A Contextualized Approach To Curriculum and Instruction
A Contextualized Approach To Curriculum and Instruction
A Contextualized Approach To Curriculum and Instruction
3
EFF Research Principle:
A Contextualized Approach
to Curriculum and Instruction By Marilyn K. Gillespie
A
third key concept underlying Equipped for the Future (EFF) relates That Matter: An EFF Approach
to its contextualized approach to curriculum and instruction. Instead to Quality presents five key prin-
of first teaching skills and knowledge separated from their context ciples that reflect the theoretical
and hoping that learners will end up knowing how to transfer what foundations of EFF. Program
they have learned to life outside the classroom, EFF teachers start practices that support these
with real-life contexts and weave these contexts into every stage of the teaching and principles provide guideposts
learning process. Instruction and assessment are aimed directly at the skills and by which programs, teachers,
knowledge adults need to perform tasks they have identified as important and students, and their communities
meaningful to them right now in their everyday lives. The focus is on the applica- can assess their implementation
tion rather than on the possession of basic skills and knowledge (Merrifield, 2000). of the EFF Framework. They
help practitioners to better
The contextualized approach to instruction draws on the same body of cognitive answer the questions What
research described in Research to Practice Notes 1 and 2. Of key importance for this does it mean to practice EFF?
principle is research on the transfer of learning. Research shows that learning and What does EFF implemen-
transfers from one context to another more effectively when the learner under- tation look like in action?
stands not only the facts but also the big picturethe underlying principles, These Research to Practice
patterns, and relationshipsthat is acquired through the application of knowl- Notes will help you to:
edge (Glaser, 1992; Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, 1999; Greeno, Resnick, & identify the research basis for
Collins, 1997). This contextualized approach is also based on the recognition that the principles;
the development of expertise requires that a learner develop not only content but learn key concepts and terms
also procedural knowledge, such as the metacognitive awareness of when and how associated with the principles;
to apply what has been learned. This kind of knowledge can be acquired only see examples of how other
through practice (Pressley & Woloshyn, 1995; Hartman, 2001). programs have implemented
the program practices;
A contextualized approach to instruction also stresses the social nature of real- reflect on how you and your
world activities (Wenger, 1998; Lave & Wenger, 1991), the value of building a learn- program can implement the
ing community within the classroom, and the importance of incidental learning program practices.
that takes place when knowledge and skills are acquired within a social context. For
example, when the skill of filling out forms grows out of an immediate real-world
need of immigrant learners and is addressed in a community of learners, issues
such as understanding the conditions under which filling out forms is necessary,
when and how to call in an expert such as a lawyer, and the benefits and draw-
backs of asking family members for assistance become part of the curriculum. This
Research to Practice Note focuses on the following key assumptions:
Effective learning requires not only the acquisition but also the active applica-
tion of knowledge, skills, and processes. National Institute for Literacy
To encourage transfer to other contexts, effective learning requires the acquisi- 1775 I Street NW, Suite 730
tion of a complex knowledge base including content knowledge, skills, and cog- Washington, DC 20006
nitive and metacognitive strategies. T E L 202.233.2025
Learning is a function not only of the activity itself but also of the context and FA X 202.233.2050
culture in which it takes place. WEB www.nifl.gov
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E F F R E S E A R C H T O P R A C T I C E N O T E 3
Within adult education, the concept of contextualized learning is not new. Sticht
(1997) describes how as early as the 1940s, the armed forces had begun to contex-
tualize instruction to reflect the everyday life experiences of soldiers. Functional
context instruction (Sticht et al., 1974), instruction based on learners immediate
needs and life skills (Knowles, 1980), and the importance of teaching for transfer
(Mikulecky, Albers, & Peers, 1994) have been advocated by adult educators since
the early 1970s.
