On May 17, Rhode Island hosts its fifth annual State Adult Education Conference, supported by the RIDE Office of Adult Education, at the Radisson Airport Hotel in Warwick.

To register for the conference, please contact Janet Isserlis at (401)863-2839, or email lrri@brown.edu. The registration fee is $25 per person; scholarships are available. May 16:the conference is now fully registered.

Morning sessions: 9 - 10:30

u south: Beyond Textbooks: a learner-centered approach to Project-Based Learning - Sherry Lehane, Edward McFadden, Christopher Bourret

There are many benefits to project-based learning; in this hands-on workshop we will explore some of them as we guide ESOL teachers through the process of creating a project-based lesson. After sharing briefly how participants work with student goals to generate lesson content, we will present an outline of the most important qualities of project-based learning and look at some examples. Emphasizing process over product, the workshop will then provide participants with useful guidelines to help them think about and create their own project-based lessons. Groups come together to share their lesson outlines, and will walk away with classroom ideas for all levels.

In this hands-on workshop we will explore benefits of project-based learning as we guide ESOL teachers through the process of creating a project-based lesson appropriate to their teaching environment. By sharing research, our own experiences, and projects of others, we will help participants gain a deeper understanding of project-based learning.

Sherry Lehane's teaching experience spans 13 years. She has taught ESOL to adults in a variety of contexts including family literacy, workplace, and EFL.

Edward McFadden cut his ESL teaching teeth in Japan with Berlitz. For the past 2+ years, he has been a Lead Teacher with the RI Family Literacy Initiative (RIFLI) based in Providence.

Christopher Bourret first became interested with ESOL as a volunteer tutor, later taught for Peace Corps, and is an instructor at Cranston Alternative Education and RIFLI.

cowesett: What Were You Thinking?? A Learning Styles Workshop -Jean Marrapodi

Students baffle us with seemingly simple concepts they don't understand. Learning styles, personality styles and multiple intelligences influence how people learn. In this experiential workshop, we will look at several models to understand the different ways people learn and help us better align our teaching with their learning.

Objectives

In this experiential, discovery-based workshop, participants begin with a whole-body sorting exercise - people will be divided into groups based on the dimensions of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. We will discuss how these dimensions influence learning, then explore Kolb's Learning Styles, Gardner's Multiple Intelligences, the sensory based VAKT model, and cognitive left/right brain influences. We will look at the resources, although limited, that focus on the low-literate population and adapt material for each style. We will tie the models together for presentation of information in the classroom by examining Bernice McCarty's 4MAT model. Finally, we will consider ways to informally assess learners' styles and consider metacognitive strategies we can utilize in determining them. Throughout the session participants are encouraged to consider and share adaptive strategies for targeting each of the learning styles to provide others with an idea bank of methods to take back to their own classrooms.

Jean Marrapodi is Director of Providence Assembly of God Learning Center and tutor trainer for LVA-Providence. Her PhD is in adult education.

goddard: RI's emergent content standards: Using Math - Betsy Beach, Maureen Harbour, Peg Chatellier

What are the draft RI State Adult Education Math Standards? What has been happening in our state in order to develop them? How are they useful to classroom teachers, curriculum planners, and students pursuing their goals? Come experience a standards-based lesson first hand.

Betsy Beach is a math teacher and the Student Services Coordinator at the West Bay Community Action Adult Education Program. She has worked in adult education for nine years; before that Betsy used math every day for 20 years as a tool and die maker.
Maureen Harbour has been working in adult education in both Massachusetts and Rhode Island for fourteen years. She is a family literacy teacher at Project Learn in Central Falls.
Peg Chatellier, M.Ed., teaches GED and Pre-GED classes at Cranston Alternate Education Programs, Inc. In the past, she has instructed elementary and middle school math students and trained commercial loan analysts.

greenwood: Community College of Rhode Island: Reaching Post Secondary and Career Goals - Angela Salvatore, Sharon Hoffman, Michael Cunningham

CCRI offers a workshop providing information on the many post-secondary course options available for adult learners. Enrollment services will present information on applying for credit coursework. Lifelong Learning will offer information on non credit classes.

A representative from Enrollment Services will disucss enrolling in CCRI, covering all aspects of admissions, including financial aid, records, advising, counseling and career development. Participants will learn about the Accuplacer Placement Test, developmental classes, and programs. Director Sharon Hoffman and GED Coordinator Angela Salvadore will discuss non credit courses offered though the CCRI's Division for Lifelong Leaning. Many non credit class options are available to further educational and career goals in the areas of Community Education and Professional Development, Career and Technical Training, and Workforce Training and Education. Participants will gain information on how to apply and enroll in classes at CCRI. Summer brochures financial aid forms and Accuplacer test information will be provided for all attendees.

Angela Salvadore has worked in Adult Education since 1991. She has worked as counselor and instructor at Warwick Adult Education. Angela has been GED Coordinator at CCRI since October 2005.
Sharon Hoffman is Director of Adult Education/Literacy for the Division of Lifelong Learning at CCRI. She was previously a program director at The Education Partnership, and coordinated CCRI's GEENA Project. Michael Cunningham, Assistant Dean for Student Success at CCRI, has over 15 years of experience in academic advisement, transitional programming, academic support and student affairs and has worked at both 2- and 4-year schools as well as for both private and public institutions. He is currently responsible for coordination and delivery of academic support services on all four CCRI campuses

aldrich:The National External Diploma Program: An Alternative to the GED for Adult High School Completion and a Step in the Transitions To College Process - Donna Chambers

The National External Diploma Program (NEDP), now owned by CASAS, is available to all adult Rhode Islanders who need a high school diploma. This competency-based high school completion program offers the opportunity to earn a traditional high school diploma by demonstrating skills within the context of life and work experiences.

