Steve Kaufmann, 

My replies are in bold italic interspersed with your message below.

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net
.

On Friday, July 18, 2008 2:18 PM, Steve Kaufmann wrote:
  Since you are interested in having your basic assumptions challenged, let me state my reaction to what I am reading here.My involvement in public education is that of a former pupil, and parent and grandparent of children who have attended or do attend public school. 

  I find it quite unacceptable that teachers of math or English feel they have the right to mobilize learners to lobby politicians.

  Do you also find it unacceptable for teachers to encourage adult learners to register to vote (for whomever they choose)? Do you think teachers should not encourage adult learners to take stands on issues that learners may be concerned about? Are you saying that teachers should not have the right to discuss issues in a classroom that adult learners say they are concerned about, for example neighborhood crime and violence, the economy as it affects community jobs, access to healthcare, the quality of the schools, or ballot questions that might eliminate community services  -- I surely hope not. 

  Suppose an English teacher requires, as part of a writing assignment, that students write a letter to an elected representative. Suppose s/he gives the learners the choice of whatever issue they want to write about and choice about to whom the letter is addressed, and choice about whether or not to even mail the letter, but requires that they demonstrate the ability to write this kind of letter. Don't you want adults in our representative democracy to have the skill to do that? Surely you would not oppose that, or would you?

   In my experience with Adult ESL, for example, and this was borne out by the recent study I saw from the Center for Applied Linguistics, instructional hours have less impact on immigrant language improvement than what these immigrants do outside of the classroom. Instructional hours are a small part of the solution.

  Wouldn't you want your English language students to be involved in civic issues where they had to use English to communicate, activities such as writing letters to elected representatives, inviting elected representatives to their programs to learn about the importance of adult English language learning or inviting them to community events to learn about community needs? Wouldn't you want immigrant learners to understand that in our democracy -- unlike some of the countries they have come from -- we have freedom of speech, that we value it, and that we want them to practice it? Or do you want them to only practice the English they need for work, shopping, and making medical appointments? 

  That is also true with literacy learning where only a small percentage of people struggling with low literacy actually attend instructional classes. 

  What is also true? I don't follow this. And what does (whatever is also true) have to do with the percentage of people with low literacy who attend classes? 

  So if the goal is to have an impact in these areas, you should be looking at what to do beyond more funding for your own sector. 

  In many states (mine among them) there are long waiting lists for people who cannot attend English classes. No seats are available, for a year or in some cases for up to three years, because there is insufficent public funding to meet the need and because, in spite of how desparate adults are to learn English, they do not have money to pay for classes, perhaps because they need English to get more than minimum wage jobs.  Steve, you seem to think that advocacy for adult literacy education and ESOL is to feather teachers' nests. Over 40% of those who work in adult literacy education, including ESOL, in the U.S. are volunteers -- no nests to feather there -- and yet many of these volunteers see the need for, and participate in advocacy. True, some teachers might benefit if funding increased for adult literacy and ESOL (some of the under 20% in our field who work full-time). Most of the adult learners and teachers I know who are trying to increase funding for adult literacy education are concerned about long waiting lists; about adults with learning disabilities who are not getting trained professional services; about students who do not have access to computers at their programs; personal, academic and vocational counseling services; and childcare so they can regularly attend and succeed in class.

  Educators are in an obvious conflict of interest in "mobilizing" their students to lobby for more funding for their own jobs.

  Not at all obvious to me, especially when teachers who know that their own salaries will very likely not be affected encourage adult learners to take positions, to practice their rights as citizens in a democracy, and among other issues that may be of concern to adult learners, encourage them when they wish to advocate for adult literacy education.

  I also feel that converting maths or language teaching into social activism courses is a distortion of premise under which tax-payer funding is allocated to teaching those subjects.

  In my state, our adult education professional organization has put together a curriculum so students can understand the state budeget and state taxes. Adult education programs invite local elected officials to come to the classes to teach parts of the curriculum. Adult learners better understand where their tax dollars go now, and may form opinions on where their taxes should go, and whether or not they should be lowered or raised. They learn and practice reading, writing and math through this curriculum, too. Elected officials better understand how important adult literacy education is when they teach the classes. Would you be against that, too?

  I have challenged some of the assumptions here, but would be very interested to see my assumptions challenged.

  Consider them challenged.
  One last comment -- in my state and in others -- adult learners themselves (currently enrolled students and graduates of adult literacy education -- including ESOL --programs) are at the forefront of organizing adult learner advocacy for adult literacy education. Since this is a discussion about adult learner leadership, I don't want us to overlook those efforts. Adult learners do that because they are concerned about improving services provided to adult learners and reducing the long waiting lists for ESOL.  

  David J. Rosen
  djrosen at comcast.net


  On Fri, Jul 18, 2008 at 9:19 AM, Ellison, Art <AEllison at ed.state.nh.us> wrote:














    Professional development for adult educators can be built around this concept of student advocacy. That includes a commitment at the state or local level to helping teachers to find or develop the materials that are needed in this area and to insure that all staff hired by local programs understand and agree to the concept of student advocacy. In New Hampshire we have a long term commitment to working with the Right Question Project, Cambridge, Ma which trains adult education staff in using the questioning process for students to gain the skills that they need to influence their world.  



    Art Ellison, Policy Committee Chair, National Council of State Directors of Adult Education 

      It sets math problems in the context of current issues around race, gender and class."

    Adult Education for Social Justice: News, Issues and Ideas is a biannual publication that "helps teachers incorporate social justice content into their curriculum".






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  -- 
  Steve Kaufmann
  www.lingq.com
  1-604-922-8514 


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