Literacy – Spanning North America :: Washington DC :: Fayetteville AR :: Oroville CA :: Corner Brook NL

Literacy: Spanning North America

@WASHLIT

Online Learning Leaves Some Adult Students Offline

Street Sense Media: 7.02.2020 by Asia Rollins

K-12 and university students were not the only people forced to transition to remote classes in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The digital divide between those who have access to modern technology and those who do not is even wider for students in adult education programs.

Some local organizations that offer adult learning programs have created new online classes, provided students with laptops, scheduled instructors for Zoom meetings, and provided take-home packets. The resources are helpful, but without a sufficient internet connection, a student’s progress grinds to a halt.

“If our students don’t have reliable internet access, in addition to a tablet, smartphone, or computer, it’s impossible to continue remote learning,” said Annette Larkin, a public relations consultant for the Washington Literacy Center. “We’re doing our best to support our students to continue their education online, but it’s a challenge for a variety of reasons.”

The Washington Literacy Center’s offices have been closed since March due to safety concerns. Roughly 200 students rely on the Washington Literacy Center for GED classes or job training. The fact that students can take advantage of online resources is great, but nothing beats in-person classes, according to Larkin.

“Teaching adult learners who are not already digitally literate compounds the challenge,” said Larkin. “Some students may be unfamiliar with using computers and emails.”

Almost 95% of the people who use Washington Literacy Center’s resources live in poverty due to not having access to basic education. Yet the center says the center says many students are able to go on and secure better jobs or continue their education after completing classes.  READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on 7 readability formulas:

Grade Level: 13

Reading Level: difficult to read.

Reader's Age: 18-19 yrs. old

(college level entry)

Ozark Literacy

Ozark Literacy Council Launches Summer Scavenger Hunt

Fayetteville Flyer: 7.01.2020 by Todd Gill

Ozark Literacy Council just announced a scavenger hunt that will send teams of up to five people on an adventure to complete a variety of tasks in and around Fayetteville this summer.

The first 50 teams to register will be eligible for prizes, which include gift cards of up to $150 to local shops.

=Prizes will be given to the top three teams with the most points at the end of the hunt. Each task is worth 5 points, unless otherwise noted, and there are 20 tasks in all.

Tasks include finding and taking a photo of the council’s first tutor trainer’s name on the senior walk on the University of Arkansas campus, taking a selfie in front of a Little Free Library, and locating one of the PIGShibition sculptures that were auctioned and placed around town as part of a fundraising and awareness effort led by council in 2012 (Note: Most of the sculptures have been moved since our post about their original locations).

Download a list of all 20 tasks

Literacy in the Ozarks Scavenger Hunt Clues

1. Do you remember our first tutor trainer, Jamil Mohad Shami? Find and take a picture of his name on the senior walk at U of A. (Reminder/Hint: He began studying around 1964).

2. We are proudly supported by the Barbara Broyles Endowment which was set up and celebrated in 2004. Find and take a picture outside of the bank the celebration was held in. You may have to investigate our social media feeds to

find the answer.

3. Find and take a picture with one of our old buildings/sites. Document how the buildings/sites changed and what occupies them now.

4. We participated in many NALA meetings held at this popular Fayetteville destination known for its fabulous views. Go up there and take a picture capturing this beautiful site.

5. Look through our scrapbook series and recreate one of our #OLChistory moments! Be sure to let us know which pic you are recreating. We have some fun ones!!

6. Did you know we made a cookbook a couple of years ago featuring food from our students’ homelands? Make a delicious non-American dish or meal (be sure to include a recipe so others can enjoy it later too).

7. Create a music video for our song.  READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on 7 readability formulas:

Grade Level: 7

Reading Level: fairly easy to read.

Reader's Age: 11-13 yrs. old

(Sixth and Seventh graders)

@ButteCoLibrary

Butte County Opening Library Branches on Tuesday

Enterprise Record: 7.03.2020 by Kyra Gottesman

Butte County Library branches throughout the county will reopen to the public Tuesday, but each branch has varying hours and days of operation.

Library patrons will be able to visit branches to return and pick up items, in addition to browsing library shelves and borrowing items. However, visitors are asked to keep their time at the library to 30 minutes or less, and will be asked to wear face masks.

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Adult literacy

Perhaps of all the programs most challenged in making the shift from in-person to virtual has been the Adult Literacy Ready Program. Through this program trained tutors are matched one-on-one with adults interested in improving their basic literacy skills.

