Author

Erin Cary

Term

Summer 2019

Capstone

Capstone Project

Degree Name

MAESL

Facilitator(s)

Melissa EricksonE.

Content Expert

Suzanne McCurdy

Abstract

The research questions addressed in this capstone project were, “What educational support do ABE learners need to develop and employ self-advocacy skills to respond to barriers in their lives? What tools will help ABE instructors facilitate that support in the classroom?” The author researched barriers that may be preventing learners in adult basic education programs from succeeding in their goals, including systemic social discrimination, a lack of understanding by instructors and administrators of their intersectional identities, and state and federal framing of ABE policy as an economic investment in workforce development instead of the provision of education as a fundamental human right. While ABE instructors can become distracted by political and policy expectations to align curriculum to officially prescribed content standards and mandatory assessments when designing instruction, research favors a participatory curriculum model that focuses first on learners’ goals for pursuing ABE services. This project makes space for instructors to consider their role in facilitating increased independence in learners around topics that learners identified as critical self-advocacy needs. The tools provided as a response to the research questions call for learner-driven collaboration to build units that include objectives around self-advocacy which prepare learners to negotiate the barriers that they face to achieving their goals. The tools for unit-planning also help instructors meet expectations for standards alignment and assessment preparation, while incorporating teacher expertise on instructional best practices for ABE learners. Teacher reflection opportunities and other resources that benefit optimal unit-planning for ABE instruction are included throughout the toolkit.

Keywords

Adult Education, Curriculum, Self-Advocacy

dc_type

text

dc_publisher

DigitalCommons@Hamline

dc_format

application/pdf

dc_source

School of Education Student Capstone Projects

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Education Commons

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