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LR/RI produces a bulletin roughly every two weeks in order to inform area practitioners of news, events, and calls for participation and also as a forum for posing questions, issues and discussion topics. The current bulletin is posted below. To read previous bulletins, go to Bulletin Archives.September 25, 2003 Bulletin #171
Dear Colleagues, Calls for participation, employment, funding, and conference and workshop opportunities, online and other resources. To post information, please contact LR/RI or leave a message (401-863-2839).
Janet Isserlis
NOTICES
ESOL share Friday, October 3 at 2 PM Genesis Center, 620 Potters Ave, Providence Adult education research share Adult
education research share October 29 at 2 PM, at the Genesis Center
see http://www.brown.edu/lrri/researchshare.html
to learn more, or contact
At our October meeting, Rosalind Davidson, a developer of the National Institute for Literacy's website on assessment and reading profiles, http://www.nifl.gov/readingprofiles will walk us through the site, which is based on data from the 1997-99 Adult Reading Component Study. State Adult Education Conference - Thursday, April 22, 2004.
The Rhode Island Council for the Humanities presents: What is Freedom?: Stories of Life, Love, and Struggle in America http://www.uri.edu/rich/what_overview.htm (multiple events) and Film Series: http://www.uri.edu/rich/filmsched.htm RI Family Literacy Initiative: Pendragon Literacy Benefit RI's own premier Celtic band supports Literacy! October 4, 2003, 1-3pm on the lawn of William Hall Library,1825 Broad St. Cranston. Tickets at the Door, $15 for adults, $10 for children(5-12) and under 5 are free Proceeds Benefit Literacy classes in our local Library. Please contact 455-8066 or 781-2450 for more information. Learning opportunity: adult learning and visual impairments Please join us this fall for a two-part workshop series focused on addressing the needs and strengths of adult literacy and ESOL students with visual impairments. As part of a project supported by the American Foundation for the Blind, SABES Southeast, the Adult Literacy Resource Institute and Literacy Resources/ Rhode Island are collaborating to develop these workshops to address questions and issues practitioners face in assisting adult learners with limited vision. The first part of the workshop, on November 7th from 10 to 3 at BCC in Fall River, will provide an overview of issues affected vision and aims to strengthen awareness among literacy practitioners of both needs and abilities of adult learners and also to provide some basic strategies for assisting providers who work with these learners. Participants will pursue a question, a topic or develop a strategy of their own prior to workshop two which will also feature a demonstration of a range of assistive devices and equipment for adults with limited vision. The second workshop will be held on November 21st, also at Bristol Community College. Upon completion of both workshops, participants will receive a stipend
of $100 and documentation -- descriptions of their projects and of the
workshops - will be made available through web-based publication, with
hard copies made available on an as-needed basis. A light lunch will
be provided at both sessions. To learn more, please contact Janet
Isserlis (janet_isserlis@brown.edu), Maria Elena Gonzalez (mgonzale@gis.net)
or Sally Gabb (sgabb@bristol.mass.edu). To register, call Janet Dutra
(508) 678-2811 ext. 2320
Statewide conference Save the date: April 22, 2004 Learning opportunities: Fall Classes English as a second language: September 3-December 17 Monday & Wednesday 4:30-6:00 pm All English levels, children 3 years and older welcome Monday & Wednesday 6:30-8:00 pm Beginner and Intermediate level, children 3 years and older welcome September 5-December 12, 2003 Friday 9:00-11:00 am All English levels, no children under 8 years old please English Conversation Class for ESOL students September 2-December 9 Tuesday 6:30-8:30 Intermediate and advanced ESOL students only, no children under 8 years old please - Please call to verify that the schedule has not changed before registering - Funding for these programs comes from West Warwick Public Library, Federal LSTA funds from the RI Office of Library and Information Services (OLIS), The Nellie Mae Education Foundation "Opening Doors to Tomorrow", City of Pawtucket Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), The Fleet Boston Financial Foundation, and the RI Dept. of Education. Call for student speakers for the National Center for Family Literacy's annual conference. March 1 - 3, 2004. Nominations, sent to bfreeman@famlit.org should include include student speaker in your subject line, or mail your nomination to Bonnie Lash Freeman, Director - Training/Special Projects NCFL 325 W Main St Suite 300 Louisville, KY 40202. Full details available in previous bulletins Programs that nominate students must demonstrate that they: align themselves with the federal definition for family literacy services, have been funded as a four component family literacy program for three years and have staff who will support the student as they write and perfect their speeches. Deadline