Making Connections: teaching in the adult literacy and numeracy classroom

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Making Connections teaching in the adult
literacy and numeracy classroom

• Jacquie Widin
• University of Technology, Sydney

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1. Introduction

• Background to the project
• What are the attributes of an effective adult
  language, literacy and /or numeracy teacher?
• How do the teachers manage to integrate the
  vocational education course with the teaching of
  English?
• How do the teachers develop a strong group/cohort
  identity among the learners?
• What insights can we gain by seeing practices in
  terms of a post-method pedagogy and the social
  capital outcomes of teaching?

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DVD Excerpt 1

• The Setting
• The learners
• The teachers

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a thoroughly relational practice Noddings
(2003 249)

• What do we mean by making connections?
• - connections amongst the learners
• - connections between the learners and teachers
• - connections between and within the the
  classroom and the social world

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Post-method pedagogy

• Kumaravadivelu (2003) describes teaching as a
  relationship between three dimensions
• Particularity
• Practicality
• Possibility

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Social Capital Outcomes

• Balatti, Black and Falk (2006)
• Social Capital derives from
• Networks with students
• Networks with staff
• Formal class networks

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DVD Excerpt 2.

• Evidence that teaching is a thoroughly relational
  activity,
• The teachers are working beyond methods,
• Students are accumulating social capital

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In conclusion

• What can we say about the attributes of an
  effective teacher?