Since in-person tutoring sessions are not currently possible, tutors have been staying in touch with their “learners” via phone and text. Additionally, the library has provided the adults in this program with journals to “encourage them to keep writing” and sends them “News for You,” an “easy-to-read weekly newspaper covering current events,” said Heather Tovey, literacy specialist.

“We are working to keep our learners engaged while we are looking at new ways to do tutoring, actively exploring different approaches including Zoom. It’s really better face-to-face but that won’t happen until it’s safe,” which will be determined in later phases of reopening, said Tovey.

While the library works on adjusting the Adult Literacy program to operate effectively under COVID-19 restrictions, Tovey said there is a need for more tutors.

“We’re kicking off a new virtual tutor training on July 25.  READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on 7 readability formulas:

Grade Level: 12

Reading Level: fairly difficult to read.

Reader's Age: 17-18 yrs. old

(Twelfth graders)

@LaubachNL

N.L. Organization Getting Closer To Developing Online Learning Platform For People With Low Literacy Skills

Saltwire: 7.03.2020 by Diane Crocker

The Newfoundland and Labrador Laubach Literacy Council (NLLLC) has been struggling for some time to reach the people who need its services.

“There’s people out in communities that do not have any type of literacy services,” said Margie Lewis, executive director of the council, which is based in Corner Brook.

The council, which offers a one-to-one tutoring service, has been grappling with the question of how to reach those people and get into those communities where it doesn’t have tutors, or where those who were tutoring have moved away.

What started as a conversation in 2018 is getting closer to becoming the solution the council has been looking for.

Lewis and Kelly Taylor-Hulan had been talking about the barriers people face in online learning.

Taylor-Hulan has been teaching online for 15 years and that was the focus of work she was doing for her master’s degree in communications and technology through the University of Alberta. She was getting ready to start her capstone project, wanted to do something that would count and suggested they could help each other.

The result is Going the Distance, a project launched by the NLLLC in April 2019 to bring its one-to-one tutoring program online. Taylor-Hulan is the lead researcher on the $281,000-project, which is funded by the NL Workforce Innovation Centre.

“The ultimate goal is to create an online platform so that Laubach Literacy can reach more people in an online environment while still keeping their one-to-one tutoring model,” said Taylor-Hulan.  READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on 7 readability formulas:

Grade Level: 12

Reading Level: fairly difficult to read.

Reader's Age: 17-18 yrs. old

(Twelfth graders)

Literacy – Spanning North America :: Bassano AB :: Washington DC :: Warsaw IN

Literacy: Spanning North America

Newell Further 

Education

Adult Literacy Supports in Alberta

Danielle Smith Show: 6.15.2020

Guest Jackie Seely, Program Director for Newell Further Education in the County of Newell  LISTEN 03:30-22:14

@WASHLIT

Adult Learning And The Digital Divide

Kojo Nnamdi Show: 6.15.2020

Right now there are over 64,000 people in D.C. that do not have a high school diploma. Seven-thousand of them are currently trying to change that, some by attending the adult public charter school, Academy of Hope, but the pandemic has certainly been a challenge for them and their teachers.

Many of these students are at or below the poverty line. Many of them are unemployed because of the pandemic while still trying to support their families. And many of them do not have access to computers or the internet — all of which makes learning a challenge.

There are also over 100,000 adults in D.C. that have a low literacy level, and they’re experiencing similar problems with online learning.

So, who’s helping these people make sure they have the resources to continue their education?

@AoHDC

Guests

Lecester Johnson Chief Executive Officer, Academy of Hope

Jimmie Williams President and CEO, Washington Literacy Center

Robin Barr Professor and Linguist in Residence, American University & Senior Instructor, Washington Literacy Center  LISTEN 22:05   Transcript

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on (7) readability formulas:

Grade Level: 7

Reading Level: standard / average.

Reader's Age: 11-13 yrs. old

(Sixth and Seventh graders)

@klsread

KLS Receives $10K Grant From Dollar General Foundation

Times Union: 6.15.2020

The Dollar General Literacy Foundation recently awarded Kosciusko Literacy Services (KLS) a $10,000 grant to support adult literacy.

This local grant is part of more than $8.6 million in grants awarded to more than 950 schools, nonprofits and organizations across the communities Dollar General serves, according to a news release from KLS.

