Literacy: Spanning the U.S. - Riverside Co CA :: Nashville TN :: Honesdale PA

Literacy:  Spanning the U.S.

American Dream Starts @ your library® Grant Allows California Library to Expand ESL Classes

@yourLibrary: 10.12.2014 by Steve Zalusky

A California library system is providing opportunities for patrons who wish to expand their horizons by learning English.

Through an American Dream Starts @ your library grant awarded by the Dollar General Literacy Foundation to the American Library Association, the Riverside County (Calif.) Library System has been able to expand ESL classes for adult learners.

In this countywide program, volunteers are working with one-on-one tutoring to help individuals learn to read and write.

In the county, which is spread over 7,200 square miles, it is estimated that there are over 50,000 people in Riverside County who are eligible for citizenship. However, there are several barriers in their way. One barrier to citizenship is being able to speak, read and write English in order to take the Citizenship Exam.

This community-based program that changes not only improves students’ lives, but also those of their families.

One of the students, Laura Serrano, a mother of two children whose first language is Spanish, said learning is English is important in order to get a good job.

“This program is very good for me, because it’s free, it’s close to my house, I have very good teachers,” she said.  READ MORE !

Adult Literacy Council teaches sometimes frustrating language

WSMV: 11.05.2014 by Terry Bulger

In Nashville, the Adult Literacy Council exists to make sure anyone who wants to learn how to read and write can.

Jessie Hee needs to learn English quickly. She just arrived in America from China.

Hee has a job at the Lucky Bamboo Chinese restaurant, but can't read the words on the menu.

Volunteer Geoff Reed visits Hee twice a week to help. After a month of tutoring, she is starting to pick up the language.

Reed is part of the Adult Literacy Council's volunteer effort. He is retired and willing to help teach a language that can be frustrating at times.

It's not just about teaching straight out of the book. Reed said new arrivals also learn to love English slang.

"A guy once asked me what 'shove it' meant, and so I tried to explain it to him," Reed said.

Hee is more interested in the basics.

"I want to make a lot of money, do a lot of working," she said. READ MORE !

Tutor recognition

Pike County Courier: 11.05.2014

Newly hired Executive Director, David Sutton welcomed volunteer tutors and guests, followed by Board President Annette Petry who expressed heartfelt gratitude for the volunteer tutors who worked so hard throughout the year.

WPALP volunteer tutors continue to help students improve skills and attain educational goals. With one on one instruction geared for students’ needs along with a combination of encouragement and mentoring, real life changes are made possible for many adults who come to the Wayne Pike Adult Literacy Program seeking help.

WPALP continues to be successful year after year due to the many talented and dedicated volunteer tutors in the program. Tutoring is provided on an individual basis and takes place in a convenient setting such as library branches, houses of worship, some government agencies and county municipal buildings, keeping in mind the schedule of both tutor and student. Services are always free.  READ MORE !

Literacy: Spanning North America - Campbell River BC :: Camden Co NJ :: Lompoc CA

Literacy:  Spanning North America

Volunteers share the precious gift of literacy

Campbell River Mirror: 11.06.2014 by Mike Davies

Literacy is one of the most important skills you have.

It’s the skill that allows you to bring in the majority of the information you receive – outside sensory cues – and it’s the skill that enables you to pass the information you have on to others.

Kat Eddy, Adult Literacy Outreach Coordinator for the Campbell River Literacy Association (CRLA), is hoping it’s also a skill you’d like to help strengthen in others. The CRLA’s adult literacy program is, according to Eddy, for people 19 and older to help them “achieve their own personal literacy goals, whether that be going back to school and upgrading, or maybe they just want more literacy skills to be able to read to their grandchildren, whatever their personal learning plan is, we’re here to support them in that.”

Last year there were over 1700 volunteer hours put in by tutors in the adult literacy program, according to Eddy, but this year, they’re struggling to find enough volunteers to keep up with their growing need.  READ MORE !

Camden County officials announce literacy measure

Courier Post: 10.27.2014 by Phil Dunn

The ability to read is a skill people take for granted every day, but for millions of Americans, illiteracy is a major stumbling block.

Local officials hope to change that by offering free adult reading classes at the downtown Camden branch of the Camden County Library System.

Two teachers have been hired to work with both English-speaking and non-native English-speaking adults in small groups weekdays, evenings and Saturdays.

“One of our goals is to make positive changes in the communities we serve through programs like these free reading classes ...” said Linda Devlin, director of the county library system.

“Our library is committed to improving literacy skills and providing residents with opportunities to advance their education.”

More than 32 million adults in the U.S. cannot read, according to the U.S. Department of Education and the National Institute of Literacy.  READ MORE !

AAUW discusses 'Literacy in Lompoc'

Lompoc Record: 10.27.2014

The Lompoc-Vandenberg Branch, AAUW, recently invited a panel of experts to talk about “Literacy in Lompoc,” a new initiative for the community.

