Why Gather Authentic Materials?

  • Tells us the skills that workers actually use
  • Helps us to identify what must be taught
  • From here we develop instructional strategies
  • The learners get the opportunity to practice skills they will use on the job.
  • There is a direct application of what is learned.

  • Narrow the focus of the program to those reading, writing, numeracy and tasks that a student will encounter on the job.
  • The closer instructors can tailor materials and learning to their own learners’ needs, the better the chance that learning retention and transfer will occur.
  • We are attempting to narrow the gap between what is learned in the classroom and what is practiced outside the classroom.

 


Reading in the Classroom vs. Workplace Reading

Workplace

  • Workers read
    –to do, to carry out a task
    –actions are based on what is read
  • Workers tend to scan rather than read the whole text line by line (text searches).

Classroom

  • Students read
    –to learn
    –to appreciate stylistics
    –to analyze & critique
    –for enjoyment
  • Students spend only a limited amount of time reading for the sole purpose of carrying out a task.
  • Instructors cannot make assumptions about the essential skills learners have when they enter the classroom. There is a good chance that learners from secondary school will not have addressed workplace requirements such as document navigation, log book entries, MSDS, shift schedules, etc.
  • Academic programs in colleges and institutes do not usually focus on these kinds of tasks either.
  • Therefore, there is a need for technical and employment program instructors to include workplace essential skills in their programs.


Workplace

  • Workers will consult the same document every time they have to perform the task rather than consciously “learn” the material outlined.
  • The majority of reading involves documents and combinations of text and figures.
  • Materials read are specific to the work context.

Classroom

  • Students will often reread materials several times in one sitting to comprehend meaning and learn information.
  • Reading is almost exclusively text or narrative based (essays, novels, short stories,etc,) and involves continuous text.