Adults LearnAgain Adults Learn Again Curtis Ulmer Professor and Head Department ofAdult Education College of Education University of Georgia James A. Dinnan Professor of Reading and Adult Education Department ofAdult Education College of Education University of Georgia STATE OF GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Adults Learn Again Editor: Ruth J, Carpenter Assisted by Robert Stevenson and Carolyn Carson Graphics: Caroline Benefield and Nancy Courtenay Cover Design: Charles Johnson Typists: Linda Chester and Pauline Heuberger Copyright 1981 by State of Georgia Department of Education. All rights reserved except that teachers may reproduce material with source cited for cl~ssroom use. Funds for writing and publishing Adults Learn Again were provided under Public Law 95-561 and Public Law 91-230, Section 310 by the Georgia Department of Education for the Division of Educational Development, Adult Continuing Education Unit, Dr. Charles McDaniel, State Superintendent of Schools. The materials and ideas contained in this publication represent the views of the authors and not necessarily those of the personnel of the Georgia Department of Education. The Georgia Department of Education does not discriminate in employment or educational activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex or handicap. For the past several years we have had the pleasure of conducting staff development programs and workshops for adult basic education teachers in Georgia. These activities have allowed us to become acquainted with the public school adult basic education program in Georgia, and this acquaintance has renewed our faith in the relevance of adult education. Miss Margaret Walker, a gracious lady, has directed the state program since 1972 and has been instrumental in establishing staff development programs, workshops, and various other programs for teacher training. Her thinking is future oriented, and she has led the way in suggesting and supporting innovative staff development programs. This curriculum guide was a result of her support and is respectfully dedicated to Miss Margaret Walker, State Coordinator, Adult Continuing Education Unit for Georgia. Curtis Ulmer James A. Dinnan CONTENTS Foreword A\' Preface XVll UNIT I THE PLAN Chapter 1 Introduction 3 The Philosophical Model / 5 The Nature of the Adult or Life Cycle Education / 6 The Nature of the Adult Training Process / 7 The Nature of the Adult Learning Process Applied to Basic Communication Skills / 10 Organization / 11 References / 13 Chapter 2 Developing Performance-based Instructional Strategies 15 Andragogy / 15 Principles for Adult Learning / 17 Adult Education Curriculum Models / 17 Adult Performance Level Curriculum / 20 APL Goals and Objectives / 21 Occupational Knowledge / 21 Consumer Economics / 22 Health / 22 Community Resources / 23 Government and Law / 23 Transportation / 24 Summary / 25 References / 25 Chapter 3 Competency-based Adult Education (CBAE) 27 CBAE Defined / 28 Functional Literacy / 28 Adult Functional Competence in the United States / 30 vii viii Contents Measurement in CBAE / 31 Philosophical Considerations for CBAE / 32 Adult Education Teaching-Learning Principles / 32 The Teacher/Facilitator Roles in CBAE /34 Conclusion / 36 References / 37 UNIT II TEACHING COMMUNICATION Chapter 4 Teaching Basic Relationships 41 Oral Language / 42 Basic General Language Relationships /47 Specific Relationships / 50 Units / 51 Relations / 51 Classes /51 Systems /52 Summary /52 References / 53 Chapter 5 Teaching Written Communication 55 Reading Readiness / 56 Visual Line Discrimination / 56 Visual Letter Discrimination / 56 Visual Word Discrimination / 60 Reading Words / 61 Teaching Letters / 61 Types of Relation and Matter Words / 62 Most Frequently Used Words /64 Reading Simple Sentences / 65 Basic Sentence Structure / 65 Changing Meaning / 70 References / 71 Chapter 6 Teaching Basic Communication 73 Sentence Development / 74 Paragraphs / 76 Theme Organization / 77 Contents Writing about Life Experiences I 77 Conclusion I 80 References I 80 Chapter 7 Teaching the GED Student 83 The General Education Development Test I 83 Vocabulary I 85 Reading Comprehension I 86 General Reading I 88 Practical Reading I 90 Prose Reading I 91 Poetry 191 Drama I 92 Using Practice Tests I 93 References I 94 UNIT III TEACHING COMPUTATION Chapter 8 Principles of Teaching Mathematics to Adults 97 The Language of Mathematics I 98 Mathematics Anxiety I 99 Curriculum Principles 1100 The Methods I 102 The Program I 102 Teaching Materials I 102 References I 104 Chapter 9 Teaching Introductory Mathematics 105 Oral Language Readiness Assessment I 106 Language Skills I 106 Teaching Numbers 0 to 9/107 Teaching Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, and Division I 109 Teaching Fractions /111 Conclusion I 114 References I 116 x Contents UNIT IV TEACHING SPECIAL POPULATIONS Chapter 10 Education for the Older Adult 119 The Population / 120 Where Do Older Adults Live? / 121 Health /121 Public Assistance / 122 Employment / 122 Special Educational Needs of Older Adults / 123 Needs of early old agers: 55-75/ 125 Needs of later old agers: 75 + / 125 Learning Competencies for the Older Adult / 125 Facilities / 127 Time of Classes / 128 Summary / 128 References / 129 Chapter 11 Adult Basic Education and Handicapped Adults 131 Who Are the Handicapped? / 131 Types of Handicaps / 132 Effects of Handicaps on Learning / 134 Why Should Adult Educators Be Concerned? / 134 The Handicapped Person / 136 How to Treat Handicapped Persons /137 Kelley Workshop: Adult Basic Education for Handicapped Adults / 138 Adult Basic Education Teachers and Handicapped Adults /139 Agencies Assisting Handicapped Persons (Federal Agencies with Regional or State Offices in Georgia) / 144 State of Georgia Agencies Providing Services to Handicapped Persons / 144 Other Resources / 145 References / 146 Contents xi Chapter 12 Teaching English as a Second Language 147 Basic Principles of Teaching ESL / 148 The Student / 150 Basic Learning Technology / 151 The Cultural Dimension of Teaching ESL / 151 Cultural Characteristics / 152 ESL Class Composition /153 The ESL Teaching Process / 154 Teaching Materials for ESL / 155 Summary /157 References / 157 UNIT V THE TEACHING PROCESS Chapter 13 Counseling the Adult Basic Education Student 161 The Counseling Setting /162 The Uniqueness of Counseling Adults / 162 The Change Process /162 The Counselor as Learning Specialist / 163 The Counselor and the Learning Process /164 The Learning Environment /164 The Reasons Adults Return to the Classroom / 164 Adults' Individual Learning Needs /164 Examining Adults' Attitudes / 165 Relationship between Counselor and Students / 165 Qualifications for Counseling Adults / 166 Community Agencies /166 The Adult Counseling Process /168 Goals of Counseling Programs /168 Recruitment /168 Orientation / 169 Educational and Vocational Planning / 169 Approaches to the Special Problems of Counseling Adults /170 xii Contents Adult Concerns / 172 Internal / 173 External / 173 Adult Education Counselors' Problems / 174 Summary /176 References / 176 Chapter 14 Teaching and Learning: Techniques 177 Traditional View of the Teacher / 177 Adult Education View of the Teacher / 178 Adult Basic Education Techniques / 179 Needs Assessment /181 The Group Process and Adult Basic Education Students /182 Group Process Techniques /183 Group Discussion / 183 Role Playing / 184 Brainstorming / 184 Uses for Group Process /185 References / 185 Chapter 15 Evaluation of the Teaching Process 187 Cautions about Evaluation and Testing / 188 The Adult Basic Education Evaluation Model /188 The Process of Student Evaluation /189 Program Evaluation / 198 Evaluation Uses / 201 Evaluation Instruments / 201 Student Evaluation of Teacher / 202 Conclusion / 202 References / 203 Contents xiii FIGURES 1 Teaching Communication and Computation through Lifecentered Roles / 19 2 Visual Line Discrimination / 57 3 Printing the Alphabet Using Straight, Curved, and Hooked Lines / 59 4 Spectrum Ranging from Frozen to Boiling / 66 5 Spectrum of Life Stages / 68 6 Game for Teaching the Concepts of Positive and Negative Numbers / 110 7 Stage 1: Profile of an Illiterate Adult before Entering an In- structional Program / 190 8 Stage 2: Profile of an Illiterate Adult during the Transition to an Instructional Program / 192 9 Stage 3: Profile of an Illiterate Adult Involved in a Meaning- ful Instructional Experience / 194 10 Stage 4: Profile of an Adult Who Has Become Literate /196 TABLES 1 Adult Functional Competence in the United States /31 2 Teaching Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, and Divi- sion as Systems / 112 3 Common Fractions /114 4 Decimal Fractions / 115 5 Percentages / 115 6 Converting Coins to Fractions / 116 7 Work-related Disabilities / 133 8 Learning Limitations Checklist / 140 9 Checklist of Areas of Discrimination or Barriers against Handicapped Persons / 141 10 Services Provided Handicapped Persons by Federal Pro- grams /142 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I Foreword During the decades of the '60s and '70s we experienced rapid social and technological changes which influenced every facet of public school education. Some may feel that many of the changes were not always constructive. However, since the middle 1960s the traditional mission of public schools in Georgia has been expanded to ins.lude adults who, for one reason or another, had inadequate schooling as youths to make it possible for them to be successful in competing in the job market or in their daily lives. The State of Georgia, through the Department of Education, is committed to making available quality adult education programs to every citizen who wishes to improve his/her basic educational skills. To accomplish this goal, every effort has been made to provide high quality in-service education programs to the 931 teachers and administrators who work in this program. The development of an Enriched Curriculum for Public School Adult Education is just one of a number of ongoing programs designed to improve our educational services to adults. Adults Learn Again is an appropriate tide for this curriculum guide since our goal is to provide quality programs to the more than 50,000 adults who enroll each year in Georgia's public school xvi Adults Learn Again adult education program. To serve them better is the continuing goal of the teachers and administrators on the local level and the staff of the State Department of Education. Charles McDaniel Superintendent of Schools State of Georgia December 1980 Preface In years past, communication was so much simpler than it is today. Before the migration from rural areas to urban centers, parents assumed the duties of training their children individually, through trial and error, in the tasks needed for living. Today most training is left to the schools. Considering the enormous job of mass training the population, education has made great achievements. Unfortunately, in the great stream of humanity being educated, some students have been, and are still being, .left behind. These men and women need help in gaining access to the mainstream of our culture, an undertaking which requires them. to change their behavioral characteristics and which asks those who teach them to develop special skills and learn new methods of teaching. In aiming toward this behavioral change on the part of his students, the adult basic education teacher ,does not have to reshape the values or cultural mores of the learners but rather, capitalizing on these students' experiences, provide them with the means to perform in the mainstream. To find out why individuals or groups of people have fallen behind in their educational developm~nt, the adult teacher must understand in what ways these people are different from the xviii Adults Learn Again groups who are successful learners, that is, what they have to offer which is the same and what they have to offer which is different. Through inquiry and observation, the adult teacher can attempt to find the source of the differences in performance and the explanation of how the unsuccessful individual's actions, thought processes, or physical characteristics make progress hard for him to achieve. Then, through training, the teacher can strengthen the similarities, correct the counterproductive actions, and provide the individual with the means of becoming a contributing member of society. It is often difficult for the individual who is having trouble keeping up with the group to understand that he is actually a unique, properly functioning human being with an intellect capable of processing vast amounts of knowledge. After all, how many times has a slow learner been told, not only in words but also in actions, that he is "stupid"? The teacher's task is to encourage these students to see themselves as potentially successful learners. By identifYing and correcting the students' difficulties, the adult basic education teacher can start these learners on the road to progress and can direct them toward a future sharing of the life of the total society. Toward these ends, this book was written. Curtis Ulmer James A. Dinnan Athens, Georgia December 1980 UNIT I THE PLAN Chapter 1 Introduction This book is written for the adult education teachers of Georgia who have given so generously of their time and talent to bring an adequate program of education to adults. Many of the innovations, suggestions, and procedures recommended in this book came from years of class visits, workshops, and discussions with teachers from over the state. The curriculum materials and teaching procedures will not be new to many of these teachers. The central purpose in writing this book is the integration oflearning theory, teaching practice, methods, and adult development into a curriculum which allows the teacher to use his* experience to individualize instruction for adults. A corollary purpose is to provide the new adult education teacher with a guide to effective teaching. A brief overview of the national adult education program is included to illustrate how Georgia's program complements the national one. The figures vary, depending on the definition of literacy and the source quoted, but the fact is that some ten to twenty million United States citizens do not have the educational skills required to survive in today's society. For these persons the American *Throughout this book, he, his, and him are used in the generic sense to include persons of both sexes. 3 4 Adults Learn Again Dream will remain largely unfulfilled because they find it difficult to achieve either socially or economically. The price the country pays includes the erosion of the national economy, a lowered general standard of living, and, perhaps more serious, the perpetual dependency of a significantly large segment of the population on the total society. Social observers believe that chaos may be imminent if the numbers of people who cannot cope in a technological society continue to increase. In 1964, with the passage of the Economic Opportunity Act (EOA), the U.S. Congress placed responsibility for eradicating adult illiteracy on public education. Since that time, federal funds have been appropriated annually and channeled to local school districts through the state departments of education to fund programs of adult literacy. The purpose of the Adult Education Act of 1966 is unique in two senses: It recognizes the social and economic consequences of illiteracy and, of greater significance, it dictates a curriculum for adults stressing individual competencies. The instructional plan and curriculum model that follow are a direct response to the requirements of the act and the educational philosophy stated in this book. The following portions of the act have been influential in shaping a new concept of education based on relevance, needs, and adult learning principles: Section 302. It is the purpose of this title to expand educational opportunities for adults and to encourage the establishment of programs of adult education that will(1) enable all adults to acquire skills necessary to func- tion in society, (2) enable adults who so desire to continue their edu- cation to at least the level of secondary school, and (3) make available to adults the means to secure train- ing that will enable them to become more employable, productive, and responsible citizens. The act continues by prescribing the framework or goals for the teaching curriculum by stating: Introduction 5 The term "adult education" means adult education for adults who lack sufficient mastery of basic educational skills to enable them to function effectively in society or who do not have a certificate of graduation from a school providing secondary education and who have not achieved an equivalent level of education. The term "adult basic education" means adult education for adults whose inability to speak, read, or write the English language constitutes a substantial impairment of their ability to get or retain employment commensurate with their real ability, which is designed to help eliminate such inability and raise the level of education of such individuals with a view of making them less likely to become dependent on others, to improving their ability to benefit from occupational training and otherwise increasing their opportunities for more productive and profitable employment, and making them better able to meet their adult responsibilities. The Adult Education Act mandates a fundamental change in the purpose of education. First, it requires adult education for "the here and now" rather than training for delayed returns according to the traditional educational model. Further, it specifies education in terms of adult performances and competencies. And, these standards of achievement-performances and competencies-are what this book is about! The Philosophical Model Three principles or concepts have provided theoretical and philosophical guidance in preparing the materials included in this book. While these principles are subject to individual interpretation and must be adapted to varying circumstances, as they should be, they provide a structure for the curriculum of adult 6 Adults Learn-Again basic education* that hopefully avoids a prescribed application. They are: 1. the nature of the adult or life cycle education 2. the nature of the adult teaching process or methods 3. the nature of the adult learning process applied to basic communication skills In terms of adult education practices, the teaching process is broad and general and allows the instructor considerable flexibility in adapting instruction to the needs and interests of a specific group. In this process, the teacher is viewed as a facilitator of instruction and the student is viewed as a partner. Achieving clarity and specificity in the use of language is the first phase of the adult learning process and must be mastered before the adult student adequately learns to read, write, or compute. Depending on factors of time in class, prior learning, and individual aptitude, this phase of learning may require a few days or a few months for completion. Once learned, the adult student will have the key for more efficient learning. The Nature of the Adult or Life Cycle Education Every stage in life is different, and it follows that