In-Service Education for Teachers of Disadvantaged Adults.

Inservice education for Adult Basic Education (ABE) teachers is a relatively new development, and the teachers need to understand the students' motivation in taking the courses. A brief review of the literature shows that the majority of students attended classes for reasons other than course content. Data gathered in Georgia to examine the discrepancies between ABE students' goals and the teachers' perceptions of these goals revealed significant differences. Teachers gave first ranking to a desire to learn, which students ranked 3rd, "To make my family proud of me" was ranked 7th by teachers and 4th by students; "to get a better job" was ranked 10th by teachers and 5th by students; and "to pass the high school test" was ranked 18th by teachers and 6th by students. Some implications of these differences are discussed, and it is concluded that the teacher needs to understand the students' motives in order to modify the program so that the desired objectives will be reached. (MBM)