National Adult Literacy Database

For Liam St. John and teens like him all across Ottawa, spoken word poetry is helping them find their voice and express how they feel about difficult things they face in their lives or the world around them. The weekly sessions are also teaching them some literary devices and performance techniques, and giving them each a chance to perform something they’ve written.

The new year is here and with it come promises of change – eating healthier foods, going to the gym, getting a new job. But beyond the traditional resolutions, improving your literacy skills can help you make the ultimate change.

The intent of the new law is to deter the most damaging and deceptive forms of spam from occurring in Canada. Spam includes more than unsolicited commercial messages. It has become the vehicle for a wide range of threats to online commerce affecting individuals, businesses and network providers.

A professor at the University of New Brunswick has been named one of the top 10 Canadian news makers in education technology for 2011 by one of the country's leading consulting firms. Steve Pierce, director of the Atlantic Centre for Educational Administration and Leadership with the university's faculty of education, joined the likes of David Suzuki, the British Columbia Premier's Council and digital media company Bitstrips Inc. on Mindshare Learning's second annual list.

A descendant of Irish immigrants, Paul Martin points to himself and other non-aboriginals. "Our ancestors were not treated very well," said Martin, adding that later generations were successful thanks to strong schooling.

Participate in the Family Literacy Day Colouring Contest from now until January 31, 2012, for a chance to win one of 13 Family Literacy Day Raise-a-Reader prize packs! If you haven’t already planned your Family Literacy Day activity for this year, this is a great option for everyone to enjoy on January 27.

Google Canada celebrates its 10th anniversary with a look back on a decade of accomplishments and advances that have changed the way Canadians find, share and organize information, network, and do business. A decade ago, most Canadians didn't Google things. Texting was a new technology, most of us were connecting to the Internet via dial-up, and we couldn't imagine the possibility of taking a virtual drive along our own streets.

Ontario’s drive to improve student literacy test scores may have had an unwanted side effect by decreasing young children’s enjoyment of reading, a new report suggests. The study by parent-led advocacy group People for Education, in co-operation with the National Reading Campaign, reveals a dramatic drop over the past decade in the percentage of Ontario students in Grades 3 and 6 who say they “like to read.”

"This is an important contribution by the Senate committee to our Call to Action on First Nations education," said Assembly of First Nations National Chief Shawn Atleo. "They have acknowledged that 'fundamental, systemic change is required to replace an antiquated system of isolated and improperly resourced First Nations schools with the necessary organizational infrastructure needed for a 21st century school system.' "

"A lot of people on Twitter are dedicated readers. Twitter is like all of the other short forms that preceded it. It's like the telegram. It's like the smoke signal. It's like writing on the washroom wall. It's like carving your name on a tree," says Canada's literary legend Margaret Atwood.

The week celebrates adult learners across the country and the joy of learning throughout life.

Lindsay Kennedy, a member of the CLLN staff team since 2007, has been senior manager for the past two years. With over 20 years’ experience in the literacy and essential skills field, she is well-known as a visionary and a collaborator.

Reporting to the CEO, this position creates, manages and implements a comprehensive strategy and action plan for workforce/workplace literacy and essential skills activities. The successful candidate will develop partnerships with various government agencies and major institutions and foundations to advance the importance of literacy and essential skills in the workforce/workplace.

The report was compiled jointly by provinces and territories through CMEC with financial assistance from the Government of Canada. It describes the wide variety of programs, initiatives and projects in minority-language education and second-language instruction that were carried out in provinces and territories between 2005 and 2009.

Thanks to the support of HSBC Bank Canada, ABC Life Literacy Canada is pleased to offer fun learning activities for the whole family with a brand new Family Literacy Day Activity Book. Parents can now download the activity book free of charge and complete it with their children to instil in them a love of learning.