responses to learning stimuli will differ during the life cycle. Responses which occur at one age may not only be inappropriate at another age, they may even interfere with or impede the learning process. For example, the infant learns to be secure while cradled in his mother's arms, but the seven-year-old would likely be very uncomfortable in the same circumstance. The sixteen-year-old may have some interest in a vocational program while the thirty-year- *To avoid confusion, throughout this book the term, adult basic education, will be used to refer to all programs, grades K-12, sometimes called adult basic education, adult general education, GED programs, and other designations which refer to high school completion. Introduction 7 old would be intensely interested in such training if he was unemployed. Further, the teaching process should vary at different life stages. The fifteen-year-old would not feel free to openly question the authority of the teacher while the fifty-year-old may well know more than the teacher about many topics which are being used to demonstrate the application of learning. Professor Malcolm Knowles (1970) developed the concept of andragogy and Professor Robert Havighurst (1972) that of developmental tasks in efforts to change the traditional teaching process from a child-centered, pedagological, authoritarian, lecture method of learning by memorizing to an adult-centered, democratic, life-centered, problem-solving approach to continuing education. Knowles stressed the parallel assumptions and processes of adulthood, while Havighurst developed the concept of developmental tasks based on the life cycle of the adult and the corresponding tasks of education. When combined and extended, these concepts form the basis for the scientific study of the nature of adulthood as a prerequisite for teaching adults. In the past decade, the study of adult development has become a popular subject through the influence of books such as Passages (Sheehy 1976) as well as a scholarly field of inquiry. The basic assumption of adult development is that socially, psychologically, and emotionally the adult changes as he ages and these changes must be reflected in the teaching program. At one stage of deVelopment the adult may be aggressively pursuing education to improve his job performance while the same adult at another stage may study poetry to expand his self-concept. One adult wants to learn to read to assist his children with their homework while another wants to read the Bible. The Nature of the Adult Teaching Process An adult's nature changes from the "leaving home" stage of the early twenties, through the "catch-thirty" years, to the "middle-life reexamination" of the forties and fifties, to retire- 8 Adults Learn Again ment in the sixties and later (Sheehy 1976). As the life focus of the adult changes, so must the focus of the teaching-learning process adapt to reflect the various needs of the adult learner. In a group of adults in which the learning task is centered on reading skills, there will be wide differences among the members in terms of age, occupation, need for learning, and ability to learn. These differences, as such, require that the adult teacher become a facilitator of learning. The term facilitator implies knowledge of the learning process, of the materials, of the subject matters, and, above all, of the adult students' goals, dreams, aspirations, and motivations. As the adult teacher assumes the role of learning facilitator, he follows a sequential, although overlapping, series of steps in consultation with the adult students. The seven steps in a learning program are generally categorized as- 1. Climate The instructional climate must be emotionally, psychologically, and physically supportive to the adult student. The classroom climate must be sufficiently psychologically supportive to calm a fearful adult learner and yet challenging enough to make him want to continue. 2. Planning The planning must be mutually conducted and agreeable to both the teacher and the learner, with initial short-term goals set to meet the expressed needs of the learner. 3. Diagnosis of Needs Diagnosis of needs must be a joint decision in accordance with the options, materials, and learning resources available to the student. If the student's experience leads him to such limited short-range objectives as the need to figure lumber or maintain Introduction 9 a checking account, in all likelihood he will expand his goals as he learns to accomplish his original objectives. 4. Formulation of Objectives Formulation of learning objectives must also be a mutual teacher-student effort with the direction coming from the experiences and perspective of the learner. In this instance, the critical elements for the facilitator are being able to view the problem from the perspective of the adult learner and then to build from that plateau. This sharing of the adult student's perspective allows the student to maintain control of his learning activities instead of working toward an abstract goal. 5. Program Design The program design has two important elements. First, the subject matter should be sequenced in terms of the ability and readiness of the student to work with the materials, and, second, the materials should be understandable in relation to function. For example, arithmetic may be taught as shop mathematics for the mechanic and as grocery shopping for the housewife. 6. Implementation Program implementation may be problem-oriented in a traditional classroom setting, in a learning center, or in a tutorial setting. 7. Evaluation The purpose of evaluation is to aid the facilitator and the adult learner in assessing progress toward goals the student has set. Evaluation can also assist the teacher in determining when to change materials, move to the next level of instruction, or recommend program changes. 10 Adults Learn Again The Nature of the Adult Learning Process Applied to Basic Communication Skills Good theory is practical theory. While theories and principles about the learning process abound, educational theorists are still not sure exactly how a person learns. However, practicing adult educators have developed a series of learning principles based on the nature of adulthood. It is not the purpose here to espouse a particular adult learning theory. However, the focus of this chapter and indeed the entire book is to advocate that learning principles for teaching adults be extracted from the nature of the adult teaching and learning process. In the Handbook ofAdult Education, Jack R. Gibb (1960, pp. 54-64) has compiled an excellent set oflearning principles for teaching adults. (See Chapter 2 for excerpted list of these principles.) The theoretical base for teaching communication and computation presented in this book comes from the works of Dinnan and Lodge (1976). They believe that learning to read depends on the individual's ability to manipulate and use the language in terms of basic relationships which are generally understood by most people. However, these researchers believe that for various reasons a significant number of adults and children have not developed this facility and, therefore, do not possess the skills necessary to learn to read, write, and compute. Dinnan has developed both a simple instrument to determine whether or not a person has developed the required language readiness skills and a series of learning experiences to correct the deficiency where it exists. Basically, the Dinnan method teaches language skills based on the concepts of the relationships of time, space, amount, and quality, with a system for classifying new information. For example, Dinnan believes that many adults must learn how to classify the physical world through language and thought before they can learn to communicate effectively in the larger society. The purpose, then, of this book is to develop a curriculum approach to teaching adult basic education based on the nature Introduction 11 of the adult, of the adult teaching process, and of the learning process in communication. Organization This book is organized around five themes in adult basic education: curriculum, teaching reading and writing, teaching computation, special populations of adult basic education, and the teaching process in adult basic education. UNIT I-THE PLAN CHAPTER 2 Developing Peifonnance-based Instructional Stratti!Jies-Discusses the concepts of adult learning and the Adult Performance Level teaching theories. CHAPTER 3 Competency-based Adult Education (CBAE)Develops a rationale for individualized instmction based on the life needs of the adult student. The concept of functional competency is developed along with teaching practices required to implement individualized instmction. UNIT II-TEACHING COMMUNICATION CHAPTER 4 Teaching Basic Relationships-Introduces the curriculum approach to teaching communication and computation skills to adults through basic instmction in relationships in language. Discusses the use of relationships of time, space, amount, and quality; the PS Oral Reading test; and basic exercises for teaching beginning reading and writmg. CHAPTER 5 Teaching Written Communication-Presents materials and exercises suitable for adults who read at or below the fourth-grade level. CHAPTER 6 Teaching Basic Communication-Presents materials and exercises for adult students wha read at or above the fifth-grade level but below the eighth-grade level. CHAPTER 7 Teaching the GED Student-Addresses the 12 Adults Learn Again needs of the independent reader who is working toward the high school diploma or for the GED certificate. UNIT III-TEACHING COMPUTATION CHAPTER 8 Principles of Teaching Mathematics to AdultsDiscusses the concepts and skills that must be taught before instruction in mathematics begins. The relationships of time, space, amount, and quality are introduced for the specialized language of mathematics. CHAPTER 9 Teaching Introductory Mathematics-Introduces the language of mathematics and drills for teaching signs and amounts. Addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions, and negative numbers are discussed. UNIT IV-TEACHING SPECIAL POPULATIONS CHAPTER 10 Education for the Older Adult-Discusses education for adults sixty-five years of age and above in terms of health, needs, programming requirements, and interests. Myths about this population are discussed in terms of their educational needs. CHAPTER 11 Adult Basic Education and the Handicapped Adult-Focuses on the educational needs of the handicapped, special facilities, and agencies which assist handicapped people. CHAPTER 12 Teaching English as a Second LanguageCovers the educational requirements of foreign-born adults in terms of their culture, prior educational background, and the ESL teaching process. UNIT V-THE TEACHING PROCESS CHAPTER 13 Counseling the Adult Basic Education Student-Discusses counseling the adult basic education student in terms of the special needs of the adult student and the duties and responsibilities of the counselor who works with this population. CHAPTER 14 Teaching and Learning: Techniques-Examines the roles of the traditional teacher and the adult Introduction 13 teacher to determine attitudes about teaching which lead to suggested techniques. Group process is discussed as it relates to an individualized instruction program. CHAPTER 15 Evaluation of the Teaching Process-Discusses evaluation in terms of the profile of illiterate adults, transition to instruction, involvement in an instructional program, and the profile of literate adults. The focus is on the evaluation of the adult student rather than evaluation of the teacher or the program. References Dinnan, James A., and Lodge, Robert A. Communication: A Meta Theory ofLanguage. Athens, Ga.: Jaddy Enterprises, 1976. Gibb, Jack R. "Learning Theory in Adult Education." In Handbook of Adult Education in the United States, edited bv Malcolm S. Knowles. Washington, D.C.: Adult Education Ass'aciation of the U.S.A., 1960. Havighurst, Robert J. Developmental Tasks and Education. 3d cd. New York: D. McKay Company, 1972. Knowles, Malcolm S. The Modern Practice ofAdult Education: Andragogy vs. Pedagogy. Chicago: Association Press, 1970. - - - . Self-Directed Learning: A Guide for Learners and Teachers. Chicago: Association Press, 1975. - - . The Adult Learner: A Neglected Species. 2d cd. Houston: Gulf Publishing Company, 1978. Sheehy, Gail. Passages: Predictable Crises in Adult Life. New York: Dutton, 1976. Chapter 2 Developing Performancebased Instructional Strategies This chapter briefly reviews certain adult education concepts that influenced the development of adult performance levels as a component of the adult basic education curriculum. The term andragogy (adult-centered instruction) and the concept of adult development are two major components of the adult-centered curriculum and are discussed in some detail. The major emphasis, however, is directed to the performance skills an adult must possess if he is to perform adequately in his roles as a parent, citizen, worker, and productive person. Andragogy Andragogy, popularized through the writing and research of Malcolm S. Knowles (1970), is a theory based on the life development stages of adults whose experiences, responsibilities, and psychological orientation requite a special approach to education. These factors must be identified and taken into account in the teaching process for the adult to be willing to participate in educational activities. Teaching methods in adult education must of necessity differ from the ones used in elementary and secondary education although the desired results are often the 15 16 Adults Learn Again same. The intellectual stimulation and instructional theo[\! of learning may be the same for children and adults, but each person learns in terms of his cognitive development, developmental stage, and social-psychological development. Knowles (1970, pp. 39-49) has identified five areas describing adulthood which must be considered in teaching or developing programs for adults. Self-concept The adult learner knows what he wants from education although he may not be able to express his needs in educational terms. Since he has functioned as a self-directed person in making life decisions, he wants the opportunity to participate in planning his education. To function effectively, he requires respect as a person and a supportive classroom environment. Experience The adult has a lifetime of experience to draw on. One person in a class may be an expert in a certain area while other members of the group have different competencies. Sharing their life experiences creates a rich learning resource for class members. Thus, the mechanism for mutual planning is in place, and a skilled teacher can involve the class members in developing a learning program. Readiness An adult returns to school for an imperative purpose. The need is now. Only through self-diagnosis will the developmental tasks of the adult surface. Time Perspective The adult tends to think in terms of the time he has left. Therefore, he is more interested in immediacy of application than he is in learning for delayed returns. Since for him education is a part-time endeavor in a busy life, he wants his learning to be on target-his target. Orientation to Learning Generally, the adult student is not interested in mathematics, physics, or chemistry as abstract sciences. He is problem-centered and wants to know how these subjects will help to solve life-centered problems. Further, the Developing Peiformance-based Instructional Strategies 17 problem-centered application must be one he encounters in his life. Learning mathematics to be able to cut and sew the family's clothes and studying chemistry to understand the nutritional values of foods are much more interesting to the adult learner than learning these subjects as abstract sciences. The importance of what the student does rather than what the teacher does is the basic tenet of andragogy. The teacher is seen as the person who facilitates learning. As a facilitator, the teacher's role is expanded rather than limited since he must know appropriate materials, adult learning principles, and the individual learner and his requirements for learning. The principles of andragogy logically lead to learning principles based on the requirements ofthe adult student-principles which have shaped and guided the practice of adult education for years. Principles for Adult Learning (Gibb 1960, pp. 54-64) Learning must be problem-centered. Learning must be experience-centered. Experience must be meaningful to the learner. The learner must be free to look at the experience. The goals must be set and the search organized bv the learner. The learner must have feedback about progress toward goals. Adult Education Curriculum Models Robert J. Havighurst (1972) views education as an integral part of life which represents an individual's way of meeting the ?emands and aspirations of the present period of his lite. In makmg education relevant to an individual's lite, Havighurst believes that in each phase of life there are developmental tasks centered on the role of an individual as a parent, worker, citizen, and con- 18 Adults Learn Again sumer and that all human beings face the same types of tasks. He defines a developmental task as one that arises at or about a certain period in the life of an individual which, if accomplished successfully, leads to happiness and to success with later tasks, but, if failure results, leads to personal unhappiness, societal disapproval, and difficulty with later tasks. He describes a teachable moment as a critical period in a person's life when he is most receptive to instruction and most capable of achieving developmental tasks. The adult's motivation for learning and readiness to learn peak at or about the time he faces a developmental task. Havighurst's work provides a theoretical base for developing a curriculum for adult basic education. The Havighurst model emphasizes using the life roles of the adult as a parent, worker, citizen, and consumer in developing and teaching communication and computation skills. His work was influential in developing teaching materials such as YOu and the Law, Using Credit Wisely, Social Security, and How to Interview for Employment to replace the Dick-and-Jane-type series. The concepts developed by Havighurst were important in developing the public school adult education movement since they utilized the principles of adult learning. Central to the Havighurst model is the concept of teaching the basic skills of communication and computation through a logical system of adult-centered roles rather than through memorizing an unrelated series of facts. In other words, the adult student learns valuable life skills at the same time he is learning to read and compute. Figure 1 illustrates this instructional plan. Enriching the life of the adult student through improving his ability to deal with his environment is the key to the Havighurst concept. This model asserts that the teacher's role is to become a facilitator of learning and a specialist in the culture of the student and in the use of a variety of life-related materials as opposed to the teacher's conventional role as a purveyor of knowledge. Many creative variations of this curriculum have been developed for adult education by individuals and school systems over the past fifteen years or so. Most systems have utilized the Figure I Teaching Communication and Computation through Life-centered Roles LIFE ROLES LIFE ROLES Core Knowledge of Communication ,and Computation Parent L . Consumer .I.