Identify the target group of learners

The target group of learners for this unit is the adult learner who is assessed as Level 1or 2 on the NRS. This course is designed to give individuals access to information through a variety of activities with minimal reading and writing but which engages them in activities to reassess themselves as learners and to develop new learning strategies/skills that will be transferable to other settings: personal, educational and vocational.

Purposes and social context of the program

For groups of learners at higher levels there are numerous resources and courses to provide information about study skills and learning strategies. The purpose of the unit is to provide opportunities for students, primarily those with low literacy skills, to become metacognitive and to make conscious choices about enhancing their learning.

Activities in the unit will involve students in all Aspects of Communication but predominantly: Personal, Systems, Cooperative and Public. The focus of the program is on the development of thinking, organisational and evaluation skills and the transferability of the skills to students personal, educational and vocational life.

It is envisaged that students will gain a great deal by discussing the issues and topics in a group where experiences have been similar. They will have opportunities to develop strategies based on information from educational psychology and students own experiences. The emphasis will be on the development of personal learning plans that take account of learning styles and preferences.

In relation to the Workplace and Social Contexts within the NRS, students will be working towards the development of skills at level 3:

• Adapts the skills of one cultural context to another

• Understands texts which includes meanings which are predominantly explicit

• Performs without reliance on interaction with sympathetic participants/interlocutors

• Uses a narrow range of skill and knowledge for preparatory courses.

The discussion and activities encourage students to transfer the learnings to various settings or contexts and they develop the confidence to use methods that are personally relevant and effective.

Learning Outcomes

These learning outcomes are based on outcomes associated with most study skills courses and have also been cross-referenced with Learning Strategies activities in the NRS. The skills have been taken from across the 5 levels and across the Aspects of Communication and subsumed under outcome headings to create a course that contains generic skills that will be useful for students at all levels but with particular reference to low literacy students.

Many of the Learning Strategies skills/activities that appear at NRS Level 4 or 5 are powerful skills which need to be developed by low skill learners early in the learning journey. For example, the idea of evaluating a current learning program is an important skill to develop so that students feel a sense of power and a shared responsibility for their learning. For many literacy students this has been a missing component of their brushes with education.

The following is a brief summary of the learning outcomes. A fuller description appears later in this article.

1. Able to identify and utilise own learning style to enhance learning (Including motivation)

2. Able to identify good learning techniques

3. Able to use personal organisation and time management techniques

4. Able to set goals: short, medium and long

5. Able to use decision-making and problem –solving techniques (eg De Bono's 'Six Hats')

6. Able to assess own progress using cirteria

7. Able to evaluate current learning program(and/or work situation)

8. Able to investigate learning, personal and vocational pathways by utilising a variety of sources.