Panel stresses the importance of expanding outreach and increasing access in adult education

In spite of various efforts across different sectors, adults in California are still facing challenges in accessing crucial education opportunities that can enhance their family’s economic mobility.

During EdSource’s roundtable titled “Adult education: Overlooked and underfunded,” the panel deliberated on the advantages that adults and their families can derive from adult education, the obstacles to access, and strategies to overcome them.

“During the pandemic, our emergency room took in some of our most at-need people and triaged them to the right medical care that they need,” stated John Werner, the executive director of Sequoias Adult Education Consortium during Thursday’s discussion. “Adult schools do very similar work with education.”

Challenges hindering adult education

Francisco Solano, a panelist, was raised in Mexico where he completed high school but had no interest in pursuing further education. After relocating to the United States about 16 years ago, he found employment in salad-packing companies.

Subsequently, he enrolled in adult education classes at Salinas Adult School and is now on the verge of completing a doctorate in molecular biology at UCLA.

However, his journey through adult education was described as “exhausting” and “inconvenient.”

“That’s what I see with my peers,” Solano noted. “They are not able to get out of that lifestyle because it’s so difficult for them to juggle securing a job that sustains rent and food for their families and finding the time and resources to attend school or explore other opportunities.”

Solano also expressed his belief that larger corporations do not want migrants like him to prosper as it would diminish a cheap labor source.

Rural areas, which face heightened challenges related to time and distance, exhibit a pronounced need for adult education.

Steve Curiel, the principal of Huntington Beach Adult School, remarked that conversations regarding adult education at the policy level are insufficient due to a lack of understanding among elected officials who have undergone more conventional educational paths.

Raising awareness and promotional efforts

Carolyn Zachry, the state director and education administrator for adult education at the California Department of Education, emphasized the significance of enhancing awareness and disseminating success stories such as Solano’s to prospective students.

“That gives them the courage to come forward and step inside those school doors,” she said. “Once they are inside, the school community envelops them and provides robust support.”

Werner stressed the necessity of actively recruiting students, mentioning targeted engagements at local community events like farmers markets and flea markets as well as the potential benefits of a TV or radio presence.

Assisting communities in overcoming obstacles

Various organizations are implementing measures to broaden access to adult education, including offering remote and virtual options along with providing child care for students during their educational pursuits.

Several panelists concurred that virtual learning serves as a valuable method to deliver educational opportunities to adults at home. However, Kathy Locke, an English as a second language teacher in Oakland Unified, underscored the importance of in-person instruction to equip adults with the necessary skills for online success.

Locke noted, “The more marginalized individuals with lower English proficiency levels face greater challenges in accessing and effectively utilizing distance learning technologies.”

In an effort to enhance access to online learning, Curiel highlighted Huntington Beach Adult School’s provision of laptops and internet connectivity resources.

Offering child care services is another way to reduce barriers for adult learners.

“Our classes provide babysitting for our students to enable them to attend with their children. While their children engage in child care, the adults can focus on learning,” stated Locke.

“As a district, we acknowledged this as a barrier and allocated resources to address it, making adult education a priority to facilitate learning for our adult students.”

Broader impacts of adult education

The roundtable participants unanimously agreed that adult education contributes to supporting a child’s educational journey.

For instance, when parents participate in English language classes, their child’s literacy skills improve, as highlighted by Locke. Furthermore, engaged parents are more likely to be active in their child’s educational pursuits in the future.

“If you want to assist a child in poverty, you must support an adult in poverty,” Werner affirmed. “Only adults can secure employment to improve their situation.”