CHARACTERISTICS OF TEACHERS, TEACHING METHOD AND CONTENT IN ADULT LITERACY: PERCEPTIONS OF ADULT LEARNERS

The present study was designed to evaluate the perceptions of adult female learners about teachers, content and method of teaching of adult literacy programmes. The design of the study was qualitative and interview protocols along with focus group discussions were applied as research tools. The sample of the study consisted of 94 respondents including 46 adult female neo-literates, 24 literacy teachers 14 supervisors and 10 community workers selected through random and criterion sampling techniques. The data were analyzed by constant comparison method. The major findings were; teacher should treat adult learners respectfully; content of adult literacy should be developed according to the needs and aspirations of learners and teachers should make the teaching learning process interesting. It was suggested that teachers may be trained in andragogical perspectives and content of literacy programmes may be designed after careful and systematic situation analysis of adults’ needs.Present study was conducted to explore psychological considerations which one should keep in mind while implementing adult literacy programmes in Pakistan. Generally the major inputs in adult literacy programmes are; the trained adult literacy teachers and content of basic literacy skills. In order to comprehend the nature of proper inputs for adult literacy programmes it seems necessary to highlight some characteristics of adult learners. Adult learners expect a learning environment e.g., (where they are respected, their opinions are valued; their interests are kept in mind etc.). Scholars and researchers suggest that adults are a group of learners who possess individual, group or situational characteristics that serve to differentiate them from children