The EFF development team drew on this knowledge base to develop its field
research process (Stein, 2000). Adult learners, teachers, program directors, and
content experts from around the United States engaged in an intensive process of
mapping what adults commonly need to know and do to be effective in everyday
life. The EFF Role Maps, Common Activities, and Content Standards that grew
out of this process provide teachers with the tools through which to help learners
identify their broad purposes and immediate needs. Once these needs have been
identified, teachers can work backwards to deter-
For reflection mine the knowledge, skills, and strate-
Think about a situation where you had a gies learners need to accomplish
chance to learn through the active application the tasks. Only then do they
of knowledge and skills. What difference did reach the step of developing
it make to what and how you learned? learning activities.
For reflection they are using. Once the activity is completed, learners are
Think of a situation where you have transferred
often asked to go back again to the Role Maps to investigate
knowledge or a skill learned in one context to a new
how what they have learned might transfer to other roles
context. What helped you to do so?
they play in life. For example, learners might be asked to
How do you help your learners transfer what they have
brainstorm how what they have learned about memo writ-
learned? How could you use the EFF Framework to
ing could apply to sending notes to a childs teacher or to work
encourage transfer of learning?
they do in the community.
Results That Matter: An Approach to Program Quality Using Equipped for the Future
(Bingman & Stein, 2001) provides a vision for program-level system reform
(referred to as the EFF Quality Model). The EFF Quality Model identifies Pro-
gram Practices that reflect the theoretical foundations of EFF and provides a
guidepost by which administrators, teachers, students, and communities can
assess their implementation of the EFF Framework. As you reflect on the examples
below, think about how your program might answer the questions What does it
mean to practice EFF? and What does EFF implementation look like in action?
EXAMPLE 1:
Teachers and students
use the EFF Framework to
K aren Hippert, an ABE teacher and EFF field researcher in Ohio, describes how the
idea for a learning activity arose out of a class discussion about planning for a class
trip. Karen and her students had been working together for some time and decided
construct contextualized they would like to take a trip together. Karen knew that many of her students wanted
learning opportunities that to improve their math skills but often found math hard, boring, and disconnected
focus on the development from their everyday lives. She used the opportunity of the class trip to suggest to the
and practice of skills the group that they plan ahead to figure out how much the trip would cost. This was a for-
students need to carry out
eign concept for all the students in her class. None of them had ever applied their math
skills to advance planning. Yet Karen knew that financial planning was a big-picture
activities and accomplish
concept related to mathematical problem solving in many contexts.
purposes in their lives.
Karen looked at the Standard Use Math to Solve Problems and Communicate. The
Components of Performance for the Standard helped guide her in planning the activi-
ty: Understand, interpret, and work with pictures, numbers, and symbolic informa-
tion; Apply knowledge of mathematical concepts and procedures to figure out how to
answer a question, solve a problem, make a prediction, or carry out a task that has a
mathematical dimension; Define and select data to be used in solving the problem;
Determine the degree of precision required by the situation; Solve the problem using
appropriate quantitative procedures and verify that the results are reasonable; and
Communicate the results using a variety of mathematical representations, including
graphs, charts, tables, and algebraic models.
With this as a guide, Karen and her students developed the activity. They began by
learning how to use a mileage chart. They applied their knowledge of multiplication
and division to figuring out the mileage for their trip. They also spent some time
looking at when and where estimation might be a better strategy to get at an answer
quickly. Next they learned how to read and make their own graphs and charts
For reflection to compare information related to different modes of travel and vehicles.
How was what these students learned Many were surprised at what they found out about the relative costs of dif-
different from what they might have ferent kinds of travel.
learned by simply solving problems related
to calculating mileage in a math book? As they completed the activity, Karen asked them to think about how what
What might Karen do next to help learners they had learned might transfer to other contexts. Suddenly, Karen
see how the skills they had learned might observed, it dawned on them that they could use math for all kinds of plan-
apply to other kinds of planning? ning. By contextualizing instruction in a real-life application, Karens stu-
dents had broken through to a new understanding of the importance of math.
EXAMPLE 2:
Teachers use the EFF J im Carabell (1999) describes how he helped one of his students to see how impor-
tant and meaningful learning activities can be found in the events of everyday life.
