Posted: May 1, 2013 |

Categories: Essential skills, Learning
“Throughout its long history, the literacy and essential skills field has continually evolved and adapted in response to the changing needs of adults. This timeline captures some of the important people, events, initiatives and other influences that have helped shape the literacy and essential skills field in Canada over the past 200 years.” -- Essential Skills Ontario
Posted: October 25, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
Students, teachers and employers across the province are getting access to mobile training equipment and labs so they have the tools they need to prepare for the good jobs that are coming. The federal shipbuilding contracts alone will provide about 11,000 jobs and work for the next 30 years when the project hits its stride.
Posted: October 25, 2012 |

Category: Learning
Young people across Nova Scotia are learning new ways to manage relationships and conflict by being encouraged to think about how they, and their actions, affect others.
Posted: October 25, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
Enterprising Non-Profits will provide workshops, business plan support and grants to non-profits interested in starting new social enterprises. The Citizen’s Bridge pilot project expands BUILD’s (Building Urban Industries for Local Development) successful driver training program to over 20 referral partners and will provide support in obtaining proper identification and financial literacy training to help people who have challenges connecting to employment.
Posted: October 25, 2012 |

Category: Learning
“The Education Act is actually the first legislation in Canada to formally recognize the role of parents as a child's first and most important teacher,” said Alberta Education Minister Jeff Johnson. “As a parent, that is something I am very proud of.”
Posted: October 25, 2012 |

Category: Learning
Young readers recorded the highest total of books read since 1997 and the second-highest total in the history of the summer reading club run by the New Brunswick Public Library Service. In addition, the program enrolled the highest number of readers in eight years.
Posted: October 25, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
It's not ghosts or goblins or even public speeches that scare workers the most this Halloween. In an Accountemps survey, nearly three in 10 (29 per cent) respondents said making a mistake on the job is their biggest workplace fear.
Posted: October 24, 2012 |

Category: Learning
The Chilliwack Learning Community Society is celebrating its Read While You Wait (Ladybug Book Bin) program with a new two-minute promotional video that describes how this early family literacy outreach program works.
Posted: October 24, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
Canada remains a nation of French and English speakers, but people are speaking a greater variety of languages at home, as long-term trends in immigration shape the country’s linguistic landscape.
Posted: October 24, 2012 |

Category: Learning
The Confederation Centre Public Library's new Teen Space is a promising new feature that should benefit PEI young people and promote an interest in reading.
Posted: October 23, 2012 |

Categories: Essential skills, Learning
Some 160 educators, policy-makers, literacy experts, elders, businesspeople and other northerners have come together for a unique pan-territorial forum to explore effective northern approaches to adult literacy and skills development. The conference Made in the North: Adult Literacy and Skills Development takes place in Yellowknife October 23-25.
Posted: October 23, 2012 |

Category: Learning
The Activity Calendar for Canadian Families 2013 includes more than 30 learning activities for parents to do with children up to five years of age. The content supports early language development, early numeracy, pre-reading and pre-writing skills. Adult ESL and adult literacy learners would also be able to use the calendar to improve their language skills.
Posted: October 22, 2012 |

Category: Labour market
Post-secondary education is important for many jobs in the economy today. Yet one in five university graduates in Canada makes less than $18,501 per year.
Posted: October 22, 2012 |

Category: Labour market
York University has launched a bridging program for internationally educated human resources (HR) professionals to help skilled immigrants fill the gaps between their credentials and what is required to land a position in their profession in Canada.
Posted: October 22, 2012 |

Category: Learning
A best-of-both-worlds education program – theory-based, hands-on, job-friendly – "might happen more often if Canada had a national strategy for post-secondary education, one that clarifies what the country expects from the institutions creating its next generation of leaders and skilled workers, and defines how Canadians will know when they’re getting it right."
Posted: October 19, 2012 |

Category: Learning
Despite evidence that learning can have a positive impact on everyone's lives, it is a concern to NIACE that many older people are missing out on the benefits of learning. The latest figures from NIACE's 2012 Adult Participation in Learning Survey show that only 16 per cent of those aged 65-74 and seven per cent of those aged 75+ regard themselves as learners.
Posted: October 19, 2012 |

