Contact LR/RI
| The Rhode Island Adult Education Professional
Development
Center produces a bulletin roughly every
two
to three 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. To receive the bulletin via email, contact LR/RI. To learn more about professional development opportunities, please contact the RI AEPDC at (401) 456 -2838 or (401) 863-2839 July 31, 2008 Bulletin #275 Dear Colleagues, Calls for
participation, employment, funding,
and conference and workshop
opportunities, online
and other resources.
Janet Isserlis
classes
this summer: ESOL share Tuesday, August 5th at 2:00 pm, Genesis Center, 620 Potters Avenue, Providence. This is an open discussion group – practitioners with an interest in adult ESOL are all welcome. learning opportunity The Education Exchange in Wakefield offers weekly GED Testing on Thursday and Friday mornings through the summer (with the exception of August 14th & 15th). For more information on registration call Candice Moretti at 783-0293. Health Care Curriculum Free Professional Development Training August 14 & 21 10:00 A.M.—2:00 P.M. 100 Midway Road, Suite 21 Cranston The Rhode Island Health Literacy Project (RIHLP), a statewide coalition of public health, adult education and medical organizations, has partnered with RIDE to offer a unique professional development opportunity to adult educators. To increase understanding of health information among adults with low literacy levels, the RIHLP has developed a health curriculum. The objectives of the curriculum are to increase understanding of health information, increase patient compliance with treatment plans, decrease inappropriate emergency room utilization, increase utilization of preventive care and empower individuals and families to take more control of their health. RIHLP and RIDE have collaborated to offer a twoday in-depth training on the curriculum. Thistraining will provide you with the tools needed to answer students’ questions about health care and implement important lessons in your classroom. Space is Limited Register by August 1. Please contact Jessica Ortiz - jortiz@ric.edu <mailto:jortiz@ric.edu> For more information contact: Amanda Barney 946-7887 ext. 111 amandab@hari.org ; http://www.rihlp.org Directions will be provided upon registration LUNCH WILL BE SERVED  Practitioner share August 11th, 3 - 5 p, Crossroads RI, 160 Broad Street Many practitioners struggle with helping adult learners stay engaged in learning. Family, work and other concerns can often make it difficult for learners to stay focused on educational programs. External constraints present challenges as well. Join classroom teachers and administrators considering these issues and share both concerns and possibilities. This month’s topic for discussion will address means of creating a safe space for learners while balancing our own high expectations, holding learners accountable for their participation, and considering our own accountability as well. Visitor parking is available in the YMCA parking lot. Light refreshments will be served. CCRI Lifelong Learning, in coordination with the RI Adult Education Professional Development center, is sponsoring a workshop on Understanding by Design, facilitated by Donna Chambers, on Friday, August 8th, from 9-1 at CCRI Providence. This four hour workshop will introduce Understanding by Design, a framework for improving student learning. Understanding by Design works within a standards-driven curriculum to help teachers clarify learning goals, devise informative assessments of learners’ understanding, and create effective and engaging learning activities. The goal of this session is to provide an opportunity for participants to become familiar with this research-based learning theory and introduce some important techniques for teaching and learning within a standards-based curriculum. The focus will be on improving student outcomes. There are limited seats available, so please reserve one by emailing Jessica Ortiz at jortiz@ric.edu. other RI Adult Education PDC events: http://www.ric.edu/aepdc/calendar.php RIRAL's TRANSITION TO COLLEGE - INFORMATION AND ASSESSMENT SESSIONS Weekend session begins in October. CALL TODAY TO RESERVE YOUR PLACE AND CHANGE YOUR LIFE!  Transition to College is part of the Rhode Island State Transition Initiative in partnership with the Community College of Rhode. The program is held at 175 Main Street Pawtucket, RI. For more information, contact MarieCrecca-Romero@riral.org, Program Director at 401. 722.9800. learning opportunity: The Extending Mathematical Power (EMPower) curriculum and professional development opportunities were created specifically with adult numeracy teachers and their diverse student populations in mind. The curriculum fosters a pedagogy of learning for understanding and challenges students and teachers to extend their ideas of what it means to do math. It also promotes a learning community in which students are encouraged to work collaboratively, explore open-ended investigations, and share multiple ways for solving real-world problems. (see, e.g. http://www.keypress.com/documents/ALookInside/EMPower/EMPower_SeekingPatternsSB.pdf) Our hands-on trainings, based on the EMPower series, introduce teachers to effective ways of developing an understanding of all math strands at all levels. This year, TERC is pleased to announce two EMPower Professional Development - In Louisville, KY on July 17 & 18 Topics: Data and Graphs and Proportional Reasoning - In Cambridge, MA at TERC on August 14 &15 Topics: Number and Operation Sense and Algebraic Thinking The cost for attending the Institutes is $150 per participant per day. All materials will be provided—including the EMPower teacher and student book for each of the topics covered (a retail value of $83.80). Both trainings will be presented by EMPower co-author Mary Jane Schmitt. For more details and a registration form, please email Sherry_Soares@terc.edu or visit: http://adultnumeracy.terc.edu/EMP_SumInst2008.html. Alternatively, your program may choose to host a professional development training (open to groups of 25+) at your location, which can be customized to best meet the needs of your staff and student population. For details, please see our EMPower Workshop Inquiry form http://adultnumeracy.dev.terc.edu/EMP_wkshp_inquiry.cfm . Please note that these offerings are not part of the Teachers Investigating Adult Numeracy (TIAN) initiative; they are additional opportunities. - Sherry Soares, EMPower Workshop Coordinator (note to RI educators – if your program would like to participate, but needs to find additional practitioners, please contact janet_isserlis@brown.edu so that we can announce your interest and let others know). Help students gain accuracy, speed, and prosody The WILSON Fluency™ Workshop will show you how to improve your students' word automaticity and rate-appropriate independent reading of connected text with ease and expression. This five-hour workshop will examine the important aspects of explicit fluency instruction and will provide hands-on practice conducting formalized fluency lessons with the WILSON Fluency / Basic program. This workshop is designed for teachers who are currently using (or considering) the WILSON Fluency / Basic Kit. August19, $225 * Oxford, MA WILSON Fluency / Basic is a supplemental fluency program appropriate for younger students with beginning reading skills or for older students who are not reading fluently due to decoding deficits. Although it specifically supplements Steps 1-3 of the Wilson Reading System®, it can be used with any reading curriculum that directly teaches closed syllable structure. To learn more about the Fluency/Basic program, about saving $50 when you register early, please go to : http://www.wilsonlanguage.com/frame_Wilson_Fluency_Basic.asp Wilson Language Training is a recognized leader for teacher professional development and is included in the National Staff Development Council’s (NSDC) initiative, What Works in K-12 Literacy Staff Development from OVAE’s Thursday notes, July 24, 2008 States to Receive TA in Performance-Based Funding A new $790,000 OVAE project is slated to begin assisting state policymakers and adult education administrators this fall in making informed decisions about the adoption of performance-based funding systems. The project will hold national workshops to introduce performance-based funding to state staff and provide additional technical assistance (TA) to selected states that are implementing performance-based funding systems. This new project will build on and extend the work OVAE accomplished in an earlier study of fiscal policies in states using performance-based funding. More details will be available soon. OVAE Sparks Online Discussion for State Directors on Transition OVAE is responding to states’ TA needs by planning a meeting focused on state policies that assist adult education students in transitioning to postsecondary education. States identified their TA needs at OVAE’s April 2008 national conference. OVAE has opened a Listserv discussion for state adult education directors to better understand which states are at the forefront of developing transition models and the implications the models have for future policy making. The discussion, conducted on OVAE’s established state directors’ Listserv, is running from July 21 through Aug. 4. Information from the discussion will be used to plan a work group meeting that will engage representatives from selected states. Teresa Bestor Named OVAE's Northeast Coordinator Florida’s Teresa Bestor has been named OVAE’s new area coordinator for the northeastern states, beginning Sept. 12. Bestor has more than 10 years of supervisory experience working with workforce and general adult education as well as serving as the state’s chief GED administrator. She replaces Allison Hill, who accepted a position with OVAE’s Division of Academic and Technical Education. from Thursday notes, July 31, 2008 OVAE Participates In Shared Youth Vision Meeting http://www.doleta.gov/ryf/ 24 pilot states and states they mentor convened at the Shared Youth Vision (SYV) Federal Collaborative Partnership Peer-to-Peer Dialog http://www.schoolandmain.org/events/2008_wfinnovations.htm held July 14 -15 in New Orleans. OVAE staff helped facilitate discussions for states exploring the systemic impact their collaboration has produced and the supports needed for success