Return-Path: <nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id i3M2JQm09621; Wed, 21 Apr 2004 22:19:26 -0400 (EDT) Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 22:19:26 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <139.2e00f805.2db884ce@aol.com> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: MWPotts2001@aol.com To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-4EFF:2742] Tom on Adult Literacy, Earth Day X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Mailer: 9.0 for Windows sub 5015 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Status: O Content-Length: 4457 Lines: 107 Research Note April, 21, 2004 Adult Literacy, Earth Day, and Sustainable Development Tom Sticht International Consultant in Adult Education Thursday, April 22, 2004 is celebrated as Earth Day in the United States. On that day the nation reaffirms a commitment to the conservation and preservation of natural resources such as rivers, forests, air, and animals, including humans. Earth Day is celebrated as a part of the movement known as sustainable development (SD). The SD movement is an international effort to focus environmental and human resources development activities on actions which improve the present conditions of life without limiting the possibilities of improvements by and for the benefit of future generations. Adult literacy education is one of the human development activities that nations are engaged in today to advance SD. Adult literacy education is recognized both as an educational activity that can convey useful information to adult learners about the need for development of natural resources in a way that contributes to present and future needs and as a technical means of communication and an aid for thinking and reasoning that contributes to the further development of the learner. Cora Wilson Stewart and Early Work on Sustainable Development In 1915, Cora Wilson Stewart (CWS), founder of the Moonlight Schools for adult literacy education in Kentucky in the first fifth of the 20th century, published the Country Life Readers: First Book. In this book she followed the principles of what today I call functional context education and embedded or integrated the teaching of reading and writing skills with content important in the improvement of life for the farming folk of the hills and hollows of Kentucky. On pages 36-37 of the First Book, CWS focused on the conservation of soil and waterways and relayed a story about the problems farmers might have if they do not control soil erosion. The story states: "Look at the little brook! It runs down the hill. See, it is full of mud." "Yes, it is taking away soil. The mud in the brook is made up of the richest part of the soil. The land gets poorer and poorer. It will not raise a good crop." "What can be done?" [new page] "Run and tell the farmer that the brook is stealing his soil." "The farmer knows it." "Then why does he not come and stop it?" "The farmer is too lazy and shift- less. With care he could keep his soil. He could sow this hill in grass and use it as a pasture. He could plant trees here. He could fill these gullies with brush. There are many ways to stop the brook from stealing soil. No brook shall steal my soil." Instructional Approach to Sustainable Development The instructional approach that CWS used in the Country Life Readers and in the Moonlight School classrooms followed functional context education principles that contemporary research has confirmed as useful for adult literacy education and the sustainable development of learners after their educational experience in the classroom. First, she builds new knowledge of reading and writing on the prior knowledge that learners bring with them thereby making it easier for adults to learn by relating new learning to old learning. Second, she integrates the teaching of basic skills or reading and writing with content that relates to the daily life of the adult learners outside the classroom to hold interest and maintain motivation to attend class. Third, she facilitates transfer of learning from the classroom to the world outside the classroom by developing new knowledge that learners can apply in their daily lives. Fourth, the latter, in turn, offers the possibility of further learning by adults to extend and sustain the development that they achieved while attending school. Today, adult literacy educators can join in the celebration of Earth Day and contribute to the international sustainable development movement by following the principles of functional context education that Cora Wilson Stewart intuitively followed almost a century ago, and which have since been confirmed by research on adult literacy education in many different nations. Literacy without functional context education for sustainable development is not likely to be sustained. Thomas G. Sticht International Consultant in Adult Education 2062 Valley View Blvd. El Cajon, CA 92019-2059 Tel/fax: (619) 444-9133 Email: tsticht at aznet.net
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