Standard 1 – Knowledge of Subject Matter Artifact 1 Joely Rogers

Standard 1 – Knowledge of Subject Matter

The teacher understands the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of the discipline(s)
he or she teaches and can create learning experiences that make these aspects of subject matter
meaningful for students.

Artifact I for Standard One: Knowledge of Subject Matter

Name of Artifact: Mid-Term Examination Questions for ADE545

Date: Spring 2009

Course: ADE545 The Sociocultural Context of Adult Education

Rationale

The rationales for this standard were some of the most difficult ones for me to write

because when I first read the description for the standard; it seemed like they were speaking

solely of knowledge about the language you planned to teach. My undergraduate is in

psychology, not English, and I was somewhat nervous that I would have nothing to offer for this

standard. However, after carefully studying the entries in the portfolio book, I came to the

conclusion that while yes, an English degree would certainly be helpful; the most critical

knowledge for my future career relates to second language acquisition/teaching and my students,

who are invariably, immigrants from other countries.

In support of Standard 1, Knowledge of Subject Matter, I offer the artifact “Mid-Term

Examination Questions for ADE545,” that derives from my mid-term exam in ADE545 The

Sociocultural Context of Adult Education. This artifact contains two important questions that

relate to my future ESL students 1) How do differences in race, class, gender, and sexual

orientation affect the teaching and learning transaction? and 2) What is the impact of

immigration on adult learning? My answers represent a basis for the knowledge I will need in my

future classroom. A good understanding of the issues my students face as learners will help me
 Standard 1 – Knowledge of Subject Matter Artifact 1 Joely Rogers

create learning experiences that make the subject matter (the English language) more meaningful

for them.
 Standard 1 – Knowledge of Subject Matter Artifact 1 Joely Rogers

Artifact I: Mid-Term Examination Questions for ADE545

Question 3: How do differences in race, class, gender, and sexual orientation affect the teaching

learning transaction? Why does it matter?

In a perfect world, an individual’s race, class, gender and sexual orientation would have

no effect on either the teaching or the learning process. If only the perfect world existed! An

example of how gender can affect an individual’s identity, which in turn affects their behavior in

the learning process, comes from Sheared & Sissel (2001) “Feminism recognizes that to be

women is to be gendered, that is, to be products of social and cultural belief systems and practice

about being women, not simply biological factors. As gendered we learn who we are as women;

how to act, how to interact with others, how we are valued because of our gender, what place in

the society we have because of our gender” (pp. 31-32).

Postmodernism speaks of the dominant center, which is the unspoken dominant culture,

and the various marginalized cultures that exist outside of this center (Sheared & Sissel, 2001).

Race, class, gender and sexual orientation are ways for the dominant center to marginalize others

which do not resemble itself. In the adult education classroom the dominant center may be a

style of teaching or the adult educators themselves. An example of this principle at work is a

white, middle class teacher in a classroom filled primarily with black or Latino low-income

students. If the teacher is not sensitive to these students then they run the risk of marginalizing

them and acting as a deterrent to the educational process.

How can the adult educator prevent unchangeable aspects such and race and gender from

affecting the teaching learning transaction? One way is to be aware of their potential to affect the

classroom. The teacher should not pretend that individual differences do not exist, but

acknowledge them. In addition, Johnson-Bailey (2002) suggests that adult educators conduct a
 Standard 1 – Knowledge of Subject Matter Artifact 1 Joely Rogers

critical reflection of themselves to help guide their teaching-learning transactions. As a future

ESL (English as a second language) adult educator, I feel that conducting my own personal

critical reflection is a key part of preparing to teach. I cannot hope to fully understand the diverse

identities of my future students, but I can acknowledge them, and learn how my own identity my

influence the teaching learning process.

Question 5: What is the impact of immigration on adult learning? What is the effect of the

cultural disjuncture between learners’ native cultures and the Euro-American culture they most

often encounter in the classroom? What kinds of gaps potentially exist between immigrant adult

learners and their teachers? How can adult educators effectively meet the needs of adult students

who are immigrants, especially when they are teaching a mixed group, meaning a mixture of

native-born and immigrant students?

As a future ESL teacher, the potential impact of immigration on adult learning is a critical

topic in all of my classes. During my recent tenure as a volunteer ESL writing tutor and

conversation partner, I worked with adults from over twenty countries struggling to learn

English, further their education and fit into American society. The obstacles these individuals

encounter on a daily basis, e.g. cultural and language differences seem almost insurmountable to

me. And yet many of them must overcome these obstacles because they cannot return to their

home countries. In postmodern theory these individuals represent the marginalized others and

the U.S. educational system represents the dominant center.

How can adult educators effectively meet the needs of adult students who are immigrants

and part of the marginalized others? To answer this question I return to question 3 about the

ways in which race, gender, etc. affect the teaching learning process. ESL learners often face a

‘super whammy’ of race, gender, language and cultural differences. An example of this super
 Standard 1 – Knowledge of Subject Matter Artifact 1 Joely Rogers

whammy is a writing student of mine who is black, African, and Muslim. She is a prime

candidate for marginalization in the classroom, especially with the (unspoken) anti-Muslim

sentiment in the local Dallas community. The sensitive ESL adult educator will acknowledge

that her characteristics place her at risk and attempt to find ways encourage her language

development without requiring that she divorce her culture. If the educator can extend this

sensitivity to the entirety of his or her mixed classroom then the potential for meaningful

learning and real discourse can occur.

 Standard 1 – Knowledge of Subject Matter Artifact 1 Joely Rogers

References

Johnson-Bailey, J. (2002). Race matters: The unspoken variable in the teaching-learning

transaction. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 93(4),

39-49.

Sheared, V. & Sissel, P.A. (Eds.). (2001). Making space: Merging theory and practice in adult

education. Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey.