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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.April 27, 1998 Bulletin #42 Dear Colleagues, This bulletin carries new notices, information about staff development, a fellowship announcement, reminders of upcoming meetings, events and summer courses. For details, or to post information, please contact me or leave a message at the address/phone above. (I will be away at a conference until May 4). For details, or to post information, please contact LR/RI or phone 863-2839. Thanks.
Janet Isserlis ____________________________________________________________ NOTICES Sharing/discussion group for educators with an interest in women's issues in adult education will be on Wed., May 6 , 3 PM at Sandy Petruzzi's house, 61 12th Street, Providence. PRACTITIONER WRITING GROUP: Practitioners are invited to meet, write, and give feed-back in a supportive environment on Friday, May 8 at 1:15 PM at Dorcas Place, (270 Elmwood Avenue, Providence). Participants have agreed to bring writing to share, and invite others to do the same (although everyone is welcome - with or without writing). ESOL sharing/discussion group: Tuesday, May 12 at 3:00 PM. Genesis Center, 620 Potters Avenue, Prov. Participants at the last meeting have agreed to bring in lesson plans and/or materials that have been particularly useful/interesting/effective with their ESOL learners. Please join us.
LEARNING OPPORTUNITY: HRIC English for Work Program - ESOL with workplace-centered content at IIRI. Students should be 18 years or older, currently employed but in need of more English skills in order to advance in the job; or unemployed and looking for work. The program began in February, and continues through to early June; Mon through Thurs 9:30 - 11:30 AM or 7 to 9 PM. Registration is ongoing, particularly for evening classes; contact Julie Fischer 784-4607. Career Awareness Fair for Women: Tuesday, May 12, from 8:30 AM to 2:00 PM at the Providence campus of CCRI. Explore careers in the skilled trades, technologies and manufacturing. Students, women in search of a career, career counselors, teachers, social service providers and anyone interested in learning more about nontraditional careers for women are encouraged to attend. Hosted by CCRI New Careers for Women Project and RI Women in Nontraditional Careers (RI WIN). For more information, call 825-2300.
It's STILL not too late - Frank Symonds represented RI adult learners at a learner summit at Highlander Center in Tennessee. Costs were not covered by summit organizers; if you can help with FrankÕs travel ex penses, LVA-RI will handle donations. Please make checks payable to LVA-RI, with Highlander in the memo, and send to LVA-RI, 260 West Exchange St., Suite 201/2, Prov., RI 02903. LVA will see that funds reach Frank as part of the literacy community's effort to support his partic ipation in this event. For more on the summit, see LR/RIÕs web site's learners' page. 100 Ways of Seeing Retreat Reflect Renew with colleagues around New England. July 15-17, Room and Board Provided, Sponsored by the Adult Literacy Resource Institute (ALRI)/Boston Regional SABES Center. Applications, due at ALRI on May 29, are available at LR/RI. For more information call LR/RI, or contact Martha Merson, Steve Reuys or Maria E. Gonzalez: 617-782-8956. A retreat offering adult basic education staff 3 days in the Massachusetts Berkshires to seek perspective on our work through reading, writing, talk and play. A teacher who participated in the first retreat and helped in planning the second wrote, "When we set out to design staff development programs, we typically isolate one segment of the human experience. We focus on our identities as workers, as staff members, as teachers. This is often quite effective. Teaching and learning, however, require us to draw upon more than our knowledge of specific teaching methods or strategies." Thus the retreat is a very different kind of staff development. In the past, participants have done self-portraits, investigated pond life, spun believable lies, done dramatic interpretations of working conditions, and connected all of these experience to their beliefs about teaching and learning. Participants have spoken highly of the effect on their outlook: Simultaneous workshops and free time activities will be structured around the talents and ideas participants suggest in their applications. For more information, call Martha Merson, Steve Reuys, or Maria E. Gonzalez at 617-782-8956.
ADULT EDUCATION DAY - May 21st, has become an afternoon event this year, due to the lack of a driving force to push it any further. If you would like to put together a morning piece for learners, please come the final planning meeting on Tuesday, May 5th, 1 PM at the Knight Memorial Library, 275 Elmwood Avenue in Providence. The schedule for the afternoon: 1- 2 PM - agencies set up displays of programs and projects 2- 4:30 PM - adult learners and agency staffs talk with legislators and advocate for programs. Agencies/teachers/students should set up appointments with their local reps to meet and lobby for adult education from 4:30 to 5:30 a reception will be held in the GovernorÕs State Room to recognize a business involved in the adult education programming at the workplace and Frank Symonds will introduce the new national student organization, VALUE: Voices of Adult Learners United for Education. Please join us for the planning meeting on the 5th and at the State House on the 21st. Questions, information - contact Louise Moulton at 455-8041.
The Practitioner Dissemination and Research Network/Rhode Island will conduct a workshop, NCSALL Research and You: Connecting Research and Practice, at 10 AM on Saturday, May 9 at the Howard Swearer Center for Public Service, 25 George St., Providence. The workshop will encourage and develop practitioners' and administrators' questions and concerns about their practices and discuss how those issues are being addressed or may be addressed by researchers from the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy. Practitioners and administrators will learn about ways in which they and their learners may become involved in current research projects, explore Focus on Basics (NCSALL's quarterly practitioner magazine), and discuss ways in which the PDRN/RI may be of use to them. This free workshop is expected to last about 90 minutes. No pre-registration is necessary; however, interested practitioners and administrators are encouraged to call PDRN/RI Practitioner Leader David Hayes at 331-9261 or email to PDRN RI@aol.com.
Visual Mathematics Workshop is an intensive 20-hour workshop designed specifically for adult basic education teachers to help explore mathematical concepts and problem solving in the ABE, GED classroom, and for ABE/GED/ESOL teachers to create opportunities for all of us to access math meaning through visual models. The workshop will be held on June 22-24 at Brown University. Cost is $200. Brochures are available at LR/RI, and registration is due by May 1st. Information is also available on line at http:www.std.com/anpn/visualmath.html
Serving Adults with Learning Disabilities, sponsored by the Adult Training and Development Network and the post secondary Education Disability Unit at the University of Connecticut. May 21, Hartford Marriott, Farmington, Conn. Regular fee is $95; discount available ($86) for three of more individuals registering together from the same institution. Information: LR/RI or call (860) 524-4046.
From Esther D. Leonelli, Community Learning Center, Cambridge: 3rd Annual YALD Spring Lecture Series Free and Open to the Public 1998 Adult and Adolescent Reading and Learning Disabilities, Sponsored by the Mass. DOE Young Adults with Learning Disabilities Project, Community Learning Center, SCALE (Somerville), Adult Literacy Resource Institute and Boston Region SABES - Friday, May 1 Increasing Automaticity, Fluency, and Word Retrieval; Insights from the Tufts NICHD Project Theresa Deeney, M. Ed. Project Director Tufts University - Friday, May 8 Written Expression Overview; a sequential and structured approach to teaching writing Joyce Goldweitz, Project Read Instructor, The Language Circle Enterprize - Friday, May 15 Phonological Awareness: Why Is It Important? How Can We Help Students Acquire it? Joseph K. Torgessen, Ph.D., Director for the Study of Reading and Reading Disabilities, Florida State University - Friday, May 22 Wilson Reading System Overview; A Structured, Multisensory, Phonics Based Approach to Teaching Reading Barbara Wilson, Director, Wilson Language Training Sessions will be held from 3:30 to 5PM at the Central Square Library, 45 Pearl Street, Central Square, Cambridge (Adjacent to Municipal Parking Garage) For information / travel directions please call: Ashley Hager, Community Learning, (617) 349-6363, 6367. Refreshments served before each lecture from 3:00 to 3:30 Please note: due to the number of LD events planned for Fridays in May, the LD sharing/ discussion group will resume meeting early in June.
TUTOR NEEDED: A 39 year old man, dually diagnosed and living in a residential care facility in North Providence, is in need of a tutor to learn to read and write. Please contact Cheryl Bautista at Northridge Residential Care, 726-2131.