United Way CEO Eddie Taylor announced that Lompoc is the only community in the U.S. with an initiative for literacy that touched all segments of the population. Sid Haro, Lompoc Unified School District assistant superintendent, spoke about the new “Reading Plus” program used in the Lompoc schools and explained the support the district has put into place for both teachers and administrators to ensure success.

Linda Hogan, “Reading Plus” teacher at Fillmore school, saw great success last year in raising student reading levels by three to five years. She used the program with her own children and saw amazing results.

The Lompoc Library Adult Literacy Program has joined the Central Coast Literacy Council under the direction of Laura A. Davidson, director. Adults who aren’t literate will continue to be supported and coached by volunteers to become workforce ready and more confident.  READ MORE !

The Lifelong Benefits of Reading - Alice Sullivan

Vocabulary from

Adolescence

to Middle-Age

The lifelong benefits of reading

World Economic Forum: 11.06.2014 by Alice Sullivan

Reading for pleasure as a child has been powerfully linked in research to the development of vocabulary and maths skills up to the age of 16. But does reading still have a part to play in the breadth of our adult vocabulary? Does it matter what kind of books you read, or is it just the amount of reading that counts?

Our study of a representative sample of more than 9,400 British people born in 1970 looked at how vocabularies developed between the ages of 16 and 42. The test involved asking people to pair words from one list with words of a similar meaning from another list. For example, they were asked to find other words meaning “hirsute”, “grotesque” or “cerebral”.

The good news is that learning doesn’t stop at the end of the school years – whether they read regularly or not. In fact, our study members demonstrated large gains in vocabulary between the ages of 16 and 42. At age 16, their average vocabulary test score was 55%. By age 42, study members scored an average of 63% on the same test.

Another piece of good news is that reports of the death of reading seem to have been exaggerated. More than a quarter, or 26%, of respondents said that they read books in their spare time on a daily basis, with a further 33% saying that they read for pleasure at least once a month. This left a minority of 41% who said that they read in their leisure time only every few months or less often.  READ MORE !

Literacy Forum: Libraries in the 21st Century - New Haven CT

Literacy Forum: Libraries in the 21st Century

New Haven Independent: 11.03.2013 by Josiah Brown

On Oct. 29, the Literacy Coalition of Greater New Haven and the New Haven Free Public Library held a breakfast forum at the public library’s Wilson branch in the Hill neighborhood. Panelists addressed “Libraries in the 21st Century” and how to meet communities’ needs, from early childhood and youth development to employment, technology, civics, and English-language learning.

Martha Brogan, the new city librarian with a range of community and university library experience, welcomed the audience and introduced the panel.

Before doing so, she referred to studies by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project – for example, a 2011 presentation on “How Libraries Add Value to Communities” – and how broader trends are evident in New Haven.  She previewed an event held later on Oct. 29, the launch of the Public Library’s new Readmobile, as an illustration of the library’s continuing efforts to reach residents of all ages, across the city.

“The Public Library Reimagined”

Kendall “Ken” Wiggin, Connecticut’s State Librarian since 1998, brought a perspective both national and statewide to this local discussion.  Invoking an Aspen Institute “Dialogue on Public Libraries” – including a summer 2014 session on “The Public Library Reimagined” – he emphasized that as libraries are not just about “loaning books,” measures and expectations must change.  He said, “Successful libraries are really about partnering with communities” in response to what they “need.”  He enumerated several elements of those needs.  “Information literacy … is about being able to connect” with people’s “life skills,” whether related to employment, personal finances, technology, health, civic involvement, or parenting.  He cited “digital literacy” and the rise of “maker spaces” (the New Haven Public Library now has a 3-D printer), as well as “financial literacy.”  He spoke of “health literacy” (from the ability to read the instructions on a medicine label to knowledge of nutrition and fitness).  Citing “civic literacy” (e.g., awareness of voter registration requirements and elected officials) as a key to “civic engagement,” he alluded to “all kinds of outreach” such as the Readmobile.  He mentioned “environmental literacy.”  In short, he said, virtually “every problem has … some literacy” aspect.  “Libraries have this expanded role” in furthering “lifelong learning.”  READ MORE !

More books at home during high school years linked to higher adult literacy @CTV News

More books at home during high school years linked to higher adult literacy

CTV News: 11.04.2014 by Brett Tarver

Parents take note, the more you expose your children to books, the greater their chances of obtaining the essential life skills that can lead to career success, according to a Statistics Canada study.

The study released Tuesday, concludes that the number of books in a person’s home during their high school years is linked to reading, writing, math and social skills later in life.

Based on an analysis of the literacy and numeracy of Canadian university graduates in 2012, Statistics Canada found that, of those who had less than 10 books at home when they were in high school, 31 per cent were in the lower range for literacy compared with just 9 per cent among those who reported having more than 200 books at home.

Study compares Canadian literacy in 2003 and 2012 

This graph compares the literacy levels of the population aged 16 to 65 in Canada in 2003 and 2012. (Statistics Canada, Employment and Social Development Canada, and Council of Ministers of Education, Canada)

A similar pattern was identified between the number of books at home during high school and adult math skills.