Oct. 17, 5:30 pm We will provide winners' conference registration, travel, hotel and food expenses and will announce final choices on Nov. 3rd. 502 584 1133 ext 115. Call for conference proposals (deadline October 17) at http://www.famlit.org/conference.cfm And: NCFL and Toyota announce the nomination process for the 2004 Toyota Family Literacy Teacher of the Year award. Established to honor excellence in family education, awards are given to educators who demonstrate exemplary efforts to help parents and children achieve their academic and non-academic goals. Nominations must be received on or before October 1. The nominated teacher must work in a four-component family literacy program that includes: children's education, adult education, Parent Time and Parent and Child Together (PACT) Time. The Teacher of the Year will receive a $5,000 award for his/her program, and will also receive a trip to the 13th Annual National Conference on Family Literacy in Orlando,, where he/she will be recognized as the "Toyota Family Literacy Teacher of the Year." Scholarships will also be awarded to several finalists, along with a variety of recognition items. Nomination Guidelines, other information available online at http://www.famlit.org/nomination.cfm calls for papers: - for a three-volume series designed to bring into practical focus a wide and diverse array of reflective work on ESL/EFL education in community college settings. The editors are looking for contributions from a broad spectrum of ESL and EFL professionals working in community college settings containing personal, practical contributions, not clinical or merely descriptive ones. Details available at: http://www.tesol.org/pdfs/pubs/cfms/perspectivescc.pdf - Family Literacy Forum, a national, peer-reviewed journal published
twice a year by the National Even Start Association, and committed to bringing
the voices, ideas, and experiences of individuals in the field to
the forefront of discussions about the literacy development of families
in home, community, and school-based settings. Family Literacy Forum accepts
manuscripts that focus on practice, theory and research in family
literacy education. We welcome manuscripts that discuss the
following: practical approaches related to working with families and
literacy; personal essays, reflections or opinion pieces related to family
literacy; research and evaluation related to family literacy program
development; and, issues of assessment and standards in the field.
Rhode Island Special Interest Group of MATSOL The Rhode Island SIG is a group of professionals in ESOL and Bilingual
Education organizing under the auspices of MATSOL, in order to meet the
professional needs in the field in Rhode Island. Our purpose is to
recruit ESOL and Bilingual Education professionals in Adult ESOL, Higher
Ed, Workplace Ed, Elementary, Secondary, and Low-Incidence programs serving
English Language Learners in Rhode Island, to determine advocacy and professional
development needs. If you are interested in joining or learning more
about the Rhode Island Special Interest Group of MATSOL, you can contact
Jenifer Giroux by e-mail jgiroux@ric.edu or at 456-8794.
learning opportunities Online learning: Online earning opportunity: TESOL Online Academy workshops,
October 6 - November 9, For information and to register: http://www.tesol.org/edprg/olw/academies.html
Using Internet Tools to Effectively Work with Beginning ESL/EFL
Workshop Leader: Susan Gaer, Santa Ana College School of Continuing Education,
Santa Ana, California
Teaching Writing Online Workshop Leader: Ron Corio, Virginia
Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA
Enhancing Online Communities with Voice and Webcams Workshop
Leader: Vance Stevens, Petroleum Institute, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Continuing Education Units are also available for these workshops Online learning opportunity: West Branch Technology Center announces new on-line course schedule for Fall Introduction to Blackboard - This course is designed to prepare
participants to take on-line courses in Blackboard. Participants will become
comfortable with the features of the Blackboard on-line class environment
through hands-on activities, step-by-step instructions, and guidance from
knowledgeable instructors.
Integrating Computer Technology into the Classroom - This course
has been designed to prepare adult education and literacy practitioners
to use computers in the adult education environment. Participants will
explore: different types of computer software, use of the Internet, LINCS
(Literacy Information and Communication System), and how to develop computer
based learning activities.
Introduction to the GED - Participants will learn about the GED
2002 test focusing on the test structure and how the test is scored. The
course will provide an overview, teaching tips and strategies for each
section of the GED 2002 including: Language Arts -Writing, Language Arts
Reading, Social Studies, Science, and Mathematics. Course participants
will be involved in optional discussion groups, lesson activities for each
topic area, a few on-line quizzes, and the series will culminate in a final
assignment. The final assignment will be to create a lesson plan.
