Teaching Writing in Adult Literacy

Abstract

Writing is critical to success in education, the workplace, and everyday communication yet receives limited attention in the research, particularly the topic of writing instruction in adult education. Adult literacy practitioners frequently lack training in writing instruction and must rely on a confusing array of information, primarily derived from K-12 pedagogy. This literature synthesis investigates findings from studies of writing focusing on adult literacy and explicates specific instructional practices and strategies for teaching writing to adult learners. Findings highlight the importance of fostering motivation, persistence, and self-efficacy and indicate motivation and achievement increase when instructors introduce specific writing micro-goals, share explicit feedback, and provide evidence of progress. Classrooms should incorporate opportunities for creative expression, authentic materials and communication, writing task contextualization, explicit strategy instruction, regular journaling and personal writing, and technology and multimedia integration. Research gaps in supporting adult learner writing are identified, and implications and ideas for future research are offered.