Wright - Adult Learners

Reflection - As a learner, I tend to go pretty quickly.  Usually, I'm on top of a lesson, and am able to master it pretty quickly.  My weakness, however, is that if I'm not picking it up quickly, I bog down.  I keep focusing on that problem or concept until I get it, sometimes detrimentally effecting my time to learn other things in that lesson. 

So I think that an important note for an instructor to have when it comes to me, is to tell me to move on if I'm spending all my energy on one issue.  Unless it is absolutely critical that I get this piece right, it is probably better to just move on, and come back to it later.  I may not have the presence of mind to tell myself that, so having an outside observer be able to tell me would probably be a good thing.

Diversity Scenario - Because of the diversity of the class, I think an instructor would have to work pretty hard to make sure that she understood the needs and obstacles that each group, or more appropriately, each person had.  Each group is probably going to have a different outlook on college, and have much different reasons for being there.  Mary might also need to think about finding diverse ways of presenting or practicing the material to keep everyone engaged.

Practical Scenario - I would discuss with Mark about why we are reading the material that has been assigned, and why that material is important to the subject.  I had the same problem for about half of the books I read in high school.  It was just too dull to consider, especially in the face of some sci-fi book I'd rather read.  Maybe if I had been told what I was looking to learn by reading something, I would have been more willing to read it.

Experienced Scenario - I would work to relate the material to the experience that Ralph has.  If the abstract nature of algebra is working against him, I would make things less abstract and make some practical examples of how he might apply these abstract concepts. 

Self-Directed Scenario - I would work on creating new assignments that might be more relevant to the students.  Also, assignments where the student got to choose what the assignment was about, like writing assignments where the student chooses the topic.  I have been in that situation myself, where I felt like the class material must have been written while Reagan was president, and it seemed totally meaningless.

I like Betty's quote "Adults need active, not passive, learning experiences."

Non-Traditional Scenario - This is certainly a group of students that will need to direct their own education.  A lesson plan that involved setting some specific goals, with undefined paths to those goals, would work well.  All of the students with their diverse backgrounds can hopefully create a collaborative environment like the ones that they experienced while they were working.  Spending time talking about some study skills and computer use would probably be a great idea, too.  That way you can give the students tools to use as they work toward the class goals. 

I think this module in general is reinforcing for me that as a tutor, I need to have that rapport with my students to know what is going on with them, how they have learned well in the past, and how can I relate the material that I'm teaching to them directly.