~.. 20 Adults Learn Again concepts of andragogy and adult learning principles and have adapted them to meet local needs. These needs vary depending on the adult education clientele group: the customary local adult student, inmates in correctional institutions, ethnic and non- English speaking minorities, or persons whose beliefs depart from community norms. The traditional focus of teaching methodology and the techniques of teaching becomes secondary to the primary focus of relating instruction to the life roles of the adult student. Adult Performance Level Curriculum The concept of adult performance levels has become a model for a number of states in their adult basic education programs. The words concept and model are important since they convey the sense of applying adult education principles when duveloping programs for adults. This model is not a curriculum in the sense that a set of teacher behaviors is prescribed. It is a curriculum in the sense that desired student outcomes are described in specific terms. The term adult peiformance level (APL) is used throughout this book to refer to those competencies which an individual must possess to function effectively in today's society. Implicit in this definition is the requirement for communication and computation skills at a level that will allow the adult to be trained and retrained throughout his productive lifetime. Since the term funetionalliterac)1 has meaning only in a specific time and place in a specific culture, it will be used solely to describe the individual in a specific situation. The APL curriculum and performance objectives were developed over a period of several years by researchers at the University of Texas (Northcutt et al. 1973). This study developed a taxonomy of adult needs in six general knowledge areas: occupational knowledge, consumer economics, health, community resources, government and law, and transportation. The next step involved identif)ring the skills required to fulfill these needs. Four primary skills were identified by the re- Developing Peiformance-based Instructional Strate~qies 21 search team: communication, computation, problem solving, and interpersonal relations. APL curriculum denotes a twodimensional structure in which the learner applies newly acquired skills to a problem area of his life. At the same time, the adult student is learning to make decisions based on personal investigation. At some point, the adult will become able to cope with modern life and reverse what might have been a hopeless downward spiral. In sununary, the APL research team developed and validated a series of goals and objectives which define and describe adult functional competency, tested these objectives in a national assessment of performance of adults, and created a prototype of adult functional competency. The prototype varies in terms of time and place as well as in terms of the need of the individual adult student. Using this research as a basis, curriculum developers and teachers can now develop teaching strategies using the national measurements of adequate adult performance in the six areas of adult need. Thus, the APL curriculum provides both the objectives for adult basic education and the criteria bv which to measure effectiveness. However, APL does not speci~' teaching method, nor attempt to order the objectives, nor, most important, address the question of teaching the skill areas. Obviously, a learner cannot master the objectives for functional competency without a basic knowledge of the skill areas. The chapters of this book address strategies for teaching and learning the skill areas to implement the APL process for particular segments of the adult education population. APL Goals and Objectives (Northcutt et al. 1973) Occupational Knowledge GOAL: To be aware of the means by which mobility in an economic environment can be enhanced. 22 Adults Learn Again OBJECTIVES: 1. To associate words and symbols encountered in all phases of the area of occupational knowledge with their meanmgs. 2. To know the various sources that may lead to employment. 3. To choose employment according to recognized personal attributes, needs, and interests. 4. To establish criteria by which to evaluate job opportunities. 5. To prepare for job applications. 6. To know standards of behavior for various types of employment. 7. To know the financial and legal aspects of employment. Consumer Economics GOAL: To manage a family economy and demonstrate an awareness of sound purchasing practices. OBJECTIVES: 1. To associate words and symbols encountered in all phases of consumer economics with their meanings. 2. To manage a household efficiently. 3. To shop with preparedness and economy. 4. To identify and locate information concerning the types of insurance available. S. To plan money management. Health GOAL: To know the basic requirements for maintaining personal and family health and safety and the procedures for correcting health problems. OBJECTIVES: 1. To associate words and symbols encountered in all phases of health with their meanings. 2. To meet personal and family health needs. Developing Peiformance-based Instructional Strategies 23 3. To plan meals according to needs and resources. 4. To recognize and prevent common diseases. 5. To apply first aid in emergencies. 6. To know agencies that supply birth control information. 7. To avoid conditions which foster environmental hazards. 8. To react with aid and comfort to other individuals in times of stress and change. Community Resources GOAL: To be aware of community resources and to be able to contact and make use of those resource organizations appropriate to needs. OBJECTIVES: 1. To associate the names of the various community agen- cies which fall under a given category (suggested categories: health, finance, legal aid, housing, employment, public transportation, recreation, education, service clubs and organizations, consumer protection) with their services and functions. 2. To use the telephone directory and the telephone. 3. To identify and locate sources of information. 4. To locate and use the library facilities available in the community. 5. To write a letter requesting information from a community agency. Government and Law GOAL: To understand governmental functions, agencies, and regulations which define individual rights and obligations of a member of society. OBJECTIVES: 1. To associate words and symbols encountered in the area of government and law with their meanings. 2. To register to vote and to know voting procedures. 3. To apply for licenses (marriage, animal ownership, busi- 24 Adults Learn Again ness, driver's, vehicular, sporting) and to know the circumstances when they are needed. 4. To identify the government agency responsible for servicing individual and community needs. 5. To have an understanding of how government services are financed. 6. To understand the restrictions and protections afforded by laws normally encountered in daily lite. Transportation GOAL: To understand transportation systems and to discern and use the mode of transportation appropriate to needs. OBJECTIVES: 1. To associate signs and symbols employed in describing vehicular, pedestrian, and locational aspects of public transportation by using verbal and written forms. 2. To measure time by the use of time-indicating devices. 3. To locate points of departure or interest by giving and executing oral directions. 4. To use transportation schedules by reading and locating items for calculating distances, time, and fares. 5. To identify and locate sources of information for spe- cific transportation needs. 6. To identify and contact data sources to verbally request needed information. 7. To locate points of departure or interest by use of maps and diagrams. 8. To travel between two places with exclusive reference to maps. 9. To make verbal and written transport and overnight ac- commodation reservations. 10. To select the most appropriate mode of transportation determined by need and available resources. Developing PerfOrmance-based Instructional Strategies 25 Summary These goals and objectives represent the life needs of the adult student in the four skill areas: communication, computation, problem solving, and interpersonal rclations. These skill areas are the keys by which the goals and objectives of an individual may be realized. They equip a person to measure his worth in terms of his relation to society, to nature, and to himself. The purpose of the APL curriculum is to provide an efficient framework, with content specified by the individual adult, within which these goals and objectives can be efficiently realized. References Gibb, Jack R. "Learning Theory in Adult Education." In Handbook of Adult Education in the United States, edited by Malcolm S. Knowles. Washington, D.C.: Adult Education Association of the U.S.A., 1960. Havighurst, Robert J. Developmental Tasks and Education. 3d ed. New York: D. McKay Company, 1972. Knowles, Malcolm S. The Modem Practice ofAdult Education: Andragogy vs. Pedagogy. Chicago: Association Press, 1970. Northcutt, Norvell W et al. The Adult PeifOrmance Level Study. Austin: Division of Extension, University of Texas, 1973. Chapter 3 Competency-based Adult Education The philosophy of competency-based adult education (CBAE) rests on the concept that recognizes the importance of individualized instruction and the generally accepted emphasis on student behaviors in learning. CBAE has focused attention on this important concept in adult education because it concentrates on the pureose and outcome of education in terms of the learner. For this reason CBAE has become the official instruction model in adult basic education programs in Georgia and some thirtytwo other states across the country. An important distinction ofCBAE is that it is not a curriculum. Rather it is an adult education process in which the emphasis is on the learner and his goals. This is not a new process. CBAE extends and defines the goals of instruction based on the concept of life roles developed by Havighurst and others. In his book, Developmental Tasks and Education, Havighurst (1972) cites the need for education to be concerned with the life roles of the individual. CBAE and the Havighurst model develop a concept for teaching communication, computation, and development of self in terms of performance in t.he "real world." In other words, adult instruction in basic skills is for the "here and now" as opposed to the traditional model of learning for delayed rtturns. 28 Adults Learn Again CBAE Defined The following definition of CBAE was developed by participants at the National Invitational Workshop on Adult Competency Education held in New Orleans, February 1978: Competency-based adult education is a performancebased process leading to demonstrated mastery of basic and life skills necessarv for the individual to function proficiently in society The three key concepts in the definition are: (1) performance-based, (2) basic skills, and (3) life skills. Performance-based skills refer to the individual's ability to function adequately; basic skills refer to the necessarY academic skills of communication and computation, and life skills refer to those personal and attitudinal competencies required for optimum utilization of new learning. In this sense, CBAE is a process which requires that learning be specifically directed tmvards life's circumstances for the individual and that the role of the teacher become one of facilitator. Although the term CBAE is of relatively recent origin, the concepts are generally as old as the adult education movement. The unfolding process has been one of refining terminology in the light of experience. The development and refinement of learning principles willlikc1y continue. A unique feature of CBAE is the flexibility of the program in terms of the ability to respond to local needs, customs, and populations. This flexibility allows the program focus to be different for individual students in a class although all are learning to read and write more effectivelv. Functional Literacy Two broad educational and social trends appear to be responsible for the development of CBAE. One is individualized instruction and the other is the concept of functional literacy. Competency-based Adult Education 29 Individualized instruction is a prominent focus of this book, and its major purpose is to assist the adult student in becoming occupationally, personally, and educationally sclf-sufficient-thus achieving functional literacy. functional literacy is the ability of a person to perform socially, economically, and personally in his culture and location at a reasonable level of effectiveness. It follows that the educational requirements to achieve functional literacy change as society grows more technical and complex. A brief review of the evolution of the concept of functional literacy provides understanding of the term's meaning and, more important, a basis for educational planning for the decades ahead. In some cultures, the ability to sign one's name is all that is required to be labeled "literate." In the United States in the 1700s in a predominately farm economy, few persons bothered to go to school for more than four or five years since they could become successful farmers by learning from their parents and grandparents. This situation generally prevailed in the United States until the industrial revolution. Consequently, the early definition of literacy by educators and census personnel was attaining the four,th-grade education level. The industrial revolution in the United States redefined the concept of literacy since greater educational, social, and basic communication skills were required for the people who moved from the farms to work in the factories. Sometime around the turn of the century an eighth-grade education became the standard for functional literacy. The achievement of an eighth-grade level of proficiency became the target for adult education, as defined in the Adult Education Act of 1966. However, educators and legislators have generally agreed that the completion of high school or its equivalent is a minimal level for functional literacy. !he age of technology or the atomic age that symbolically began In 1945 with the explosion of the atomic bomb required a new look at functionalliteracv. Discovering precis~ly what this definition lacks must be addressed by teachers, curriculum planners, and administrators of adult education programs. The fact that the demands of the 30 Adults Learn Again broad culture set the standard for functional literacy is clear. The way that these requirements must be met at the local level is not so clear. For example, functional literacy for workers in the health professions and in the new technologies is set at a post high school level, generally an associate degree from a junior college. FWlCtional literacy for farmers, construction workers, and service workers is set at the high school equivalency level. In addition to defining functional literacy, the broad culture in the United States also requires an individualized approach to adult education. Following this logic, the broad culture defines the purpose of a basic education as the acquisition of communication and computation skills that permit a person to "learn how to learn." Since changes in society will presumably continue, probably at an accelerated rate, it follows that education will be a lifelong process. The only constants in this process are the basic skills of communication and computation. Acquiring these skills by the adult learner is imperative as a first step in becoming functionally literate. A second important consideration is that, since success in life depends on the individual's performing a wide variety of roles, the judicious blending of basic skills and performance is necessary to achieve functional literacy. Adult Functional Competence in the United States In a national study of the functional competence in the United States by the University of Texas (Northcutt et al. 1973), approximately 20 percent of the adults were found to be functioning with difficulty. Nine areas of competency were tested. Three levels of competency were established by the researchers: functions with difficulty, able to function, and most able to cope. The group that functions with difficulty is the target population for adult basic education. Table 1 illustrates the extent of the problem in the United States (Northcutt et al. 1973). Competency-based A dult Education 31 As shown in Table 1, the adult population that pcrt()rms basic lifc tasks with difficulty totals from approximately 19 million to 39 million pcrsons, a rangc indicating that a person who cannot pert()rm in one area is also likely to havc difficulh' in other life roles. Computation, problem solving, and consumer economics, the three largest groups, are clearl~' interrelated, and thus the need to teach computation in terms of its relevance to consumer economics and other lite skills becomes evident. Measurement in CBAE The ultimate success of CBAE depends in large part on the abilih' of adult educators to evaluate adult education programs in te;ms of student performances. While the ultimate e\'aluation will be according to student performances in life roles, interim pert(xmance-based measures must be de\Tloped and used to measure teacher and program effectiveness. The American College Testing Program has developed the Adult Pertormance Level Survey and Content Area Measures. Additional APL com- Table 1 Adult Functional Competence in the United States l'eifonnance Areas Computation Consumer economics Problem solving Government and law Communit\' resources Reading , Health Occupational knOWledge Writing Percent orAdults Who Function with DIfficulty 32.9 29.4 28.0 25.8 22.6 21.7 21.3 19.1 16.4 Appm\'imatc Xllnlher or PersOlH i11 u.s. l'opulatiOll Who Function ll~th DIfficulty 39,000,000 34,700,000 32,800,000 30,100,000 26,400,000 25,400,000 24,900,000 22,300,000 18,900,000 32 Adults Learn Again petcncies and assessments can be adapted by individual programs to measure student progress. There are also adequate conunercially produced evaluation instruments. In keeping with the objectives of CBAE, however, the best evaluations are ones prepared on the local program level. While classroom teachers cannot be expected to develop sophisticated evaluation measures, they are responsible for establishing a set of objectives with each of their students. This makes the student a partner in determining his progress towards the goals established. This is the practice of CBAE at its most effective level. Philosophical Considerations for CBAE The UNESCO-sponsored book, Learning to Be (Faure et al. 1972), redefines education in general terms as the process of helping the individual become all he is capable of becoming. CBAE, if defined in societal terms, would have the same definition since the emphasis is on the individual and the process stresses individualized learning, with the learner being an equal partner in the process. The emphasis is on democracy, equality, and opportunity and thus on a broadening of our educational system to include adults engaged in lifelong education. Adult Education Teaching-Learning Principles The learner in a CRAB program should be viewed with special attention to his lift circumstances. Human beings are born with a natural potential for learning. If CBAE students have learned a language, they have demonstrated their ability to learn. Their desire to learn ma\, have been frustrated in their earlier experiences with school. In fact, they may not view as very important many of the values and much of the knowledge that schools hold dear. A CBAE program will allow them to decide what is relevant learning in their lives. competency-based Adult Education 33 The adult must perceive learning as having relevance for his life. When learning is viewed and practiced as an extension and condition of life, the adult student will learn faster. The learning will be concrete rather than abstract, and thus it is easier for the adult to use and practice in his own life. Learning that involves a change in a personYs self-concept is threatening and tends to be resisted. The adult tends to wear his social and personal identity as a badge. He joins clubs, churches, and adopts a jargon or special language to be identified with and at the same time to preserve his identity. Learning which threatens or contradicts this identity is painful and frightening and involves a change in the structure of self. Learning that is threatening is easier to achieve when external threats are at a minimum. The adult learner who is not functionally competent lives in a world of threats. Society has graded him and found him lacking. The first task for a CBAE program is to make him comfortable and free from the threat of grades, teacher judgments, and evaluation. With teacher assistance he must define his goals, set the search, and evaluate his progress. Goals and objectives can be expanded as new learning occurs and self-concept expands. Thus, learning is perceived as a natural part of life and not as a condition imposed by others. As the adult learner achieves success in one area, relationships to other areas develop and the beginning of the ability to conceptualize is born. CBAE promotes andfacilitates the ability to learn through ~. When the adult student practices ~is new learning on the JOb, 10 the home, and in the marketplace, he has begun the pro~ of becoming independent through learning. The more prac~c he has, the more he can direct his own learning experiences In ~e classroom. Obviously, learning that is practiced is more readily retained. 