The Adult Learner
Being an Adult Educator
Flexible/Resourceful
Adult learners have diverse backgrounds and varied schedules, interests, learning preferences, and goals. The adult educator must be able to support a variety of learners, using an array of teaching methods to address different content matter.
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“I use a lot of handouts or supplementary materials that I design for specific student needs. This is Ben’s work station. Severe ADD. I’ve taped his assignments to the table so he can keep track of them. He tapes these things on the wall so he won’t lose them... For Ben, this is very big so he can see it to capture his attention. He’s got to have these visual reminders with him all the time, so I make things up just for him.” |
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“Flexibility is the key that makes adult education work. We can plan all we please, but we must be willing to adapt to any situation arising in the classroom that may completely do away with the plans. I believe that is when true learning takes place. Differences are what make teaching a challenge. It is this aspect that keeps teachers on their toes.” |
Take a moment to consider how a need for flexibility and resourcefulness affects adult educators.
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On your worksheet, record your initial thoughts about the need for flexibility and resourcefulness in adult literacy learning. Note any insights or ideas you may have at this point. |
Flexibility and resourcefulness can take planning. Adult educators may need to have a variety of ideas and lessons available for one instructional session. They also need to be comfortable “thinking on the spot” and creating lessons that address “teachable moments” that occur in supporting adult learners. Current events in the news or in the learner’s personal life may make the planned lesson irrelevant to the learner, and the successful teacher has plans for how to incorporate the learner’s interest into useful lesson content.
Below is a real-life adult education scenario. While you are reading, review Rosa’s feelings and needs. Consider what the instructor could have done better. How could she have better met this student’s needs?
Real-Life Scenario—Rosa’s Bad Day:
Tina had planned a writing lesson for Rosa today. She had a topic picked out and examples of GED essays for Rosa to review. Rosa arrived at the tutoring session seething. Her paycheck was much smaller than she had expected it to be, and she felt someone at her job had cheated her. Tina listened to Rosa’s story, and made some suggestions for next steps at work, but could not get Rosa to focus on the writing lesson afterwards. Rosa failed to attend her next session.
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On your worksheet, record your thoughts on the student’s feelings and needs. Then record any ideas you have for the instructor. How could she have better met the student’s needs? |
Click the + sign in the box to the right to see ideas from other Adult Education Instructors. | [?] |
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I had a student who came in after a fight with her mother. She was so distressed that it upset the whole class. I stopped the class and taught a lesson on conflict resolution skills right there and then. Everyone felt better for it, and the originally planned lesson could continue.
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Always be ready to drop what you had planned and work on a different needed skill. Check-writing instead of reading, writing a letter to the gas company instead of an essay, etc.
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My students keep individual folders with copies of what they are working on in class. If they miss a class, I put materials from the missed class in their folder for when they return. This also helps me to note when a student needs a call or reminder to attend class.
In reviewing these ideas, did you find any similar to your own? Did any of them strike you as particularly interesting? Did their answers provide any new insights for your instruction of adult literacy learners?
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On your worksheet, make note of any tips, insights, or new ideas gained from the instructors suggestions. |
In Summary:
- Adult learners tend to focus on the practical, and this, combined with their diverse goals and outside pressures, can lead to a deviation from plans.
- Effective adult educators plan to accommodate student absences, interruptions, or crises.
- Effective adult educators work to create a “toolkit” of resources and lesson ideas that can be used in many situations.
- Often they gather ideas and resources from their peers and other more experienced instructors.
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On your worksheet, record any final notes or thoughts, specific ideas you want to remember, plans for further study, etc. |
Click “Next” below or a specific topic on the outline to the left to continue.
