Fine-tuning your content for adults with basic skills challenges
Fine-tuning your content for adults with basic skills challenges
The fact that adults with basic skills needs learn better when the training materials are integrated in a certain context that relates to their lives is today a commonly accepted approach to basic skills training designers. In this section we present major content-related considerations and useful guidelines regarding three important areas of basic skills: literacy, numeracy, and digital skills. You will find great resources, learning materials too created by EBSN Member Organisations (e.g. NALA) that all represent good practices to basic skills training materials. This section aims to help you reflect on your training content and give you examples on how you can design learning content better suiting adults with basic skills challenges.
Literacy
When it comes to literacy training for adults, the National Adult Literacy Agency from Ireland offers a great variety of training materials and other support services too. One of these publications, Simply Put: Writing and design tips introduces important guidelines to make written information more consumable for adults with low level of literacy. We chose 4 short chapters from this publication for you to delve into. For each chapter we give you a set of questions that gives you a guide to your reflection process.
What is Plain English? (pp 6-7)
- What are the advantages of using plain language in training materials? Could there be any challenges?
- Have you integrated plain language in your practice? What changes could make language easier to follow in your mother tongue(s)? Can you think of any specific linguistic modifications in your mother tongue(s) based on the example given on p. 7?
Writing tips (pp 8-12)
- Which of the 11 tips presented in the chapter can you agree with? Think of your own mother tongue(s)! Have you used any of these considerations before in your practice?
- Try to set up a priority! What are the top 3 of these 11 tips that you think would work the best for the benefit of your learners in your training practice?
Document design tips (pp 17-22)
- These tips can be applied to printed and electronic documents too. Which is more typical in your practice?
- Have you thought of any of these tips before? Which was the most surprising to you?
Words and phrases to avoid (pp 23-34)
- Some everyday expressions, and in certain thematic fields (e.g. health, legal matters, finances) can have key terms that are hard to grab. Is this the same in your mother tongue(s)?
- Have you considered using more simple synonyms for your learners? Has this ever presented an issue in your teaching practice?
Numeracy
We present you Section 3: How to address numeracy training? of this OER collection and try to answer the following questions for yourselves!- In 3.1 Numeracy as a part of lifelong learning and outreach, you read about different approaches to numeracy training (general, community, workplace, and prison-oriented approach). Which of these do you find most relevant to your practice? Why?
- How could you you integrate the chosen approach into a digital and/or blended learning environment?
- Additionally, read this article on learning applications for adult numeracy training. Did you know any of these apps? Could you use them in your teaching practice? How would you go about them?
Digital skills
Digital skills and using technology have become inevitable in our fast-changing time, which was further stressed by the pandemics. Having sufficient digital skills is a pre-requisite to blended learning courses with digital activities and e-learning programs too. Thus, it is vital to prepare learners before the course to be able to succeed in the digital activities.
NALA has published a workbook for adult learners in 2021 titled Digital Matters: A guide to technology for adults improving their literacy, numeracy, and digital skills. This book provides excellent resources, tips and guidelines, and activities to help adults with less experience manage with technology. You may find this resource especially useful while:
- preparing adults to learn online in a blended learning program
- designing digital skills training programs
Read the following chapters of the workbook for inspiration on planning activities and learning content! We recommend you take a closer look at the following 3 chapters that could be especially relevant for planning a blended learning program and try to answer the questions for reflection for yourself!
Chapter 1: Being wise online (pp 8-17)
- Do you agree with the themes of the chapter? Would you include other topics to make it relevant for your learners?
- Look at the exercises on pages 16-17. What do you think of the format? Could it be relevant to your practice? At what phase can you imagine using it in your teaching?
Chapter 3: Apps (pp 27-36)
- Do you think apps are important in teaching adults with low digital skills?
- Look at the exercises on pages 34-36 and try to think of ways you could adapt them to your classes! Could this be done online? How would you integrate these activities in a blended learning setting?
Chapter 4: Searching Online (pp 37-44)
- Searching online is a basic routine to get information. What topics would you add to this chapter to make it more relevant for your learners?
- Look at page 44 ‘Reliable websites for information’ and create your own list based on your own national websites.
Concluding thoughts
In this section you got to know a few key resources that can give you an impression on the most important themes, features that emerge when working with adults who have low literacy, numeracy, or digital skills. These materials do not cover the whole scale of topics that should be considered but can indicate a direction with a few hands-on activities that can prove useful when starting off with the course design.
It is worth taking some time to think about which of these activities or materials can be delivered or integrated in an online/digital module and which are best to carry out in a place-based setting!