34 Adults Learn Aqain Independence) creatwtty) and selfreliance of the learner are all facilitated when the primary evaluation is by the learner and the secondary is by the teacher. An independent learner is the goal of CBAE. An atmosphere of freedom and mumal respect between smdent and teacher and among students is important in the education process. The adult smdent must have the freedom to decide which learning is important to him and the knowledge of how to proceed to\vard that learning. CBAB facilitates the concept of lifelong learning as well as the process oflearning how to learn. The acquisition of the basic skills of communication and computation frees the person for a lifetime of learning if he has learned to love the process of learning. The TeacherlFacilitator Roles in CBAE The role of the teacher in CBAE departs from the role of the traditional teacher because of the differences in age, experience, self-concept, and occupation of the adults being taught. The instructional mode may vary from the classroom, learning laboratory, mtorial, or church, depending on the circumstances. Since CBAE requires individualized instruction, the teacher lecmres infrequently and then on topics of general interest as opposed to subject matter information. A word of caution appears necessary. The adult who cannot read or write at all may require considerable support initially until he gains the self-confidence to proceed on his own. The most helpful arrangement would be for a volunteer to work with this smdent for a few months. The teacher's role in competency-based adult education includes the following imperatives: To create a climate in the class that is conducive to learning. The teacher must somehow develop a good relationship with the class and facilitate classmates' getting together in a social setting. Competency-based Adult Education 35 To help elicit and clarify the purposes for the individuals in the class as well as the more general purposes for the group. The teacher can tolerate a varieh' of purposes and should not be afraid of conflicting aims. B~' giving indi,'idual adults a sense of freedom, he is also helping create a climate for learning. To rely on the desire of each student to implement those purposes which have meaning for him as the motivating force behind significant learning. To encourage independent CBAE shldents to organize their search for learning and assist dependent learners to become independent. To become an expert on materials and learning resources, In addition to published materials, the teacher should use the community as a resource for instructional materials, Newspapers, Social Security materials, and job notices become the raw materials of learning resources in CBAE courses. To become a resource to be utilized by the group. The teacher becomes a counselor, friend, and consultant to his class. In the best sense, he is a resource person skilled in the use of materials and in his ability to assist the shldent in coping with his learning projects, To be able to accept those attihldes and beliefs of his Shldents that differ from his, The attihldes of shldents on values, family, sex, and religion often vary from those of the instructor. The teacher cannot afford to judge his shldents, but, on the other hand, he must not compromise his own values. To be able to share his values, attihldes, and beliefs with his students on a peer basis. When the classroom climate produces muhlal acceptance, the teacher can share his beliefs with his class. In such sharing, he is not evaluating other beliefs. To be aware of his own limitations. There is no one model f?r successful teaching. If the teacher accepts his limitatIOns, it is likely that the class will also accept them. The - 36 Adults Learn Again teacher should never enter into situations in which he is uncomfortable or cannot function effectively. For example, the teacher may be quite comfortable in creating a good working climate in the class but uncomfortable in dealing with individual class members' personal problems. In this instance, he should refer the student to a counselor or an agency for assistance. Conclusion CBAE is not a curriculum in any sense. It is a process of individualized instruction based on the needs of the adult student. The competencies each student wishes to learn come from his own life role supported by increased knowledge of basic communication and computation skills. The process assumes that every adult student wishes to learn and will learn, provided he is in a supportive learning setting and is learning relevant information that will enhance his own life. CBAE makes certain assumptions about the teaching and learning process. Essentially, it is a democratic process that gives the learner the opportunity to be in charge of his education and challenges the teacher to be a learning facilitator. The teacher is required to give up his traditional role as a purveyor of knowledge and assume a role as a specialist in learning. As a learning specialist, he is as concerned with providing emotional support to the adult, setting a proper climate for learning, and becoming a specialist in materials as he is in dealing with the specifics of learning. His knowledge of the ways students learn and his understanding of the individual students' goals are co-equals with subject matter in the learning process. It should be emphasized that this is not a new or different direction for adult education. It is a process that has evolved over many years, a strategy for teaching and learning that emphasizes the needs of the adult student. The process can and should be adapted from community to community, from rural to urban settings, and from group to group. competency-based Adult Education 37 References Faure, Edgar et al. Learning to Be: The World of Education 10day and 1Omorrow. Paris: UNESCO, 1972. Fischer, Joan Keller. "Summary of a Review of Competency-based Adult Education." Prepared for the U.S. Office of Education, April 1978. Mimeographed. Havighurst, Robert J. Developmental Tasks and Education. 3d cd. New York: D. McKay Company, 1972. Kasworm, Carol E., and Lyle, Buddy R., eds. Proceedings of a National Invitational Workshop on Competency-based Adult Education, Austin, 1Cxas, June 1978. Austin: University of Texas, National Institute of Education, Contract No. NIE 6-78-0235, n.d. Kay, Patricia M., and Rosner, Benjamin. "Arc Teachers Really Prepared to Handle Competency-based Teacher Education?" Journal ofResearch and Development in Education 7(Fall 1973) :47. Knox, Allan B. "Competence for Adult and Continuing Education Practitioners and Scholars." Champaign: University of Illinois, n.d. Mimeographed. Northcutt, Norvell W et al. The Adult PeifOrmance Level Study. Austin: Division of Extension, University of Texas, 1973. Rogers, Carl R. Freedom to Learn. Columbus, Ohio: Merrill, 1969. Scrinivason, Lyra. Perspectives on Informal Learning: Functional Education for Individual, Community, and National Development. New Haven, Conn.: Van Dyck Printing Company, 1977. Taylor, Paul G. "Selected Issues in Competency-based Adult Education: A Delphi Study." Paper prepared for the Office of Education, April 1978. Mimeographed. UNIT II TEACHING COMMUNICATION Chapter 4 Teaching Basic Relationships Before the teaching-learning relationship in reading and writing can begin, the student must have a clear understanding of basic relationships in language. Fortunately, most people develop an understanding of basic relationships in language; however, a significant minority does not achieve this understanding and must have help before learning to read and write. This chapter provides a strategy for teaching basic relationships. The learning act requires that a person receive a stimulus to his intellect, which then uses previously stored associations to contrast or match that stimulus. It is basic for every person to attempt to understand the order and structure of things around him. Each of us experiences the external world through the basic senses. We see, hear, taste, smell, or touch the world about us. Each sense sends a message to the intellect to be assimilated into our knowledge system. The intellect's filing system uses a basic set of relations by which the person understands everything from the most elementary fact to the most complex concept. These relationships can be grouped into four separate classes: time, space, amount, and quality. When a person shares his experiences, it is called "communication." Communication depends upon both parties using the same relationships. When general agreement on these oral, written, or motion symbols oc- 41 42 Adults Learn Again curs, a language is formed. Any given societal group, as it collects more and more data about the world of its members, eventually records these observations, and a written language comes into being. Written language may take many forms, even as art, music, or numbers. Oral Language The basic form of communication is "oral language." One of the most important observations about a person who has fallen behind in educational achievement is the fact that he has learned a language. This seemingly obvious observation means that his intellectual process is working perfectly, for without such a properly functioning process he could not learn to communicate at all. He is receiving information, his intellect is working, his memory is functioning, and his speech is testimony that he has properly processed the information he has received. So why, then, is there an apparent lack of communication between this person and the rest of the general language group? The language used by the person having trouble serves him well in most of his daily communications. It gets him a drink of water, attention from others, and, in a limited way, all his immediate needs. The answer lies in the fact that language operates at two different levels, personal and general. The personal level is directly connected to one's immediate environment. A "good meal" to you is one offering pleasant tastes, or a compatible combination of foods, or perhaps interesting company. But what is "good" to you might be distasteful to someone else. When you hear, "The boy went to the store;' your perception of the boy might be black or white, short or tall, young or old. The store might be a small grocery or a supermarket. Whatever your perception is, it is an association with your basic experience. Therefore, a "lot of money" to you is an amount relative to your needs and expectations. The personal level of language serves you as well as it serves the person having trouble. The general level of oral communication requires much more agreement in terms of the relationships. These agreements Teaching Basic Relationships 43 must use common denominators in order to have both the sender and receiver operating as a unit. This does not mean that the personal aspect of language is disregarded but that the general level of common associations is entered. Basically, the process by which the human intellect deals with its world is through contrasts. One cannot know anything in isolation; one must understand everything relative to something else. You cannot know "hot" unless you can judge it by some other concept, such as "cold," ''Warm:' "cool," or any other temperature relationship which can be used in order to know "hot." In general communication, the most basic contrast is expected to be used by both parties. The personal association takes second place. Herein lies one of the root problems of the person who is failing in general communication: the use of personal instead of the expected general patterns. Deviant patterns of association in general language between two individuals will cause a complete breakdown because the common denominator, or basic agreement of the contrast association, is not present; and thus no communication of common meanings can take place. The key to,building any lasting structure is a good foundation. Each individual must master the basic skills in oral language performance before attempting any other training. Thus, the common associations presented in this chapter are only a portion of the necessary sets the individual must use in general communication. The teacher is expected to go beyond those presented here into as many interest areas as possible. The major importance of the sets provided in this text has been established through research and experience as the core of necessary language thought patterns and should be specifically taught. The first step should be a quick assessment of the individual's performance in word association. This three-minute test gives an indication of a student's performance. Directions 1. The test items are to be read to the individual in private and the responses recorded in the spaces provided. 44 Adults Learn Again 2. Give no more than five seconds for an answer. If no response is given within that time, draw a line in the response area. (Do not go back to any word.) 3. The only directions are these: "Give the first word you think of when I say this word." Do not give any examples or make any comments about the responses. Answer all questions with, "Just give me the first word you think of." 4. Score the test according to the "type" of examples given in this text. Oral PIS Language Inventory Directions: "Give the first word you think of when I say this word." 1. m 2. you 3. go 4. smile 5. old 6. all 7. few 8. work 9. high 10. day 11. city 12. first 13. open 14. large 15. white 16. pay 17. front 18. short 19. poor 20. top 21. before 22. mornmg 23. easy 24. hot 25. on 26. over 27. only 28. was 29. happy 30. down Student's name Years of schooling Date Age Teaching Basic Relationships 45 This test is very simple and should not threaten most students because it requires only oral responses. The test items are taken from the most often used words in the English language. The expected response is a contrast to the words given. The results indicate the level of performance the individual uses with regard to the general language performance expectations. Thus, if a student uses 50 percent "personal associations;' he will remain outside the general communication of expected associations half of the time. This, of course, would destrov anv communication behavior. The extent of the training in oral language sets will depend upon the individual's performance. All students should be informed, after testing is over, of the proper ways they should be using these basic sets in their thought patterns. To give the students support and reinforcement at this point, it is advisable to reemphasize that they have a perfectly working intellect, based upon the fact that they have learned a language. The following key gives examples of possible contrast and noncontrast (or personal) responses to the words in the test. The use of contrast responses by the student is considered correct for general language use. Any personal response is considered incorrect and indicates difficulty in general language communication. Word Responses Word Contrast Responses 1. in 2. you 3. go 4. smile 5. old 6. all 7. few out, on, over us, we, them, me stop, stay, corne frown, laugh, cry new, young, average none, some, few many, none, all Noncontrast (or Personal) Responses bed, jail, side gone, happy, here horne, to the store, up me, today, a while man, shoe, me gone, the candy, tall money, laughs, things (continued) 46 Adults Learn Again Word Contrast Responses 8. work play, unemployed, sleep 9. high low, middle, (hi - bye) 10. day night, week, year 11. city country, suburban, state 12. first last, middle, end 13. open closed, shut, ajar 14. large small, tiny, average 15. white black, yellow, red 16. pay give, take, steal 17. front back, side, middle 18. short long, average, regular 19. poor rich, wealthy, affiuent 20. top bottom, side, middle 21. before after, at, ante 22. morning evening, night, day 23. easy hard, average, soft 24. hot cold, warm, frozen 25. on off, in, under 26. over under, in, below 27. only every, all, some 28. was is, will, wasn't 29. happy sad, moody, ecstatic 30. down up, over, middle Noncontrast (or Personal) Responses none, for money, tonight drugs, sky, building Tuesday, December 25th, pay Atlanta, noise, traffic in line, day, book door, mouth, the can dog, car, building people, line, bread day, me, none door, of the line, teeth man, bread, you me, us, thing box, spin, dog noon, the class, him light, sun, sleepy money, time, chair sun, me, toast the bed, the stove, the money the moon, and easy, paid me, I came, one here, gone, in girl, dog, times and under, me, town In correcting the test, note the total number of responses that match the sample general communication associations. In order for students to be using the