Instructional Materials Your Adult Education Programs Should Not Be Without

1. Instructional Materials Your Adult Education Programs Should Not Be Without ESL/ESOLEnglish Literacy ABEPre-GEDGEDFamily Literacy ABEPre-GEDGEDFamily Literacy Civics EducationCitizenshipABEPre-GEDGED

2. ADULT EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS • Contextual: Relevant, Meaningful, Real Life • Participatory: Hands-On • Self Directed, Self Paced • Provides Immediate Feedback • Provides Flexible Scheduling/Clear Responsibilities • Convenient Learning Systems

3. INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN CRITERIA • Engaging and Entertaining • Interactive • Participatory • Flexible Design and Applications • Address Different Learning Styles

4. Two Basic Skills Literacy Series Designed for Family Literacy and Adult Education Programs

5. AN INTRODUCTION From INTELECOM, the developer of Crossroads Café and On Common Ground, comes two new Basic Skills Literacy series designed for use in Family Literacy and Adult Education programs. The series were created through a unique collaboration of nine State Departments of Education and the United States Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education and the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. These two series combine distinctive aspects of television drama anddocumentary to present real life and engaging stories of families struggling to improve themselves and their position in the larger community. The video and print materials provide teachers and adult learners a rich variety of activities that encourage problem solving, promote critical thinking, build vocabulary and language awareness, develop reading, writing and numeracy skills, and empower the adult as a parent, worker, or member of the community. The result is a synergistic approach to learning that encourages the adult learner to spend “time on task” and to achieve significant and meaningful learning gains whether in the classroom or in a distance learning setting.

6. SUPPORTING AGENCIES NY PA OH IL MD CA NC • U.S. Department of Education • Office of Vocational and Adult Education • Office of Elementary and Secondary Education SC FL

7. THE PARTNERSHIP • Nine State Departments of EducationCA, FL, IL, MD, NY, NC, OH, PA, SC • USDOEOffice of Vocational and Adult Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education • INTELECOM • National Leadership CouncilAdult Education leaders designated by each participating state to provide intrastate support in establishing distance learning infrastructure. The USDOE Director, Division of Adult Education and Literacy serves as as ex-officio member of the Council.

8. TARGET AUDIENCES • Low literacy at-risk families • Parents of children involved in Even Start, Head Start and other early childhood education programs • Adults involved in or needing ABE programs • At-risk youth • Teenage parents • Limited English proficient adults at the intermediate and advanced levels

9. TARGET PROGRAM APPLICATIONS ABE GED Test Prep At-Risk Youth TANF Migrant Education Library Literacy Programs Early Childhood Education Even Start/Title 1 Head Start Parent Education Health & Human Services Community Technology Centers Community/Faith-based Organizations CBET (California)

10. PROJECT GOALS • Provide experiences that: • Help adults improve their literacy skills • Read with understanding • Convey ideas in writing • Listen actively • Observe critically • Speak so others can understand • Help adults improve their decision-making skills • Solve problems and make decisions • Plan • Use mathematics in problem solving and communication

11. PROJECT GOALS • Help adults enhance their self-esteem and improve their ability to: • Resolve conflict and negotiate • Advocate and influence within the family and community • Cooperate with others • Guide others • Help adults in their role as parents and caregivers • Gain insight into child growth and development • Form and maintain supportive family relations • Encourage communication across generational lines • Become partners in the education of their children

12. PROJECT GOALS • Provide ideas for age-appropriate interactive activities that parents or caregivers: • Can use with their children • Can use to help children achieve success in school and other life experiences • Provide experiences that will help adults: • Manage family resources (time, money, etc.) • Provide for safety and physical needs • Balance priorities to meet multiple needs and responsibilities

13. PROJECT DESIGN • ESTABLISHING THE FOUNDATION • ResearchReview of ABE and Family Literacy research and experience • Focus GroupJanuary 1998 meeting with state and national leaders in ABE and Family Literacy • Site VisitsFamily Literacy and ABE programs • National Academic CouncilMeetings in March and October, 1999, and July, 2001 Teleconference, E-mail, FedEx’s, etc.

14. NATIONAL ACADEMIC COUNCIL (NAC) • Twenty-one members representing the partner states, the National Center for Family Literacy, and Even Start (USDOE) • Over 450 years of experience: ABE, Family Literacy, Even Start, Parenting education, Head Start, Early childhood education, Child development, Special education, Migrant education, Workforce Development, Welfare to Work, ESL/ESOL, Reading ROLE OF THE NAC • Determine project design parameters from a field-based learner perspective • Serve as consultants to the development team, critiquing each project element as it is developed

15. NAC FOCUS • Define and profile target audience – 95% not reached by existing programs • Determine the overarching goals of the series • Analyze adult education and distance learning research and design options • Establish themes for Madison Heights dramatic stories • Critique prototype Madison Heights script and integrated worktext unit • Suggest a variety of family types and situations for the companion documentary series, Lifelines • Assess prototype Lifelines program and its integrated worktext unit • Review Madison Heights and Lifelines scripts and worktext units. • Assist in the design of the teacher resource books for use in distance learning and classroom applications.

