<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" ><tr><td valign="top" style="font: inherit;"><DIV>I don't know a lot about adult reading acquisition theories, but I do know that many researchers take what works for children and extrapolate, since little work has been done with adults. The most important issue would be content, as folks have mentioned, and how the brain works, added to the adult's experience (possible trauma from illiteracy) and passive oral vocabulary. I've been taught a combination of choosing key words to remember initial letters and word patterns to help with sound/letter correspondence; language experience stories that the learner would dictate and could then "read" relatively quickly, and a quick development of sight word vocabulary. Also workplace or other <EM>realia</EM> that the learner needs to function. In relation to using children's books or techniques (the Wilson method comes to mind) I'd do it <EM>only</EM> if
reading to children was one of the adult's goals; otherwise learners can make their own picture books with doodles and accompanying text limited to their level and interest. I do have direct experience with taking a Methods and Materials ESL class whose professor's only knowledge of adult learners was of graduate assistants in her University, though she claimed adult learning as her specialty; otherwise her materials came right out of chldren's contexts and K-12 methodology; she didn't appreciate my more "practical" methods and materials that didn't have communicative language games....</DIV>
<DIV>Bonnie Odiorne, Post University Writing Center, Waterbury, CT<BR><BR>--- On <B>Tue, 12/2/08, Ali Hesami <I><hesamiar@gmail.com></I></B> wrote:<BR></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: rgb(16,16,255) 2px solid">From: Ali Hesami <hesamiar@gmail.com><BR>Subject: [EnglishLanguage 3184] I don't understand the current thinking behind teaching reading to adults!<BR>To: englishlanguage@nifl.gov<BR>Date: Tuesday, December 2, 2008, 12:29 AM<BR><BR>
<DIV id=yiv121060446>Hello all.<BR>My name is Ali Hesami, and I am currently a graduate student in the adult literacy program at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia.<BR>I've been attending a class called "Teaching Reading to Adults" as part of my required curriculum, and I have been wondering about the current methods used to teach reading to adults. It seems to me that the teacher teach adults just as they would teach children, often even using research and writing on teaching reading to children as guidelines. <BR>While I understand the usefulness of phonics, phonetics, etc. by themselves, I firmly believe that an adult can better benefit from learning to read by simply reading in a classroom environment, guided by teachers, tutors, etc. An adult in his or her 40s or even 50s simply should not have to sit through long sessions of syllable by syllable instruction if all they desire id to be better able to communicate with others and
better express their opinions about the world surrounding them. <BR>I speak from experience here. I began learning English as a 14 year old in an international school in Tanzania. I placed into the 9th grade to start; no one ever even approached phonics, phonemes, etc. I read and listened, all the while guided by teachers who helped me with the material at hand. I became conversational in about three months or so, while I worked on my writing, also with guidance from my teachers. Conversely, while in school in my native Tehran, Iran, I was taught English in a similar manner as here, and I spoke a grand total of three phrases when I left Iran for Tanzania: Hello, Fine thank you, and Beg your pardon? I'm not even joking here!<BR>I admit as a 14 year old I had an advantage over adults here, but I can't help but wonder if what worked for me would help adults much more than playing word games and reading children's books. <BR>Let's have them read material
they can identify with in some way, and keep them reading, while slowly working on their writing skill alongside.<BR>Let me know any thoughts, ideas, criticisms, etc. It has been eating away at me for a few months now.<BR>Thanks in advance,<BR>Ali Hesami<BR><A href="mailto:hesamiar@gmail.com" target=_blank rel=nofollow>hesamiar@gmail.com</A><BR><BR></DIV><PRE>----------------------------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Adult English Language Learners mailing list
EnglishLanguage@nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/englishlanguage
Email delivered to bonniesophia@sbcglobal.net</PRE></BLOCKQUOTE></td></tr></table>