expected associations, they should have a score of 26-30 correct general association sets. The lower the score, the more difficulty a student will have in understanding communication. A score of 15 or under could Teaching BlUic Relatwnships 47 mean a total breakdown in a student's performance, especially in an educational setting where precise directions are given and performance can be achieved only if both the teacher and the student use a common language association base. Basic General Language Relationships Considering all the sections dealing with training a person to communicate with the general population, teaching basic generallanguage relationships is the most critical and often the most misunderstood. When a student can perform upon command to put an object in a container, this act demonstrates that he "knows" what in means. For example, "John, put the pen in the cup." He does it correctly. "John, take the pen out of the cup." He does it correctly. But you cannot draw the conclusion from these actions that he uses in-out as a thought set. You do not have to teach him "in" or "out"; he knows and can demonstrate that he knows these words. Your task is to pair them up as a set so that when "in" is used as a point of general communication, "out" is the automatic contrast response associated with the stimulus. Therefore, the training has as its goals the pairing of basic contrast sets, basic associations used in general language communication, and a common core of expected relationships. The following contrast sets have been selected because of the large amount of repetition found in our language. These sets should be taught and demonstrated often enough so that they become automatic thought patterns. These references are used to locate a relationship in time, space, amount, and quality. Without the use of these automatic thought responses, all succeeding training will ultimately break down. This training is paramount to success. It takes variable amounts of time for individuals to use these relationships correctly, but five to ten hours of planned instruction and home training seem to be sufficient for adults. The first step is to explain the total concept of why contrast thought patterns should be used. Next review some of the 48 Adults Learn Again "wrong" responses and explain that several lessons will be devoted to using the most common associations found in general language patterns. Contrast Sets Used to Teach Reading Time Relations Is-was was-will were-arc had-have did~o Space Relations top-bottom over-under above-below high-low u~own before-atter start-finish ~egin-cnd first-last front-back in-out lett-right apart-together open-closed to-from ncar-far on-off side-middle Amount Relations one-two none-all whole-part zero-cverything Quality Relations few-manY big-little long-short large-small straight-curved Here is a list of the most commonly used words in the English language. These words arc rank ordered as to their frequency of usc and comprise over half of all the words ever used in communication. (Contrast Word in Parentheses) 1. the (them) 2. and (but) 3. a (two) 29. ask (tell) 30. all (none) 31. this (those) 57. who (where) 58. them (it) 59. could (will) 85. two (a) 86. did (do) 87. some (none) Teaching Basic Relationships 49 4. to (from) 32. from (to) 60. do (did) 88. these (it) 5. of (to) 33. one (zero) 61. up (down) 89. than (neYer) 6. in (out) 34. or (and) 62. then (now) 90. after (before) 7. I (we) 35. are (were) 63. time (space) 91. down (up) 8. that (those) 36. were (are) 64. more (less) 92. see (saw) 9. was (is) 37. which 65. other 93. first (last) (why) (those) 10. it (them) 38. him (we) 66. [into]* 94. good (bad) 11. he (they) 39. my (our) 67. has (had) 95. yery (neYer) 12. for (against) 40. we (I) 68. man 96. know (woman) (unknown) 13. is (was) 41. me (them) 69. its (theirs) 97. may (is) 14. with 42. will (was) 70. like (were) 98. come (go) (without) 15. had (have) 43. an (two) 71. get (giYe) 99. made (make) 16. his (our) 44. there (out) 72. now (then) 100. thing (relation) 17. as (was) 45. would (can) 73. make 101. long (short) (made) 18. on (off) 46. their (her) 74. our (mine) 102. well (sick) 19. you (they) 47. when 75. little (big) 103. how (why) (where) 20. at (by) 48. so (did) 76. [don't]* 104. before (after) 21. haye (had) 49. said (say) 77. can (might) 105. [I'm]* 22. not (yes) 50. if (because) 78. year (day) 106. old (young) 23. but (arid) 51. no (yes) 79. only (all) 107. back (front) 24. her (their) 52. go (stop) 80. any (eYery) 108. much (little) 25. by (after) 53. about 81. oyer (under) 109. going (before) (went) 26. she (them) 54. been (be) 82. just (more) 110. many (few) 27. be (was) 55. what (why) 83. your.(our) 28. they (you) 56. out (in) 84. look (looked) *Two words cannot be contrasted. 50 Adults Learn Again Teaching Contrast Relations Units apple strawberry pear grapes banana orange Relations whole-piece big-small on-off top-bottom one-two Classes Fruit that grows on trees apple pear banana orange cherry System Fruit watermelon cantaloupe cherry Fruit thatgrows on vines grape strawberry watermelon cantaloupe Specific Relationships In order to develop a lesson to teach specific relationships, the following outline is suggested: Units Relations Classes Systems (the individual items) (time, space, amount, or quality) (separating individual items into groups) (subject area being used) This outline will be used throughout the entire instruction. Teaching Basic Relationships 51 It enables the student to follow a familiar pattern and accomplish the goal of an education, that is, that the student be able to demonstrate that he knows the subject matter under consideration by classifying the data. When preparing the outline, the teacher should start at the bottom and work up to the top. (When teaching the outline, he should start at the top and work to the bottom.) Thus, in developing an outline, choose something to work with that is part of the adult's experience. A system might be something to eat, such as fruit. Units The first section to develop is the units. Bring in real fruit, plastic pieces, or pictures, but each item should be separate so that when the student classifies the fruit he can put like pieces together. After each step has been completed, review the entire outline. Relations Items must be presented so that they can be put into the proper groups and the chosen contrast relations can be developed. Thus, using two apples, cut one into pieces and leave the other whole (whole-piece). Show a big orange and a small orange (big-small). Put some grapes on a plate, take some off a plate (on-off). Have someone point to the top of a strawberry and then point to its bottom (top-bottom). Point to one cherry, point to two cherries (one-two). Classes Fruit grows both on trees and on vines. For purposes of classification, separate into tree-grown and vine-grown the following fruit: apples, strawberries, pears, grapes, bananas, cherries, watermelons, canteloupes, and oranges. 52 Adults Learn Again Systems The lesson is to decide how to separate fruit into groups. Any of several different ways to separate fruit can be used-by size, color, or the areas, seasons, or even the manner of growth. No more than nine items in any given area should be used because this exercise also prepares the student for basic references in mathematics using numbers zero to nine. There are many variations for classification, and in the illustration a system with easily observable differences is used. Summary The entire procedure is designed to provide the student with automatic contrast responses and thought patterns that match general communication expectations. These contrast relation~ are used in teaching reading, writing, and mathematics. They are the fundamental core of the language; without these associations a person will remain at the personal level of communication and probably outside of formal instruction. The use of a teaching structure, units-relations-classes-system, enables the individual to process any type of data and to experience success at each level. All future material will follow the same format. One method of testing whether or not these relationships are automatic is to give the individual or group oral stimulus words and require instantaneous responses. This level is not useful for an extended period. Since people communicate in sentences, programs should be designed to move successively from words to complete sentences in the most efficient and quickest way possible. Teaching Basic Relationships 53 References Dinnan, James A. "Categorization of Paradigmatic-Syntagmatic Oral Responses." Journal ofReading Behavior 5:207-11. - - - , and Lodge, Robert A. Communication: A Meta Theory ofLanguage. Athens, Ga.: Jaddy Enterprises, 1976. Chapter 5 Teaching Written Communication In this chapter the steps used in preparing the student to communicate through writing are based on using the contrast relations developed during the oral language stage. The three sections are as follows: Reading Readiness Visual Line Discrimination Visual Letter Discrimination Visual Word Discrimination Reading Words Teaching Letters Types of Relation and Matter Words Most Frequently Used Words Reading Simple Sentences Basic Sentence Structure Changing Meaning Each section is presented with teaching suggestions. The time needed for instruction will vary from class to class and student to student. The teacher is encouraged to use any additional material available and adapt it to fit the desired competencies. SS 56 Adults Learn Again Reading Readiness Visual Line Discrimination Visual discrimination of lines is taught to help the student differentiate among various types of lines which make up the printed English language. The eleven basic lines that can be used to print the alphabet are classified into three categories: straight, curved, and hooked. Teaching Suggestions Using 5" x 8" unlined cards, draw the eleven lines with a mttqic marker. Place the individual cards on the chalk tray, making sure you mix the different ~YjJes oflines. Explain to the students that these are the lines that will be used to print the words and sentences that they will soon be reading. Point to the fOur straight lines, emphasizing that, although the lines are at different angles, they are all straight. Observe that the curved lines are a circle and two half-circles. Note that one is open on the front (left) and the other is open on the back (right). Compare the open curved lines to the closed curved lines. For the four hooked lines, point to the top and bottom hooks, and note the direction ofthe hook, front or back (left or right) . Call on students to choose two different ~YjJes oflines and tell the class whether the.y are straight, curved, or hooked. Note all the different sets of relations which can be made with these lines: long-short, top-bottom, front-back, open-closed, straight-curved. The final step is to have the students classify. Ask them to separate the cards into three piles according to the lines. Visual Letter Discrimination Letters are made up of lines. Alphabet readiness is to teach the student to discriminate the letters of the alphabet by noting the different height of the letters. Students are not taught the names of the letters at this time. On a music scale holder, place blue chalk at each end, green Teaching Written Communication 57 Figure 2 Visual Line Discrimination r Units ) '" 'I ( l,; / 0 I-J Relations I long ' I top J front short J bottom l,; back ( opcn 0 closcd I straight ) curvcd -,"'/ Classes straight CO) curvcd hookcd 'IrJl,; System lines S8 Adults Learn Again chalk next, and red chalk in the middle. Make a set of lines on the board, and identify the top blue line and the bottom blue line, then the top green line and the bottom green line. The middle line will be red. Print the alphabet on the board using the straight, curved, and hooked lines. The alphabet can be classified into categories, high, middle, low, according to the relationship to the lines, that is, high, middle, and low letters are discriminated by which color lines they touch. All high letters touch the top blue line, all low letters touch the bottom blue line, and all middle letters are between the two green lines. The red line is used for the center of the letters. Units abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz Relations open open at the top one curve high Letter c u n h Letter closed 0 open at the bottom n two curves m low y Classes High Letters bdfhklt Middle Letters acelmnor suvwxz Low Letters gJ P q y System Alphabet Teaching Suggestions On 5" X 8" unlined cards print each letter of the alphabet) using the same color lines as on the blackboard. Many students may know the names of various letters) but you should emphasize each letters formation by saying) (ens) that is a 'lJ/ Figure 3 Printing the Alphabet Using Straight, Curved, and Hooked Lines Blue I i1" Green lfz" 3" ! Red -- Green If2" 11" BIue BIue Middle Letter High Letter I i1" Green 1/2" 3" Red Green! Yi' Ii" BIue High Low Low Letter Letter Letter 60 Adults Learn Again but is it a high, middle, or low letter?)) Ask each student to identify at least two diffirent ~vpes ofletters. Ultimately have the students classify all twen~v-six letters into three piles of htqh, middle, and low letters. Use as many different internal relations (open-closed, etc) as possible during the training period. Visual Word Discrimination Visual word discrimination is used to establish that words can be made up of a few letters or many letters. The students do not have to read the words; only classifYing long and short words is necessary. The following outline can be used for teaching visual word discrimination patterns. Units it because brother on 10 justice particular up beautiful Relations Words with straight letters Word with high letters First letter Word with open letters it Word with pa~icular curved letters Word with beautiful low letter brother Last letter Word with because closed letter justice up brother on Classes Long Words because brother justice particular beautiful Short Words it on 10 up Teaching Written Communication 61 System Words Teaching Suggestions Use different words on the board but print them carefulZv, using the proper letter ftrmation. Establish that any one-~vllable word is classified as a short word and an.v multi-~vllabic word as a long word. Keep the words as long or short as possible to establish the concept. Place the words on individual cards and have the students make two piles, one oflong words, one ofshort ones. Reading Words Teaching Letters The use of time, space, amount, and quality can apply to all aspects of teaching communication. Individual letters of the alphabet can be,printed by using three lines: straight, curved, and hooked. The adult student must learn to discriminate and recognize letters in relation to the position of the three lines. For example, a middle hooked line with a curved line on the front is an "a," a high straight line with a curved line in back is "b." "I" is a high letter, "p" is a low letter. The use of high, low, and middle and of front and back, together with practice in drawing the three lines in various combinations, should enable the students to print the alphabet in a short time. A word of caution is in order at this time. Since 99 percent of the writing the adult students will see will be printed, they should not be exposed to cursive writing. The idea in learning to print the alphabet is to spend the least amount of time possible on this phase of reading and writing. The letters of the alphabet should be presented in contrast pairs. Choose the largest possible number of discrimination patterns when making up the pairs. Make five-line paper for the 62 Adults Learn Again student to print on by getting three different color ditto sheetsred, green, blue (or purple). First, make the blue lines, then slip the green carbon under the front sheet and draw the green line. Finally, put the red carbon under and draw the red line. Thus, you will have five-line, three-color paper to match the form printed on the board. Demonstrate the correct contrasts in each pair, and explain the various lines used to make the letters. The students should use the correct form of the letters. This will help them discriminate words much faster when they start to read. A suggested sequence might be as follows: ab 1) gr wf cd kl st xv ef mn ub zp gh op vh Note the position of the mouth when forming the letters, also give several oral examples of words beginning with the letters under consideration. Since there are twenty-eight different sounds to the letter a, and twenty-two sounds to the letter 0, do not separate long and short vowel sounds at this time. Rather, try to be consistent in using words with like sounds. Even though most students have some knowledge of the letters, both in oral and written form, their awareness of the important features of the printed symbol is sharpened by this exerCIse. Types of Relation and Matter Words The two major types ofwords are matter and relation. Matter words refer to anything that has weight and volume. A simple explanation terms anything that can be heard, felt, tasted, touched, or seen a matter word. Matter words can be classified into two categories: human and nonhuman. They can be broken down into other classes, of course, but for this exercise two categories are sufficient. Teaching Written Communication 63 Matter Word\- Human I-we man-woman boy-girl teacher-pupil Nonhuman pencil-pen chalk-eraser table-chair door-window Relation Word\- A relationship word locates one piece of matter with another. Thus, "John is in the old barn" reveals the relationship of John to barn. time-is space-l11 amount-the quality-old Learning to identity the four types of relationship words is the ultimate classification exercise for this chapter. Time Is-was have-had arc-were now-then do-did was-will Amount one-two none-all whole-part few-manv Space top-bottom over-under in-Dut up-down open-closed on-Dfl' Quality old-new big-little long-short large-small Teaching Suggestions Discuss clearly the difference between a matter JVord and a re- lation JVord. Ask ifyou could put a pound of candy or a glass in your 64 Adults Learn Again hand and then ask fOr a pound ofCCinJJ or a pound ofccup.JJ ReinfOrce the concept that matter has weight and volume. Present the relation words on 3" x 5" cards, one word on each halfofthe card. IN-OUT Give each student ten cards. Mi.'JC up the words so that some are in each ofthe categories. You could also print the words in pairs on the boardfOr the students to copy. Explain what the words mean; demonstrate everything possible. For example, when you explain the set tofrom, you should walk to the door and then from the door. Ifyou are differentiating on-off, put something on the table then take it off the table. Demonstrate is-was-will be by showing something is here; remove it, it was here; then explain that will be means it is coming. Language helps us observe the world around us. If we cannot experience it through our senses, then both teacher and learner will remain confused. After the students have learned twenty sets of words (forty words), take scissors, cut the words apart, and mix them up. Ask the students to match them together correctly again. Then give them two moregroups