David,
Good point. I have found the eclectic approach of integrating what
students' are accustomed to works well. And  after all  it's
learner-centered!




Steve Quann
World Education
44 Farnsworth Street
Boston, MA 
617.482.9485



>>> djrosen at comcast.net 06/30 9:00 AM >>>

Tom, Hal, and others

Tom has raised an issue which nearly every adult education (including 

ESOL) teacher who embraces experiential, hands-on, participatory,  
constructivist/project-based, and transformational learning faces:  
their view of good teaching/learning practice vs. their students'  
often more conservative textbook, workbook, lecture, and chalkboard  
notes model of teaching.  The answer, I believe is a negotiated  
approach, where the teacher agrees to use some textbook and/or  
workbook materials, and perhaps lectures or presentations,  and the  
students agree to try the teacher's chosen approaches.

Hal, I wonder if you have seen examples of this negotiation process  
and, if so, if you could tell us about them.

David

David J. Rosen
newsomeassociates.com
djrosen at comcast.net 


On Jun 29, 2006, at 11:51 PM, Woods wrote:


> When I was doing my teacher preservice, the lesson was drilled into 



> us,

> workbooks=BAD, experiential/hands-on=GOOD.

>

> So it was with great relish that I developed courses for my students

> (aged 17-60+) that were rich in hands-on experiential learning. And

it

> was with great consternation that I listened to one of my younger

> students say to me, "don't you just have some workbooks I can do?"

>

> I think we have to be mindful that students have preferences and

it's

> wrong to write off one mode of learning such as workbooks just

because

> it doesn't fit with our own preferred mode, or those of 'experts'

who

> know what's best. First of all, we have to take the student  

> wherever he

> or she may be in terms of abilities, goals, and preferences. Then  

> we try

> to get him or her to think differently about things. We can't

actually

> change students' thinking, but we can give students things to think

> ABOUT. This, in turn, creates the conditions in which the students

> themselves will expand or alter their thinking. I believe it is  

> risky to

> try to rush this process. If my student is ready for workbooks and  

> I try

> to get him to do do other things, I risk scaring him off, or I risk

> trying to make him conform to MY goals, not his own. That's what was

> done to them when they were children. My students, who are mostly  

> pretty

> alienated from school and education, are wise to this. Their radar  

> goes

> up in a flash when they sense it.

>

> While workbooks (or textbook chapters) are not my preferred way of

> learning, we do offer them to students who want them. American  

> Guidance

> Service (AGS) publishes a wide variety of textbooks in the different

> subject areas, and they also sell CD roms with workbook pages,

chapter

> tests, etc. They are quite comprehensive and while their scope is  

> at the

> high school level, they are written at a lower reading level than

> regular high school texts. Students who choose this path do so

because

> credit requirements are explicit. It is very highly structured;

there

> are no surprises or guessing games. They can work at their own pace 



> and

> they can work on their own time, often working far more productively

> than they could if they simply attended a class. It has always  

> amazed me

> that I could never get my students to do 'homework' but I can give  

> them

> one of those AGS text books and they will work 20 hours a day on it.

>

> Is it the best way to learn? Not for me it isn't. But it's what the

> student wants, what the student is ready for presently. Maybe I  

> will be

> able to make it a hook to entice the student to pursue some topic

more

> deeply.

>

> Tom Woods

> Community High School of Vermont

>

>

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

> 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