Breathing new life into your embedded literacy and numeracy in vocational and trades training
If you’ve begun embedding literacy and numeracy into your vocational or trades training course, whether through professional development or on your own, you may be wondering what to do next to reinvigorate this approach.
Below are a few suggestions. Choose one or two and talk about them with a colleague and then take action.
Embedded literacy and numeracy
- Create a lesson plan for one of your vocational courses that integrates literacy and numeracy skills relevant to your subject. Share it with a colleague and get feedback on how to improve it.
- Observe a colleague teaching a course and identify areas where they could embed literacy and numeracy skills. Provide them with feedback and suggestions on how they could do this effectively.
- Identify a workplace task or process in your industry and break it down into smaller steps, then identify the literacy and numeracy skills required for each step. This will help you recognise opportunities to embed these skills into your teaching and make them more relevant to your learners.
ESOL
- Research the cultural background of some of your ESOL learners and find out about some common cultural practices, values, and beliefs. This will help you better understand and support their learning needs.
- Learn a few basic phrases in the languages of the ESOL students in your class. Greet them in their own language and make them feel welcome.
- Create a list of key vocabulary words related to your subject that ESOL students may not be familiar with. Provide translations and definitions for these words to help them understand the material better.
Māori literacy and numeracy
- Learn some basic te reo Māori phrases and incorporate them into your teaching. This will help create a more culturally responsive learning environment for your Māori learners.
- Research and learn about Māori language and culture. Incorporate Māori language and cultural references into your lessons to create a more inclusive learning environment.
- Develop a Māori literacy or numeracy activity that connects to the vocational training you are delivering. Share it with your students and gather their feedback.
Pasifika Literacy
- Identify the different Pacific cultures represented in your class and research some cultural practices and values that you can incorporate into your teaching. This will help you build stronger relationships with your Pasifika learners and create a more inclusive learning environment.
- Learn more about the cultures of the Pasifika students in your class. Incorporate Pasifika language and cultural references into your lessons to create a more inclusive learning environment.
- Invite Pasifika community members to speak to your class about their culture and experiences. Encourage them to share how literacy and numeracy have impacted their lives.
The Learning Progressions for Adult Literacy
- Use the Learning Progressions to identify the literacy needs of your learners and develop teaching strategies that address these needs. This will help you design more effective and targeted embedded literacy and numeracy learning experiences.
- Review the Learning Progressions for Adult Literacy and identify areas where your students may be struggling. Develop teaching strategies to help them improve in those areas.
- Incorporate the Learning Progressions into your lesson planning process. Ensure that each lesson includes specific literacy objectives that align with the progressions.
The Learning Progressions for Adult Numeracy
- Use the Learning Progressions to identify the numeracy needs of your learners and develop teaching strategies that address these needs. This will help you design more effective and targeted embedded literacy and numeracy learning experiences.
- Review the Learning Progressions for Adult Numeracy and identify areas where your students may be struggling. Develop teaching strategies to help them improve in those areas.
- Incorporate the Learning Progressions into your lesson planning process. Ensure that each lesson includes specific numeracy objectives that align with the progressions
The Literacy and Numeracy for Adults Assessment Tool (LNAAT)
- Familiarise yourself with the LNAAT, learn how to administer it, and use it to assess your students’ literacy and numeracy skills. Use the results to develop targeted teaching strategies and tailor your teaching to their needs.
- Share the results of the LNAAT assessment with your students, involve them in the goal-setting process, and work with them to develop a plan to improve their literacy and numeracy skills.
- If appropriate, incorporate the LNAAT into your regular assessments and track your students’ progress over time. Use this information to adjust your teaching and provide additional support as needed.
Te Whare Tapa Whā
- Research and understand the four dimensions of Māori health and wellbeing as defined by Te Whare Tapa Whā, and identify ways to incorporate them into your teaching.
- Use the metaphor of Te Whare Tapa Whā to encourage students to consider and promote their own physical, spiritual, mental, and social wellbeing.
- Collaborate with colleagues to develop a plan for incorporating the four dimensions of health into your teaching and create an activity that promotes holistic wellbeing for your learners.
Fonofale Pasifika
- Learn about the six dimensions of Pasifika well-being outlined in the Fonofale Pasifika model and how they relate to learning. Incorporate this knowledge into your teaching to create a more culturally responsive and holistic learning environment for your Pasifika learners.
- Analyse the cultural dimensions of your Pasifika learners to better understand how their backgrounds and experiences may influence their learning. Use this information to design learning activities that are culturally responsive and meaningful for them.
- Collaborate with your Pasifika learners to develop a learning plan that reflects their cultural identities and priorities. Use the Fonofale Pasifika model as a guide for this process, focusing on the six dimensions of Pasifika well-being and how they can be incorporated into the plan.
ESOL Starting Points
- Use the ESOL Starting Points to assess the English language proficiency of your learners and develop teaching strategies that address their language needs. This will help you design more effective and targeted learning experiences.
- Identify the different language backgrounds of your ESOL learners and how this may impact on their learning. Use this knowledge to design activities that are inclusive and cater for a range of language abilities.
- Use the ESOL Starting Points assessment tool to identify the language proficiency levels of your ESOL learners. Use this information to tailor your teaching and learning activities to better meet their needs.
Even if you can only take action on one or two of these things you’ll revitalise your approach to embedding literacy and numeracy in vocational training. .