Return-Path: <nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.9.3/8.9.0.Beta5/980425bjb) with SMTP id MAA22606; Sat, 4 Mar 2000 12:52:25 -0500 (EST) Date: Sat, 4 Mar 2000 12:52:25 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <3.0.3.32.20000304095400.00717b24@127.0.0.1> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: BOB MCINTYRE <mcintyre@ptinet.net> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-4EFF:872] Re: Using EFF with Volunteer Tutors X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Light Version 3.0.3 (32) Status: RO Content-Length: 7108 Lines: 123 Tina, Thanks for sharing your ideas. I work at a correctional facility, and have been kicking around ideas that might work. I have never posted any comments here, but I have learned a great deal from people like you who are trying out ideas. Other people who are using the standards have said that they become clearer as you actually use them. Your plan makes sense, and I can use some of your ideas. Thanks, again. I sent this to the listserv wondering if their are any other correctional instructors who have used things that have worked well. Thanks, Debbie McIntyre, Instructor at Peninsula College@ Clallam Bay Correction Center, Clallam Bay, WA.At 08:24 AM 3/3/00 -0500, you wrote: >This is Tina McGlynn. Since July I have been writing, revising, and >rewriting a trainer guide for the workshop we use here at The READ Center in >Richmond, VA. I have been trying to incorporate the EFF Standards and >Content Framework in such a way that they might be useful to volunteer >tutors who work mostly with ABE type students. > >I begin the workshop by asking participants to explore their own learning >experiences within the context of the three adult roles. Using the roles >serves as a tickler to help think of recent learning experiences and it also >(throughout the workshop) serves as a tool to keep the contents of the >workshop relevant to each adult learner....whether tutor or ABE student. >(ABE students do not participate in our workshop but I am ever thinking of >ways to include them). > >The next part of the workshop involves defining learning as a "relatively >permanent and observable change in behavior resulting from experience." I >then divide participants into four groups and assign one category of the EFF >generative skills/standards to each group. They are asked to develop a list >of potential observable behaviors that might result (in their assigned >category) if these skills/standards were being successfully developed. How >would we, as instructors know? is the key question here. What might we >see? > >The workshop continues by teaching some more traditional strategies to use >for literacy instruction. The next two 3-hour sessions are devoted >specifically to reading and writing, respectively. > >In the session on reading, we begin by brainstorming all the typical things >that adults read regularly within the context of the three roles...again to >keep the focus on relevance and to help volunteers develop the confidence to >steer clear of a workbook centered approach while still equipping them with >an alternative. They always come up with a great list of materials that >they can easily use in subsequent tutoring sessions with an adult learner >such as childrens books, bills, mail, medications, newpapers, church >bulletins, job applications, memos, reports, etc. I cover basic strategies >such as KWL, DRTA, DLTA, assisted reading, LEA all within the context of the >Before, During, and After approach to attacking text. We also offer a few >simple word study strategies. This is all scaffolded by the use of the >Michigan Literacy publication, LITSTART, a very user friendly text for >volunteer literacy tutors. > >When we switch gears to the writing, we begin again by brainstorming the >types of writing that all adults do in the context of their roles. I am >currently working on a writing process exercise that involves participants >exploring their own lives in search of their own goals. I am convinced that >relevant and meaningful goal setting is the key to motivating adult ABE >students to "join Frank Smith's Literacy Club!" When the finish line can be >clearly visualized....when they know exactly where they are going...it is >more likely that they will get there. So, at the session on writing, the >focus of the workshop makes a significant shift to goal setting and planning >and taking responsibility for learning. We use writing to plan.....not to >learn how to do punctuation or grammar. Punctuation and grammar are still >important, but secondary....again in an effort to maintain relevance. > >In the final and fourth 3-hour session, the focus is on goal setting and >lesson planning. I have been working on presenting my own version of the >distinction between goals and objectives: > >Goals are individual specific. Examples of goals are getting a GED, getting >a drivers license, learning to read the Bible in church, reading to a child, >finding items in the grocery store, being able to read medications, filling >out job applications, opening and using a checking account. A goal for one >person might not be a goal for another person. > >Objectives are universal and transferrable across different adult lives, >roles, and activities. For this reason, I am encouraging tutors to think of >the list of EFF standards...within the context of the framework...as a list >of possible objectives for their lessons. The advantage of this for >volunteer tutors is that they don't have to write objectives, they just have >to choose them....and the objectives that they choose will always be >relatively significant in the development of an adult leanrer. Repeated >attempts at this with particular students has convinced me that all the >typical goals fo adult learners who come to an agency like ours are >consistently connected to the EFF standards (objectives). (Is this any >surprise since the source of the standards was from adult learners in the >first place?). > >The workshop activities in this session revolve around learning to develop >SMART goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time >constrained. Then we learn to write lessons based on goals and focused on >objectives (EFF standards). We also encourage the pursuit of continuity >between tutoring sessions by encouraging the tutor student matches to >collaboratively pre-plan for four sessions at a time (approximately one >month) and to identify where they want to be at the end of that month. > >I know that this is perhaps an oversimplification of the lesson planning >process for serious insructional designers but it is a user friendly version >of instructional design for the well meaning volunteer who is not a >professional educator but is none the less an intelligent particpant in the >development of literacy across our communities. It will also help us >"standardize" what our adult learners are working on and serve as a >framework for a database to evaluate what we are doing. > >I anxiously await the next piece from NIFL on the assesment of levels and >benchmarks so this "standardized database" can be even more informative with >respect to what we are accomplishing with our program(s). > >**************************************************************************** >******************** >Tina McGlynn, Training Director >The READ Center >1605 Monument Avenue >Richmond, VA 23220 >804/343-1587 >tttt@erols.com (Preferred) >readcnt@aol.com (not always accessible) > > ----------------------------------------------------- Click here for two free plane tickets: http://www.gohip.com/freetickets/
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