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Abstract:
The Short Readings Group, a reading group collaboration between faculty and the library, allows educators to deepen their understanding of their subject area and of the teaching profession by engaging with current articles and texts from various subject areas. For the library, the model allows librarians to showcase library resources, engage faculty, and practice facilitating thoughtful and engaging discussion.
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Abstract:
Corrections education (CE) faculty Lauren Zavrel reflects on the vacuum of graduate-level programs and professional development (PD) that prepare teachers for the specific work of teaching adults in prisons and jails. Citing her own unique journey into the field of CE, similar stories from colleagues, and literature on the topic, she argues that the needs of both incarcerated students and their teachers warrant the attention of graduate schools. Specific references to PD as it relates to adjunct faculty and precollege-level faculty are also addressed.
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Abstract:
This article emphasizes the need for adult educators to adapt to the constantly evolving digital landscape. Traditional methods of professional development (PD) no longer suffice, so PD courses should strive to foster a lifelong learning mindset and encourage a culture of experimentation. The article outlines three strategies for creating an effective digital learning environment: nonlinear learning, leveraging community, and prioritizing practicality. Nonlinear learning embraces a fluid process that replicates real-world learning, emphasizing goal setting, experimentation, and collaborative learning. The power of community facilitates a space for shared learning and collective problem solving. Lastly, practicality emphasizes learning technologies that simplify and enhance teaching, with the educator in control of their learning path. Feedback mechanisms are integral to these strategies, fostering a community of shared knowledge and providing personalized support. The ultimate goal is to empower adult educators to leverage digital tools effectively, enhancing their instructional practices in an ever-evolving digital age.
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Abstract:
This reflection essay reports on a book reading inquiry circle (BRIC) on Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed by English as a second language (ESL) faculty from a college located in the Greater Seattle area. Since professional development is usually not provided for ESL faculty in basic skills programs due to lack of funding at the institutional level, the instructors involved in this BRIC engaged in critical language pedagogy as professional development on a divisional level for an 11-week quarter. The ESL faculty engaged in robust conversations about issues regarding adult literacy. The goal of this group was to determine how a culturally responsive curriculum for adult basic skills students could be curated through deep critical reflections and active dialogues through Freirean philosophy of the oppressor and oppressed. The faculty involved in this BRIC shared their reflections on critical pedagogy, as well as culturally responsive teaching, and how it is reflected in their praxis. The BRIC created opportunities for colleagues to share what they are teaching in the classroom and would allow instructors in our division to include different perspectives and research practices to create culturally relevant curriculum for immigrant, refugee, and nontraditional students in basic skills programs.
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Abstract:
The benefits of informal mentorship have been robustly documented. This article makes an argument for formalizing mentorship as professional development in the adult education space so as to capture the advantages of informal mentorship for the success of classrooms, programs, organizations, or institutions. It offers examples of two types of mentorship programming that could prove especially beneficial in the adult education space—integration- focused mentoring and trajectory-focused mentoring, with the former best suited to new instructor orientation and development and the latter best suited to emerging and/or prospective leaders. In the first case, the focus is on a new instructor mentoring program; in the second case, the focus falls on a job shadow program. In both cases, formalized mentorship in adult education proves exceedingly valuable; it offers opportunities for connection and mutually beneficial relationships, assists institutions in the integration and support of new educators, and helps both educators and administrators build and maintain more diverse leadership pipelines. Finally, potential challenges and barriers in the implementation of formalized mentorship programming are addressed, and key takeaways— including how mentorship might be used strategically for inclusivity and leadership capacity building—are offered.
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Abstract:
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a research-based educational framework developed almost 40 years ago by the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST). While the framework has been utilized by adult educators to design inclusive learning experiences that support all learners (CAST, n.d.), the framework has yet to be explored as a design strategy for adult educators—who themselves are adult learners. The goal of this article is to identify and provide examples of how the framework can be used to increase the effectiveness of online professional development for adult educators. By infusing professional development with the three UDL principles: (1) multiple means of engagement (choice and options on how people interact with the learning content and material); (2) multiple means of representation (choice and options for how people consume learning content and material); and (3) multiple means of action and expression (choice and options for how people demonstrate what they have learned or can do) learning designers can improve the overall learning experience for the adult educators themselves and model UDL.
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Abstract:
Adult educators integrate digital activities into instruction to provide flexible, engaging learning opportunities and help learners gain digital skills. Teachers are eager to create digital resources for their classes, but often are limited by the time and/or skills necessary to do so. A promising free-to-teachers solution employed in professional development initiatives is a form of service learning called the EdTech Maker Space. Educators learn about edtech and open educational resources while they curate, adapt, and create reusable digital activities that can be shared and adapted by others. This article describes the theoretical foundation of the EdTech Maker Space, provides examples of federally funded initiatives that leverage it, offers early insights from research on its use, and suggests how an EdTech Maker Space, as service learning, can transform curricular resources, promote flexible instructional practices, and fill resource gaps.
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Abstract:
Through assigning one-on-one instructional coaches, the Teaching Skills That Matter (TSTM) initiative successfully supported teachers in 33 states to integrate the skills that matter into instruction using effective approaches in five topical areas: health literacy, civics education, digital literacy, financial literacy, and workforce preparation. Instructional coaches, who also served as adult education teachers themselves, and teachers engaged in regular dialogues while teachers planned their TSTM implementations as well as after observing the lessons being taught. Rather than being evaluative, coaching conversations created space for in-depth reflection and critical thinking about the complex work of teaching.