Start Date: September 22, 2003 End Date: October 17, 2003
Register for these activities in e-campus at http://makeashorterlink.com/?G57C142B5
.
what do you think? LR/RI has had an online survey on its site for months. Previously, those who may have come across the survey were asked to copy and paste it into an email message, or to print it and complete it. Thanks to the brilliant technical support and inservice learning provided by Brown University, the survey can now be completed on line. I'd be grateful if you could please take the time to complete it. While occasional word comes back about the work LR/RI has done, this survey attempts to be somewhat more systematic in considering the work that's done and the work that needs to be accomplished. Please complete the survey at http://www.brown.edu/lrri - scroll down and click on the link to the survey. If you lack web access and wish to complete the survey, please contact LR/RI to receive one via snail mail or fax. OVAE's "Blueprint for preparing for America's future. The Adult and Literacy Education Act of 2003" The Blueprint can be found at http://www.ed.gov/offices/OVAE/AdultEd/aeblueprint2.doc. It's been described as a document comparable to that which spawned the No Child Left Behind initiative. We should read it. funding opportunities - large and less large With the receipt of funding from the Corporation for National and Community Service, Project SHINE (Students Helping in the Naturalization of Elders) is pleased to announce a request for proposals for institutions of higher education. SHINE is a national service-learning initiative that promotes lifelong civic engagement by mobilizing college students to help elderly immigrants and refugees learn the English and civics they need to become more actively engaged in their communities and to prepare for U.S.citizenship. Funding is available to individual institutions of higher education or university-community college partnerships that are interested in replicating the SHINE model in areas with large concentrations of older immigrants and refugees. Funding is available for a 10-month planning grant and two years of full implementation, subject to yearly renewal. Interested applicants are required to submit a letter of intent by October 20, followed by a full proposal due November 15. To access the RFP, go to http://www.projectshine.org. For more information, please contact Daryl Gordon, Assistant Director at daryl@temple.edu. Funding Available for Community Based Research and Social Action Projects The Sociological Initiatives Foundation provides grants of $5,000 to $15,000 to support community-based research and social action projects. Areas of interest include but are not limited to social justice, social welfare, human rights, literacy, language learning and use, dialect use and curricular issues in teaching second languages and non-native languages. The Foundation is also interested in supporting research by sociologists and linguists that provide a direct benefit to communities. Complete guidelines for the September 2003 application deadline are available at http://www.grantsmanagement.com/sifguide.html. For more information, contact Prentice Zinn at http://comm-org.utoledo.edu/mailman/listinfo/colist pzinn at grantsmanagement.com or 617-426-7080. The Poverty & Race Research Action Council (PRRAC) announces another round of education reform grants in areas of social science research. PRACC is particularly interested in issues such as high classroom turnover/mobility and its disproportionate impact on low-income, minority, and farm worker students. However, other issues will be considered as well. To apply, send PRRAC a proposal outlining the planned research and methodology, the advocacy work it is designed to support, a budget, timeline, and qualifications of the researchers. Maximum grant: $10,000. No application deadline. http://www.prrac.org/grants.htm Funding Solutions for Small Nonprofit Organizations A collection of resources to help small nonprofit organizations fundraise including ways to motivate your board, sample fundraising letters, phonathon advice, and tips to improve your direct mail solicitation. http://www.nonprofit-innovations.com/
employment opportunities
Rhode Island Community Jobs (RICOMJOB) is a public e-mail announcement list that seeks to raise the profile of meaningful work in Rhode Island by helping non-profit and public interest employers publicize openings effectively. Anyone seeking a job that makes a difference in Rhode Island can join the list. Any non-profit, government or private sector employer advertising a paid position related to the public interest or community concerns can post a free job listing. Positions must be paid but may be part-time, full-time or temporary. To join the list as a job seeker or to post a job as an employer go to: http://www.ricommunityjobs.org Rhode Island Community Jobs is supported by the Swearer Center for Public Service at Brown University and the Rhode Island Campus Compact. If you have questions about this service, please contact us at ricomjob@brown.edu Volunteer Opportunities Volunteer English Language Tutors: Progreso Latino is seeking
volunteers to help adults with their English at our Central Falls site.
These very motivated adult students take English as a Second Language (ESL)
classes four days a week, (morning or evening classes) at Progreso Latino
and they have requested extra after-class instruction. Tutors may
choose to use the
Volunteer Tutors for Literacy in Spanish: Progreso Latino is
seeking volunteers who speak Spanish to help adult students improve their
basic skills in reading and writing in Spanish at our Central Falls site.
