Educators in adult basic education programs face unique difficulties when attempting to impart reading skills to their older student body. Teachers might learn that different students have different needs and abilities based on their prior exposure to reading teaching.

Problems with learning that go undetected can be systemic problems. Frustration and anxiety are common among students and can significantly impair their capacity to learn. Some students have trouble with the basics of sounding out words because they have unpleasant experiences with school or because they have learning issues that have gone untreated. Several students struggle in school but don’t know it because their learning issues haven’t been identified.

With the right tools in place, as well as plenty of patience, praise, and support for their students, teachers can help their adult students overcome these problems and realize their full potential. It’s not easy to learn anything, but it can be more difficult as an adult. Given the time constraints imposed by work, family, and other commitments, adult students may find it difficult to complete their degree programs. So, keeping pupils engaged is a common difficulty for literacy teachers.

Adult Literacy Volunteer Opportunities in Loudoun County

Adult students must maintain their motivation and be consistent in their attendance if they wish to reap the benefits of their education, even though some adult students stop attending class. For your adult literacy students to complete their literacy programs, you must always keep them engaged and motivated. At Loudoun Literacy Council, we have established several ways to do that.

1. Establish Appropriate Objectives

Lacking basic literacy and competence makes it impossible to reach one’s full potential in life. Adults with low reading levels are more likely to be unemployed, have lower incomes, and be less involved in their communities, according to studies.

Motivate adults to join your literacy programs by discussing their previous experiences. If one of their goals is to earn a high school diploma or GED, for instance, it’s important to bring it up frequently. Highlight the positive changes that will occur in their lives after they have earned their GED.

By dividing their learning objectives into short-term and long-term targets, students are more likely to achieve each milestone along the way, which in turn boosts their feelings of success, satisfaction, and motivation.

To help students succeed, you should arrange your classroom so that they are motivated to learn skills and information they can immediately put to use.

2. Maintain a Motivated Learning Community

Adult learners can be kept on track and motivated to graduate when they see evidence that their work is important, interesting, and rewarding. The ultimate goal of many people who invest in their education and professional development is to acquire new abilities that will allow them to secure satisfying jobs. Select courses or activities that will help them develop the abilities they’ll need to succeed, and stress the significance of doing so.

You should emphasize the practicality of the skills taught and provide examples of how they may be used in the workplace during the program.

3. Encourage Independent Study and Research

When students engage in learning activities in a setting that encourages independent study, they are taking an active role in their education. It allows individuals the flexibility to learn in whatever setting is most conducive to them, be it a conventional classroom, an online learning platform, or a hybrid of the two.

Students should be given ample freedom of choice in designing their learning paths and designing their assessments. In addition, students should be allowed to learn at their speed and select their topics of study.

Students are more likely to push themselves to their limitations and persevere through tough assignments when they have some choice over the speed and direction of their autonomous learning.

4. Encourage the working together of people and cooperation.

These classroom settings promote student collaboration and the growth of a wide range of skills, such as knowledge, interest, motivation, and persistence. Collaborating on a project allows individuals to draw on the resources they already possess and the expertise they have acquired over their lives.

Use reading and writing assignments that encourage collaboration and the solution of authentic difficulties. Having students stay focused on the learning goals even when collaborating with others requires training that is very clear regarding the learning requirements.

Teaching English Literacy to Adults

1. Motivation

Some adults seek to improve their literacy skills to increase their earning potential. Gaining proficiency in reading and writing can increase employment opportunities and career advancement. Independent reading development in young children can serve as inspiration. If a parent is literate, they can aid their children in their studies and even read them a story before bed.

2. Confidence

Older students typically lack self-assurance when it comes to speaking up in class. This could be due to past academic failure or the social stigma associated with acquiring a new skill later in life, such as reading. Teachers can aid their students in coping with anxiety by having them work toward attainable objectives. Build self-esteem and encourage kids to continue making progress by complimenting their efforts. Provide students with plenty of constructive criticism and acknowledge even the smallest of their accomplishments. They have already taken the first step toward success by electing to go back to class.

3. Self-efficacy

That’s how a student views the educational process. Reading and writing are difficult skills for adults to acquire; even the most determined pupils may experience feelings of futility at times. Adult students benefit from self-directed learning because it allows them to work at their own pace and complete their assignments in bite-sized chunks. They could begin with a concentrated review of phonics by going through the alphabet. The next step in developing their reading abilities could be to begin decoding and learning sight words by heart.

4. Convenience

Adults can take their time and go back over individual lessons as many times as they need to until they have a firm grasp of the content. This is especially useful for teaching phonics, as adults who want to learn like to take the reins. Giving kids the freedom to determine their own learning pace empowers them. Since they are taking charge of their education, they can stay working to support their families even while they advance their literacy skills.

Conclusion

The Loudoun Literacy Council is a great place to show your support for our dedicated staff, board of directors, and nearly 500 volunteers, as well as to show that Loudoun County values education, literacy, and the ability of its residents, especially those who are most at risk, to better themselves professionally and personally.

Our literacy programs are available to the 32,000 residents of Loudoun County who are unable to converse in English. A common language, especially English, helps level the playing field. As an example, this skill improves one’s odds of getting hired for the jobs one applies for and then excelling in those jobs once one is hired. In addition, we provide books to households who may not otherwise have the means to own books.

Any path we take toward this objective is not guaranteed to be a straight one. While COVID-19 has presented certain challenges, we have been able to quickly adjust to them, and as a result, we have expanded both our perspective and the range of services we offer. We have unwavering faith in our plan’s ability to succeed.

All of our stakeholders—employees, board of directors, volunteers, partners, donors, and most importantly—bring something to the table every day that helps us move closer to our ultimate goal.

The Loudoun Literacy Council is a non-profit group working to improve the literacy rates of all residents of Loudoun County. We discover people who speak other languages as well as English and who want to improve their communication abilities by learning English, and then we recruit and educate volunteers to help them do so.

We provide early literacy enrichment for at-risk preschool children and children who dwell in the homeless shelters in our local community, all while supporting the parents of these children in their role as their children’s first teachers. All those who live or work in Loudoun County are welcome to participate in our many workshops and events.

We dream that everyone who lives and works in Loudoun County will be able to read and write at the level necessary to fully participate in and benefit from the life of our community. This aspect of directing the Loudoun events is one of my favorites mainly because it is closely aligned with my philosophy of providing everyone with the chance to realize their potential and positively contribute to their community.