Learners In Transition Research Articles

Literacy Development and Language Expression for Adult Learners in Transition

This chapter provides examples of transitions that learners face connected to their participation in adult education and English literacy instruction. It describes their efforts to attain relevant language expression skills.

Gesture as a window onto children’s number knowledge

Before learning the cardinal principle (knowing that the last word reached when counting a set represents the size of the whole set), children do not use number words accurately to label most set sizes. However, it remains unclear whether this difficulty reflects a general inability to conceptualize and communicate about number, or a specific problem with number words. We hypothesized that children’s gestures might reflect knowledge of number concepts that they cannot yet express in speech, particularly for numbers they do not use accurately in speech (numbers above their knower-level). Number gestures are iconic in the sense that they are item-based (i.e., each finger maps onto one item in a set) and therefore may be easier to map onto sets of objects than number words, whose forms do not map transparently onto the number of items in a set and, in this sense, are arbitrary. In addition, learners in transition with respect to a concept often produce gestures that convey different information than the accompanying speech. We examined the number words and gestures 3- to 5-year-olds used to label small set sizes exactly (1–4) and larger set sizes approximately (5–10). Children who had not yet learned the cardinal principle were more than twice as accurate when labeling sets of 2 and 3 items with gestures than with words, particularly if the values were above their knower-level. They were also better at approximating set sizes 5–10 with gestures than with words. Further, gesture was more accurate when it differed from the accompanying speech (i.e., a gesture–speech mismatch). These results show that children convey numerical information in gesture that they cannot yet convey in speech, and raise the possibility that number gestures play a functional role in children’s development of number concepts.

Older adult women learners in transition

AbstractThis chapter addresses older women learners, highlighting their transitions in life, in learning, and in preparing for the workplace. It focuses on the roles that social capital and adult education play in the process and presents strategies (learner and programmatic) for facilitating the inevitable transitioning of older women learners.

Learners in transition: the use of ePortfolios for women returners to science, engineering and technology

In 2002 the UK Government produced a report highlighting the problems faced by women returning to employment in science, engineering and technology (SET) after a career break. In response to this report, a national strategy was developed, with funding from the UK’s Department of Trade and Industry and the European Social Fund ‘Equal’ Programme, to address the issues highlighted by the report. One of the key parts of the strategy was the creation of a short (100 hours), online course by the Open University (UK) aimed at supporting and empowering women who were returning to employment in SET after a break. An ePortfolio forms an integral part of the course experience. This paper reports the experiences of the first group of 100 women who participated in this course. A range of data sources have been used to analyse the responses of participants to the course including questionnaires, emailed ‘critical incident’ narratives, discussion board postings and telephone interviews. This paper draws on that evaluation research to discuss the perceptions that women scientists, engineers and technologists had about the usefulness of personal/professional development planning (PDP) and an ePortfolio in helping them re‐enter employment, and their intentions to use it in future. Some of these findings can be generalised to other groups (either employed or not) who might benefit from a similar approach, i.e. developing an ePortfolio through a set of structured and guided e‐learning activities.

Adult learners in transition

AbstractThis chapter discusses the challenges, characteristics, and transitional roles of adult learners. Implications for student services professionals are presented.

Black Grade 9 learners in historically white suburban schools and their experience of integration

Any school that denies that intercultural and interracial differences exist and that lacks effective accommodation strategies for all its learners could thwart learners' feelings of truly belonging to the school. This could leave them feeling like outsiders an experience that could have a negative impact on their school careers and future lives. This article investigates, from an educational psychological frame of reference, the situation of black Grade 9 learners in historically white suburban schools as learners in transition between two worlds, with specific reference to the individual, family and school/cultural dimensions. An in-depth look into the life-worlds of a group of such learners was obtained by means of a literature study, questionnaires and individual interviews. To ensure a holistic perspective on problems and possible solutions, an 18-factor culture general framework was used as a basis and applied to the South African situation. The study found that black Grade 9 learners attending historically white suburban schools faced difficult scholastic, social and emotional challenges. These included dealing with high scholastic demands whilst lacking the required educational background as well as financial, social and environmental resources; coping with or antipathy towards the Afrikaans language; a perceived ;differentness; in habits and appearance and especially coming to terms with their experience of racism in school. Learners' strengths were also highlighted. The improvement of accommodation strategies by the school to promote multicultural and antiracist harmony in schools is discussed. (South African Journal of Education: 2002 22(1): 28-35)

Learners in Transition: Evidence from the Interaction of Accuracy and Self‐Monitoring Skill in a Listening Task

Based on the observation that some ESL learners appear to regress in performance during language learning when traditional test accuracy scores are used, another aspect of students' performance was investigated. Using a confidence‐rating scale, the self‐monitoring abilities of 67 intermediate ESL students enrolled in a University‐level pronunciation/listening course were assessed over a seven week period and compared with test accuracy scores. Results indicated three different groups of students. A lower level group, in terms of initial test accuracy scores, improved in their ability to choose correct answers on a test but their self‐monitoring ability did not improve. A middle‐level group actually regressed in their ability to choose correct answers on a test but significantly improved in self‐monitoring ability. The higher‐level group showed only minor improvement in both ability to choose correct answers and in self‐monitoring. The pedagogical implications of these findings in terms of language acquisition, teacher attitudes, and testing are discussed.