16. SolvingProblems SolvingProblems Language Workout Language Workout MATERIALS ARRAY Worktexts Worktexts FamilyTies Broadcast Quality Video FamilyTies LIFELINES Case Study Documentaries Key Topics and Themes MADISON HEIGHTS Real-lifeScenarios Thought-provoking Dramas What DidYou Learn? What DidYou Learn? Teacher’s Resource Book Teacher’s Resource Book Classroom Classroom Distance Learning Distance Learning Parenting Strategies BlacklineMasters BlacklineMasters

17. Worktexts Videos Teacher’s Resource Book Blackline Masters • 10 true-to-life stories (dramatic) • Characters learners can relate to • Thought-provoking situations • Self-paced • Parent/child activities • Adult learning material (problem solving, language development, numeracy) • Reproducible • Correlated to individual units • Distance learning applications • Classroom-based applications • User-friendly

18. Worktexts Videos Teacher’s Resource Book Blackline Masters • 10 real-life episodes (documentary) • Compelling stories • Network quality • Self-paced • Parent/child activities • Adult learning material (problem solving, language development, numeracy) • Reproducible • Correlated to individual units • Distance learning applications • Classroom-based applications • User-friendly

19. PROJECT VIDEO FORMAT AND DESIGN • Focused toward adult learner – the change agent • Engage and motivate adults through real-life, meaningful, memorable and complex stories • Difficult, controversial and emotional issues are not avoided • Multi-dimensional stories designed to discuss, ponder and relive with family and friends • Characters that the target audience can relate to • Characters behavior is grounded in a complex web of motivating factors that grows out of past events and experiences • The “level” of the dialog should not be of significant concern

20. MADISON HEIGHTS VIDEO DESIGN PARAMETERS • Issues and situations that are real in the world of the target audience • Common thread – Madison Heights School – a K-8 school with an after-school child care program • Does not focus on people with low literacy skills – not appealing or acceptable to the target audience • Poor and struggling families are not the only ones facing challenges • Includes middle-class families with problems that will resonate with all viewers • The programs depict examples of nobility and hope but do not always end in an “all’s well thatends well” manner

21. LIFELINES VIDEO DESIGN PARAMETERS • Follows families from different backgrounds and in different circumstances and locations – inner city, a farm, or the hills of Appalachia. Over months, we live their daily lives and let them tell their stories. • Allows adult learners to share the experiences of those in the documentaries – people struggling and making progress with adult education and family literacy issues. • Target audience will respond more positively to the real people going through experiences similar to theirs. • A whole range of family structures and types are featured.

22. WORKTEXT DESIGN AND FORMAT • Primary focus – adult learner with integrated activities for parents and children to do together. • Closely integrated with dramas and documentaries. The worktext provides the context for learning. • Synergistic and inexorable link between worktexts and videos. Encourages more time on task Results in significant learning gains • Provides rich variety of activities for adult learners and teachers. • Designed for native speakers who need assistance with ABE concepts and skills as well as intermediate low to advanced ESL learners. • ESL focused Black Line Masters in the Teacher Resource Books. • Each unit divided into four sections: Solving Problems Family Ties Language Workout What Did You Learn?

23. WORKTEXT DESIGN AND FORMAT Section A – Solving Problems 1. Preview Story Watch Video Review Story What Happened When? From Many Angles (Lifelines) Pathways (Lifelines) Who Am I? (Madison Heights) 2. Define The Problems 3. Personalize A Problem 4. See The Big Picture 5. Explore Actions And Consequences 6. Create an Action Plan 7. Challenge 8. For You And Your Child

24. WORKTEXT DESIGN AND FORMAT Section B – Language Workout This second section helps learners improve their reading, writing and vocabulary skills and provides many opportunities for parents to work with children to develop skills that encourage literacy. Word Watch (Madison Heights) Mini-Dictionary Word Families English Toolbox Read On Write Away For You And Your Child

25. WORKTEXT DESIGN AND FORMAT Section C – Family Ties This third section provides further opportunities for adults to gain the skills to function as parents, family members, workers, and community members. Number Wise Reach Out In The Home Talk It Over How Does It Feel? Time Out For Literature Books Can Help For You And Your Child Purpose Of Activities Design Of Parent/Child Activities

26. WORKTEXT DESIGN AND FORMAT Section D – What Did You Learn? This fourth and final section helps learners evaluate what they have achieved as a result of their involvement with the video and worktext. Just Checking Connections Answer Key – Sections A, B and C

27. TEACHER RESOURCE BOOKS (Still in Development) I. Introduction Purpose, goals, objectives Delivery Systems: Distance Learning, Group Environments, Tutorial and Small Groups Ways to integrate dramas, documentaries, and the teaching videos Menu System Problem-posing Approach Interaction among adults and between parents and children Multi-level learning

28. TEACHER RESOURCE BOOKS (Still in Development) II. Organization of series, worktexts, units Worktexts Videos Teacher Resource Books III. Unit Specific Notes Plot Summary Unit Title Explanation Teaching suggestions for: Distance Classroom/Group Tutorial/Small Group

29. TEACHER RESOURCE BOOK – APPENDICIES(Still in Development) • Portfolio Assessment • Building writing skills/process writing • Building language skills: English Toolbox and Writing Workout • Building numeracy skills: Number Wise • EFF/SCANS • Outcomes: NTCS, Even Start Performance Indicators • A Book Can Help chart that lists books by topic, level, cultures, ISBN’s, etc. • Chart of Key Topics by unit