for the neediest youths. States discussed how SYV helped them craft policies, pass legislation or make investments that improved services for neediest youths; how states can institutionalize SYV efforts; and how states can expand SYV's scope by recruiting new state partners. Partners also shared examples of noteworthy practices. http://www.deed.state.mn.us/youth/syv/syv.htm SYV is a partnership among the Department of Education and several other agencies to promote coordination of programs and services for at-risk youths at the state and local levels. It was created after a 2003 White House Task Force Report on Disadvantaged Youth found many out-of-school, at-risk youths are left behind because existing services lacked focus and did not emphasize outcomes. Rhode Island Creates Transition Options The Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) has invested in several new strategies to help adult education students transition to postsecondary opportunities. One new option implemented in July was to change the statewide adult education assessment policy. RIDE’s new policy requires local programs to give students who set a goal of postsecondary transition the option of taking a college readiness test free of charge within 30 days of enrollment. This test is in addition to standardized tests already required to measure educational gain in the National Reporting System. Both the student and instructor then get feedback on the participant’s college readiness. Programs also are expected to give participants setting employment goals the option of taking a free work readiness test of their choice to assess employability in addition to test s required for educational gain. More information on Rhode Island’s transition strategy is available from Johan Uvin. learning opportunities Adult Literacy (ADTED 457) is a three-credit undergraduate/graduate level Penn State course offered online through Penn State’s World Campus. It can be used as an elective for several Penn State graduate degree programs, as well as for undergraduate credit. The course examines recent research and issues, and bridges the gap between research and adult literacy practices. It explores best practices for developing instruction and teaching adult students, including contextualized instruction, scaffolding techniques to promote independent learning, and self-regulation strategies to support self-directed learning and for successful transition into postsecondary education and training. The course has been designed to provide practitioners with a professional development opportunity to focus on their own areas of interest within the field of adult basic and literacy education, including, but not limited to, family literacy, workplace literacy and workforce development, health literacy, financial literacy, and information literacy. There are no prerequisites, and a background in adult education is not necessary for successful completion of the course. The curriculum allows students to participate at their own level of experience and need, and begins September 3, and ends December 3, 2008. For more information, visit: http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/FamilyLiteracyCertificate.shtml or contact Dr. Sheila Sherow at sms20@psu.edu To register contact: http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/StudentServices_GettingStarted.shtml Adult Multiple Intelligences and Differentiated Instruction Course Dates: October 13–December 12, 2008; Online chats during Lessons 3, 4, and 5 Course Description Research conducted by the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy shows that instructional practices inspired by Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory resulted in high levels of authentic instruction and student engagement. Integrate your understanding of Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory with the power of differentiated instruction in this facilitated, eight-session course. You’ll learn how to apply MI theory and differentiate instruction for all levels of adult basic education and English for speakers of other languages. The facilitator will guide you as you develop your own MI-based lessons. Objectives Upon completion of this course you will be able to: *Apply the theory of multiple intelligences (MI) to design learning activities that match your learning objectives *Use varying methods of differentiated instruction (DI) that address the different skills and interests of your learners *Apply knowledge of your own MI profile to your classroom teaching *Produce and reflect on a lesson or unit using both MI and DI Required Text: Viens, Julie and Silja Kallenbach. Multiple Intelligences and Adult Literacy: A Sourcebook for Practitioners. (New York: Teachers College Press, 2004. Copies of the required textbook can be obtained from the publisher, Teachers College Press (TCP), the publisher at http://store.tcpress.com/0807743461.shtml. The cost is $27.95 per copy. Bottom of Form Course Format and Schedule: facilitated, online During this eight-week course, you will engage in self-paced activities and readings, as well as asynchronous discussions with the facilitators and course participants. Three synchronous