SUMMER COURSES: Graduate level course at Providence College - Of interest to people working with learners with special needs/learning disabilities, EDU 556-G1 Individual Intelligence Testing, meets Mondays and Wednesdays, from 4 to 7:15 PM, and involves a survey of psychological measurements dealing with the construction, administration, scoring and interpretation of various mental tests, beginning late in June. For information, please call 865-1800. Registration begins June 1st. GED this summer - CCRI offers these courses: Warwick Campus: GED - Tuesdays/Thursdays, May 19- July 7. Fee of $85 includes testing and materials; register at least a week before classes. Lincoln Campus: GED - Mondays/Wednesdays, from 4:30 to 7 PM, May 18 to July 13 and Tuesdays/Thursdays, May 19-July 7. Information - Community Services at CCRI, at 333-7070. Math for the GED meets on Saturday mornings from 9 to noon, starting May 2. $65 for 15 weeks. Questions? 333-7070. Conversation and Vocabulary: Saturdays, 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM. May 2 - July 25, 12 sessions, $90. Mondays and Wednesdays, 5:30 - 8:30 PM. 15 meetings, May 4 - June 22, $90 Introduction to Windows 95/Microsoft Word 7.0 Sat. 9 to noon. May 2 - July 25, 12 sessions, $80. Registration - Fridays 8 to 5, Saturdays 9 to 11 at the Office of Community Services in Lincoln. Please bring check or money order; cash will not be accepted. Information - Cecilia Londono 333-7074. (Course information in Spanish is also available). PROGRESO LATINO - Contact Carlos Gonzalaez, 728-5920 English Classes: Registration is May 4 - 7, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm or 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm. Classes are held on Monday through Thusday, 9:30 am to 11:30 am, 4:00 to 6:00 pm, and 6:00 to 8:00 pm. Classes start on May 11, for 15 weeks. GED in Spanish: Registration open and ongoing. Classes are held Monday through Thursday 12:00 noon to 2:00 pm and 6:00 to 8:00 pm, for 15-20 weeks. Citizenship classes: Registration open and ongoing. Classes are held Monday through Thursday 4:30 to 6:00 pm or on Saturdays from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon, for 20 weeks.
The International Institute of Rhode Island presents a four-day session covering Windows 95 & Microsoft Word 97: 9:00am -12:00pm, Monday through Thursday, 645 Elmwood Avenue, during the week of May 25. Fees: $50 (extra charge for textbook) Call 784-4612 to register/for information.
The Literacy Leader Fellowship Program is an annual competition at the National Institute for Literacy (NIFL), funding innovative, creative individuals to carry out projects that benefit the national adult literacy field. Priority will be given to proposals addressing one or more of these needs: developing leadership in adult learners; expanding the use of technology in literacy programs, improving accountability in literacy programs and raising public awareness about literacy. Applications are due May 27th, with awards to be made on August 31. Complete information is available online at http://www.nifl.gov/activities/fllwhome.htm, or contact Julie Gedden at NIFL (202)632-1515, jgedden@nifl.gov, or contact LR/RI. New Professional development initiative: Last month 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.
March to support federal nutrition programs and celebrate RI Independence Day and Cinco de Maio, Providence City Hall. Tuesday, May 5, 3:30 PM. March from City Hall to the State House, a speaking program follows. The purpose of the march is to promote adult food programs, children's school nutrition and summer feeding programs. Several RI school still do not offer morning nutrition programs to children. Thousands of RI families have lost one month of food stamps and many cities and towns refuse to offer federal summer lunch programs. For more information, please contact the George Wiley Center (728-5555) or the RI Food Bank (826-3073).
Literacy Volunteers of America-RI professional development activities: while designed primarily for LVA tutors, the following are open to all interested participants; Please contact Donna Sherman at 861-0863 to reserve your place at any of these workshops: - Test of Applied Literacy Skills - learn about the TALS by taking and scoring a practice test. Friday, May 8, 9:30 - 2:00. - Learning Disabilities: Dr. Richard Solomon discusses screening processes and referral resources in RI. Thursday, May 14 9:00 AM to 2:00PM. - Workshop leaders discussion: meet with other workshop leaders, discuss the LVA workshop - content, schedule, handouts, etc. Workshop leaders are invited to share their best practices; also a preview of "principles of effective training" required by LVA for affiliate accreditation. Thursday, June 4, 6:00 - 9:00 PM. - Outcome evaluation: Claudia Horn will identify and discuss the core components of an outcome evaluation system.
