In Adult Numeracy, Diana Coben says that to be numerate means to be competent, confident and comfortable with one’s judgments on whether to use mathematics in a particular situation and if so what mathematics to use, how to do it, what degree of accuracy is appropriate and what the answer means in relationship to the context.

Whatever definition you choose to use, this unit will focus on how to support learners in using numeracy in their everyday lives. So go ahead and don’t be shy about exploring numeracy and trying some of the activities in this unit with your tutors. I think you both will be surprised at how much fun math and numeracy can be!

There are a few points to consider before tutoring a learner in math:

• You should determine the level of math you are willing to offer in your program. There may be a place in your community for learners to develop higher levels of math (usually Grade 9 level).
• You need to be aware that some learners may have a math learning disability (dyscalculia). This is the inability to understand numbers, number relationships and the outcome of number operations. It is important to use different learning strategies, similar to those you would use with someone who has other learning disabilities. (See Unit 10, Learning Disabilities.)

The following introduction to numeracy was adapted from Lori Herod’s work, Numeracy for Adult Literacy Learners, published by Adult Literacy and Continuing Education in Manitoba and available online (see bibliography).

Whole numeracy

Many adults, not just literacy learners, are anxious about numeracy. Math anxiety stems in large part from the emphasis historically placed on the operational or computational side of mathematics. This emphasis led to the belief that mathematical ability was something only certain people had. What was missing from this approach was demonstrating to learners that numeracy has “real-life” applications that we use every day. This linking of the operational side of math to its functional side is referred to as “whole math” or “holistic math.” This approach and its components are outlined below.

Active and authentic learning

The first thing that must be said about teaching and learning numeracy is that, like any learning, it should be active and authentic. Research into adult learning has demonstrated that learning is most effective when it is useful to the learner and tied to meaningful real-life situations such as grocery shopping, deciding which gas station has the best price and so on. In addition, the learner needs to be actively engaged in his or her learning, rather than passively memorizing formulas and multiplication tables.

This approach helps adult learners to make abstract concepts concrete. Applying knowledge and skills in their own lives, in response to their own needs, is intrinsically motivating. It also encourages critical thinking; that is, the ability to approach problems using a variety of strategies and to know where mathematics fits into a bigger picture.