National Adult Literacy Database

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.

As if shelling out tens of thousands of dollars for post-secondary schooling isn’t enough, an unpaid internship has become a rite of passage for many students.

Canada’s premiers have announced the recipients of the seventh annual Council of the Federation Literacy Award. Presented in each province and territory, the award celebrates outstanding achievement, innovative practice and excellence in literacy. The winners are...

NALD dedicates this report to all Canadians who embrace the significant role that technology plays in learning, communication, collaboration and professional development within the field of literacy and essential skills.

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.

Canadians who performed unpaid work, such as housework, childcare and civic and voluntary activities, reported spending four hours and four minutes on these activities on any given day in 2010, up eight minutes from 1998.

Seven recently published fact sheets, compiled by The Alliance of Sector Councils (TASC), highlight innovative responses to some of Canada’s key human resource challenges.

Volunteers in the John Howard Society’s literacy program provide one-on-one tutoring to inmates at the Winnipeg Remand Centre. The program aims not only to improve inmates’ reading, writing and grammar skills but also to help educate them on topics of interest including parenting, victim awareness and substance use.

The Government of Canada is taking action to address skills shortages so Canadians can train for jobs in a changing economy. There are significant shortages in many key industries including healthcare, IT and skilled trades, but as more industries take part in this new information-sharing strategy the list of employers seeking skilled workers will continue to grow.

The unemployment rate was unchanged at 7.4 per cent as the number of people participating in the labour market increased. Over the past 12 months, employment has grown by 238,000 (+1.4%).

The Centre for Skills Development & Training, through funding from HRSDC’s Office of Literacy and Essential Skills and in partnership with the Halton Industry Education Council, has developed educational video games targeted at young adults aged 15-30 to help enhance their employability.

The National Strategy on Inuit Education, developed in association with the NWT’s Department of Education, Culture and Employment, includes a series of bold new recommendations to empower parents, expand early childhood programs and gather detailed research data.

The WESCan (Workforce Essential Skills across Canada) project used the CAMERA System as its foundation, combined with knowledge gained through years of research and analysis on effective ways to transition low-skilled adults to work.

Chief financial officers who put most of their energy into number crunching are missing tremendous opportunities to contribute leadership and vision to their companies, according to a new study of Canadian CFOs.

Frontier College is getting ready for a busy summer of helping children in Aboriginal communities across Canada improve their reading skills. Staff in over 60 camps will work to keep youngsters motivated and improve their literacy skills by preventing reading loss that often occurs over the summer months.