Motivated or Mandated: engaging adults in learning and supporting them to succeed

A joint annual conference with NIACE, NRDC, RaPAL and UCU to support adults with maths and English 

• DATE: 20 October 2014
• TIME: 10:00 - 18:00
• VENUE: UCU Office, Old Bakery, Carlow Street, London NW1 7LH

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Motivation is critical for engagement and persistence in learning. Teachers and tutors need to be aware of their learners' goals and reasons for joining courses, and the literacy and numeracy activities they value, in order to best support them to build a positive learning identity. Managers and learning organisers need to ensure provision is sufficiently flexible and attractive to adult learners, anticipating barriers and putting enablers in place. Peer supporters such as Union Learning Representatives (ULRs), friends and family also play a key role in helping to engage, motivate and sustain learning with both practical and emotional support. 

 There are a number of challenges currently facing the sector, including the focus on GCSE, various elements of mandated learning, for example with Job Centre Plus (JCP) and some offender institutions as well as the ongoing difficulty in reaching adults with low levels of skills. This conference will encourage dialogue between practitioners and researchers in order to explore the ways to motivate adults to engage and succeed in literacy and numeracy learning.

 The conference themes will be addressed by three keynote speakers:

• Norma Honey, Associate Director, NCETM 
• David Mallows, NRDC, Institute of Education 
• Elspeth Kirkman, The role of the Behavioural Insights Research Centre for English and Maths 

Conference workshops now added: 

1. Using motivational dialogue in the teaching and learning of literacies, Julie Furnivall 
2. Intensive English and Maths for Unemployed Adults:  Lessons Learned, Alex Stevenson 
3. National Numeracy Challenge Online - Become a Challenge Champion, Emma Haydon 
4. Unintended consequences of incentives, penalties and compulsion, Greg Brooks & Maxine Burton 
5. Write On, Tina Byrne 
6. Film, Story and Image - creative critical thinking and motivation strategies, Donna Moore 
7. Aloud in Lewisham: adult reading aloud practices and adult literacy provision, Sam Duncan 
8. Numeracy for adults with ESOL needs, Judith Kirsh 
9. Transformational Literacies, resource design and Student motivation, Vicky Duckworth 

This conference will reflect on recent policy, research and practice about what works (and what doesn't) for adult learners in English and maths. 

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