KLS Executive Director Cynthia Cates stated that the grant from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation makes Kosciusko County stronger by supporting the One-on-One Tutoring for Adults Program. KLS conducts an adult literacy class and provides tutors for adult students who need additional help to learn to read, to earn a high school equivalency diploma or to learn English as a new language. Each of these programs helps adults become self-sufficient members of the community by removing barriers to employment. 

Cates commended the Dollar General Literacy Foundation for the support and the Dollar General stores for operating in smaller communities not served by grocery stores. In addition, certain products purchased at a Dollar General Store goes to support literacy.

The most recent PIAAC skills reports that 20% of adults in the county are reading at or below Level 1, the release states. Adults at this level have difficulties using or comprehending print materials. READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on (7) readability formulas:

Grade Level: 14

Reading Level: difficult to read.

Reader's Age: 21-22 yrs. old

(college level)

Literacy – Spanning the US :: Washington DC :: Batesville AR :: Farmington ME :: Honey Grove TX

Literacy: Spanning the US

@COABEHQ

COABE-Coalition on Adult Basic Education

Literacy for All Radio: 5.28.2020 with Jose Cruz, San Diego Council on Literacy

In these show segments, we feature the Coalition on Adult Basic Education (COABE), and its CEO, Sharon Bonney. The more we talked, the more we learned what a tremendous resource that COABE is for adult educators, administrators, and adult students in the U.S. Listen and learn more about the important advocacy work that COABE provides to the ABE field and to the instructors who serve adult students throughout the nation. You’ll want to hear this!  LISTEN 57:56

White River Literacy

White River Literacy Council Celebrates Award Winners

Arkansas Online: 5.31.2020 by Andrea Bruner

Typically, name-calling isn’t something a principal wants to hear, but whenever Roger Ried heard his students at Southside Charter High School call someone a “Fred,” that would make him smile.

The “Fred,” in this case, is based on a book by Mark Sanborn titled The Fred Factor: How Passion in Your Work and Life Can Turn the Ordinary Into the Extraordinary. A copy of the book was given to each Southside student two years ago, illustrating that each person has the potential to be a Fred.

In recognition of his advocacy for reading, the White River Literacy Council honored Ried, as well as others, with awards at a Celebration of Literacy via a Zoom meeting on May 21.

Winners are as follows:

• Administrator in Literacy — Ried, Southside Charter High School.

• Teacher in Literacy — Kathy Walter, Batesville High School.

• Community Person in Literacy — Jay Strickland, the University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville.

• Organization Leader in Literacy — Diane Baker, the Kiwanis Club of Batesville.

Established in 2002, the White River Literacy Council is an affiliate of the Arkansas Literacy Association, which is part of the International Literacy Association. According to information from WRLC membership/technology chairwoman Tammy Gillmore, the organization’s goal is to spread the love of literacy throughout Independence County.  READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on (7) readability formulas:

Grade Level: 12

Reading Level: difficult to read.

Reader's Age: 17-18 yrs. old

(Twelfth graders)

Literacy Volunteers of
Franklin and Somerset Cos

An Update From Literacy Volunteers

Daily Bulldog: 5.31.2020 by Administrator

Dear Community,

I would like to share a few facts about Literacy Volunteers of Franklin and Somerset Counties and I ask that you share this news. In this time of COVID 19, there are still positive things happening in the community.

Did you know that Literacy Volunteers tutors are still meeting with students?

Yes, the tutoring programs are still happening! Tutors are meeting with students via phone or video chat. Pictured above are Carol and Marlene. They have had a student/tutor partnership for 5 years. Currently, they are reading together 1 hour each day, via phone. There are currently 13 tutors and 11 students working on literacy goals.

Additionally, our Community Connect program is still providing monthly classes with 12 students currently participating. The classes provide a text- based discussion style learning forum about student selected topics such as family care, consumer protection, safety, and local government.

Our Bring Books to Life program is embedded within a local curbside preschool curriculum and 36 monthly books are provided, with activity kits and videos, giving parents the opportunity to have literary experiences at home with their children.  READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on (7) readability formulas:

Grade Level: 11

Reading Level: difficult to read.

Reader's Age: 15-17 yrs. old

(Tenth to Eleventh graders)

Honey Grove Library & Learning Center Receives Dollar General Literacy Foundation Grant

NTXE: 6.02.2020 by Malinda Allison

The Honey Grove Library and Learning Center is thrilled to be recipient of a grant of $8,000 from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation to support family literacy.