The survey, led by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) also revealed a stark contrast between the literacy and numeracy levels of university graduates with the high school dropouts.

The study found that while a quarter of university graduates in 2012 in Canada aged 25 to 65 had a literacy score at the second level or below (out of five levels), 88 per cent of individuals aged 25 to 65 who did not have a high school degree had literacy in the lower range.  READ MORE !

Reach Out & Read :: Today Show - Oct 30

Hope To It

Today Show: 10.30.2014

Spotlights Dr. Boone of “Reach Out & Read.” A nonprofit that promotes early literacy by giving books to young children at well-child checkups.

Video

Literacy: Spanning the U.S. - Watsonville CA :: Des Moines IA :: Albuquerque NM

Literacy:  Spanning the U.S.

Watsonville literacy program breeds success

Volunteers have helped hundreds learn to read and write in English

Santa Cruz Sentinel: 9.29.2014 by Donna Jones

Learning to read in English helped Ramona Escamilla connect with her son's teacher, get a better job and, once, even talk a police officer out of giving her husband a ticket.

"My life changed," said Escamilla, who emigrated to the United States from Michoacan, Mexico 15 years ago in search of opportunity.

"That's what we do here, give a little bit to help change some lives," said Sandy DeBoer, a volunteer tutor with Watsonville Public Library's Opportunity to Read. "It has a ripple effect on the family and the community."

The literacy program, which started with seven students in a temporary building behind the old adult school on Rodriguez Street, is celebrating its 15th anniversary. An estimated 1,000 students have taken advantage of the program.

Many have been immigrants with little or no skills in reading and writing. Others, like Escamilla, knew how to read in their native Spanish, but, after learning to speak basic English, wanted to know more.

Monday, Escamilla and DeBoer sat at a table in the Watsonville Literacy Center, talking about their work together.

"It's a partnership," DeBoer said, explaining there's not a set program and that tutors don't teach. Instead, they focus on what students say they need to know, and figure out ways for them to learn it.

Escamilla said learning to read enhanced her speaking skills. She recalled the first time she met with her son's teacher and didn't have to ask him to interpret.

"My son looked at me and said, 'You are very, very good,' and I felt very excited," Escamilla said.  READ MORE !

Adult Literacy Center at Drake University Gives People a Second Shot

WHOTV: 10.18.2014 by Reid Chandler

Life may have started a long time ago for these students, but they’re only just beginning to learn a crucial skill.

“(I) go to the doctor, can’t fill out the forms and stuff,” said Jerry Schillinger, a student at Drake University’s Adult Literacy Center. “Different things…even just going out to eat. I could hardly read the menu, so I always just went to fast food joints.”

Schillinger is one of about 80 adults in Polk County learning how to read and write.

“I kept it a secret for quite awhile, until I came here and I learned to start talking more about it,” he said.

Schillinger has been coming to the center for the past 10 years; according to him, he’s come a long way in that time.

“I couldn’t read a three-letter word when I came,” he said.

Anne Murr, the director of the center, trains volunteers to teach students like Schillinger.

“One-in-six adults have low literacy skills,” she said. “In other words, they can’t do the reading and writing to just basically function in their daily life.”

Murr says the need for tutors is growing as the center becomes more involved in the community.

“Lots of people fail to read and write in school because they just didn’t respond to instruction they were being given,” she said. “And it’s not that they weren’t trying – they just didn’t get it.

But studies show it’s a lot easier to learn these skills during childhood, through the age of 10. For someone in their mid-forties, it’s a challenge far greater than simply crossing your t’s and dotting your i’s.  READ MORE !

ReadWest in need of funding, volunteers

Albuquerque Journal: 10.25.2014 by Mike and Genie Ryan

Imagine what it would be like trying to succeed in society if you were unable to read or unable to read well enough to understand the words in front of you.

It’s difficult to visualize the struggles such people must encounter attempting to hold – or even get – a job, trying to pay bills or to understand directions. Imagine what it would be like raising children if you can’t read what it says on a medicine bottle or understand written instructions or help them learn how to read. That would be a prescription for frustration and generations of illiteracy.

Learning about such struggles for too many of our friends and neighbors and their battles with literacy is what prompted the creation of ReadWest Inc. in 1989.

Now, celebrating 25 years, ReadWest’s success and contributions to the people of Rio Rancho and Albuquerque’s West Side is phenomenal.

Continuing its goal of 25 years, ReadWest provides literacy help by offering one-to-one tutoring by trained volunteers who adhere strictly to student-identified goals. ReadWest charges nothing for its services, so the people who need help and want to make a better life for themselves can do it without worrying about the cost.

Currently ReadWest has 261 volunteer tutors helping more than 400 students. Last year alone, volunteers logged more than 9,000 hours of tutoring.

Using statistics that state an hour of a volunteer’s time is worth $22.14, ReadWest’s volunteers have given $211,609 worth of free literacy training to people in Rio Rancho and Albuquerque. And that’s just one year. The value of 25 years of literacy tutoring really must add up.  READ MORE !