I think it's a huge assumption to state "sticking to business comes
naturally for adult learners." That assumes that  that everyone that
enters an ABE program is an adult both in age, and attitude. The latter
being the key.  The assumption is that all the adult learners in an ABE
program WANT to be there and that's not always the case.  There is
nothing "natural" for the adult learner who is mandated by court or
other local, state or federal guidelines that require an ABE/GED course.
 

The program model you observed is an "ideal" for many of us, I would
hazard to say,especially for those of us who deal with younger students
just out of high school.   The key word you stressed below was
"voluntary;" great - what about those that aren't voluntary sitting in a
class with those who are? I have taught in Adult Education for 10 years
now, and the mixture is always there - those who want to be there vs
those who HAVE to be there. This makes "sticking to business" some days
next to impossible.  I can't throw students who don't stick to business
out of my class. I can ask that they be quiet, focus, try to work hard.
I can sit with them, etc. I can do many things to address the negative
behavior but it doesn't mean I can make the student "stick to business."
 Instructors are bound by both local and state regulations as to
discipline - at least here. We can have local policies in place but at
the same time, when everything is driven by FTE's and student
progression, EVERY student becomes critical to program success and
retaining those students who don't want to be there is as important as
retaining those studens who WANT to be there. In light of that, not
every class room is going to exemplify "sticking to business" as
highlighted in the article.  The "ideal" situation isn't what some of us
face day to day. The question really is how do you address the problem
to benefit all - those who want to be there, and those who HAVE to be
there.  ( I think this is also what happens in meetings etc, which Janet
asked about.  Those that want to be there are ready to get to work, get
it done and get back to business - those that have to be there, want to
talk about their trips to the beach, their families, the weekend etc -
anything to avoid what they didn't want to deal with in the first
place.)

Additionally, there is a time and place for building social skills and
teamwork through discourse in the adult classroom setting. Not all
instruction occurs via a text, a worksheet or a math problem to be
solved.  Some skills such as getting along with others, expressing
diverse view points, and listening to diverse view points can only be
learned when you don't strictly, "stick to business" but go beyond the
"business" of getting a GED And into the "business" of building a more
successful student in a wholistic manner.

Regards
Katrina Hinson



>>> <hbeder at rci.rutgers.edu> 06/29/06 5:03 AM >>>

For us the interesting thing about the norm sticking to business was
that
it was established by both teachers and learners through mutual
consensus.
It was part of the conetext of instruction rather than a set of imposed
rules.  These were voluntary learners who came pre-disposed to work. So
I
think sticking to business comes naturally for adult learners.  If you
have a class where learners are not sticking to business, it may be a
sign
that something is wrong.





> I'm not sure that classroom norms are *only* a concern for learners;

what

> about meetings where practitioners sometimes struggle to balance the

work

> on

> the table and the social pieces - not just chatter, but the

relationship

> building undergirding so much of the work we do?

>

> Is the question more about how work/learning get done and about

balance?

> I'm not sure how completely different these issues are in classroom

> contexts

> and in other contexts where people meet to accomplish some purpose or

> another (learning, meeting, workshop, etc...)

>

> Janet Isserlis

>

>

>> From: Julie  McKinney <julie_mcKinney at worlded.org>

>> Reply-To: The Focus on Basics Discussion List

<focusonbasics at nifl.gov>

>> Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2006 13:38:23 -0400

>> To: <focusonbasics at nifl.gov>

>> Subject: [FocusOnBasics 376] Re: Welcome to discussion of Learner

>> Engagement!

>>

>> Katrina brought up an interesting point about classroom norms. In

Hal's

>> study it seemed that classroom norms were a major factor in engaging

>> learners, yet in his study classes the norm of "sticking to business"

>> seemed to be very smooth and unproblematic. My guess is that many

>> classroom situations have more of a mix, as Katrina describes. If

this

>> is important in learner engagement, then we should discuss what we

can

>> do to improve or enforce the classroom norms in those classes where

they

>> are not consistent.

>>

>> How do we help everyone "stick to business"? Are there other

classroom

>> norms besides "sticking to business" that are important?

>>

>> Julie

>

> ----------------------------------------------------

> National Institute for Literacy

> Focus on Basics mailing list

> FocusOnBasics at nifl.gov

> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to

> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/focusonbasics

>


----------------------------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Focus on Basics mailing list
FocusOnBasics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/focusonbasics