Literacy:
Spanning the U.S.
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Literacy
organization works to change the answer for Midlanders
MRT:
10.20.2017 by Patci Lewis, Midland Need
to Read
“No”
is powerful. It’s likely one of the first words we learn as children and we use
it in countless ways throughout our lives. We all know “no” can end a
conversation, but it can also end a job interview, a parent-teacher conference
or a neighborly chat. Do you have a high school diploma? Can you use a
computer? Read? Speak English?
What
if your answer to these questions is “No?”
For
1 in 5 Midland adults, this opportunity-ending response is all too familiar.
They don’t have the credentials or skills needed to secure the job. They can’t
fully participate in their community or their children’s lives because their
English is limited. But the answer doesn’t have to be “No.” What if, instead,
it was “Not yet”?
Midland Need
to Read (MN2R) is the only
local nonprofit organization with the sole focus of providing personalized,
one-to-one and small-group tutoring services to adults in our area. Our mission
is to develop the literacy skills of adults so they can achieve their goals,
improve their lives and impact our community. By offering three distinct
services that address English Language Learning (ELL), adult education and
literacy (AEL), and high school equivalency readiness (HSEr), MN2R is extending
hope to adults who feel their limited literacy has ended their opportunities.
We are changing the conversation.
However,
we can’t do this on our own. MN2R depends on the willingness of Midlanders to
help solve this crisis in our community.
READ MORE >>
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It’s
Not A Piece Of Cake: Idioms In The English Language
WilmingtonBiz: 10.20.2017 by Yasmin Tomkinson, Ex Dir-Cape Fear
Literacy Council
What
makes English so hard to learn?
Well,
it’s the spelling, isn’t it? Or is it the prepositions, contractions and
conjunctions? Or the words that have been borrowed and modified from so many
other languages?
In
addition to all of those challenges – and more – there are idioms. An idiom is
a collection of words whose sum is more than its parts; that is, the meaning of
the expression as a whole does not echo the meaning of any of the individual
words that make up the expression.
Wrap
your head around this… Do you get it? “Wrap your head around” is an idiom! The
sum meaning of the expression is something like “consider,” but none of the
words - “wrap,” “your,” “head,” or “around” - means “to consider!”
You
will be a fish out of water if you can’t understand idioms in English.
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At
the Cape Fear Literacy Council, we train
volunteers to teach English. For some, this is their first time in a teaching
role; for others, it may be the first time they’ve taught English as a Second
Language (ESL).
During
our training workshop, new tutors are reminded of some of the reasons that
English may be a difficult language to learn.
However, it’s only a nine-hour workshop... we leave idioms out of the
discussion, for fear of scaring off potential tutors. READ MORE>>
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Program
pairs adults with tutors to combat city's illiteracy problem
1
in 4 San Antonio adults is illiterate
KSAT:
1.20.2017 by Patty Santos
One
in four San Antonio adults is illiterate and the problem is not getting better,
according to Carolyn Heath, executive director of Each One Teach One,
an adult education program.
“It’s
one of the largest sociodemographic issues facing San Antonio,” she said,
pointing to the fact that most of those adults with problems are reading at or
below a fifth-grade level.
Data
compiled by a Huffington Post contributor shows the ZIP codes with the highest
population of illiterate adults are also dealing with high poverty levels.
Heath said the numbers have not changed in the decade she’s been running the
program, showing the problem to be in the inner city.
“I
don’t know that it will get any worse, but it’s already really bad,” she said.
The
ZIP codes are 78207, 78202, 78203 and 78237 — although, Heath said, the problem
is really spread throughout the city.
“It
really does spread across the city, but yes there are inner-city pockets where
it’s at the greatest level,” she said.
Gale
Carranza is one of her students. She’s nearly 60 years old and graduated from
high school but tests at about a sixth-grade education. Her entire life, she
was just getting by until she decided to seek help.
“The
biggest challenge is stepping over that threshold — to get here and get where I
am right now,” Carranza said. WATCH VIDEO
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Law firm fights tickets, helps
libraries, literacy, access to justice
Three
steps to community-building in Whatcom County with MyTrafficMan.
Herald Net:
10.23.2017 by MyTrafficMan.net
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Through
sponsorship of Whatcom Literacy Council’s major
fundraisers, MyTrafficMan supports the council’s
volunteers and provides training that helps residents learn basic skills needed
for tasks like completing job applications and reading prescriptions or bus
schedules.
“Ziad
is a huge supporter of our adult literacy programs. As such he has sponsored
our big events – the Trivia Bee in the spring and our Literacy Breakfast with
Nancy Pearl in the fall – knowing that the sponsorship dollars go directly to
adult literacy services for our neighbors here in Whatcom County,” says
Katherine Freimund, Executive Director, Whatcom Literacy Council. Having a well-recognized
business involved also lends credibility to programs, Freimund says, commending
Youssef for going beyond a simple donation.
“When
he says he supports our organization he does more than write a check – he meets
with me regularly to stay informed about what we are doing, and he is an
ambassador for our work, speaking up and advocating for us whenever possible,”
she says. READ MORE >>
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