The Complete Guide to Becoming An Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructor

Chapter 1: What Does a Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructor Actually Do?

Let's start with what the job title actually covers, because it's three jobs in one trench coat. Adult Basic Education (ABE) instructors teach foundational literacy and math to adults who never finished their schooling. Adult Secondary Education (ASE) instructors prepare students to pass the GED or HiSET exams — the equivalent of a high school diploma. English as a Second Language (ESL) instructors teach reading, writing, speaking, and listening to adults whose first language isn't English. In practice, many instructors straddle these categories. You might teach a morning ESL class and an evening GED math prep. The umbrella term is "adult education," and the broader your skills, the more employable you are.

Your students are 16 to 70 and everywhere in between. They're single parents who dropped out at 15 and now need a diploma to keep their job. They're refugees who've been in the country for three weeks. They're 35-year-olds who've realized they can't read well enough to help their kids with homework. They're adults who were told their whole lives they were stupid, and they've walked through your door to prove that wrong. That last part is the root of everything you'll do.

The work isn't the same as teaching K-12, and the differences are significant. In a public school, you have students who are legally required to be there. Your job is to move them along a