chats will be scheduled during Lessons 3, 4, and 5. Course Overview: Download at http://professionalstudiesae.worlded.org/pdf/midi_overview.pdf. Course Facilitator: Wendy Quiñones Estimated Completion Time: 40 hours Fee: $249.00 (negotiated group rates available) Registration: Complete and return the registration form, which you can download at http://professionalstudiesae.worlded.org/pdf/midi_reg.pdf. Payment must be received prior to enrollment. Registration is limited to 20 participants. Cancellation policy: World Education reserves the right to cancel the course if the minimum number of registrants is not met by September 29, 2008 Study Circle: Research-based Adult Reading Instruction Course Dates: September 25–November 19, 2008; chats on October 8 and October 29 at 12:30 or 1:30 pm EDT and November 19 at 12:30 pm or 1:30 pm EST Course Description The Research-based Adult Reading Instruction Study Circle is designed to engage practitioners of adult basic education (ABE), adult secondary education (ASE), and English-for-speakers-of‐other-languages (ESOL) in discussing theories and concepts related to reading instruction. Questions about what research says about teaching adults how to read are particularly relevant as programs and teachers struggle with choosing the most effective ways to develop adults’ reading skills. Objectives During this study circle, you will: • Think about and share your own perspectives on teaching reading and discuss the research on reading with others. • Then look more in-depth at the reading research, who adult readers are, and how reading research can be applied to reading instruction. • Identify how to assess adults’ reading skills and what adult students should know about the reading process. • Develop an action plan for using what you learn in your own practice. Course Format and Schedule: facilitated, online During this eight-week course, you will work on team projects, engage in self-paced activities and readings, as well as asynchronous discussions with the facilitator and course participants. Chats are scheduled for October 8 and October 29 at 12:30 or 1:30 pm EDT and November 19 at 12:30 pm or 1:30 pm EST. Course Overview: Download at http://professionalstudiesae.worlded.org/pdf/reading_sc_overview.pdf Course Facilitator: Kaye Beall Estimated Completion Time: 20–24 hours Fee: $249.00 (negotiated group rates available) Registration: Complete and return the registration form, which you can download at http://professionalstudiesae.worlded.org/pdf/reading_reg.pdf. Payment must be received prior to enrollment. Registration is limited to 20 participants. Cancellation policy: World Education reserves the right to cancel the course if the minimum number of registrants is not met by September 10, 2008. National Priorities Project analyzes and clarifies federal data so that people can understand and influence how their tax dollars are spent. Numeracy, critical thinking and technology: have a look http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home funding opportunities - large and less large Grants from the Juanita Sanchez Community Fund may support human service organizations, community centers, art institutions—any nonprofit that works toward enriching or improving the lives of Latinos in Rhode Island. Several grants will be awarded each year in the range of $500 to $1,500. For consideration in the upcoming grant cycle, grant applications must be completed and submitted to The Rhode Island Foundation, One Union Station, Providence, RI 02903 by October 1. The Juanita Sanchez Community Fund will accept no more than one application per organization in any given year; however, applying to the Sanchez Fund does not restrict an organization from applying for a grant from another fund administered by The Rhode Island Foundation. For more information, contact Inés Merchán, Community Philanthropy Associate, at imerchan@rifoundation.org or (401) 274-4564, and/or learn more at http://www.rifoundation.org/matriarch/documents/SanchezRFP.pdf Verizon Foundation -- Education, Literacy and Health Grants The Verizon Foundation aims to help people increase their literacy and educational achievement; avoid being an abuser or a victim of domestic violence; and achieve and sustain their health and safety. To achieve this goal, the Foundation funds programs in the following areas of interest: education, literacy, domestic violence prevention, healthcare and accessibility and Internet safety. Eligible applicants are nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status. Proposals will also be considered from elementary and secondary schools that are registered with the National Center for Education Statistics. Deadline: November 1, 2008 Contact the Verizon Foundation directly for complete program information and application guidelines: http://foundation.verizon.com/grant/guidelines.shtml The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy Announces the 2009 National Grant Competition http://www.barbarabushfoundation.com/nga.html The Foundation's grant-making program seeks to develop or expand projects that are designed to support the development of literacy skills for adult primary care givers and their children. A total of approximately $650,000 will be awarded; no grant request should exceed $65,000. Family Literacy programs funded through the Foundation's National Grant Program must include all of the following components: Reading instruction for parents or primary care-givers (pre-GED/GED/ESL etc.); literacy or pre-literacy instruction for children, and Intergenerational activities where the parents/primary caregivers and children come together to learn and to read. Programs can also include additional components such as parent support groups, parent involvement, home visits, job training etc.  - other grants from the Public Education Network: http://www.publiceducation.org/newsblast_grants.asp - The federal government's new one stop grant site:
