Adults’ education talk cerp dark

8/2/2019 Adults education talk cerp dark

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The role of English in the evening shift

an insight into adult learning

Prof. Juan Andrs Pereira deSouza

Prof. Cecilia Villavedra

Helguera


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Whats on the menu?

Appetizer:Appetizer: S election of freshly

brainstormed ideas.Starter:Starter: Theoretical salad.M ain course:M ain course: Homemade stew of observations.

D essert:D essert: Chocolate ideas to takeaway.


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App etiser: S election of freshly

brainstormed ideas


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Why?

Is there a difference among teaching

childrenchildren, teenagersteenagers and adultsadults thatmakes this talk relevant?Lets brainstorm some ideas


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S tarter: Theoretical salad


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Lets look at some theory

Malcom Knowles 1913-1997, U SA .Leading figure in adult education in theUSA .Main contributions:

a) conce p t of andragogy andragogy (and itscom parison to pedagogy pedagogy ),b) conce p t of s elf s elf--directiondirection in learning;c) informal informal adult education.


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Andragogy

First formulated by Alexander Kla pp in1833 (G ermany), used to describe

elements of Platos education theory.Andragogy (andr = men) vs pedagogy( paid = child; agogo s = leading).1921: Rosentock uses it in a re port in

which he argued that adult educationrequired s pecial teachers, methods andphiloso phy. Andragogy was used torefer to those s pecial requirements.


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Adults characteristics

according to Knowles

S elf-conce p tExperienceReadiness to learnOrientation to learning

Motivation to learn(Knowles 1984:12)


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What are the differences?

Pedagogy Andragogy

The learner D ependent. Teacher directs what, when,how a subject is learned and tests that ithas been learned

Moves towards inde pendence. S elf-directing. Teacher encourages andnurtures this movement

The learner'sex perience

Of little worth. Hence teaching methodsare didactic

A rich resource for learning. Henceteaching methods include discussion,p roblem-solving etc.

Readiness to learn Peo p le learn what society ex pects themto. S o that the curriculum is standardized Peop le learn what they need to know, so

that learning p rogrammes are organised

around life a pp lication

Orientation to learn Acquisition of subject matter. Curriculumorganized by subjects. Learning experiences should be based

around ex periences, since peo p le are

performance centred in their learning

Jarvis (1985:51) in Smith, M. K. (1996; 1999) 'Andragogy', the encyclopaedia of informal education,http://www.infed.org/lifelonglearning/b-andra.htm . Last update: June 18, 2009. Mark K. Smith 1996,

1999


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D ifferences among adults,

teenagers and childrenAdults are more able to handle abstract rules and concepts(although too much abstract generalization about language may end u pnot being good for them either)

Adults have longer attention spans for material that may not beinteresting for them (though Brown says that the short and sweetrule also a pp lies for adults).

Sensory input does not need to be so varied.

Adults usually bring a certain amount of self-confidence in theclassroom, which can make them less vulnerable (Brown reminds

us never to underestimate the emotional side in adults).

As they have a more developed abstract thinking ability, adultscan understand language without a context more easily.

BROWN , Douglas, T eaching by Principles. An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy , Pearson Education, 2001,2nd edition, p 90 and 91:


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To sum u p

Positive aspectsAre more able to handle abstract conce p ts and understandlanguage without a context.Have longer attention s pans, even if the material or to pic is notvery interesting for them.Need less sensory in put.Bring a certain amount of self-confidence, which can makethem less vulnerable .Have their own life ex periences, which can enrich the teachingand learning process.Have ex pectations about the process of learning, and usuallyhave their own patterns of learning.More disci plined and more willing to work and coo peratedes p ite lack of interest.C lear objectives, which lead to more motivation.


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N egative aspectsAdults can be critical and even hostile regarding

teaching methods and activities.They may suffer from low self esteem andanxiety because of failure in previous learningex periences.

Age can also be another anxiety-inducingfactor, because they may be afraid of losingtheir intellectual powers.


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Main course:

Homemade stew of observations


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As pect 1 st to 3 rd 4 th to 6 th Both

Personalbackground

Students work during the dayand usually have a family to take

care of.

The groups tend to be moreheterogeneous, as there are

several minors and young adults

that work during the day but are

not parents.

They are usually tired and withtheir minds at home.

Have little or no time for homework.

Learningbackground

N o previous secondary schoolstudies or long period from last

time.Bad experiences with L2.

Some learnt French.

Similar in some cases althoughthe gap is usually shorter.

Students with a higher level tendto be more demanding, generate

disruption or drop studies.

D isci p lineD iscipline problems appear with

students in their late teens or early twenties. However, there isa mechanism of self-regulation

coming from the older ones.

Fewer discipline problemsappear. Students are more

concentrated on task and ontheir ultimate goal.

In all age ranges students have atendency to chat with their peers

about their daily lives.Leaders are put under scrutiny.

S ome observations


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As pect 1 st to 3 rd 4 th to 6 th Both

CognitionSome students have

problems to read and write intheir L1, which does not help

to the acquisition of L2.Tend to rely a lot on L1

D o not present seriousproblems to read and write in

L1.

Tasks are understood quicklybut tend to take longer to be

achieved.Students need to discover

their preferred learning stylesand develop learning

strategies.

PersonalityN eed to learn to work in

groups.Are sometimes too silent

Students are more used towork in groups or pairs, and it

tends to be the preferred stylefor many of them

Students tend to be shyduring oral performance.

Their intrinsic motivation ishigher as they understand the

need to finish secondaryschool.

Are more empathic with peersand teacher.


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To teach adults you need to

be

D ynamic and funny

Confident about your s pecific knowledge (bothin language and didactic skills)C lear on your aimsUnderstandingPatientKind but firmRes pectful


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D essert:

Chocolate ideas to take away


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S ome ideas

Working with projectsHelps to build personal relationshi ps

among studentsGenerates res ponsibilityPoses a challenge to studentsHelps to build the units of workProvides students with a meaningful andreal-life kind of task


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Working with videosProvides real-life ex posureMotivates students as they begin to getused to the sounds of the language andunderstand films at homeAt basic levels rely more on images andparalinguistic language


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Working with songsProvides real-life ex posureApp eals to students musical style andaffective as pectS tudents age makes possible to use awider range of songs


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Working with sayingsProvides a good instance to use

contrastive analysisCan be coordinated with the Sp anishteacher, ex pand vocabulary and ex p loreeu phemismsApp eals to students affective as pectCan be an excuse to generate familymomentsFosters cultural awareness


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Adults’ education talk cerp dark