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Knowing the learner: learner profiles
Learners who would benefit from the support provided through these starting points may fit a variety of profiles. Some may have been alienated from the education system, resulting in limited reading and writing skills, some may be ESOL learners, some may have learning disabilities and some may have had limited exposure to reading and writing instruction. Still others may not have benefited from instruction for various reasons.
Any one of these factors, or a combination of them, could mean that you, as a tutor, need to find out what a learner can do and how you can help them to develop the knowledge and skills that are fundamental to literacy development. Learners who have specific disabilities (such as physical, visual or intellectual impairment) that affect learning may require specialist resources or programmes. Deaf adults, for whom auditory input is largely unavailable, will probably lack phonological awareness, making the development of literacy even more challenging; specialist assistance will be needed.