| LITERACY PARTNERS OF QUEBEC | March 1997 -VOLUME 3 | ISSUE 2 | Page 1 |
LPQ Hosts Open Forum on Literacy in Quebec
Make Your Voices Heard, the event originally scheduled by LPQ for October 23, was held on Tuesday, February 25, at Dawson College.
A cross section of the local literacy community attended the open forum which was moderated by Jon Kalina, freelance radio and TV journalist. The panel was composed of Danielle Hay, President Laubach Literacy Canada/Quebec-Literacy Volunteers of Quebec (LLC/Q-LVQ); Ann Gauvin, Director, Quebec Literacy Working Group (QLWG); Anne Blott, President, The Centre for Literacy; Linda Shohet, President, LPQ.
More than thirty-five people attended the forum, and they showed great interest in the future of English literacy in Quebec. A number of issues were raised including funding procedures, how the English and French literacy communities differ and the future shape of the coalition.
Several important clarifications were made on the topic of the recent review, of the anglophone literacy community in Quebec. There were, it seemed, some areas of confusion. The main one was to clearly state that LPQ is, and has always been, the provincial coalition. There is no new coalition planned and LPQ continues to be very active and busy.
There was also important discussion on the topic of referrals and the importance of regular follow up after the initial call is made.
Several people representing reading councils and classes in the Montreal area expressed satisfaction with the Montreal LEARN line, adding that it could be further enhanced by building regular follow-up into the process. It was suggested that LPQ consider this as it plans for next year's projects. By the end of the evening it was apparent that sessions of this nature are extremely useful for sharing concerns and ideas. There is a need to provide more opportunities which invite people to speak openly and to bring their suggestions to the LPQ table.
A separate, more detailed overview of the evening's discussion is included with this issue of Literacy Clips. The entire session was audio taped and these tapes are available for listening at the LPQ office. For more information please call LPQ.
LPQ Appears Before CRTC
At the end of February, the CBC asked LPQ to submit a request to appear before the CRTC in support of Application #199616505 to move CBM 940 Montreal from the AM to the FM band. The Commission granted the right to LPQ and on February 26, the executive director made a presentation on behalf of English Quebecers with low literacy skills.
As the coalition of English literacy organizations, the CBC saw it as LPQ's role to help provide a voice for adult learners.