ofwords and repeat again. Enlar;ging the word bank can continue as long as the students wish to improve their vocabularies. Remember, only use contrast sets, nevergive single words. Most Frequently Used Words The list of contrast words in Chapter 4 includes over half of the words a person will ever speak, hear, read, or write in the English language. Each pair of words should become a part of the student's thinking patterns and should be perceived on sight. Thus, with these words mastered, the student knows half of everything he will read. One way to expand vocabulary is to provide the students a framework in which to place these words. This framework is called a spectrum. Teaching Written Communication 65 Some spectrums range from minus to zero to plus and thus contrasts on both sides of the zero, such as frozen-cool or burning-warm as well as hot-cold, can be developed. Other spectrums start at zero and progress towards an end. Regardless of the method the teacher uses to expand the students' vocabulary, words must always be given in pairs since one item cannot be understood bv itself. The student should be encouraged to get his own dictionary or, better still, a thesaurus. The basic rules of retrieving, alphabetical sequence, guide vv'Ords, multiple meanings, etc., can be taught when the teacher judges that the students are ready. A notebook for recording spectrums should be part of the students' home responsibility. Specific assignments might be given to the group as a whole, for example, "What words do we use to express our feelings towards or away from other people?" Suggest pairs such as like-dislike, love-hate. Reading Simple Sentences Basic Sentence Structure All preparation for the development of language awareness culminates in the most basic form of communication, the sentence. It is the point at which all training equalizes, and the relationship of the world around us becomes a shared experience with other human beings. The written form should be presented with the greatest possible simplicity of structure. All sentences have as their major purpose the communication of two pieces of matter, using time, space, amount, and quality as the indicators of the specific relationships. Thus, the most frequently used words are constantly repeated to indicate relationships among a multitude of matter references. Figure 4 Spectrum Ranging from Frozen to Boiling frozen freezing cold l1'D1 hot searing bolling~ S Figure 5 pectrum of Ll'1i:e Stages <4llIr :inf:an~t ~~=~ youth middle-age . \' elderly 70 Adults Learn Again Teaching Suggestions Write several word pairs on the board. Examples could be: father man baby gas garage house crib tank Point out that each word is used to name a given piece ofmatter and that each has weight and volume. Now, add a relation word. Father was in the garage. The man is in the old house. The baby will be in the crib. The gas is in the tank. Discuss the individual words, their categories (time, space, amount, and quality), and the relationships of the complete simple sentence as a source ofknowledge about the world. Do this exercise fOr at least twenty-jive diffirent simple sentences. Have the students use familiar items and give them the assignment to develop several sentences with items found in their home environment. Make sure they use two pieces ofmatter in each sentence. Give them a sentence or two without both pieces of matter, and discuss the problems of using sentences with only one matter reference. For example: He isgone. -Gone where? To bed, dead, from the country? The truck is in. -1n what? The water, the garage, the city? Stress that clarity in communication depends on relating two pieces of matter in a sentence. Changing Meaning Matter references in a sentence can be used in a variety of relationships. By changing each specific relationship, a new meaning is communicated; thus, through contrast, an awareness of the power of the most frequently used words can be developed. Designing the specific relationship to be changed, such as Teaching Written Communication 71 time or space, can act as a check to find out if these categories are understood bv the students. father was in the garage. Change time-Father is in the garage. Change time-Father will be in the garage. Change space-Father was near the garage. Change space-Father was far from the garage. Each sentence can be manipulated at least five different ways. The student develops an awareness of the various meanings, plus a repeated exposure to new vocabulary. Teaching Suggestions Write fOur simple sentences on a sheet of paper, leaving space below each sentence fOr at least five changes. Change matter references, father (mother), house (church, or any building), as well as relation reftrences, in (out), is (was). After making the changes in these four sentences, ask the students to dictate a sentence fOr you to print on the board and then have them change specific relationships at your direction. . Continue thts ~vpe ofexercise fOr about thi~v different sentences. Each time, stress how a single relationship changes the entire meaning ofthe communication. References Cartelli, L. M. "An Experimental Study in Oral Language Readiness in Paradigmatic Language Behavior in Two Primary Classes of Learning Disabled Children." Ph.D. dissertation, University of Georgia, 1976. 72 Adults Learn Again Dinnan, James A. "A Comparison of Thorndike/Lodge and Carroll Prime Frequcncy Word Lists." Reading Improvement 12 (1975): 44-46. McNinch, G.; Richmond, M.; and Hornsby, J. "Syntagmatic-Paradig- matic Shifting in Word Associations across Grade Levels." Southern Journal ofEducational Research 4 (1970): 193-206. Chapter 6 Teaching Basic Communication As the basic form of communication, the sentence relates two or more matter words by indicating specific types of relationships between and among them. The four types of relationships among the matter words are time, space, amount, and often quality. Thus, any basic form of communication must provide a minimum of two matter words in order to avoid confusion in the exchange of ideas. The man is at the new bank. man, bank - matter relation is - time relation at - space relation the - amount relation new - quality relation The basic reason for communication is fc)r a person to perceive the relationship of the world around him. If the student is to understand the fundamental use of language, more specifically the sentence, and know how the parts make up the whole, then he will need a series of vocabulary development exercises. 73 74 Adults Learn Again This chapter includes sentence development, paragraphs, theme, organization, and writing about life experiences. Sentence Development In teaching the basics of sentence structure, the teacher can exchange various parts of the sentence and demonstrate to the students how the entire meaning is changed when this is done. Before proceeding, the teacher should make sure that concepts of the relational aspects of time, space, amount, and quality are understood in a general manner. The sentence should be introduced in its basic form before progression to a more complex set of relationships is attempted. Since at this point the student should have mastered most of the prime frequency words, expanding his vocabulary in reference to matter words is now very important. Remember to continue to use a contrast to every word presented. For example: cat-dog father-mother bank-school pipe-matches door-window Thus, when a sentence is dictated bv a student, the teacher should ask for a contrast and put the second sentence on the board. Make sure the students copy both sentences in their notebooks. The woman was making a salad. The woman was making a cake. Any contrast word to salad would be acceptable; any word the student uses which is a contrast to the word given should be accepted. Proceed with at least twenty-five basic sentences, each with a contrasting sentence, and have the students place the new con- Teaching Basic Communication 75 trast words in the vocabularv section of their notebooks. The vocabularv. thev. choose will be words in which thev. have the greatest interest, and this selection will help individualize the instruction. Every day each student should be given sentences that only he reads and writes. One person might be interested in tools while another is interested in learning how to read a bookkeeping text. Usc a common list of the most used words, such as the American Herita;lfe Word Frequencv Book, to instruct the class. The tollowing "question words" should be introduced as a signal tor further intormation on the part of the reader. When, where, how many, who, what, wi1\', how when-time where-space how manv-amount who-human matter what-nonhuman matter why-one's assessment of a relationship how-sequence of events Place several sentences on the board and then ask questions which require specific answers. The man is under the car. When is the man under the car? (past, present, tllture) Where is the man? How manv men are in this sentence? Who is under the car? What is the man under? Whv is the man under the car? The woman took the cans out of the old cabinet 111 her kitchen and cleaned the shelves. When did the woman clean the shelves? (past, present, future) Where did the woman clean the shelves? How manv shelves did she clean? Who cleaned the shelves? What did the woman clean? Whv did she clean the shelves? 76 Adults Learn Again How did the woman clean the cabinet1 Was the cabinet old or new1 By providing an awareness of the meaning of the several types of questions which can be asked, the teacher can help the student see the necessity for clear writing. Also, the teacher can bring the student to an understanding of the reason authors use sentences with a number of words. Write the following sequence of sentences on the board, and explain how each sentence adds to the clarity of the communication. The man went to the store. The man, Mr. Jones, went to the store. The man, Mr. Jones, went to the drug store. The man, Mr. Jones, went to the drug store this morning. The man, Mr. Jones, went to the drug store at the mall this morning. The man, Mr. Jones, who lives at 25 Spring Street, went to the Revco drug store at the mall on highway 319 this morning. Paragraphs A paragraph is a grouping of sentences about a specific subject or relationship. Each of the sentences adds further clarity to the subject. One way to show how the sentences all fit together is to present a short paragraph and ask the students how each sentence gives further understanding to the subject. Then, in order for them to understand the structure of a paragraph, give them a paragraph with a sentence that does not belong and see if they can pick it out. The woman went to the store to buy a dress. She wanted to spend no more than $20. The first store she went to had only dresses from $50 to $150. They were nice, but she could not afford them. Then she found a little store that had just what she wanted. She bought a red dress for $18. Teaching Basic Communication 77 Mr. Smith had a wreck with his car, and he wanted to get it fixed. He got three estimates; all were too high for him. The cheese sandwich was awful. He had to fix it himself. He saved a lot of money and did a good job. Make a point of noting that each paragraph is always indented, indicating a new type of relationship. The subject has not changed, but a new relationship is going to be presented. Mary went to buy a new car. She had been looking at all the prices in the paper. She decided to look at two cars, a Ford and a Chevrolet. The salesman was very nice when she arrived. They talked about how much money she had to spend. He showed her several cars she could afford. The car she finally bought was a blue, two-door Ford. It had attractive bucket seats and white sidewall tires. Theme Organization A theme i~ a series of sentences organized into paragraphs about a given subject. The basic concepts of a theme are sequence and clarity of information. One of the best ways to help an individual read and write a theme is by teaching him how to outline. Organization of thoughts into main ideas and subordinate details can be taught from a simple outline. Stress the concept that paragraphs are new relationships about the main subject. One important item in a theme is its summary conclusions. This final paragraph should address the problem presented, suggest pertinent questions, or summarize the data presented. Writing about Life Experiences Writing about life experiences provides the adult basic education student a concrete way to write themes on topics of inter- 78 Adults Learn Again est. Themes can be adapted to the educational level of the individual and can provide hundreds of high-interest topics. In addition to developing a writing habit and recording his experiences, the adult can test his new learning about the topic of his theme. For example, a chronically tardy adult may write a theme on the value of being punctual when reporting to work, try the new behavior, and evaluate its effectiveness for his future conduct. When preparing newly literate adults to write about life experiences, it is helpful to stress the role of the adult as a parent, consumer, worker, and citizen. These four basic themes can provide the integration between the instruction received in the classroom and its application to real life. This is individualized instruction at its best since each theme comes from the adult student's life. Behavior is modified, and new learning occurs when the learner applies new concepts by writing themes and acting them out in his daily life. An initial job-related theme may be very simple. For example: My name is Mary Brown. I work in a factory. I repair telephones. As the student progresses in writing skills, the theme becomes more complex. My name is Mary Brown, and I work for the Southern Bell Telephone Company. I work in the repair shop on Central Avenue where I replace broken plastic telephone parts. Finally, the student begins to develop relationships in her theme by writing in greater detail about her work and her ambitions. My name is Mary Brown, and I work tor the Southern Bell Telephone Company on Central Avenue replacing plastic telc- Teaching Basic Communication 79 phone parts. I am interested in learning about assembling telephone circuits and in training for home telephone installation. My supervisor, Mr. Jones, told me that I could qualify for a job as a repairman if I take algebra and earn a high school equivalency certificate. I talked to the school counselor about my plans. Life-experience writing benefits students by allowing them to grow in understanding their own life circumstances and teachers by giving more information about their students' lives and aspirations. The illustrations move from the very concrete-I repair telephones-to the complex-I replace broken plastic telephone parts-to establishing basic relationships-I, my supervisor, algebra) GED. Inferences can be made from the last theme. It appears that Ms. Brown is concerned about passing algebra, and, while it may not be required to take the General Education Development (GED) test, her supervisor has made algebra and the GED prerequisites for a better job. Ms. Brown also implied that she plans to take algebra and the GED since she talked to the school counselor about her plans. The teacher and counselor should be better prepared to help Mary Brown since they now have more information about her. She may not have the background to take high school algebra, but she is certainly motivated to take the prerequisite courses. As Ms. Brown moved from the concrete to the complex and inferential in her writing, she demonstrated growth in her ability to communicate. At the concrete level, communication is difficult and related more to a child's thought patterns than an adult's. It is difficult to find relationships between sentences and paragraphs. As the adult student learns to write more skillfully about his life experiences, he is also learning to think logically. It is reasonable to assume that the adult student can function more effectively in his life roles as he learns to organize his thoughts in writing about these roles. Writing themes about his lite experiences also makes the adult a more competent reader. As he begins 80 Adults Learn Again to use relationships and make implications in his own writing, he begins to recognize them in passages he reads. For example: Southern Bell Telephone is a high-technology company. Its recruiters are looking for qualified employees. Southern Bell is a quality company to work for. The following relationships may be observed: Southern Bell-technical subjects Adult student-preparation Southern Bell employee-good compensation Conclusion The concept underlying the study of communication in this book is based on teaching a system of thought and language patterns using relationships of time, space, amount, and quality. Once these patterns are learned by the adult student, he is ready to tackle more complex relationships. Complex life experiences appear to be the best source for teaching theme writing. Family, work, community, and consumer relationships offer hundreds of situations about which the adult student can write. Language is the key to thought, and it follows that the more perceptively a person can write about his life, the more likely he is to make judicious life decisions. Newly literate adults should be encouragcd to write every day. The teacher's role should be to assist thc student to grow in his writing ability by helping him to recognize relationships, alternativcs, and inconsistencies. References Dinnan, James A., and Lodge, Robert A. Communication: A Meta Theory ofLanguage. Athens, Ga.: Jaddy Enterprises, 1976. Teaching Basic Communication 81 Newman, Anabel P. Adult Basic Education Reading. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, Inc., 1980. Stauffer, Russel G. The Language Experience Approach to the Teaching of Reading. 