In "Using Software in the Adult ESL Classroom," Susan Gaer, an experienced practitioner and writer on the use of technology in ESL, provides an overview of a variety of software packages available, as well as some general guidelines for the use of software in the adult ESL classroom. The Q & A is available in full text at http://www.cal.org/ncle/DIGESTS/SwareQA.htm and online at LR/RI (technology and learning). Contact LR/RI or NCLE directly (tel: 202/429-9292, ext. 200; fax: 202/ 659-5641; email: ncle@cal.org) for a copy. (If you email a request to NCLE, please put "Software QA" in the subject line.)
Even Start Statewide Family Literacy Initiative (Federal Register: April 1, 1998 [CFDA# 84.314A]) Purpose of Program: To enable States to plan & implement statewide family literacy initiatives under the Even Start Family Literacy Program. Initiative activities must be conducted through a consortium of State, local, & other institutions, organizations, or agencies. Eligible Applicants: State office or agency. Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: June 29, 1998. Available funds: $1,000,000. Note: Under this program, States receiving grants must make available non-Federal contributions in an amount equal to not less than the Federal funds provided under the grant, as required by section 1202(c)(2) of the Elementary & Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Grantees may not use funds awarded under these grants for indirect costs either as a direct charge or as part of the matching requirement. Estimated range of awards: $100,000-$250,000. Estimated average size of awards: $200,000. Estimated number of awards: 5. Additional information: A waiver of reporting requirement, invitational priorities, selection criteria, a contact, & other information are available in the Federal Register notice. Additional information available online at: http://ocfo.ed.gov/gophroot/4fedreg/1grantann/040198a.txt The complete application is available online at: http://ocfo.ed.gov/fedreg/grantann/040198a.pdf WHERE TO GO WITH VERA? The New England Literacy Resource Center needs YOUR input in planning future Voter Education, Registration and Action institutes. We have tentative plans to hold an institute on the theme of "Justice" or "Democracy" in late September. Our questions to you are: Which theme would inspire you to participate in a VERA institute? What workshop topics would you like to see? Please take a moment to call Andy Nash at (617) 482-9485 or e-mail anash@ worlded.org. All respondents will receive a free copy of The Change Agent newspaper. Thanks!
CHECKING IN WITH THE FIELD SUMMER plans? Are you interested in participating in some form of professional development activity during the summer months? Please contact LR/RI - possibilities range from discussion groups, focused workshops, internet drop-ins sessions, reading groups. You tell me. As well, if you know of (or are offering) summer programs available to learners or practitioners which have not yet appeared in the bulletin, PLEASE contact me at 863-2839 or via email .
BULLETIN - Do you want to continue to receive the bulletin? Have you had enough? Do you know of someone else who would like to receive the bulletin? The bulletin is available (and archived on-line), as well as via regular mail, email and fax. If you would like to change the way you receive it (if, for example you now have email and would prefer to receive it that way), please contact me. The bulletin is the best way I know of to keep everyone informed of issues, programs and events, but it will only benefit from increased input and distribution across the state and region. I welcome your suggestions, writing, information. Thanks.
Stats resource available: The State of Literacy in America: Estimates at the local, state and national levels, is now available, free of charge from the National Institute for Literacy. While the use and abuse of statistics can be daunting, the volume is of interest - it projects literacy abilities and problems on local levels using the National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS) as a basis for these estimates. For a copy of the publication, call 1-800-228-8813.
REMINDERS: Resource available: Teaching and Learning with Internet-based Resources, by Susan Cowles, is available in hard copy or on line at http://www.nifl.gov/susanc/inthome.htm From the on-line introduction: "Literacy students, instructors, program administrators, and other life-long learners are all in the group moving along the information superhighway. Some people have been running for a while; others are just starting down the road. Beginning to use the Internet can sometimes seem as grueling as participating in a marathon. This short course is designed to make the jour ney as informative and enjoyable as possible." To order a hard copy of the document, please call 1-800-228-8813. Susan Cowles is a Literacy Leader Fellow for 1996-97; this document is her fellowship report to the National Institute for Literacy.