These students are motivated and are taking Basic Beginner-level English
as a
Voluntarios para alfabetizar en espanol: Se busca voluntarios
para ensenar
Forthcoming volunteer opportunity: An adult learner at the Hartford Housing complex will be seeking a tutor. More information soon, and/or please contact LR/RI. online / resources The Language of Opportunity: Expanding Employment Prospects for Adults with Limited English Skills , CENTER FOR LAW AND SOCIAL POLICY: Heide Spruck Wrigley, Elise Richer, Karin Martinson, Hitomi Kubo, and Julie Strawn - This report describes the demographics and economic circumstances of low-income adults with limited English proficiency (LEP) as well as the language and job training services available to them. The authors summarize lessons from scientific evaluation research on employment programs for low- skilled adults and provide recommendations for policy and practice that would increase opportunities for LEP adults to gain access to higher-paying jobs. The appendix includes profiles of several programs that are successfully training and working with LEP adults. http://movingideas.c.tclk.net/maabqTuaa0pCpb44rKKb/ The Literacy Assistance Center announces its fall issue of the Literacy Harvest. The theme of the new issue, published in collaboration with the National Even Start Association, is Perspectives on Family Literacy and includes articles from the field on theory, program effectiveness and practice. For an electronic version of the Harvest: http://www.lacnyc.org/publications/harvest.htm from The ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career and Vocational Education: new Trends and Issues Alerts Informal Adult Learning and the Internet by Susan Imel provides
information
Resource available from PRO-NET 2000 - Evaluating Professional Development Resources: Selection and Development Criteria, accessible http://www.pro-net2000.org/ under the Currently Available section. This publication introduces and describes criteria which provide a framework
for programs to assess the viability, quality, and appropriateness of professional
development resources and to guide in the development of new resources.
With many train-the-trainer modules, how-to guides, e-learning courses,
monographs, research reports, and other guides or materials to choose from,
strategies are necessary to thoroughly evaluate these resources. The criteria
are divided into four primary categories: Appropriateness of general content,
Appropriateness of design and delivery,
The Arlington Education and Employment Program (REEP) adult ESL instructional system: materials, lesson plans, and more: http://www.arlington.k12.va.us/instruct/ctae/adult_ed/REEP/reepcurriculum/
e-literacy: The National Institute for Literacy's electronic newsletter is online (new and archived issues) at http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/eliteracy/archive.html NIFL also maintains an online calendar of events at http://www.nifl.gov/cgi-bin/Calendar/calendar_world.cgi search LR/RI - the search function at http://www.brown.edu/lrri has been improved so that the LR/RI website is now searchable. Please try it. Let me know what you think.. Thanks to Bill Dennen at Brown for his assistance in getting it to work. Free education publications are available from ED Pubs, the U.S. Department of Education's Publications Center. To order free books, brochures, videos, and more, visit the ED Pubs Web site (http://www.ed.gov/about/ordering.jsp) or call ED Pubs toll-free at 877/433-7827. LR/RI website: a shortcut. The URL for Literacy Resources/RI's website has not changed; you can now get to it more quickly by using this new address: http://www.brown.edu/lrri/ -- with thanks to Kath Connolly and Bill Dennen at Brown University for making it so. conferences and workshops - conferences and workshops are listed chronologically and are updated with each bulletin
Rhode Island - Training/events around employment issues for people with disabilities http://www.ric.edu/uap/training.html What makes an effective reading program, according to internationally renowned reading experts? You're invited to be part of the audience for a Reading Rockets teleconference called "Establishing an Effective Reading Program" on October 15. Host Delia Pompa will moderate a discussion with panelists Dr. G. Reid Lyon, Dr. Timothy Shanahan, and Dr. Charlotte Parker. Then we'll take questions from studio and satellite audiences. If you'll be in the Washington, D.C. area on October 15 and would like to join us in the WETA/Channel 26 studio for the show, please contact Erika Robinson at info@readingrockets.org or 703-998-2088 by Tuesday, September 30, to reserve your seat. In your message, please include: your first and last name, a telephone number where you can be reached to confirm,your attendance, and any questions you may want to ask the experts. Keisha Dyson Associate Producer http://pbsmail.org/join-forward.html?domain=weta_learning&r=w11xwGM1nPJZ National Even Start Association 9th annual conference, October 18-22 San Diego, California. http://www.evenstart.org/conference2003.htm Trapped by Poverty, Trapped by Abuse Research Conference, October 17-19, 2003 in Austin, Texas The Center for Impact Research, the University of Michigan School of Social Work, and the University of Texas School of Social Work announce the fourth Trapped by Poverty/Trapped by Abuse Research Conference. We now understand that violence against women is a form of social control
with wide-ranging effects on women's poverty. Domestic violence can interfere
with education, training, and work, cause dependence on welfare, or prevent
a successful welfare-to-work transition. Domestic violence can sabotage
control of reproduction that, in turn, can interfere with economic self-sufficiency.
Domestic violence can cause or aggravate alcohol or drug abuse, or cause
mental and physical health problems that can also can sabotage employment.
This conference brings together researchers, policy makers, service providers,
advocates, and elected officials to learn more about these relationships,
to explore effective policy responses, and to hear about innovative service
delivery strategies.