One day, after beginning a math lesson with Tammy, a 22-year-old single Vermont
Framework to integrate
found lessons that parent working toward her GED, she mentioned that a state trooper might interrupt
arise from in-class or their lesson that day. She told Jim how she was in the process of trying to untangle her-
self from the complications of buying a $500 car from her brother, who, through a
out-of-class student
series of events, didnt hold the title. Jim stopped what he was doing and began helping
needs into an overall
Tammy to fill out the papers she had received from the trooper at the police barracks.
learning plan.
Together they wrote an explanatory letter to the DMV, made a couple of information-
al phone calls, and copied and mailed the key information to the DMV. At the end of
their time together, Jim was able to show Tammy how much she had learned through
this unintentional lesson. Tammy saw that she had achieved some of her broader
purposes for learning. She had learned to gain access to information, give voice
For reflection to her opinions, and act independently. Whats more, she had worked in
Can you think of a situation where you were some detail on three EFF Standards: Convey Ideas in Writing, Learn
able to turn a real-life situation into a found through Research, and Solve Problems and Make Decisions. As Tammy
lesson? considered how she might use these writing, research, and problem-
In what other ways can teachers use the EFF solving skills in other parts of her life, such as in her role as a parent,
Framework to place found lessons into a she expanded her mental model of learning and became aware that her
meaningful context for adult learners? time with Jim had indeed not been wasted.
EXAMPLE 3:
Students use the EFF
Framework to identify skills
A lthough in many programs teachers and learners decide to work on a single stan-
dard together, in other cases a contextualized learning activity can be designed to
allow learners to address different standards while working on the same activity. For
learned and practiced example, when learners at the Canton, Ohio, Even Start Program decided to set up a
through real-world learning family math night for their elementary school, they divided into committees based on
activities. their learning goals. Octavia, who had set a math goal, volunteered to be on the budget
committee. Rosa, who had a writing goal, served on the committee that wrote a pro-
posal to the principal requesting permission to do the project. Lou, who wanted to
improve her computer skills, helped create a flyer to advertise the program. After the
project was over, the program provided learners with a form to help them reflect on
what they could do now that they could not do before. Octavia noted that although
she already knew how to add, subtract, and multiply decimals, she had not known how
to use those skills to prepare a formal budget. Already she had used what she had
For reflection learned to develop a personal budget at home. Rosa wrote that this had been
the first time she had written anything that would be read by someone as
How did the context and culture in which
important as a principal. She realized that she had good ideas she could
this activity took place help learners to see
express through writing. Learning in a real-life context had made it easier
how they could transfer what they had
for these students to see how they could transfer what they had learned to
learned?
other contexts. (Meyer, 1999)
Content Standards: The term used in a variety of fields to Role Map: A publicly agreed to, explicit, consensus depiction
describe what individuals need to know and be able to do for a of the adult roles of worker, parent/family member, and
particular purpose. In EFF, the 16 Content Standards identify citizen/community member. For each adult role, the Role Map
what adults need to know and be able to do in order to meet provides definitions of the Broad Areas of Responsibility, Key
their goals for learning and to be effective in their adult roles. Activities, and Role Indicators, which describe, not prescribe,
Each EFF Content Standard consists of the title of the stan- effective performance in the role. (See Stein, 2000, pp. 8-13.)
dard and the Components of Performance for that standard.
(See EFF Standards, Stein, 2000, pp. 19-20.) Transfer of learning: The ability to extend or adapt what has
been learned in one context to new problems and settings.
EFF Quality Model: A vision of what system reform at the Research has shown that when a subject is learned in multiple
program level looks like using EFF Standards. The EFF tools, contexts, with opportunities to abstract general principles,
foundational theory and research, expected program practices, transfer to new situations is increased. (See Bransford, Brown,
and predicted short- and long-term outcomes are presented & Cocking, 1999; Stein, 2000, p. 20.)
and explained in the publication Results That Matter: An