National Adult Literacy Database

The OECD Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) will support countries in their efforts to design and implement policies which foster both the development of skills and the optimal use of existing skills.

If you were asked to quickly jot down a grocery list, would you type it into your smartphone? Or print it? Or use cursive writing? Assuming you’re a fan of pen/paper, logic would dictate you’d use the fastest, easiest method possible. That’s cursive. It flows from letter to letter, it bounces from word to word, it dances from thought to thought.

Based on a recent board assessment and organizational strategic review, SLN seeks nominations from individuals with the following areas of expertise and experience: workplace literacy and essential skills, workforce literacy and essential skills, Aboriginal literacy, and English as an Additional Language (EAL).

Financial Literacy Month (November) will raise awareness of the need for financial literacy and encourage Canadians to seek information, programs and services to help strengthen their financial knowledge. To support these efforts, FLAG and the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada have launched a new website to help inform Canadians about the multiple programs and services offered by many organizations across the country.

A good rule of thumb, says the Eye on Education blog, is that 50 per cent of students' time in a writer's workshop is spent doing independent writing. The other 50 per cent is used for mini-lessons, try-its and sharing.

Avoiding chronic stress using healthy diversions can help people survive multiple role strain. For example, reading a book for pleasure or giving oneself a break by watching a favourite TV program can be rejuvenating in small doses.

To address this issue, CCL recommends the creation of a Council of Ministers on Learning — a federal/provincial/territorial body responsible for coordinating lifelong learning across the country. The report also recommends establishing clear and measurable national goals for each stage of learning as well as independent monitoring to assess Canada’s progress on meeting these goals.

High school graduation rates among First Nations students in Nova Scotia in 2009-10 were over 70 per cent, considerably higher than in other Atlantic provinces and the national average of 35 per cent for First Nation students on reserves, heard the National Panel on Elementary and Secondary Education. The panel was in Atlantic Canada seeking advice and recommendations for its blueprint for action to improve academic success for First Nations children and youth.

The report examines the number of NALD Library documents, in both English and French, which are viewed and downloaded by visitors to the websites NALD and BDAA.

"It is very positive to see the re-introduction of copyright legislation, as this remains a key concern for the library community," says CLA President Karen Adams. "We are happy to see that improvements introduced in the last bill have been maintained; however, modifications are required if the legislation is to ultimately succeed in its objectives, those being both balanced and technologically neutral."

This year’s report specifically highlights cloud computing, mobile technologies, game-based learning, open access content, learning analytics, and personal learning environments as critical technologies of the future.

These new interactive learning tools will be a welcome resource for practitioners and program administrators who are often faced with the task of determining how to remove barriers that impede successful learning outcomes. The tools are a project of George Brown College's School of Work and College Preparation, Centre for Preparatory and Liberal Studies, in partnership with Spiral Community Resource Group.

NALD values feedback from the literacy and essential skills community so we are asking you to please complete a short online survey. The information you provide will be important in helping us understand more about our current users and what new services we may provide in the future. We have extended our submission deadline and would appreciate your responses by October 11, 2011, if possible. Thank you.

The Canadian Literacy and Learning Network (CLLN) requires a field development officer. The deadline for applications is October 7, 2011.

Since Raise-A-Reader was launched nationally in 2002, the fundraising and awareness initiative has raised more than $17 million for literacy programs. On September 28, 27 Postmedia newspapers participated from coast-to-coast to raise money for programs in their own communities.