Category: Labour market
The Canadian Building Trades have commended Minister Jim Flaherty for introduction of Bill C-45 which solidifies the execution of the Economic Action Plan 2012. Specifically of importance to the skilled trades in Ontario and beyond are the legislative commitments to the DRIC or Windsor-Detroit Bridge.
Posted: October 19, 2012 |

Category: Labour market
Quebec must develop a clear strategy to make it a destination of choice for international students, if it wants to increase its capacity for productivity and innovation. That is the message Heather Munroe-Blum, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of McGill University, delivered at a recent conference of the Conseil des relations internationales de Montréal.
Posted: October 19, 2012 |

Category: Learning
The Golden Oak program makes it possible for adult learners to build necessary skills, and also creates an environment where new readers of any age can discover the pleasure of reading a good book. The mandate of the Forest of Reading program has always been to foster a lifelong love of reading, and of course it’s never too late to begin.
Posted: October 19, 2012 |

Category: Learning
The biggest hurdle to establishing a culture of reading in South Africa is neither access nor infrastructure. What seems to be the main challenge is disrupting the self-perpetuating culture of not reading by pressing for new habits, even before children get to school.
Posted: October 19, 2012 |

Category: Labour market
A career management consultant says young job seekers know how to network, write a résumé, and prepare for an interview. But, she says, they don’t understand subtle details or basics such as how to behave in a networking situation, follow up with a potential contact, or present themselves in the best possible light.
Posted: October 19, 2012 |

Category: Labour market
Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty has introduced in Parliament Bill C-45, the Jobs and Growth Act, 2012. The Act implements key initiatives from Economic Action Plan 2012 to help grow Canada’s economy, fuel job creation and secure Canada’s long-term prosperity.
Posted: October 19, 2012 |

Category: Learning
The launch of ourlanguages.gc.ca on the go! coincides with the third anniversary of the Language Portal of Canada, the website that showcases Canadian expertise in the area of language.
Posted: October 18, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
With email the preferred mode of communication in the workplace, many businesses are finding they need to help their employees brush up on some basic interpersonal skills. Poor writing skills can affect corporate reputation and financial success, and result in individuals taking a hit in earnings potential.
Posted: October 18, 2012 |

Category: Learning
“The Good Reads project is helping to ensure that all adults, regardless of their literacy skills, have an opportunity to access literature by well-known Canadian authors,” said Dr. Pat Campbell, president of Good Reads publisher Grass Roots Press. “Good Reads books provide a bridge to other worlds and allow all adults to read for pleasure."
Posted: October 18, 2012 |

Category: Learning
Halloween isn’t just about dressing up and trick-or-treating. ABC Life Literacy Canada offers 10 tips, tricks and treats for the whole family to enjoy this Halloween – all in the name of learning.
Posted: October 18, 2012 |

Category: Essential skills
The skill areas where respondents experience the most challenges in working with distressed employees are communicating effectively and understanding their own emotional reactions. Survey results showed that nearly one-third of managers/supervisors had some challenges in these areas.
Posted: October 17, 2012 |

Categories: Essential skills, Learning
The Homelessness Partnering Secretariat and the Office of Literacy and Essential Skills have worked together to develop a guide which highlights easy-to-use literacy and essential skills tools available through HRSDC. Learn about the new guide during a teleforum on October 25 beginning at 11:30 a.m. Eastern time.
Posted: October 17, 2012 |

Category: Learning
On Thursday, Nov. 1, the Investor Education Fund (IEF), a leading Canadian authority on financial literacy education and research, will stage Ontario's first Financial Literacy Youth Summit, designed to be a crash course for high school students about the importance of managing their money.
Posted: October 16, 2012 |

Category: Labour market
“Industry Day is a valuable opportunity for students to gain insights on their future careers as they progress through their post-secondary training in this province,” said Joan Burke, Minister of Advanced Education and Skills.
Posted: October 16, 2012 |

Category: Labour market
Recognition Counts! Micro Loans for Skilled Immigrants offers loans of up to $10,000, to cover everything from the cost of new tools to paying for certification exams or for additional training. The program also gives low-income, high-skilled newcomers valuable career and financial counselling to help address challenges with entering the labour market.