Building a Strong and Supportive Learning Community in the Classroom

Fostering a sense of community is essential for an educational environment, and adult education programs are no different. As educators, we can further strengthen a sense of community for our adult students through a variety of ways, including offering supplemental clubs, inviting students to participate in events both inside and outside the classroom, and providing opportunities for them to engage with one another in a socio-academic environment. All of these have a positive impact in the classroom through increased retention and academic performance. The benefits extend beyond the classroom as well, boosting self-esteem, improving relationships among students and educators, and cultivating lifelong learning practices.

In this session, Krawiec will explain the benefits of building strong learning communities, especially through supplemental clubs, and share methods by which other organizations could implement similar strategies.

In this session, participants will learn about:

• Importance of creating community in the classroom
• Examples of different ways to create community
• How to implement in your own classroom/program

About the Presenter:

Photo courtesy: Kara Kraweic

Kara Krawiec earned her Master of Arts degree in Literature from John Carroll University in Cleveland, OH. Upon graduation, she became an adjunct professor at several local colleges, teaching developmental reading and writing courses.

In 2017, she found Seeds of Literacy, an adult literacy non-profit in Cleveland, OH and served as the Site Coordinator for the organization’s East side location for seven years. Recently, she was promoted to Director of Student Success, helping students with college and career readiness. During her time at Seeds, she has focused not only on students’ individual needs, but the need for a strong learning community as well.

In 2018, Kara accepted the inaugural ProLiteracy Hero Award. In October 2023, she was awarded the Sharon Stubbe-Davis Outstanding Teacher Award. Kara’s dedication to creating a strong community extends beyond the classroom and has driven her to share her experience and expertise with her fellow educators by presenting at several state and national conferences. For the last two years, she has been presenting and facilitating small group coaching sessions as part of ProLiteracy’s Teacher Training Plus.