Actually delving into and reading the resources more closely, I learned some interesting facts about adult learners and the role technology plays in their learning environments. Moreover, I was able to identify with several findings and statements from my experience in this field. The two resources that I found to provide the most information for my topic were:

Incorporating Digital Technologies into Adult Basic Education: Concepts, Practices and Recommendations by Suzanne Smythe

and

Adult Learners and Technology: The Missing Voice by Judith Ellen Kizzie

While the other resources are of use and I will return to them throughout the remainder of the course, these two publications provide numerous facts that have several implications for my final project and teaching practice.

Overall, there is not a lot of literature pertaining to the subject of adult learners and technology. The fact that the title of the second resource contains the phrase “The Missing Voice” connotes the marginalized nature of adult education. The first resource is full of numerous salient points that apply to all aspects of literacy education, adult or K-12 and I would recommend that others give it a quick perusal. I have included some of these points below in my takeaways section.

Here are some of the key takeaways:

Incorporating Digital Technologies into Adult Basic Education: Concepts, Practices and Recommendations by Suzanne Smythe

• High-stake digital texts are often used by adults with low literacy skills (ie government forms are online)

• Adult learners who want to learn computers really want to improve their reading and writing 27

• There is an income gap between digitally literate and less literate adults due to affordability and access to broadband and digital devices

• “Access to digital technologies should not be tied to a level of formal education, but rather should be understood as integral to all adult learners’ needs, interest, and uses for technologies” 16

• Digital literacy provides a context for engagement and authentic learning 16

• “The tools themselves are not as important as the connections made possible by them”  18

• “Be wary of using the newest digital tools for use in formal learning settings. For example, it may be fun to have a class set of iPads so people can play with applications, but how does this support learning when the instructor collects the iPads at the end of the class and the learners go home empty-handed? Widens the social distance between instructor and learner” 28

• Technological integrity refers to the alignment of digitally-mediated learning strategies with the resources and uses for such technologies people have in their everyday lives 28

Adult Learners and Technology: The Missing Voice by Judith Ellen Kizzie

• Adult learners like to learn in a classroom setting among their peers (age and skill level) so they can learn from and help one another

• Fear and lack of confidence were barriers to learning, especially when it involved computers

• Many adult learners have no computer experience

• Lack of mathematics and reading skills negatively impact learning computer technology

• Adult learners need to be shown computer skills individually and visually

• Adult learners tend to learn in a more linear fashion and struggle with the unstructured, organic, game-style learning that younger learners use, especially with digital technologies

Although many points in each resource resonated with me, they also raised several counter points or questions on my part as applicable to my situation. The student population at Invergarry is very diverse, and these resources try to make a lot of generalizations. The ages of our students range from 16-80, we have students from more than 120 different countries and speak more than 108 languages at home. There is an increasing population of young immigrants attending the school and while a typical response might be to consider their learning styles comparable to those of their Canadian peers in the same demographic, our students bring with them a plethora of learning experiences divergent from those in Canada. To add further challenges to adult learning, there is also the language barrier that was not addressed by these two resources. Finding resources about adult learners who are learning a second language and trying to complete high school with digital technologies proved to be very challenging. Regardless of the imperfect fit, I was still able to garner some useful information which I will use in my final project.

References

Kizzie, J. E. (2004). Adult learners and technology: The missing voice. (Order No. 3157992, The University of Iowa). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, , 122-122 p. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/docview/305169451?accountid=14656. (305169451).

Smthe, Suzanne. Incorporating Digital Technologies into Adult Basic Education. Toronto: AlphaPlus, 2012. UBC Library eBook.