National Adult Literacy Database

Canada Post has announced the finalists for its 2011 Community Literacy Awards. In two categories, Individual Achievement and Educator, finalists were chosen by a committee of judges from Canada Post from entries submitted from across the country. Literacy advocates from organizations across Canada will determine the ultimate winners.

This feature article by Astrid Van Den Broek is posted on NALD with acknowledgement that it was first published in the Canadian Library Association publication 'Feliciter,' Vol. 57, No. 2, and is used with permission of the Canadian Library Association.

Low morale in the workplace can lead to poor co-operation, low productivity, increased turnover – and ultimately stop a business from reaching its goals.

A simple first step is to ask exactly what restrictions are imposed in one’s own workplace. In some cases, raising the issue along with a reasonable case for employee rights might well ensure that an employer who hasn’t given the issue much thought will prove willing to allow workers to speak freely.

Twenty-three English schools across Quebec have reinvented themselves as part of the movement in the province’s English education system to become community schools. It’s a concept that involves forging partnerships with community-based groups.

Yukon youth will have the opportunity to showcase their talents in the skilled trades and learn about career options in the trades and technology sectors, thanks to support from the governments of Canada and Yukon.

Canada’s sector councils play a key role in helping industry develop training programs that benefit workers in their industries. Many of these programs are adapted by other organizations and by educational institutions.

NIACE welcomes recognition of the importance of ensuring that colleges and universities are ‘equally accessible’ to people who didn’t go into further education or higher education at 16 or 18 and the recommendation that ministers restore funding for FE access courses for students over the age of 24. NIACE also supports the development of a national program of access and foundation courses.

Staff members at the PEI Literacy Alliance say essential skills are the basic skills needed to learn all other skills. They have compiled an essential skills tip sheet for family vacations.

“We really want to target groups of students who have been unrepresented at post-secondary – students who are from vulnerable neighbourhoods like Crescent Valley. If they’ve got the academic admission requirements and we can get the financial aid in place, that’s what we want.”

No-cost games such as Red Light, Green Light and Simon Says present a great opportunity for educators and parents to help prepare young children for the rigors of later learning, says human development expert Shannon Wanless.

SkillPlan, a leader in essential skills, is pleased to present these online workshops for professional development. The workshops offer practitioners ideas on how to use these resources in instruction and provide an opportunity to share ideas with colleagues.

Microsoft Live@edu provides the flexibility of Office Web Apps that include web-optimized versions of Word, Excel, OneNote and PowerPoint. UNB students will now be able to access these essential tools anywhere, anytime, on their PCs or mobile devices.

With most e-learning courses, you can proceed at your own pace on your own time. You can review material during a coffee break, or spend time on the laptop while your spouse is engrossed in a television show you can’t stand.

Essential Skills Day shines an important spotlight on the nine essential skills as defined by the Government of Canada, and will convene employers, governments, unions and the literacy field in various initiatives to celebrate the importance of workplace essential skills.