http://www.grants.gov/
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.php 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 employment opportunities are generally sent as they arrive via email; if you would like to receive this bulletin, and those updates by email please contact janet_isserlis@brown.edu. PART-TIME EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY: Rhode Island Regional Adult Learning (RIRAL) TRANSITION TO COLLEGE program is looking for a math instructor to teach on Saturday mornings in Pawtucket starting in January 2009 and ending in May. Applicant must have experience working with non-traditional adults. Math instruction would include review of math basics and introduction to algebra in preparation for the ACCUPLACER assessment test. Please send resume to MarieCrecca-Romero@riral.org <mailto:MarieCrecca-Romero@riral.org> if interested, or call 722-9800. Substitute teaching: The Genesis Center is interested in adding to its substitute list. If you are an ESOL instructor who is interested in occasional work as a substitute, either day, evening or Saturday hours, please call Nancy Fritz or Pat Clarkin at 781-6110. employment opportunities at Bristol Community College: http://www.bristolcc.edu/administration/human_resources/jobListing.cfm Jobs in Literacy – nation wide postings on the National Institute for Literacy's LINCS site: http://www.nifl.gov/cgi-bin/lincs/jobs/jobs.cgi Substitute list: if you would like your name added to the general list, please see contact LR/RI. The list needs to be updated so that it can function more usefully for teachers and programs hoping to work with them. (http://www.brown.edu/lrri/sub.html) 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 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
online / resources available The Council for Advancement of Adult Literacy announces the release of a new resource, Findings in ESL: A Quick Reference to Findings of CAAL Research on ESL Programs at Community Colleges. As the name indicates, the publication, written by CAAL vice president Forrest P. Chisman, is the final in a series from CAAL on its ESL research since 2004. Due to the high ongoing interest in ESL service provision, the purpose of Findings in ESL is to make CAAL's ESL work more readily accessible to general and ESL audiences who may not have the time to wend their way through its fairly dense full-length reports. This summary document is available in PDF format from the CAAL website http://www.caalusa.org , Publications page, item ESL6). It may be purchased as a bound document directly from CAAL ($10 prepaid plus postage, bheitner@caalusa.org <mailto:bheitner@caalusa.org> for instructions). The four main research reports summarized in this Reference document are also available at the CAAL website, each for $20 prepaid plus postage. They are: Adult ESL and the Community College (2004, 59 pp.); Passing the Torch: Strategies for Innovation in Community College ESL (2007, 153 pp.); Torchlights in ESL: Five Community College Profiles (2007, 123 pp.); Pathways and Outcomes: Tracking ESL Student Performance (2008, 212 pp.)--items ESL1 through ESL5. Assessing the nation's health literacy: Key concepts and findings of the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL) describes health literacy results from the landmark 2003 NAAL, the nation's most comprehensive measure of adult literacy in more than a decade. Published by the American Medical Association Foundation and written by Sheida White, PhD, NAAL Project Officer, this 100-page report will be of interest to clinicians, researchers, educators, insurers, and policy makers in both the health and education fields. Assessing the nation’s health literacy can be downloaded as a PDF at http://www.amafoundation.org/go/healthliteracy. Hard copies can be purchased for $20 through the AMA Bookstore (http://www.amabookstore.com/) or call (800) 621-8335 and ask for Item #OP423908. - Jaleh Behroozi Soroui and from the National Health Law Program’s June 2008 Policy Briefing: Addressing Language Barriers That Impact Health Care for Millions http://www.healthlaw.org/library/folder.198370 Guidance documents from the UK’s Skills for Life – http://excellence.qia.org.uk/page.aspx?o=Guidance – contextualizing work for those with clearly identified learning difficulties (defined as): physical and sensory impairments – for example those with mobility difficulties or hearing or visual impairments; unseen