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Getting Started: (Advice for New Adult and Family Literacy Programs)
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A Hearty Meal:
Advice For A New Adult & Family Literacy Education Program
by
Thomas Brillat
What follows is food-for-thought;
a meal designed to ease your hunger by offering a few courses that have
helped me improve my management of adult education and family literacy
programs. Now sit back, here comes the waiter.
All administrators,
teachers and students involved in adult basic education must be familiar
with the phrase - there's good news and there's bad news. It is easy to
get caught up in the bad news: insufficient funds and resources to operate
a quality program, lack of respect - real or perceived, students with
problems, etc. Therefore, the first course is a tray full of "stay positive"
hors d'oeuvres: small and easy to eat. Staying positive sets an optimistic
outlook for the entire feast. Consuming a few "stay positives" puts bad
news in perspective. Bad news is nothing more than limits placed on program
operating conditions. Good cooks learn how to balance flavors, good adult
educators diminish the impact of bad news by setting goals. Goals should
be simple, measurable, and attainable. Completed goals are successes that
mock bad news and can be used as springboards for greater results.
While still an Army
General, President Eisenhower commented, "in preparing for battle I have
always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable." To
an extent, the same can be said for adult education. Program management
requires decisions and actions in a broad spectrum of areas. These can
include: funding, grant writing, assessing, accounting, hiring, managing
facilities, counseling, procuring materials and technology, interacting
with boards of directors, producing reports, scheduling, fundraising,
etc. Teaching requires familiarity with diverse topics, know ledge of
available resources, understanding the student body, classroom management
skills, and more. In both situations planning is essential. It helps the
program manager and the teacher anticipate the unexpected "battles" that
inevitably occur. Strategic and instructional planning identify key issues,
resources, operational philosophies and practices that form a guide from
which to conduct the business of the organization. Without undertaking
the planning process a new program can find itself misdirected, lacking
a mission and uncertain how and what teachers are suppose to accomplish.
You must have no doubt
that planning is critical, even if you face difficulty implementing your
plan. Therefore, the second course is a bowl of planning soup. Sure, you
can get full without soup, but it would never be a first class dining
experience. Savor the variety of ingredients in the planning soup and
prepare your palate for the entrée.
Ah, yes. The main
course! A delectable dish called the client trap. The aroma entices you,
attacks your willpower and compels you to take a bite. But be careful,
if it is not properly prepared it can leave a sour and bitter aftertaste.
At the most fundamental level the client trap is a platter heaped with
the realities of interpersonal relationships. And, in adult and family
education, reality dictates that you prepare yourself for disappointments.
This is not a pessimistic view that counters the savory stay positive
hors d'oeuvres. Rather, it is a substantive piece of sustenance that enables
the new administrator or teacher to deal with the "stories" of their clients.
Instructors must accept that in most situations they are likely to give
much more than they will ever receive. Students will win your heart in
many ways. Then something happens. There will be the day when you read
the name of a favorite student in the police bulletin, or he performs
below his ability on a test, or she curses you for ruining her life, or
you realize that she has been lying to you since you met. You think, what
have I gotten into? All you can see is "bad news." But this main course
is the most fulfilling. It feeds the need for human interaction, a cornerstone
of adult basic education. Everyone swallows the client trap at some point.
Just make sure you have an antacid available and then move on.
Now it is time for
the good news. The good news is the sweetest part of the banquet - dessert.
And what is this treat? What great elixir can lighten the load of such
a heavy meal? What is it that every administrator, teacher and adult education
or family literacy participant needs to know?
PROGRAMS
AND PEOPLE SUCCEED!!
Even in the most challenging
adult education programs, in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods, with
the most economically deprived clients, with the lowest literacy levels,
and the fewest amount of materials, learning takes place. People achieve
their goals. They learn to read better and to problem solve. They earn
a GED credential, improve their self-esteem, and obtain job skills. They
become more effective parents, workers and citizens. Every adult Now,
wasn't that an enjoyable dinner? If you are like me you should be stuffed
and looking for a soft chair in which to relax, digest and reflect. Remember,
stay positive - establish goals, plan ahead-know your mission, avoid the
client trap-but be ready when it springs, and get ready to write your
own success story.
About the Author
Thomas H. Brillat is in his eighth year as Director of the Washington
County Adult Learning Center. The Center serves nine suburban and rural
communities in southern Rhode Island (RI). He is active in a variety of
adult education initiatives, including the RI Adult Education Commission
and the RI Distance Learning Project. He is a RI Foundation Fellow, storyteller,
and graduate of the United States Naval Academy and the University of
RI. He completed his teaching certification at Providence College.
 
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