Summary: Literacies Learners Survey 2011-2012
A survey of literacies learners who had completed their learning and left the literacies service was carried out on behalf of the Scottish Borders Adult Literacies Partnership. We did this to find out more about the longer term impact of literacies learning on learners’ lives, with a view to understanding the impact of the service and service improvement.
13 learners responded to a telephone survey and a further 5 participated in a focus group.
Key themes emerged from the analysis of learners responses that may help drive and focus improvements: Barriers to learning; motivation, modes of learning, impact and self identity; effective teaching and learning; long term strategies; re-engaging with learning and improving the service.
Learners valued one to one support at the beginning of learning and this was linked to overcoming some of the barriers to learning as well as supporting the development of collaborative learning.
Learners value learning that is fun, specific to the individual, at their own pace, supported by other learners with positive feedback from supportive, competent tutors.
Literacy achievement leads to new and more positive self image for some learners as well as career enhancement and changed aspiration: re-evaluation of identity, re-storying and the creation of new self identity is an unlooked for outcome of literacies learning that impacts positively on sustaining the benefit of literacies learning.
A range of strategies that support literacies learning are taken forward by learners after they have left learning. Learners feel that they need to “top-up” their learning to continue to use these strategies.
Learners want to re-engage with literacies learning after they have “finished” their learning especially in relation to sustaining employment at times of transition, maintaining their confidence and refreshing their learning strategies.
What next?
Every year, the adult literacies partnership in Scottish Borders works with tutors and learners to evaluate how good literacies provision is and what needs to improve.
We do this through annual self evaluation of practice and learner experiences as well as through analysing the impact of learning that learners report when they complete periods of learning.
This survey gives us new insight into how learning helps sustain learners in their life contexts after they have left the service; what learners value and how they can be better supported both to move on from learning as well as re-engage with literacies learning when they need to, in ways that help them sustain their jobs, identities, skills and day to day interests and purposes in their communities.
Promoting independence in learning, dyslexia and arrangements for participant progression are current focused areas for improvement within adult literacies in Scottish Borders: the insights gained form this survey, along with the self evaluation of practice, will be used to shape the service for the future and address the support that learners require to sustain the impact of their literacies learning.