Literacy Basics - Community Literacy of Ontario

Goal Setting Resources

“A Dream That Walks: A Goal-Setting Workbook” (written by Myrna Hanna for Action Read Community Literacy Centre) is a highly recommended resource. This workbook is designed to help adult students set goals and work toward their dreams. It is available from Grass Roots Press for $39.95 (video and workbook) or $19.95 (workbook only) at: www.grassrootsbooks.net/ca/a-dream-that-walks-a-goal-setting-workbook-video-and-workbook.html.

Action Read Community Literacy Centre has also produced “A Dream that Walks II: Planning for Change” (written by Anne Moore). This resource includes a workbook and CD for adult students who want to set goals and plan for change in their lives. The workbook has specific sections on developing goals in the areas of independence, employment and education. It is available from Grass Roots Press for $24.95 at: www.grassrootsbooks.net/ca/a-dream-that-walks-ii-planning-for-change.html.

Laubach Literacy Ontario's “Training Post” has some valuable information on goal setting at: www.trainingpost.org/.

The “CABS Literacy Quick Screen” (Common Assessment of Basic Skills by Judith Fox Lee and Rose Strohmaier, Literacy Link Eastern Ontario) can be found at: www.nald.ca/literacybasics/initial/cabs/01.htm.

“Go For the Goal: A “Winning” Approach to Learner-Centered Goal Setting in Adult Literacy” was written by Lin Baer and Suzanne Knell for the Illinois Literacy Resource Development Center.

Questions for Reflection

1. How can we best encourage and support the dreams and goals of students while also helping them to be realistic and set reasonable timeframes?
2. How does your agency's goal-setting process help with learner retention? How could you improve upon this?
3. For many learners, setting concrete short and long-goals is a new skill. How do you teach this skill to learners in your program?
4. Not all practitioners are skilled at helping adults to set concrete and achievable learning goals. How does your agency teach practitioners to do so?
5. Does your agency respond to learners with different goals by using different learning resources and approaches? If yes, why? If not, why not?
6. Research suggests that the more individualized and personalized the approach, the better the likelihood of retention. How does your program address the need for an individualized and personalized approach?

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