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Reppin’ the Rainbow: LGBTQIA+ Topics in ABE
ABE professionals can use this presentation to better understand and discuss topics around gender and sexuality in the classroom. Included are materials, discussion questions, resources and research. Scroll down to the second topic listed on the website to find these resources.
Center for Culturally Responsive Teaching and Learning
This resource repository contains videos, articles, and handouts on the topic of culturally responsive teaching. The executive director of CCRTL, Dr. Sharroky Hollie, is a nationally recognized leader in the field of culturally responsive education.
Introduction to Culturally Relevant Pedagogy
In this video, education experts Jackie Jordan Irvine, Geneva Gay and Kris Gutierrez explain how to make culturally relevant pedagogy a reality in your classroom.
Curriculum as Encounter: Selves and Shelves
In this article by Emily Jane Style, "a veteran teacher expresses the importance of drawing on the life-texts of students and recognizing the ways that personal experience influences a student’s perception of the world."
Global Oneness Project
According to their website, “We aim to connect, through stories, the local human experience to global meta-level issues, such as climate change, water scarcity, food insecurity, poverty, endangered cultures, migration, and sustainability. Through featuring individuals and communities impacted by these issues, our stories and lessons provide opportunities to examine universal themes that emphasize our common humanity... Our lessons facilitate the development of students' critical thinking, inquiry, empathy, and listening skills."
Transforming Grammar Instruction: Moving from a Traditional Practice to a Functional Practice
Sheri Lear, and adult ESL teacher from Minneapolis, MN, outlines her approach to teaching functional grammar in this lesson plan. The plan provides teachers with an explanation of functional grammar as well as a concrete example of how it integrates grammar instruction into the overall context of the lesson.
Writing SMART Goals for English Learners
This blog post from Ellevation provides an overview of a webinar where participants learned how to transform the commonly used SMART goal-setting framework and make it directly applicable for EL educators. The full recording of the webinar is available using Adobe Connect.
Teaching Grammar to Adult English Language Learners: Focus on Form
This brief from the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL) provides a research-based rational as to why there is a need to teach grammar within a meaningful context. Teachers who struggle with questions of how much, when, and how to teach grammar will find this brief both informative and thought-provoking.
TEFL Online Tutorial: Teaching Grammar in Context
TEFL Online Tutorial: Teaching Grammar in Context - an example provided by an experienced TEFL teacher of how to teach grammar using context.
Project-Based Learning: Buck Institute for Education
The Buck Institute for Education (BIE) website was created to show teachers how to use Project Based Learning (PBL) in all grade levels and subject areas. The website provides articles and books, research summaries on PBL, videos, a library of sample projects, downloadable teaching tools, and more.
Incorporating Goal-Setting in Adult ESL Classrooms
This PowerPoint outlines goal-setting projects and their results in beginning level adult ESL classrooms. Images of handouts and descriptions of activities are provided.
Learner Goal-Setting
This article addresses the question, "What can instructors do to help students set goals, monitor progress, and reach goals?" with research-backed strategies and suggestions for practitioners.
Goal-Setting Lesson Plans
The San Diego Continuing Education Program has created PDFs of a three-part goal-setting lesson for adult ESL students. The lessons and materials are appropriate for high-beginning to advanced level learners.
ESL Teaching Methods: Teaching Grammar Creatively
This article from the Reach to Teach blog offers best practices for teaching grammar in an effective and engaging manner for learners of all ages.
Cultural Identity and Teaching
This article discusses the role that culture plays in shaping the values and practices of teachers, both consciously and subconsciously. It offers recommendations for how teachers can build awareness of their own cultural values and beliefs, and suggests ways that teachers can build and present culture in their classrooms.
3 Tips to Make Any Lesson More Culturally Responsive
This article by Zaretta Hammond discusses three easy strategies that teachers can use to leverage the brain’s memory systems and information processing structures and make their lessons more culturally responsive to the diverse learners in their classrooms.
A Framework for Culturally Responsive Teaching
This article addresses the roles of motivation and culture; analyzes some of the social and institutional resistance to teaching based on principles of intrinsic motivation; and outlines the norms, procedures, and structures for effective culturally responsive teaching.
New Resources
Tapping into Diverse Perspectives and Teaching Materials
This video discusses what “diverse perspectives and teaching materials” mean, and why this is important to learner success in the classroom. Using diverse materials makes class more relevant to learners’ lives and helps them bridge information they already know to new information. Utilizing diverse perspectives in class content is also key to building up critical thinking skills. We take a look at numerous resources that can help each of us diversify the visuals, videos, audio, and written materials we use.
Being a Warm Demander
This video takes a look at a spectrum of different kinds of teachers and asks you to reflect on where you would place yourself. We argue, based on Zaretta Hammond’s work, that the “warm demander” is the sweet spot of the spectrum which focuses on building trust with learners while also holding them to high standards to meet their learning goals. We then discuss tools to practice building relationships with learners, creating a learning partnership pact, and giving quality feedback so learners can meet their goals.
Discovering Learners’ Funds of Knowledge
In this video, we define and discuss the terms “funds of knowledge” and “an asset-based perspective.” A key element of equity in the classroom is acknowledging learners have a wealth of knowledge based on their own experiences, and we should provide opportunities for learners to be the experts in the room. Once we learn what students’ assets are, we can weave this information into class content, which helps learners be more successful. We take a look at an example lesson.
Presenter Information
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MN ABE YouTube Channel
The MN ABE YouTube Channel is a free online PD resource that you can use to explore teaching techniques and classroom ideas in action! Find out more in this MN ABE Connect newsletter article.
Upcoming ABE Events
August 6, 2024
10:00 am–12:00 pm
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Racial Equity 101 Presented by Jimmie Heags
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Registration Deadline: TUE. 8/6/24 Join presenter Jimmie Heags, Jr., MA, LSC, LPCC, LADC, ACS, for this session that exposes how race is defined and how racism impacts individuals and institutions. The session will provide learners with a framework for understanding and disrupting the attitudes and structures that perpetuate… Learn More
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August 6, 2024
6:30 pm–8:30 pm
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Volunteer Core Training Module 1: Overview of Minnesota Adult Education and Program Accountability
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Registration Deadline: TUE. 8/6/24 Participants learn about Adult Basic Education programming in Minnesota, demographics of learners, instructional content standards as well as initial and on-going assessment. This session wraps up with learner motivations, barriers and persistence. Learn More
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August 13, 2024
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Volunteer Core Training Module 2: Understanding Adult Learners
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Registration Deadline: TUE. 8/13/24 Participants develop their personal cultural awareness and learn how expectations around school culture shape how people teach and learn. Guiding principles for effectively delivering instruction to adults are also covered. Finally, participants increase their sensitivity to the challenges of learning English and developing literacy… Learn More
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