2d ed. New York: Harper & Rmv, 1980. Chapter 7 Teaching the GED Student Sometimes teachers will look at a book's table of contents and turn to the chapter or chapters dealing with their immediate assignments or specific interests. If this is the first chapter you have turned to, before reading it you will need to read Chapters 4, 5, and 6 on the fundamentals of reading instruction because this chapter builds on the training in those chapters. As with any good structure, the foundation must be solid if the building is to last. Without the knowledge of how language works in communication, a person might be able to perform a "repeat" task yet still not understand the significance of doing it and certainly not be able to extrapolate the conception to new and unfamiliar material. The General Education Development Test The General Education Development (GED) test is an examination designed to test a person's ability to function at a high school level. The test was developed some forty years ago and has been revised several times over the years. The GED is a fivepart, multiple choice test covering the following areas: Test 1Writing Skills, Test 2-Social Studies, Test 3-Science, Test 4- 83 84 Adults Learn-Again Reading Skills, and Test 5-Mathematics. Test administration time varies from one and one-half to two hours, depending on the test. All states have developed standard scores required to pass the test, and most states issue a high school credential for successfully passing the battery of tests. The credential issued by the various states is a legal certificate and can be used as a high school diploma for purposes of employment, college admission or certification in areas requiring a high school diploma. While the numbers of persons completing the GED vary from state to state and year to year, approximately 12 percent of high school completions in the United States each year are GED graduates. The requirements to take the GED differ from state to state, and it is recommended that the adult basic education teacher become familiar with his state's regulations which determine a person's eligibility to take the GED. Two of the tests, writing skills and mathematics, require specific information in order to be successfully completed. Grammar, punctuation, and spelling are included in the writing skills test, while arithmetic, algebra, and geometry are included in the mathematics test. The other three tests, social studies, science, and reading, depend on the student's ability to read and interpret passages from the respective fields of study. The GED has been widely accepted by business, industry, and education. The high school credential issued for successfully passing the GED has over the years added a new dimension to adult education; that is, an evening program that offers a high school credential based on performance rather than "time in seat." This chapter will cover the general parts usually tested by the reading section of the GED test. Although students must be informed that reading is an integral part of the entire examination, including mathematics, this section relates to the reading skills section and will cover: Vocabulary skills Reading comprehension Teaching the GED Student 85 General reading Practical reading Prose reading Poetry Drama Vocabulary For a student to understand any materials, he must know the words and their general meanings. It is impossible to understand any item by itself; it must have a contrast. With a contrast, a person can correctly store information in his memory and retrieve it on command. Therefore, any vocabulary training, no matter how brief, should be done by presenting contrast pairs. The GED test uses many formal types of words in its questions. In order for students to understand what answers are required, it is necessary for them to have a working vocabulary of the words used in the questions. Select five sets of words each day and ask the students to write them in their notebooks at the beginning of class. These words should be placed in a special technical vocabulary section and not mixed with their general vocabulary list. Give examples of new sets and quickly review the old ones. Since vocabulary development is an ongoing process, the general vocabulary list should be presented in the same way each day. The following contrast sets of words can be used to begin vocabulary building. fiction autobiography formal poetry connote dialogue tragedy optimism nonfiction biography informal drama denote monologue comedy pessimism 86 Adults Learn Again poet paragraph word main idea symbolic infer novelist line letter subordinate idea real state Use these sets of words in contrasting sentences. Make sure everyone understands the contrasting meaning. Add any contrast set to these often used "question words" that were found to have caused your former students trouble. Examples: A book offiction is not a true or factual story. A book of nonfiction is based upon a real event or a series of facts. An autobiography is written by the person the story is about. A biography about a person is written by someone else, not the person the story is about. Aformal event is carried out according to a set of rules. An informal event is a happening that takes place as the group wants or decides. Poetry is language in rhythm or rhyme. Drama is a play performed by actors about the behavior of some person or persons. Reading Comprehension Comprehension is an individual's ability to perceive the relationships intended by an author. In a broader sense, it would include any form of the arts or sciences. The writer records his observations of the world about him and attempts to share them Teaching the GED Student 87 with other individuals; the reader brings his actual or vicarious experiences to the situation which he integrates with his reading, thus developing new relationships. When this happens, communication has been achieved. Often authors are highly sensitive to a specific set of circumstances and their insights help others cope with everyday living and heighten their knowledge of their relationship to the world about them. Comprehension is not memorization of great numbers of facts but rather useful knowledge which is stored. Thus, the teacher's task is to help the individual become conscious of the relationships among items, events, and the people involved in them, especially themselves. The structure of the material presented in the GED uses the contrast of main idea with supporting details. The main idea has several other names. An example of an item with several names all referring to the same thing might be used with the students. Frankfurter-hot dog, wiener, red hot, dog, frank. Main idea-theme, writer's expression, author's expression, author's intent, general theme, good headline, best title, primary idea, most important thing, passage subject, topic, main controlling idea, and passage meaning. The main idea can also be expressed as to the "matter" under consideration. Is the author writing about a person or a group of people? Is the author writing about a specific thing or a group of things? The author can write about a specific relationship, such as love, running, or courage. The object of locating the main idea is to allow the student to identify the subject under consideration and separate it from the supporting sentences. The term, supporting details, also has several names, all referring to the same concept. Each time an author gives an example in support of the main idea, he is attempting to help the reader understand by giving him several different types of relationships, thereby drawing on his experience. 88 Adults Learn Again Supporting details-specific facts, who, what, where, why, how, which, example, subtopic, verified details, and subordinate ideas. Often a reader is confused when an author uses too many different types of relationships as examples to support his main idea. It is necessary to alert the student to the general use of the first or last sentence as a topic sentence. It is also important to remind the student that the indentation at the beginning of a new paragraph signals that a new type of relationship is about to be presented, not a new topic but a different relationship to the main idea. The GED test usually provides short themes with only a few paragraphs. The questions involve much more detailed information than main ideas alone so teachers should use the same type ofvocabulary in their training as the students will encounter in the real examination. General Reading The section in the GED test called general reading presents material that might be encountered by an individual during the course of his everyday living. The subject matter can range from social issues to light science features. The basic idea is to ascertain whether or not the student can read for understanding in several areas. Facts are called for and a great number of questions are based upon the student making an inference. The factual questions depend a great deal on the precise reading of the question. Words such as who, what, where, when, how, and how much demand exact information. ''Who'' and ''what'' call for an answer that involves some type of "matter." ''Where'' involves a special relation. ''When'' involves a time reference. "How" asks for some type of sequence. "How much" requires an amount answer. Be careful to have your students note the words such as not, except, least, all, or but. Often students TelUhing the GED Student 89 overlook these small but important words in their haste to complete the test. The word that causes the most difficulty for the student is why. If the answer is not specifically stated in the test, the individual must assess the situation presented and, using his best judgment and knowledge of the facts, render an answer to the question. There are many types of intricate relations that could influence a given situation, but the student must be taught to give a general assessment of the situation-one which is most often the case, not the exception. For example: The man wiped the sweat from his brow on his shirtsleeve. His hair was all mussed up. As he drank from the cup, the water rolled down his chin. His shoes were covered with mud and tied with string. You could smell him ten feet away. What is the writer implying about the character of this man? a. neat b. hard c. SISSY d. calm e. messy f impeccable Well, you would probably say messy (e) is the correct answer. It is the most acceptable answer from the facts of the paragraph. However, the case could be made that the man might have only used his oldest clothes for a very dirty, hard job, and was really a very neat and orderly person. But that thil1king is really conjecture; the only data to work with is what is written on the page, and the student who wants to qualify his answer, even if it could be right, will miss the question time after time. Students must be aware of the need to stick with the material at hand and answer in general terms. Using poems, short stories, and paragraphs as a means of asking the student inference questions based upon how a person acts or a thing operates can help the student understand that 90 Adults Learn Again many questions are based upon what the author has written about a situation and implied but not specifically stated in the words used in the question. Material on many subject areas should be used in preparing for the GED because inferences must be made by the students throughout the entire GED test. Practical Reading Practical reading involves material found in many types of papers and books and usually presents some type of information retrieval task. The single most important point for the student to keep in mind is awareness that the skill being tested is following directions. Sequence, location of information, matching questions with presented material, and inference will be required. The student should be taught to scan and skim the presented material first and then quickly note the type of questions being asked. Then, he should rapidly read the selection and answer the questions. Words such as entry, illustrates, before, first, usually, object, frame, situation,form, article, or best-jits should be contrasted and put into the technical vocabulary section of the students' books. You might get several government forms and practice filling them out with your students. Duplicate a cake recipe that gives mixing directions and add a series of questions for them to answer. Several card catalogue items might be put on one sheet, and questions that would require precise searching could be also used. Of course, newspapers are a main source of training material and are usually available from the publisher free of charge. Finally, propaganda can be noted through the use of words that include or exclude everything or everybody. For example; i~s true, all, none, every, never, and always are words used to sell people ideas or merchandise. Who wrote the material? Why was it written? What is it trying to do? These are questions that should be noted when reading any type of material whether it be ideology or some radical group's material as examples of blatant propaganda. The more subtle propaganda will take even a very keen person some time to understand. Teaching the GED Student 91 Prose Reading Prose reading can be divided into contrasting pieces. Practical prose might be considered textbooks or informative data, while literary prose is a communication of fiction or nonfiction (essays, biography). The GED test concentrates on literary prose in the Reading Skills Test. Again, you must assist the students in recognizing the author as an artist painting a picture of a character, scene, situation, or specific types of relationships. The author is trying to share his experience with the reader in the most vivid way possible. People's behavior because of different happenings or circumstances and their causes and effects is ever-present in a work of art. The author's communication is an attempt to search for the order and structure of the world about him, and, by his words, make the reader also aware. As a painter uses many shades of color, so too does the author use many shades of words. He chooses them carefully and blends them into the whole structure. Often, you read a work over and over and each time you are surprised by a new insight, and, to your delight, you too can relate to another experience, something you now share with the author. This, of,course, is the joy of reading a teacher hopes each student will someday have. For now, the task is to teach an awareness of what lies ahead and ask questions of plot and setting, inferring character, tone, style, and passage meaning. The New Cambridge GED Program) The Reading Skills Test, has several sections on these skills and the type of questions usually asked on the GED test. Develop several ofyour own favorite selections using the same format. Have your students prepare their own examples of prose according to this format. Again, "inference" is a big part of the test, and the use of the generally accepted answer should be reviewed. Poetry Poetry is language in rhythm or rhyme or both. It can be a work of art or a piece of junk. Fortunately, many works of art 92 Adults Learn Again remain from our heritage. Poetry, like other forms of written expression, is an author's attempt to share his experiences about the world with other human beings. Since language in rhythm or rhyme is deeply pleasing to the human mind, another dimension is added through poetry. One of the most versatile styles of writing, poetry offers many familiar short selections. Choose your favorites and enjoy sharing the beauty of verse. Beware of the cultural bias that poetry is only for sissies or little children. Discuss the beauty of the poem, the loveliness of its rhythm or rhyme, and the emotion the poet is experiencing so your students can learn to appreciate and like poetry. The use of figurative language should be discussed in terms of examples the students know from their backgrounds. In that way it can be shown that authors also use figurative language in their poems. The vocabulary of meter, irony, mood, repetition, sound, rhyme, rhythm, and literal meaning should all be interwoven with demonstrations and discussions of many short poems ranging from Shakespeare to modern well-known poets. Remember that most of the difficult or unknown words of a poem are given in a glossary after the poem. Drama Drama is meant to be seen and heard, not read. One of the most difficult parts of reading drama is the insertion of the names of the speakers and the various directions or settings. The same question words of who, where, when, how or why should be reviewed before attempting to read any drama since only small excerpts from the play can be used. Drama is a form of communication that was used long before most people were taught how to read (as was the opera which was meant for everyone to see and hear). One of the keys to reading drama excerpts is to skim down the names of the speakers and note how many people are involved in the story. In addition, skim the difficult words pre- Teaching the GED Student 93 sented at the end of the selection. Also note the number of lines usually set off in multiples of five. You should approach a drama selection the same way as you did a poem or an excerpt from a short story. It is an author's communication about a world he knows and the actors bring their skills to give the audience the feeling of being there. Many of the questions require an inference type answer so you should work with the words implies or imply versus stated with your students. U sing Practice Tests One final suggestion. Before taking the GED, your students should take the practice test developed for the GED. The practice test is free and is available from the American Council on Education upon request. The answer sheets, questions, and instructions are the same type and format as the GED. During the practice test administration, you can show the adult student the correct position of the answer sheet, how to read the test booklet and record answers efficiently, and how to estimate the amount of time to use on each section. This is the proper time to instruct the adult on test-taking procedures such as the generally accepted'belief that the first response to a question is usually correct. The student's score on the practice sets will give you a good indication of the scores the student will achieve on the GED. Use the results of this pretesting to praise the students while correcting their deficiencies. Adult students tend to become nervous in a test situation. Excessive nervousness can effectively lower test scores and may cause the adult to fail at this critical time. Familiarity with the test format, administration, and amount of time allocated for each test should help the student perform effectively. Time spent on the practice tests is valuable and should never be cut short. Through proper instruction in the communication program and orientation to the GED, you can take pride in helping your students achieve the goal of high school education. 94 Adults Learn Again References Dinnan, James A., and Lodge, Robert A. Communication: A Meta Theory ofLanguage. Athens, Ga.: Jaddy Enterprises, 1976. The New Cambridge GED Program. The Reading Skills Test. New York: Cambridge Co., 1978. UNIT III TEACHING COMPUTATION Chapter 8 Principles of Teaching Mathematics to Adults Teaching mathematics to adults offers the adult teacher a most rewarding experience on the one hand or a frustrating experience for the student and himself on the other. The premise of this chapter states that three elements are required for teaching mathematics successfully: 1. Mathematics is communication and the logic of teaching communication must be applied to the language of mathematics. 2. A mathematics curriculum must be based on the relationships of time, space, amount, and quality, and the adult student must master these relationships in his language patterns to learn mathematics successfully. 3. The adult teacher must understand the principles of adult learning. The successful mathematics teacher who understands and applies these three elements and who has adequate knowledge of the subject matter will find that his students are highly motivated and will readily learn the basic concepts that are essential for continuing mathematics study. 