1. Diversity and inclusion: A case
study of female, immigrant ,
adult leaners in Ontario
ORLN 1995
Assignment #3
June 17, 2012
Group 1
Nimao Ali
Becky Brooks
Camille Lawrence
Leslie Malloy-Weir
Keri-Ellen Walcer
By PresenterMedia.com

2. Background
• According to a report for the Higher Education Quality
Council of Ontario (2012):
• The number of recent immigrant adult learners attending
post-secondary institutions in Ontario is growing
• Many recent immigrant adult learners face barriers
• Post-secondary institutions need to:
• Identify this student population
• Provide programs to this student population
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3. Case scenario
• To learn more about the unique challenges faced by
female, immigrant, adult learners we interviewed
three women from this group
• Click the link below to watch a video introduction to
our scenario. This video features the three women
that we interviewed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5l69HEGcGI
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4. Case scenario
• The three challenges (or barriers to learning) that
were identified by the women in our video included:
1. Language (most frequently identified)
2. Religious beliefs and customs
3. Child care responsibilities
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5. In the slides that follow:
• The potential impact of each challenge on
female, immigrant, adult learners are discussed and
strategies to address each are proposed using:
• Principles and concepts derived from adult learning
theories
• Responses obtained from the women that we
interviewed
• Discussions with Dr. Joanne Buckley, student
counselor, McMaster University
• Relevant academic resources
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6. Challenge 1: Language
Click on the link below to see and hear the women in
our study talk about the challenge of language
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQGohIi6Zzk
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7. Challenge 1: Language
Using the principles of adult learning theories,
language barriers may:
• Reduce or limit an adult leaner’s ability to attend to,
retain, and/or reproduce information . This may, in
turn, cause adult learners to develop negative feelings
about their abilities (i.e., low self-efficacy). (Bandura, 1977)
• Prevent adult learners from reaching their full
potential (Maslow, 1943)
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8. To address language-related barriers,
teachers/trainers can:
• Use visual aids to reinforce text-based materials
• Use transition words
• Repeat and clarify main points
• Rephrase complex sentences
• Use inclusive language when communicating
information to students
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9. To address language-related
barriers, teachers/trainers can also provide
students with:
• Extra time to answer questions in class (to encourage
reluctant speakers)
• A written copy of the main points covered in class
• A list of key terms
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10. Strategies to overcome language-related
barriers:
To hear a discussion on the strategies
used by Dr. Joanne Buckley to address
language-related challenges click the
link below
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q
“Joanne Buckley has a B.A. in English m6vaxqXlgs
and French from Wilfrid Laurier
University, a B.Ed. in English and
French, an M.Ed. in Curriculum, an M.A
.in English, and a Ph.D. in English from
The University of Western Ontario. She
also has a certificate in Teaching the
Adult Learner from Ontariolearn.com
and a TESL certificate from the
University of Saskatchewan.” (Nelson
Education, no date)
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11. Challenge 2: Religious beliefs
Click on the link below to see and hear the women in
our study talk about some of the challenges associated
with religious beliefs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flY4XbcVyFU
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12. Challenge 2: Religious beliefs
• The religious beliefs held by students may:
• Necessitate a private space for prayer
• Require students to excuse themselves from class
• Prevent female students from seeking assistance
from male teachers/trainers
• Create conflicts with scheduled tests/exams
• All of the above may create barriers to learning
(Maslow, 1943)
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13. To address challenges associated with
religious beliefs, teachers/trainers can:
• Communicate the location of dedicated prayer
spaces to all students at the beginning of the
course
• Communicate any institutional policies and
procedures regarding religious holidays,
sickness, or any other planned/unplanned
absences at the beginning of the course
• Become informed about different religious
holidays
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14. To address challenges associated with
religious beliefs, teachers/trainers can also:
• Create a safe, non-threatening, and inclusive
environment for students to learn
• Encourage both exploration and tolerance of
diversity in the classroom
• Model tolerance of diversity in the classroom
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15. Strategies to accommodate religious beliefs
To hear a discussion about
religious beliefs with Dr.
Joanne Buckley, click on the
audio icon below
https://www.youtube.com/w
atch?v=10JmbMerbJE
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16. Challenge 3: Child care responsibilities
Click on the link below to see and hear the women in
our study talk about some of the challenges associated
with child care responsibilities
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PV10pBKb-p0
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17. Challenge 3: Child care responsibilities
• Female, immigrant, adult learners with child
care responsibilities:
• Often balance the costs of childcare with the costs
of tuition and running a home (Chaze, 2010)
• May wrestle with feelings of guilt when their
studies take time away from their children
• May distract adult learners from their studies
• All of the above may create barriers to learning
(Maslow, 1943)
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18. To address challenges associated with child
care responsibilities teachers/trainers can:
• Ensure that the social, esteem, and
physiological needs of students are met in the
classroom
• At the beginning of the course, learn the
reason(s) why students are taking your class
• Tailor the classes to meet the goals/needs of
students
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19. To address challenges associated with child
care responsibilities teachers/trainers can
also:
• Be aware of, and be able to communicate, the
location of any support services for immigrant
mothers both on and off campus
• Allow students to access lecture materials
remotely
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20. Strategies to address challenges associated
with child care responsibilities
To hear a discussion about child
care responsibilities with Dr.
Joanne Buckley, click on the link
below
https://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=4nQLa32od_I
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21. Summary
• In order to respond to the unique challenges
faced by female, immigrant, adult learners,
teachers/trainers can:
• Become knowledgeable about the issues that affect
this group of students
• Become knowledgeable about any resources
available to female, immigrant, adult learners both
on and off campus
• Display sensitivity, flexibility, tolerance, and
patience in their approach to teaching
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22. Acknowledgements
• We wish to express our sincere gratitude to:
• The three women who graciously shared their challenges
with us and who appeared in our videos
• Dr. Joanne Buckley at McMaster University for sharing her
experiences and suggestions with us
THANK-YOU!
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23. “As we grow in awareness of one another – whether two
people beginning a romance or two disparate and far-removed
strangers taking an interest in the other's culture – a wonderful
thing begins to happen: we begin to care for the other as if the
other is part of us. This is the magic of life that our ancient
teachers have bid us to see; the invisible filaments of
interconnectedness that bind us together in love and
appreciation.“
Scott A. Hunt
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24. References
• Bandura, A. (1977). Social Learning Theory. Englewood Cliffs, New
Jersey: Prentice Hall.
• Chaze, F. (2010). Immigrant Student Parents: The Ultimate Balancing
Act for Immigrants in Canada. Retrieved from
http://www.theinduslink.com/554/immigrant-parents-in-canada
• Lum, L. and Grabke, S. (2012). Academic Engagement of Recent
Immigrant Adult Students (RIAS) in Postsecondary Education: A Case
Study of Ontario Colleges and Universities. Toronto: Higher
Education Quality Council of Ontario. Retrieved from:
http://www.heqco.ca/SiteCollectionDocuments/RIAS_ENG.pdf
• Maslow, A. H. A. (1943). Theory of human motivation.
Psychological Review, 50, 370-396.
• Nelson Education (no date). Meet the author. Retrieved from
http://www.checkmate2e.nelson.com/ student/meetauthor.html
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