Mike Wood, CrossroadsRhode Island
This project was inspired by the high number of our GED students who are unable to attend class full-time. Crossroads is a center that provides an array of services for homeless adults and families. My students may be facing issues ranging from housing, child care and domestic violence, to transportation. Some may also be struggling with a learning disability; some may not attend class because friends and family are accusing them of making them look bad by going to school.
Our GED program is student-centered. We instruct based on individual learning contracts, and work with each student at whatever level they are and according to the ways in which they learn best. This has included allowing students to work from home on their own, with scheduled visits to the Learning Center to work with the instructor reviewing work, testing, and checking in to see how beneficial the self-study has been for the student.
Additionally, we offer, through Warwick Adult Education Center, access to Warwick's Distance Learning website, which allows the learner to take tests online and see the grades immediately, as well as providing an instructor with a printout list of test scores and ranking in several content areas.
Students who work from home have had success rates in earning their GED similar to those who attend class daily. This is mostly due to the nature of the individual's goals and attitudes toward learning. We noticed, however, that there was a need for more formal options other than the Distance Learning and weekly consultations. We were also losing precious materials such as textbooks and notebooks due to this.
We decided to design a program that would assist learners in enhancing the skills they need to successfully study on their own. We also decided that we needed to provide the basic computer skills necessary to allow learners to navigate their way to appropriate study options online. Our students have proven to be able to excel despite their barriers if given the proper tools and supports. We have also found that even in situations where there is no support from family or friends, with the right tools (study skills, computer skills) students are able to succeed on their own, with support from the instructor to help them stay on track.
By researching and evaluating educational and testing websites to determine which would be easy for our learners to navigate and benefit from, we were able to create a list or resources for learners, and to work to develop a program that would address any learning gaps in basic computer use.
Goals:
1. To make students aware of the learning opportunities online and how to access them outside of class.
2. To provide the opportunity for students to use those opportunities and, by following links from them, to find additional materials that will help them with their individual goals.
3. To provide in a group instruction setting, writing exercises that will help students identify both their learning and employment goals, and to express an understanding of where the online tools are that will help them in with those goals.
Example 1:
Write a paragraph about which subject students feel they need the most help in order to achieve their GED. Instructor will provide certain websites that will serve asintroduction to resources, and a linking point for students to find their own sites.
Example 2:
Write a paragraph describing what type of work students are most interested in and/or qualified for. Instructor will provide websites that will serve as introduction to resources, as well as a linking for students to find their own sites.4. Give students an opportunity to provide feedback on the usefulness of the workshop, and if using these materials outside of class is a viable option, or could be.
Other questions/requirements:
1. To determine what supports are needed for the student to be a successful user of online materials outside of the classroom.
2. To integrate online study with goals expressed in personal learning contracts (is self-study going to be effective, or does student need more one on one instruction?) 3. Determine how much basic computer instruction is needed before use of online tools becomes appropriate. 4. Determine other existing barriers (self-esteem, techno-fear, lack of access to computers) that may make use of online materials a challenge. 5. Review existing online learning and employment materials and discuss their strengths and weaknesses; discuss role of instructor in facilitating self-study online; discuss how online learning and job searching can be integrated into the current vocational program.Two questions that were asked at the beginning of the project were:
1. Were there any significant changes in study habits?
1. The change in study habits was most pronounced in the increased comfort of learners with the computer. For most, just being able to find the desired test, type in their answers, and be able to follow the instructions of the website were more important than the academic results of the online tests.
2. Was there more success and less of a dropout rate than under old procedures? If so, what helped to improve consistency?
2. The rate remained the same as before. Learners still felt more comfortable coming in to class periodically to have work checked than relying on the online distance learning, which most found to be an adjunct to study, not a primary mode despite their situation.
Obstacles faced in development; barriers to self-study
For the Instructor
At least 40% of our learners study on their own, and schedule times to come in to review work with the instructor or for practice testing. About half of those never return. This is frustrating for two reasons:
1. It raises the question of whether enough was done to prepare the student for self-study: did we offer an in-home tutor? Did we review study skills? Was the learner being completely open about any barriers that would prevent being able to study at home? Did they take advantage of the case-management we offer?
2. Study materials such as books or calculators are not returned, which puts a drain on our limited resources.For the Learner
1. Access to computers: Limited time at the library; working around schedule of friends who have computers; working at NetworkRI computer bank, where they may or may not be helped 2. Time for study: time limited by child care issues, transportation by bus to access a computer 3. A quiet place to study: chaotic home or many chores; limited access to library or friends 4. Study skills or the lack of them: no one to guide self-study on computer 5. Motivation to be responsible for their own education: many barriers 6. Support system: friends or relatives also lack computer literacy; 7. Fear of technology: stress created by time limited use in library, or by others waiting to use computer1. How can practitioners take advantage of online opportunities?
Aside from directing students to online sites that offered free GED testing, I saw the most benefit from Distance Learning site run by Warwick Adult Ed. They not only provided testing, but also sent data for each student which helped with evaluation.
2. What supports are useful in assisting learners in maintaining progress?
Basic computer skills gained by learners, particularly in the use of search engines, helped to ease the stress of using the computer, as well as helped to improve their discernment of which sites and tests were most beneficial to them.
3. What materials are useful/interesting to learners?
Learners tended to be most interested in search engines, which provided them with access not only to material relevant to their studies, but also exposed them to the wealth of information on the web of what interested them.
4. What is the role of the educator in facilitating adults' self-guided online learning?
My chief role in this project was to guide the learner through the computer skill sets needed to navigate online self-study. I was also available to at regular meetings to review work, suggest other ideas for study, and to be support that was not present in some student's lives.
5. Is the educator's influence/support effective during self-study? Is the influence of family or friends more crucial in supporting learner success?
My influence was effective to the degree that it was taken advantage of. The support, or lack thereof, by family and friends was a more important determinant in student confidence and motivation.
6. Are there any resources that assist educators in remaining current on trends in Distance Learning?
While a quick online search will lead educators in finding the desired information, I feel that the concentration of materials prepared for this project on one website will help educators find the information they need to adapt those materials to their own programs.
7. Is online learning as way to motivate learners and help them to gain confidence and help to define specific goals, or should online learning be encouraged only to those who have solid goals and motivation already in place?
I have found online learning to be beneficial both to the non-traditional student for whom self-study is more realistic given other obligations, as well as for those attending class daily; more access to information, more testing , and more small victories in terms of gaining new skills were motivational across the board.
Lesson Plan and writing assignments
Learning Contract (a word document for download)
learner feedback, sample learner feedback, and one case study
The development of these web pages has been supported by Eastern LINCS under the auspices of the New England Literacy Resource Center. The Literacy Information aNd Communication System (LINCS) is a cooperative electronic network of the national, regional, state, local partners created and funded by the National Institute for Literacy.
page developed July 15, 2005; updated August 2, 2005
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