97 98 Adults Learn Again The Language of Mathematics Relationships are conveyed by spoken or written language, and learning is complete when the essential relationships in the communication and mastery of the facts and principles are understood by the adult student. It follows that in teaching mathematics adequate time must be given to the search for the relationships. This is the fundamental problem in teaching mathematics; it has been demonstrated repeatedly that the adult who returns to school does not necessarily understand either verbal or written relationships and consequently does not grasp the underlying mathematical concepts. Therefore, a study of the language of mathematics in terms of the basic relationships of time, space, and amount must be undertaken before the more traditional instruction is presented. Theoretically, almost any concept can be understood if it is presented to the learner in terms of his ability to understand the language and in terms of his experience. This is illustrated in mathematics in instances where elementary school children are taught calculus concepts and can solve problems in the subject. Understanding language is the first requisite to solving a problem in mathematics. Solving a sentence or mathematics problem consists of selecting the right elements of the situation and putting them together in the right relations, with, in addition, the right amount of weight or influence for each. Dinnan and Lodge (1976) view language as an integral part of man's comprehension and believe that a thorough understanding of the meaning of language is basic to the nature of comprehension. They further state that all data are assimilated using the same intellectual processes and that these processes are dependent upon the recognition and utilization of certain relationships. The relationships referred to by Dinnan and Lodge, basically those of time, space, amount, and quality, are the same for teaching reading and mathematics although the emphasis shifts from words in reading to numbers and signs in mathematics. Principles ofTeaching Mathematics to Adults 99 Clear communication in mathematics is achieved when the teacher and adult student are using the same basic relationships in communication, either verbal or written. This allows the adult student to clarify and organize his thoughts in understanding the concept as well as solving the problem. Mathematics Anxiety Mathematics anxiety or mathophobia is so prevalent among adult students who return to the classroom that the phenomenon should be noted. Mathematics anxiety is widespread for people who are fully capable of mastering elementary arithmetic although they dislike it. This conflict indicates a strong emotional response to mathematics, which stems from many factors, educational and social, and is most likely a result of unfortunate childhood experiences in learning mathematics. Mathematics tends to build on itself cumulatively in the sense that the adult must master whatever material is presented in order to have success with subsequent materials. When the adult misses something, there is a gap in his information that will cause problems sooner or later. Some authorities believe that memorization in place of understanding helps to generate anxiety. In many cases, negative teacher attitudes and feelings about mathematics are reflected in the attitudes and feelings of the student. Whatever the cause of mathematics anxiety, student frustrations in attempting to learn mathematics are the result. Low self-esteem, previous failures, and embarrassment at being back in a learning setting are important factors in mathematics anxiety in adult students. The adult teacher who is aware that perhaps as many as half the class members are anxious to the extent that their anxiety interferes with learning mathematics will plan his teaching program to relieve these anxieties. Deemphasizing grades and examinations and creating a mutually supportive classroom atmosphere will go a long way in alleviating anxieties about mathematics. Other sections of this book also describe 100 Adults Learn Again teaching programs that are conducive to relaxing adults' general tensions about learning. Mathematics anxiety, as well as other fears about school, will vanish when the adult understands that the curriculum for adult education is individualized and the application is essentially tailor-made for the student. Of course, it is essential that the students achieve early success in mathematics and see its practicality for solving routine life problems. Curriculum Principles Introductory mathematics should be thought of as communication and should not be isolated from the reading program. Exercises in relationships such as high-low, large-small, and whole-part conducted for reading readiness should use numbers and mathematical concepts as well as reading concepts to familiarize adults with mathematical relationships. The adult student should move from the concrete to the abstract in terms of relationships as preparation for substituting numbers and symbols for concepts. A factor in successfully teaching mathematics is the ability to communicate relationships between objects using terminology that the adult students understand. The adult student should not begin the study of mathematics until he has completed the Oral Language Readiness Assessment and has demonstrated his ability to locate objects and concepts in time, space, amount, and quality. Mathematics has specialized language consisting of words, phrases, numbers, and symbols. It should never be assumed that the adult knows what add to (+), subtract from ( -), divide by ( + ), greater than (, less than ), and equal to (=) mean, much less the concepts the symbols refer to. These words, phrases, numbers, and symbols should be related to time, space, and amount in terms the adult understands before he begins to manipulate them. The basic organization for teaching mathematics concepts is a classification system for presenting new information to adult Principles ofTeaching Mathematics to Adults 101 students. The system utilizes units, relationships, classes, and systems. When information is processed through these four categories, a structured and concrete learning transaction is probable. The unit is the basic stimulus or learning task, for example, the names of items, such as fractions. Relationships used to measure the likeness or differences of any given unit are time, space, amount, and quality references. Classes are groups of units that have been compared and found to have some observable similarities or differences. Systems are groups of units that tie together several classes because of a broader relationship (the subject under consideration) . The introduction of common fractions as a svstem illus- trates this concept. The unit would be a fraction or fractions, the relationships would locate size or amount, the classes would intro- duce similarities or differences between units, and the s.'Ystem would be common fractions. In preparing the unit, the teacher would always begin with the system and work back to the unit, developing a common language and concept. The student would always begin with the unit and work towards the system. The only limit to the number of units that can be produced within a system is set by the teach- ers' and students' time and imagination. Student Learns Unit 1Relations Classes System ~,~,% I Smaller than-larger than Away from Y2-back towards Y2 Common fractions Teacher Prepares This system can be used in numerous variations to teach 102 Adults Learn Again mathematics concepts. It is important to remember that classification is used to process information, and once this has been accomplished the model has served its purpose. The Methods The Program Mathematics is best taught by following the same general rules that apply to teaching all aspects of the adult education curriculum. These five commandments of good teaching can be briefly restated as follows: Teach what the student is interested in knowing and can use in daily life. TIe in lessons in communication and other subjects with the arithmetic lessons. Use a variety of appropriate materials from various sources. Begin instruction at the adult student's comprehension level. Teach by means of concrete, useful examples. In mathematics, teaching what the students want to know means preparing units on checking accounts, comparative shopping, measuring in the metric system, and other activities suggested by the students. Practically every facet of life in the home and on the job requires some knowledge of mathematics. Anyone who has been embarrassed by having a check returned for lack of funds because he forgot to record a previous check well understands the need for precision in money matters. Teaching Materials Three types of materials are recommended for teaching basic mathematics. First are the materials required to teach the ba- Principles ofTeaching Mathematics to Adults 103 sic relationships that are discussed in Unit II. These are essentially used to develop a language readiness for mathematics and should be followed by the more specific materials designed to teach the specialized language of mathematics. These materials are for specific purposes and must be prepared by the teacher and adult student since they are not available from publishers. Preparing the materials is a learning experience for the adult student since the materials demonstrate the knowledge of underlying mathematical concepts. Second are the materials that are used in the daily life of the adult. The supply is unlimited. Bank statements, grocery advertisements, contracts, salary withholding statements, and the like can be effectively used to teach basic mathematics. A quart container that is marked by ounces, cups, and volume can be used to teach a number of concepts. Third are the materials that are sold by publishers. Most of these materials are excellent, adult-centered, and useful for individualized instruction. However, they should be used only to supplement and reinforce concepts that the student and teacher have decided are important for the beginning student. As the student masters basic mathematical concepts and becomes increasingly independent, he may be prepared to use a programmed workbook. To facilitate learning, the teacher must know which materials are appropriate for specific students. The teacher's role as a learning specialist requires that he have a broad knowledge of the materials in his field. This knowledge is essential for teaching mathematics since only portions of workbooks may be needed for a particular task. The experienced adult teacher realizes that workbooks are important for reinforcing concepts and providing skill-building exercises but understands their limitations in individualized instruction programs. 104 Adults Learn Again References Dinnan, James A. "Key to Learning." Journal of Reading Behavior 3 (1971): 1-13. - - - , and Lodge, Robert A. Communication: A Meta Theory ofLanguage. Athens, Ga.: Jaddy Enterprises, 1976. Chapter 9 Teaching Introductory Mathematics This chapter is written to guide adult education teachers who are teaching beginning mathematics. Its primary purpose is to introduce concepts to adults who function below the eighth-grade level; however, it may be useful as a review for advanced students who can manipulate numbers but do not understand the underlying concepts. While no one should work below his level, mathematics is a cumulative subject and each adult student should be able to demonstrate that he can classify information in each step of mathematics. Once students have demonstrated this competency and can manipulate data, they should, of course, proceed to the next unit of instruction. Teaching students to classify language in terms of time, space, amount, and quality is described in Unit II of this book. Language classification is critical to the effective teaching of mathematics due in large part to the introduction of signs and symbols as a specialized language of mathematics. The adult student must understand the concept underlying this use of signs and symbols rather than repeat information gained through memorization or drill if he is to master the fascinating study of mathematics. lOS 106 Adults Learn Again Oral Language Readiness Assessment The place to begin teaching mathematics is in the reading or communication program. Those persons who did not score well on the Oral Language Readiness Assessment test should not be given instruction in mathematics until they have demonstrated facility in classifying data through improved language skills. This process should not take a long time-perhaps a few days-at the most a few weeks. Just as a carpenter could not report to work without the proper tools, neither can the adult student tackle the study of mathematics without first obtaining the necessary language conceptual tools for the job. Language Skills It cannot be assumed that the adult student knows the specialized language of mathematics-skills and understanding must be demonstrated by the student. Until every sign and every specialized word he is to use in a unit of instruction are clearly understood and automatically translated, he is not ready to manipulate data (or numbers). Three steps are involved in this process. First, the special "word" vocabulary of mathematics must be learned; second, the special "sign" vocabulary of mathematics must be understood; and finally, translation ofwords to signs and signs to words must be mastered. To middle-class teachers and students who have grown up using this language it may appear unnecessary, but many adult students have never made these associations and cannot begin learning mathematics until they are mastered. The following classification system illustrates a way to begin teaching the mathematics vocabulary. When the adult student demonstrates facility in the language of mathematics by classifying teacher-prepared materials, he may wish to prepare units as an exercise to share with other class members. There is no prescribed time that a student needs Teaching Introductory Mathematics STUDENT Units plus, minus, multiply, divide I107 Relations - more-Iess/big-small 1Classes System away from zero-back towards zero mathematics words Units Relations - 1Classes System +,-,x,+ f more-Iess/big-small away from zero-back towards zero mathematics signs Units Relations - 1Classes System +, plus, -, minus more-Iess/big-small same as-different from translating signs to words f TEACHER to work at this level-indeed some may skip it altogether if their language patterns permit. However, a considerable degree of mathematics anxiety is thought to be generated by a lack of understanding of the "special" language used in teaching mathematics. Teaching Numbers 0 to 9 Practically everybody can count, including the nonreader who has spent a lifetime counting change from purchases, counting the number of items to be sure there is a dozen, and in various other everyday activities using numbers. It does not follow, however, that these same nonreaders can manipulate numbers by adding, subtracting, and various other uses of numbers. The chances are that they think of 0 as nothing or the lack of something. The position of 0 between positive and negative numbers is an important concept for the student to leani in beginning 108 Adults Learn Again mathematics. For a sound foundation in beginning the study of mathematics, the adult student must begin by understanding the use of numbers from 0 to 9 and 0 to negative 9. As a matter of fact, the study of 0 to positive 1 and 0 to negative 1 comprises in large part the study of beginning mathematics. The facts that 0 occupies a position and is something, that it can occupy a place in an equation or problem that does not necessarily occupy a center space, and that the equal sign ( = ) in an equation usually means 0 are not generally understood by beginning adult students. Since learning mathematics depends on understanding each step in a process, the concept of zero should be taught relatively soon. A device* for teaching numbers, the concept of zero, and the concept of negative numbers is a game that can be played by two students. The game consists of a stand with thirty-seven hooks mounted on a bracket with 0 as the center point, two columns 0 to plus 9 to the right and two columns 0 to minus 9 to the left. A single dice is used to begin play. Each player has a tag on the zero hook. The first player rolls the dice and moves his tag to the + side the number of spaces that show on the dice. The second player rolls the dice and moves his tag to the + side the number of spaces shown on the dice while, at the same time, the first player must move his tag back towards zero the number of spaces shown on the opponent's dice. As play proceeds, it is likely that one or both players will cross zero from the positive to the negative side. The chances are that this may occur several times in the course of the game. The player who first reaches + 20 or more wins the game. This game demonstrates several concepts. 1. As the players cross zero in counting, they will find that zero occupies space as they see that from + 1 to - 1 is two spaces as opposed to one space. 2. They will learn about negative numbers. *This device was developed by a member of the Adult Education faculty, University of Georgia. TefUhing Introductory Mathematics 109 3. They will learn the fundamentals of addition and subtraction as concrete facts rather than as concepts and thus will be able to deal with the concepts much more easily once they have seen them work. 4. They will learn how to proceed into double-digit numbers. 5. They will begin to associate the use of numbers to other life situations. The teacher will be able to devise other games and activities to accomplish the same goal of providing facility in dealing with numbers through concrete illustrations. Learning is facilitated when a person moves from the concrete to the abstract and sees a practical application for the knowledge. From the games and manipulations the teacher will want to move quickly to using numbers for measuring, counting money, calculating distances, and utilizing numbers in everyday practices. The next step in teaching numbers involves using numbers larger than nine. This is primarily a vocabulary and recognition task where the student translates the number language or code to the verbal language. While most students may be familiar with this application, it should not be taken for granted. Each adult student should be able to demonstrate facility in these translations before proceeding to the next unit. Teaching Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, and Division Assuming that the student has mastered the language of mathematics, the position of zero, and the use of positive and negative numbers 0 to 9, he is ready to begin manipulating numbers. In each instance, the concept should be taught by relating it to a known or actual experience in the student's life. The student may view a page of numbers to be manipulated as a foreign language but will readily see the value and practical 'application of adding a grocery list, dividing a pie into six equal pieces, sub- Figure 6 Garnes for Teaching Concepts of Positive and Negative Numbers 0 -9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 . JJ JI JJ JI JJ JJ J} J1 123 456 78 9 ~ SJ Jl 'SJ J1 S' J1 SJ .y -9 -8 -7-6-5-4-3-2-1 ~ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 ~~.yJ1~~~~~ ~~~~~~~.y.y Teaching Introductory Mathematics 111 tracting the rent from the salary check, or multiplying the weekly insurance premium t