalency, my role is to make my teaching applicable to the skills they need to achieve that goal, and to teach them the skills they need for entry-level continuing education.  Most of my students do not know what they "want to be" after attaining their HSE, and toward the latter stages of the teaching and testing, we engage with them more seriously about college and career goals.

I think this method of teaching is rewarding for teachers in that students are more enthusiastic about the learning experience, which is a win-win-endeavor.  Students are motivated because they consider the course context truly relevant to brighter futures in their careers.  And more importantly, for many, this is the first time they ever felt good about themselves with regard to education.  They see themselves as intelligent and motivated, and often, they see that a whole new world is open to them.  I have students who always believed they were "stupid" in math, and that they could not ever learn math.  When they get it, when that light bulb goes off, they smile from ear to ear.  That motivates me to keep teaching and motivating them to work toward their goals.  

I find it difficult, however, to make lessons applicable to them on a personal level--it would be much more concrete to teach job-specific math, for instance.  But I use examples such as painting a room, and learning how to figure out the area of the walls to determine how much paint is needed. And any time I can draw an application from something in a lesson to an everyday activity, I jump on it.  I agree with the program in that content should be relevant to them in as many ways as possible--for HSE goal attainment as well as everyday skills that may be relevant to anyone. 

I see that I am to introduce myself to the group.  My name is Dorothy Stohl, and I am an Owens Community College instructor in the ASPIRE Program.  I teach at an inner-city library in Toledo, Ohio.  After I retired from office work in a local hospital, I finished my Masters in English Literature, and joined the Owens team.  I love teaching adults to attain their GED!  I find it very rewarding.  It also gives me the opportunity to motivate my students to set goals for themselves, not just educational goals, but career goals--and life goals.  My two mottos, I tell them, are:  1) Never give up; and 2) You're never too old.  It's nice to "meet" all of you by reading your comments within this platform.