disabilities such as health conditions, mental health difficulties and dyslexia; those whose disrupted learning experiences (for example those in offender establishments) and difficulties with learning have led them to work at a significantly lower level than the majority of their peers. numeracy resources: The Problem Solver, Massachusetts math newsletter, online at http://www.sabes.org/resources/publications/problemsolver/index.htm; Massachusetts also produces a math newsletter that focuses on research: the SABES Math Bulletin. You can access copies of that publication at: http://sabes.org/resources/publications/mathbulletin/index.htm interesting idea -from the MIRA July 9 Bulletin (sohno@miracoalition.org): Welcoming MA, The Welcoming Massachusetts Launch was a great success! On the Grand Staircase inside of the Statehouse, at least 200 people representing diverse immigrant communities, faith, and labor came together and spoke about the need and importance of respecting the dignity of all communities across Massachusetts. In a beautiful embodiment of what it means to be welcoming, attendees stood together to form the shape of a heart on the staircase. They later broke bread together in an age-old tradition symbolizing welcoming and empathy. The group of at least 200 issued a call to action that manifested the collective power and intention of Massachusetts residents in their desire to create a more human, welcoming, and respectful environment for immigrants in the state. For more information about the Welcoming Massachusetts Campaign, please contact Ellen Gallagher <mailto:egallagher@miracoalition.org>, at 617-350-5480 x217. To endorse the Welcoming Massachusetts campaign, please click here http://www.welcomingma.org/ Lots to do at the library Providence Public Library's calendar of events: http://www.provlib.org/calendar.asp online, from Rethinking Schools, Spring 2008: Queer Matters - Educating educators about Homophobia by William DeJean and Anne René Elsebree. Educators consider social justice and topics such as homophobia not so much as issues, but as matters affecting learners and practitioners. http://www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/22_03/quee223.shtml  online: from ETS on the issues: Adult Education in America. An issue of ETS Policy Notes (Volume 16, No.1) briefly summarizing results of the Adult Education Program Survey sponsored by the US Dept of Education and conducted by ETS. http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menuitem.c988ba0e5dd572bada20bc47c3921509/?vgnextoid=9b90b8dc9e258110VgnVCM10000022f95190RCRD&vgnextchannel=3f85be3a864f4010VgnVCM10000022f95190RCRD  What's new at NIFL? http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/whats_new.html Educating the Public and Elected Officials about Adult Education: Report on Adult Education Advocacy Efforts in New England by the New England Literacy Resource Center at World Education This new report takes stock of the program, policy and legislative context for adult education in each of the six New England states. It discusses local and statewide advocacy strategies by adult educators. The findings show that adult education advocacy efforts in New England are multi-faceted, and growing in sophistication and reach. The report discusses the principal challenges and related promising strategies revealed through interviews with leading adult education advocates in New England. They are grouped into four areas: 1) Visibility; 2) Framing the Message; 3) Student Involvement; and 4) Increasing and Sustaining Advocacy Efforts. Available for downloading (as a PDF file): http://www.nelrc.org/expertise/civic.html#educating (For a word doc version, please contact janet_isserlis@brown.edu) Building Basics - ESOL Toolkit for General Construction, Landscaping, Painting, and Plumbing Building Basics is a multilevel curriculum for teaching students that have expressed a need to learn English within the context of the construction trades. It has been organized into four modules which can be downloaded separately: General Construction, Curb Appeal (Landscaping), Painting, and Plumbing. The lessons provide a facilitator guide with step-by-step instructions for implementation, facilitator materials, and learner handouts. http://www.valrc.org/publications/buildingbasics/ - Nancy R. Faux, ESOL Specialist, Virginia Adult Learning Resource Center The new LINCS Resource Collections are online subject-oriented collections of high quality instructional resources, including multi-media resources, informed by research, especially scientifically based and other rigorous research, for use by adult education and literacy educators. To access the National Institute for Literacy's Resource Collections: http://www.nifl.gov/lincs/resourcecollections/resource_collections.html The Basic Skills Resource Collection contains resources on reading, writing, and mathematics and numeracy. The Program Planning Resource Collection contains resources on assessment, learning disabilities, and program improvement. The Workforce Competitiveness Resource Collection contains resources on workforce basic skills education, English language acquisition, and technology. Catalyst, the