Hi Everyone,
Here is the latest installment of two questions for you, an ongoing series where I ask adult educators two questions about their practice. The last installment was about helping self-identified non readers. Today's two questions were asked to Rebecca Whitman, a professional writer and educator with over eight years of experience in adult basic skills education. She writes and works in rural eastern North Carolina.
My questions are in bold, Rebecca's answers follow below:
What is the best advice you have for teaching adult basic education students?
"First, listen to your students, and take your cues from them. Adult basic education students are there for a reason and with a specific goal and deadline in mind. Asking them about their goals can be the quickest way to help foster retention and empower you to serve them best. I often used Google Forms to get anonymous feedback on my classes as well.
"Second, don't get stuck in a rut; keep learning. The world of education is constantly moving, and we owe it to our students to evolve with it. We can best serve our students by being students ourselves. Take advantage of professional development opportunities whether or not they are required by your administration. Network with other colleagues and share teaching ideas. Some of the best lessons and connections of my career were made through professional development opportunities at ABSPD from Appalachian State University."
How can partnering with curriculum departments (local community college education and training programs) benefit adult basic education students?
"Curriculum departments are a great resource for information on career fields and job availability--things we need to be concerned about to help meet [funding] goals. Many curriculum departments also have recruitment goals and overlook adult education students until specifically asked about them. One of my favorite assignments for my students is a research project requiring them to find a career they wanted to pursue, learn about it, and present a research paper and presentation to the class about it. In addition to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, I had them research local markets and what our [community] college had to offer. As part of their research process, I often asked various curriculum departments to come and present about their programs to my class. Most departments were happy to accomodate the request because it helped fill their quotas as well. I was especially glad for the partnership later when some of my students pursued careers based on the presentations. Connecting with curriculum also gave me resources to contact later when students needed help getting into specific career fields."
Now here are the same two questions for you:
What is the best advice you have for teaching adult basic education students?
How can partnering with curriculum departments (local community college education and training programs) benefit adult basic education students?
Thanks in advance for your responses!
Steve Schmidt, Moderator
LINCS Reading and Writing Group