The Dollar General Literacy Foundation funds will be used to offer expanded services in the form of English as a Second Language instruction to community members. The Library will additionally expand the Children’s education program to include Parent and Child Together programming. This program will provide opportunities for parents to interact with their children to build fundamental living and academic skills.

“This opportunity comes at a time when the needs of our community are so real after the shut-down of school and Library programs because of COVID-19,” says Mitzi Sherwood, Library Director.  “We will be planning programs that can offer needed literacy services to our patrons and bring new patrons to our Library.  We can use the funds over a 1 year period, which will give us time for proper planning to bring programs back into the Library.”

Rhonda Cunningham, Chairman of the Hall-Voyer Foundation which operates the Library, said:  “One of the primary objectives of the Honey Grove Library is literacy, which is strengthened when parents, grandparents and children read together.  READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on (7) readability formulas:

Grade Level: 14

Reading Level: difficult to read.

Reader's Age: 21-22 yrs. old

(college level)

If the figures on US adult illiteracy aren't stunning enough, just hear those people's stories via Circa.com

If the figures on US adult illiteracy aren't stunning enough, just hear those people's stories

Circa.com: 2.04.2019 by Deniz Kofteci, Ryan Eskalis and Cori Kipps

32 million adults in America can't read above a third-grade level. That means 14 percent of the adult native speaking population is considered functionally illiterate.

Cheryl Haeseker-Mikuliak is an educator with Literacy Volunteers and Advocates (LVA), a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that provides reading, math, and other classes for adults who test at or below a sixth-grade reading level.

Since 1983, more than 10 million Americans reached the 12th grade without having learned to read at a basic level.

"lliteracy [sic] can mean numeracy, it can mean reading. It can mean trouble with numbers or it can mean trouble with reading," she said. "At Literacy Volunteers and Advocates, we work only with adults who read at or below the sixth-grade level. What we have found through testing at LVA is that all of our learners read below that sixth-grade level, but 80 percent of them read at the first- or second-grade level.

"The test we use is called the Word Identification and Spelling Test (WIST). It really digs in very deeply into how well they know letters, letter sounds and forming letters into words."

"I certainly don't think it's an issue of ability, because I do think they're incredibly resilient," Haeseker-Mikuliak said. "I think that they're incredibly intelligent in ways that don't involve decoding words. I would blame the D.C. school system before I would blame anything else."

Todd Campbell, 51, earned his high school diploma from the Academy of Hope in Washington, D.C.

One of our learners went all the way through and got a diploma and couldn't read the words on the diploma. His name is Willie Nolan.

Monica Masterson grew up in the District of Columbia and attended Eastern High School in Northwest D.C. before dropping out her senior year to take care of her son.  WATCH 03:35

Book Deserts :: Breaking Down Barriers To Reading East Of The Anacostia via WAMU

Breaking Down Barriers To Reading East Of The Anacostia

WAMU: 12.06.2018 by Sasha-Ann Simons

Unite For Literacy Book Desert Map

When Derrick Young and his wife Ramunda opened MahoganyBooks on Good Hope Road Southeast last year, it was the first bookstore to open in the neighborhood in decades.

“In this community, it’s been 20-plus years since a bookstore has been here,” Young says.

The bookstore, which focuses on African American literature, is one of several attempts to increase reading and literacy east of the Anacostia River.

A 2016 study published in New York University’s Urban Education Journal labels these neighborhoods as book deserts: areas where printed books and other reading material are hard to obtain, and particularly where there is limited access to transportation.

U.S. Census Bureau data shows that 21 percent of adults in the nation’s capital struggle with illiteracy. Residents of Wards 5, 7 and 8 have among the highest functioning illiteracy rates in the District. These adults struggle to do things like read to their children or fill out job applications.

The Role Of Libraries

Richard Reyes-Gavilan, the executive director of the D.C. Public Library system (DCPL) says that accessibility isn’t the only issue. While circulation totals for both physical and digital books in DCPL have increased to their highest level overall, participation remains poor among both adults and children in Wards 7 and 8.

“How do you go from access to being a lover of reading? That’s what the library tries to figure out every single day,” says Reyes-Gavilan.

DCPL has started some new initiatives to help foster a love of reading from early childhood.

Two years ago, DCPL launched its Books From Birth program, which mails all enrolled kids in D.C. a free book every month until they turn five. Children receive books that are appropriate for their age. There are no income restrictions to qualify for the program.  LISTEN 04:15