from previous bulletins: LEGISLATIVE INFORMATION ON-LINE (from Fran Keenan at the Center for Applied Linguistics): http://www.StateServ.hpts.org provides current and exclusive state legislative information on welfare reform & immigrants. The 1996 welfare law rewrote the rules for immigrants, originally cutting $24 billion in cash, medical, and food stamp benefits. Although $12 billion in SSI benefits were restored in 1997, states are still challenged by the cost shifts from federal to state and local safety net programs, and are determining whether and how to serve particularly vulnerable immigrant populations. State legislation is summarized by cash assistance, medical assistance, nutritional assistance, and naturalization. Also available on-line are the Project's popular new series of issue briefs "Welfare Reform & Immigrants." Currently posted are briefs on: State Trends, Nutritional Assistance, and TANF. The website was launched by the Health Policy Tracking Service at NCSL. StateServ also provides information on state policies and legislation in the areas of adolescent health, HIV/AIDS, and youth access to alcohol. The website is supported with grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Ford Foundation. For more information on StateServ, call The Health Policy Tracking Service at 202-624-3567 or e-mail them at: info@hpts.org. For more information on Welfare Reform & Immigrants, contact Ann Morse, Immigrant Policy Project, (ann.morse@ncsl.org) or Jeremy Meadows (jeremy.meadows@ncsl.org). We welcome your comments. (The IMMIGRANT-NEWS-L distribution list is a service of NCSLnet, the Electronic Information Network for State Legislatures. National Conference of State Legislatures. For information on NCSLnet services send a blank e-mail message to: NCSLnet-Info@ncsl.org).
AIDS RESOURCES ONLINE The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention1s national AIDS clearinghouse is located at http://www.cdcnac.org. It's Up to Us: An AIDS Education Curriculum for ESL Students and Other English Language Learners, by Henry Lesnick, is available on line at http://www.hostos.cuny.edu/homepages/lesnick/AIDS. AVERT, AIDS Education and Research Trust, a British site, is at http://www.avert.org/ World AIDS Day is observed on December 1st, but the need to work on appropriate educational strategies around HIV and AIDS prevention education persists year round.
PROJECT BASED LEARNING AND ACCESS TO THE INTERNET How is the internet being used in adult education? What are some helpful uses, and how do we sort through the huge amount of material available on line? Susan Gaer is interested in helping programs link to one another, and has been doing so through an email project homepage on-line, at http://www.otan.dni.us/webfarm/emailproject/email.htm. If you have or know of similar learner work on line, please contact Susan at SusanG2@aol.com. As well, David Rosen (who in addition to advocacy work, has done a great deal of work on and research into using the internet) has asked that we have a look at the inquiry maps on the Adult Literacy Resource Institute1s home page. As he explains, "[a]n Inquiry Map is a group participatory research process on a topic of high interest to the group. Participants (in this case, adult learners) make their own questions, and then set about finding answers to them. The Inquiry map is a process which is never finished. Many of the questions go unanswered, are only partially answered, or have only one answer given where other points of view are possible. So, there is room for other participants to join in the process at any time, to add their answers, their comments on the answers already given, and questions which they might also choose to research." Questions, answers and comments can be posted to David Rosen <DJRosen@world.std.com>, and he'll add them to the inquiry map. So, it keeps on being an inquiry process with each new person who reads and adds to it. He welcomes additions of questions and answers; as you may know, many internet sites run threaded conversations on a variety of topics. The ALRI sites are: http://www2.wgbh.org/MBCWEIS/LTC/ALRI/I.M.html and http://www2.wgbh.org/MBCWEIS/LTC/ALRI/IM3.html (How to make inquiry maps). The LR/RI website has added a page about technology and learning as well. The page consists of the beginning of a discussion about the ways in which technology can be used interactively -- is the screen just a big flashy workbook, or is there more to it? Your comments can be sent by email, fax or regular mail, and will be added to the page to continue the conversation.
and also from previous issues:
Workshops available - During the past few years I've worked with a team of women from around Canada, through the Canadian Congress for Learning Opportunities for Women, on Making Connections: Literacy and EAL Curriculum from a Feminist Perspective. The curriculum was developed for learners in basic education and English language programs. A series of workshops have been developed and are available to anyone in the area with an interest in learning more about incorporating the curriculum and its approaches into their own work. Please contact me (Janet) at LR/RI for more information and/or to schedule a workshop. Information about the curriculum is also available online at http://www.nald.ca/canorg/cclow/EAL.HTM. While the cost of the curriculum document itself is $20, there is no charge for the workshops.
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