National Adult Literacy Database

The Essential Skills Literacy: Training Tools for Older Adults project, undertaken by the Newfoundland and Labrador Laubach Literacy Council Inc., has resulted in the development of a teaching and learning resource entitled Essential Skills – Have You Used Yours Today.

Media Awareness Network and the Canadian Teachers' Federation have unveiled the theme for this year's annual Media Literacy Week – Digital Citizenship – calling on Canadians to encourage young people to reflect on their online lives, and their rights and responsibilities as they navigate the digital world.

Through a two-year project (June 2009 to May 2011) Literacy Link South Central has developed a set of seven workbooks. These resources embed Essential Skills activities within employment-readiness tasks.

Research firm Ipsos Reid has unveiled findings of new national research providing insights on the habits and comfort of Canadians with their financial literacy and math skills. The research echoes 2003 IALSS statistics that showed 49.8 per cent of Canadians struggle to perform tasks involving math and numbers.

Much to the dismay of many Scrabble traditionalists, new slang terms, such as "innit,” "thang" and "grrl," have been added to the official list of words that can be used in the popular board game.

“Kids don’t just come to school with a backpack full of books. They come with a lot of emotional issues,” says Melanie Mizzoni, child and youth worker with the Catch class program at CAMH, which is offered in partnership with the Toronto District School Board.

This free, interactive one-hour webinar focuses on different solutions to encourage organizations and employees to use leadership and coaching techniques to improve quality of developing and delivering services.

Money Matters is a unique, in-class program that brings financial experts/volunteer-tutors from TD Bank Group together with literacy practitioners to help adult learners understand finances and gain confidence in their day-to-day management.

CREPUQ is calling attention to two key issues that Canada must address quickly and seriously if it hopes to maintain the competitive position of Canadian universities with regard to research.

ABC Life Literacy Canada is actively involved in social media as a way to engage and interact with its internal and external stakeholders, sponsors, donors and the community-at-large. With that in mind, it has recently produced Social Media Guidelines, a document which includes helpful tips and suggestions.

International Adult Learners’ Week (IALW) received much support from literacy organizations across Canada as was indicated by the number of articles posted to the IALW news releases page on NALD.

For people to want to read, they must see themselves in the story, which one Canadian author says has been a stumbling block for aboriginal youth.

“Canada’s social and economic future lies in the continued educational growth of its citizens,” said Andrew Parkin, director general of CMEC. “Whether it is learning a new language, improving our literacy, or acquiring the skills needed for a new career, adult learning offers us the chance to grow as individuals and in doing so create positive change in our homes, communities and country.”

“The federal government plays a central role in funding programs that aim to improve quality and accessibility of post-secondary education in Canada,” said Zachary Dayler, national director of CASA. "The federal and provincial governments must work collaboratively toward a sustainable funding model that respects provincial and federal jurisdictions.”

In this inaugural issue of ‘Insights,’ OLES focuses on employer perceptions of workplace literacy and essential skills training.