TESOL Forum Teachers Building a Culture of Peace: Classroom Responses to War and Terrorism, The American University, Washington, D.C., October 17, http://www.tesol.org/edprg/2003/peaceforum.html The State University of New Jersey Rutgers University Graduate School of Education Presents the 20th annual Rutgers Invitational Symposium on Education Conference Directed By Dr. Alisa Belzer and Dr. Harold Beder, October 23, and 24: Defining and improving quality in adult basic education: issues and challenges. This two day conference will be built around concurrent paper sessions featuring nationally recognized scholars discussing their work with a specific focus on issues of quality, and an international panel of scholars sharing their perspectives on the topic. Registration fee $175 (special graduate student rate $99) Embassy Suites Hotel, Piscataway, NJ (732) 980-9473 (Hotel accommodations available at discount rate of $110) To register contact us at (732) 932-7496 X8202 http://www.gse.rutgers.edu/conted/20thRise.pdf - conference brochure and registration details?
The Student Coalition for Action in Literacy Education presents SCALE's Read. Write. Act. Conference October 31 - November 1, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill http://www.readwriteact.org/conference.html Please join us for the only national conference created specifically for campus-based literacy programs, college student tutors, program coordinators, adult learners and community partners. Come experience a terrific weekend of workshops, keynote speakers, panel discussions, networking opportunities, and reflections on issues surrounding literacy work. [If you are interested in presenting a workshop, please visit http://www.readwriteact.org/conference.html to submit a proposal.] You will have the opportunity to participate in quality workshops offered by national leaders in the literacy field. You will also meet individuals from other campus-based programs, building a new network of peers to support you in your efforts. No matter your role in campus literacy work, the Read. Write. Act. Conference will enhance your professional development and result in real program improvement. Student Rates: SCALE member schools: $75 non-member schools: $100 For more information, visit the website above, Email scale@unc.edu -or call (919) 962-1542. other events and conferences http://www.nifl.gov/cgi-bin/Calendar/calendar_world.cgi TESOL worldwide calendar of events http://www.tesol.org/isaffil/calendar/index.html
from previous bulletins: REMINDERS, RESOURCES:
SABES Resource Lists Available. From Carey Reid [full message here]: As you might know, Massachusetts now has a rigorous, stand-alone ABE teacher's license. SABES, the System for Adult Basic Education Support, is a state-wide staff development system funded by MassDOE. Ö[S]months ago I asked if NLA subscribers were interested in helping SABES build resource lists, by standard, in support of teachers seeking the new license here in Massachusetts. Many of you helped out, thank you, and we've also worked with small groups of people locally to build these 29 lists, now with over 150 resources--books, articles, websites, and videos. The lists are now available on SABES's license support website at http://www.sabes.org/license. You can get quickly to the lists by clicking on the "new resources added" link under What's New, or at any time by using the resources link on the bottom of every webpage. When you arrive at the chart listing the 29 standards, click on any standard to go to the resource list we've compiled for it. The lists are annotated; with the annotations, teachers who wish to improve their knowledge and skills in respect to a particular standard can be more assured they're getting the resource they want or need. If the resource can be viewed or downloaded on the Net, we've provided a link. Additionally, we want to improve these lists, so please email me
if you'd like to suggest additions or changes. BTW, the full list
of resources is also collected in a ProCite bibliography file, so if you
use that software and would like to have your own "instant" database, let
me know and I'll email you the file. As stated earlier, SABES is funded
by the Massachusetts Department of Education. To avoid confusion,
the website is not an official DOE site but rather one of SABES's means
of supporting license-seeking teachers in our state. Links to Massachusetts
DOE webpages, however, are provided on the site.
breathe - everyday yoga at your desk. http://www.mydailyyoga.com/yoga/everyday_yoga.html Professional development initiative: In 1998, I spent time at the RI Dislocated Worker Program, facilitating classes for teachers there so that they could have an opportunity to observe one another's classes and to reflect on their learning and teaching. (The full text of their reflections is available on the LR/RI web site at Writing from the Field - or contact LR/RI for a hard copy). Please let me know if you would like to participate in this process of professional development. All that's required is your willingness to share your reflections about the observation/learning process for others. I hope to build a block of writing and thinking about this and other forms of our own professional development both through the bulletin and the web site.
Please contact LR/RI if you have information, questions or announcements to share with adult educators in Rhode Island. Bulletins go out at least twice a month; more frequently when there's more to share. To submit information for the next bulletin, please contact LR/RI by phone (401-863-2839), mail (PO Box 1974, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912) or email. back to LR/RI home |
