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This
research project originated with a request by the Kentucky Department for Adult
Education and Literacy to investigate why individuals lacking a high school
diploma or GED choose not to pursue educational opportunities.
Educational achievement statistics indicate that approximately 36% of
adults in Kentucky have not completed high school or the GED (closer to 50% in
some regions) and that adult education programs in the state are serving only 5%
of their potential market. Regardless
of the accuracy of these figures, clearly adult education and literacy programs
are under-utilized in the state. The following report summarizes the findings generated by a mixed-method
research study of undereducated adults in seven rural sites across Kentucky.
The purpose of this study is to gain an understanding of the motivations
and obstacles that influence educational decision-making among adults without
high school diplomas or the equivalent.
This study reveals that undereducated adults--including both former and potential adult education clients--frequently hold oversimplified assumptions about adult education programs. These assumptions often prevent them from entering adult education programs and at other times cause clients to leave programs before reaching their goals. The following assumptions about adult education programs were among those held by respondents:
Many of the adults who participated in this study held one
or more of these assumptions about adult education.
Although our respondents did not always know where or when classes are
offered, they almost always knew how to find out. Clearly, it was not a lack of awareness of adult education
programs that has kept them from participating. Instead, their decisions were based on an assessment of the
efficacy of formal adult education for their lives. Almost all our study participants
perceived the GED as the ultimate goal of adult education programming. Indeed, it became clear during the research process that
adult education and GED acquisition were commonly considered one and the same.
This may be a legacy, in Kentucky, of adult education’s previous
relationship with the Department of Education.
Despite organizational and policy changes, this perspective is still very
much a part of public perceptions of adult education by both the haves and the
have nots. Although most of the
programs in the counties we studied also offered literacy tutoring and other
educational opportunities, preparing for the GED was perceived to be the primary
activity. In addition, most
individuals with whom we spoke (those with educational credentials and without)
referred to formal adult education programming as GED preparation.
While we found that our respondents often
held oversimplified assumptions about adult education programs, we also
discovered that many community leaders, social service practitioners and,
unfortunately, adult education providers also hold stereotypical assumptions
about undereducated adults. The
following statements are examples of what we heard in the research sites with
regard to under-educated adults:
While there is a certain degree of validity to each of
these assumptions--at least for some people and some of the time--an uncritical
acceptance of them often leads providers and policy makers to erroneous
conclusions about the needs and goals of adult learners.
The danger inherent in operating from
unexamined assumptions lies in the likelihood that when these assumptions go
unquestioned, they are accepted as “truths” when in fact they provide an
incomplete and often misleading understanding of the needs and goals of
undereducated adults. Furthermore,
a lack of education often puts individuals in vulnerable positions, unable to
question or challenge policies and practices based on stereotypes and
misconceptions. Close attention to these assumptions can prevent
misunderstandings between program providers and potential clients and guide
policy makers to more appropriate adult education program offerings. |
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