ADAPTING LESSONS FOR DIFFERENT LEARNERS

Felisa Tibbitts and Ellie Keen, Human Rights Education Associates, 1999.

Lessons and texts are constantly being modified and adapted for use in different settings. A Romanian civics textbook for the secondary school level might inform work on a human rights textbook in Armenia. Law-related education materials developed for use with youth might be adapted for use in refugee centers.

Good materials get passed on in conferences, in suitcases, in magazines and, these days, over the Internet. They travel across countries, across language groups, and across target audiences. Adapting them in ways that will allow you to reach new kinds of learners, and achieve the goals that you have in mind, requires considerable skill, sensitivity and knowledge of the learner’s environment.

In order to assist you in this process, we have compiled the following lists of questions. We invite you to add to this list, based on your own experience.

READING ABILITY

1. What are the reading levels of the learners?

Does language need to be simplified?

Does the text need to be shorter, or eliminated altogether?

Would any other educational aids be of assistance, either in order to clarify points, or in order to introduce additional information (e.g., drawings, photographs, personal recollections, newspaper cuttings,etc.)?





WRITING ABILITY

2. What are the writing abilities of the learners?

Do certain writing exercises need to be simplified, shortened or eliminated?

Or, conversely, can the writing exercises be extended?

Will the learners be willing to do a writing exercise in the first place?





BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE

3. What background knowledge does the learner bring to the lesson?

Do basic concepts and definitions need to be introduced or explained?

Is there a warm-up exercise that you can do in order to find out what the learners already know and think?

Should a glossary of terms be included in the Annex to the course materials?





BACKGROUND ATTITUDES

4. What fixed conceptions, attitudes or even prejudices are the learners likely to bring to the topic?

What misunderstandings are likely to arise, and how can you prevent this?

Are there issues that need to be handled with care or particular sensitivity, especially for certain members of the group?

How will highly emotional issues be handled in the learning situation?

Can the lesson be developed so that various points of view are presented?





MOTIVATING LEARNERS

5. What are the issues of greatest conern and interest to the learners?

Can these be addressed first, and then used to bring in other law- and human rights-related topics?

Can you find ways of directly relating the content of the lesson to the learners’ own experiences or personal interests?





EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT IN GENERAL

6. How do the learners feel about being in "an educational setting" in the first place?

Are the learners generally motivated, or is it the reverse – does the course setting have negative connotations for the learner?

If the latter, can you make the lesson more informal and "less school-like"?





ACTIVE METHODS

7. Will educators and learners feel comfortable using active methods?

Does the rationale for these methods need to be explained openly?

Do the lessons contain explicit instructions about how to implement the methodologies (while at the same time leaving some discretion to the educator)?

Is it realistic to expect that educators will be willing to share authority in the classroom with learners? Is there trust?





OTHER ISSUES

8. This is not a question, but a caution. Educators should be prepared to deal with a range of "non-educational" issues that will come up when teaching in non-traditional settings. Learners may speak about personal concerns that fall outside the boundaries of the formal course. You can help educators anticipate ways to address such concerns, through listening, personal action, or referrals.