National Institute for Literacy’s first newsletter in more than a decade, is here! The inaugural issue is packed with news and information about the Institute's programs, people, and publications. http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/publications/Catalyst5-08.pdf NIFL launched an e-news and announcements to share information about its people, programs, publications, projects, and more. Subscribe at http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/announce <http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/announce> to receive news and updates from NIFL. This is an announcement only list. Seven habits and more: a recent online discussion about reading and ESOL (and English speaking) learners, led to a number of resources being shared, including Heide Spruck Wrigley's Seven Habits of Successful Readers, http://www.cal.org/caela/esl_resources/7Habits.pdf. To follow the entire conversation, go to http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/englishlanguage/2008/date.html and follow the conversation thread that begins on May 12th (you’ll need to scroll down the page). The UK's Open University course, 'Who counts as a refugee' considers the interrelationships between citizenship, identity and belonging, personal lives and social policy for people who have fled their country of origin seeking asylum in the UK, and includes useful information about refugee status and related issues for those living in other countries: http://openlearn.open.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=3490 UK National Curricula for ESOL, Literacy and Numeracy, with associated material and support for teachers, including the competencies for each skill at each level. As well, a significant number of resources for working with people with a range of disabilities. (See, for example): http://www.dfes.gov.uk/curriculum_literacy/access/workwith/principles/ http://www.dfes.gov.uk/curriculum_esol/ http://www.dfes.gov.uk/curriculum_literacy/ http://www.dfes.gov.uk/curriculum_numeracy/ Workplace Essential Skills and GED Connection series Now Available Through VIDEO-ON-DEMAND The adult learning series Workplace Essential Skills and GED Connection are available online through the Rhode Island PBS video streaming portal. In 25 half-hour segments, the Workplace Essential Skills series presents refreshers in fundamental reading, writing, and math skills as they relate to getting, keeping, or advancing in a job. Lessons also cover job applications, resume writing, and job interviews. An orientation segment touches upon the use of the different components included in this series. Lessons are written at a pre-GED level, and can help prepare adults for the GED tests. Four workbooks accompany the series. In 39 half-hour programs, the GED Connection helps learners prepare for the GED exam. Episodes cover subjects and skills related to work, community, and home life. Practice tests help learners know what to expect, see which skills they need to strengthen, and build confidence. Access to Workplace Essential Skills and GED Connection series through RI PBS video streaming is free. Users access VOD through an account and passcode, available by email request to Education@ RIpbs.org or by calling Education Services at 401-222-3636 x 211. Video streaming, also known as video on demand (VOD), allows users the convenience of watching lessons at any time from an Internet-connected computer. VOD is also flexible, allowing users to watch several episodes in one sitting, or repeat lessons as often as desired. Both the Workplace Essential Skills and the GED Connection series are also broadcast on RI PBS LEARN, digital 36.2 and Verizon 787. The Workplace Essential Skills broadcasts Fridays at 12:30 PM and the GED Connection series broadcasts Mondays, Tuesdays, and Sundays at 12:30 PM. For Workplace Essential Skills and the GED Connection broadcast dates please visit: http://www.pbs.org/tvschedules/ For information about RIPBS Education Services please visit out web pages at http://www.ripbs.org/Education/ - Dr. María D. Velásquez de Tondreau Education Director Rhode Island PBS 50 Park Lane Providence, RI 02907 Phone: (401) 222-3636, ext. 211 Fax: (401) 222-3407 Education@RIpbs.org great online resource: http://www.nrdc.org.uk/index.asp National Research and Development Centre for Adult Literacy and Numeracy, dedicated to conducting research and development projects to improve literacy, numeracy, language and related skills and knowledge. On this site you will find information on all our activities, including: Research and development projects <http://www.nrdc.org.uk/projects.asp> Creative routes to specialist teacher qualifications <http://www.nrdc.org.uk/creativeroutes> The Voices on the Page storybank is now live! Read all of the 640 stories here <http://www.nrdc.org.uk/voicesonthepage.asp> Research reports and reviews <http://www.nrdc.org.uk/content.asp?CategoryID=329> Latest e- newsletter <http://www.nrdc.org.uk/content.asp?CategoryID=671> News and events <http://www.nrdc.org.uk/news.asp> While the work originates in the U.K., much of it has usefulness and validity for work in this country. google literacy site: http://www.google.com/literacy/ outstanding resource: http://www.youthliteracy.ca/ - Youth Literacy work in Canada Shannon Gavin, a senior graduating from Brown this year, has developed a new website, as her capstone project in Middle East Studies, called Arab Perceptions of the United States: Video Interviews from Amman, Jordan and Damascus, Syria.You can view them, and supporting text at http://arabperceptions.wordpress.com The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) - The U.S. Civics and Citizenship Online: Resource Center for Instructors is available online at: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=b36e663784bcd010VgnVCM100000d1f1d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=b36e663784bcd010VgnVCM100000d1f1d6a1RCRD The U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI), Assisting Refugees with Disabilities Program : Resource Guide for Serving Refugees with Disabilities available at http://www.refugees.org/DisabilityGuide The guide, written for refugee case managers and those serving refugees with disabilities, includes 139 pages of information about resources for serving adults and children with disabilities, housing for refugees with disabilities, assistive technology, medical resources, citizenship and disability, benefits for refugees with disabilities and more. If you have any questions or technical assistance needs, please contact Xuan Nguyen, Director of USCRI Health and Human Services at xnguyen@uscridc.org or at 202-347-3507 ext 3056. Resources from EdChange family of Web sites: A new Classism and Poverty Awareness Quiz http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/quizzes.html ; Newly designed Social Justice News Service site http://mail.socialjusticenews.net/mailman/listinfo/news_socialjusticenews.net- email-based news service, periodic email digests of links to articles related to equity, social justice, and multiculturalism from sources all over the world. New essays and links to essays http://www.edchange.org/publications.html New essays in the Multicultural Education Research Room http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/papers.html Radical Math is a resource for educators interested in integrating issues of social, political, and economic justice into math curriculum and classes… RadicalMath.org has the goals of raising mathematic literacy and simultaneously developing ways to address a range of community issues. The website supports educators to teach many different types of math within the context of studying social, political, and economic justice issues. RadicalMath.org also contains teaching materials on important financial topics for youth such as owning a credit card, paying for college, and avoiding subprime lenders, as well as materials on Ethnomathematics. Visit http://www.radicalmath.org/ for more or email info@radicalmath.org Living in Poverty slideshow does the math: what does it take to live at the poverty level. http://www.nccbuscc.org/cchd/povertyusa/tour2.htm RI Foundation online scholarship directory - searchable by city/town, intended field of study, current high school, and more. http://scholarship.rifoundation.org/ YouthBuild USA Learning Network has links to Web sites and full-text documents, and includes a section on "Authentic Materials/Engaged Learning/Constructivism/Contextual Learning/Project-based Learning." http://www.youthbuild.org/learningnetwork/professionaldev.html 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 Effective Transitions in Adult Education to be held on November 17-18, 2008 in Providence, RI Registration for the conference in now open: http://collegetransition.org/conference08/registration.html For more information, contact Priyanka Sharma psharma@worlded.org or call (617) 385-3788. – 2008 National Refugee and Immigrant Conference: Issues and Innovations September 25-26, Chicago, IL The 2008 Refugee and Immigrant Conference offers groups and individuals assisting refugee and immigrant children and their families an opportunity to network and learn about issues affecting refugee and immigrant children and their families, schools, health, and health care, along with the challenges of cultural adjustment. Information and the Call for Conference Workshop Proposals http://www.thecenterweb.org/alrc/refugee.html - questions, please contact Lynn Osheff (losheff@thecenterweb.org). ProLiteracyWorldwide's 2008 annual conference at the Peabody, Little Rock, AR October 2 - 4: http://www.proliteracy.org/conference/ Eleventh Annual Multicultural Conference and Curriculum Resource Fair Presented by the RIC Dialogue on Diversity Committee November 1st, theme: Teaching for Change: Privilege, Power and Possibilities Program includes: Workshops on promising practices in multicultural education; A curriculum fair, including curriculum resources, books, software, and videos; Keynote address by Dr. Peggy McIntosh, "Youth Hour" - a round table dialogue with keynote speaker and college and high school students. http://www.ric.edu/promisingPractices/workshops.php  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
breathe - everyday yoga at your desk. http://www.mydailyyoga.com/yoga/everyday_yoga.html
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