Participants will learn that the NEDP is a viable alternative to the GED. It is especially appropriate for people needing a high school credential, but for whom English is not the first language; adults with learning disabilities, or people who need to demonstrate high school level skills at their own pace in a non-testing environment. The facilitator will present a brief history of NEDP and will provide an overview of the program's process. Participants will become familiar with NEDP materials and learn how it is especially appropriate for workplace education as its competencies closely correlate with SCANS. Participants will also become familiar with ways that the NEDP compliments the 4 purposes of Equipped for the Future and prepares candidates to move into post secondary. The ABE to College Pathway includes the NEDP as a way to earn a diploma and prepare for college by learning to learn.

Donna Chambers has over 25 years experience in the EDP working with Fairfax County, VA and American Council on Education as Lead National Trainer as well as technical advisor on the USDOE/ACE EDP Grant, and coordinates NEDP statewide for Project RIRAL

break:10:30 - 10:45

Morning sessions:10:45 - 12:15

u south: Planning and Launching a College Transition Program - Sandy Goodman, Marie Crecca-Romero

Participants will receive tools for planning and launching a college transition program to support adult learners' enrollment and success in postsecondary education. This workshop is designed for those who seek funds for a stand-alone transition program as well as those who want to incorporate some college transition activities into an existing program.

In the current knowledge-based economy, a high school diploma or equivalency has limited impact on earnings except as a stepping stone to higher education, and it would appear that many GED takers recognize this: According to a report from the GED Testing Service, 63 % of those who passed the GED said they were motivated to take the test because they wanted to enroll in postsecondary education . However, Tyler found that only 30-35% of GED holders obtain any post secondary education and less than 3% complete an associate's degree .

The New England ABE-to-College Transition Project was established in 2000 to support the development of college transition programs to help prepare adult basic education program graduates prepare for, enter and succeed in postsecondary education. To date the project has sustained 25 New England college transition programs partnering with over 50 postsecondary institutions. They are housed in Adult Basic Education programs in diverse settings: community-based organizations, public schools, community colleges, and prisons.

This workshop will introduce participants to various models and design features of the college transition programs. It will also provide them with tools to plan and launch their own stand alone program or incorporate some college transition activities into an existing adult education program.

Sandy Goodman has directed ABE and Workforce Development programs in Boston and is director of the College Transition Project at the New England Literacy Resource Center.
Marie Crecca-Romero is College Transition Director, RIRAL

goddard: Rhode Island's emergent content standards: Reading, Listening and Speaking - Denise DiMarzio, Nancy Fritz, Sophie Tan, Gylean Trabucchi , Elizabeth Jardine

Since June of 2006, a number of practitioners have been involved in the development of the RI State Adult Education Standards. This workshop, facilitated by participants in the areas of reading, listening and speaking provides an overview of the standards, ways in which teachers might use them, and a specific example of a lesson informed by and addressing the reading standards.

Denise DiMarzio has worked in the world of adult and higher education since 1991. She is really an English teacher disguised as an administrator._ Nancy Fritz is the Adult Education Director at The Genesis Center. She has worked in adult education since 1986 as a teacher, tutor, and program director. Her teaching experience includes all levels of ESL as well as Citizenship and Family Literacy. Sophie Tan has been teaching ESOL for about 2 years. She has a BFA in Painting. She works for the RI Institute for Labor Studies and Research and the International Institute of RI. Gylean Trabucchi is a mentor and advocate for adult learners. Currently, she is the Mentor Coordinator for Project RIRAL's College Transition Mentoring Project, and GED instructor at CCRI. Gylean has conducted workshops around the country and is currently working on the new Rhode Island Adult Education Standards for Reading and Writing. Elizabeth Jardine is Program Specialist at the RI Office of Adult Education and has been engaged in adult education work since 1989.

greenwood: Second Language Learner Errors - What Do They Tell Us About A Learner's "Readiness"? - Barbara Piccirilli Al-Sabek

For ESOL teachers, understanding which structures learners are close to acquiring can make the difference between wasted time and energy, and running a productive classroom. How many times have we taught that third person singular inflectional -s, only to be frustrated by lack of learner usage? Why is our student saying "I am exciting when she means "I am excited". Why do we reminde students over and over again that in English, we use the verb "to be" for age, but keep getting the verb "have"?

In this workshop, we will look at samples of oral and written ELL ( English Language Learner) production, examine the nature of errors (developmental, transference from L1, or idiosyncratic)) and decide which ones, as teachers, we should tackle. What errors signify a stage of readiness or a higher developmental level, and which are not yet going to be remedied? How can learners see that errors are not just a natural aspect of an inter-language system, but that in some cases, more errors are signs of increased language development?

This workshop will introduce participants to day-to-day assessment of learner language and how to help students to take that next step.

Barbara Piccirilli Al-Sabek, M. ED TESL, is an instructor at the Genesis Center, and teaches Intensive ESL and Teacher Education at Rhode Island College.

cowesett: EMPower - Mathematics Lessons To Engage Students - Al Alba, Sherry Lehane

Albert Alba, PhD. has instructed secondary mathematics in juvenile corrections for 10 years, and has been an Academic Teacher at the RI Department of Corrections for the last 7 years.
Sherry Lehane's experience in adult education spans 13 years and includes teaching ESOL to adults in a variety of contexts including family literacy, worksite, and EFL. In addition, for the past 8 years, she has been teaching computers skills to native and non-native English speakers.

aldrich: Publisher's session: Resources for Developing Fluency and Increasing Student Persistence - Donna Lee Kennedy, and Caitlin Driscoll

Discover practical strategies for teaching learners to become fluent users of English. Presenters will demonstrate a variety of resources to enhance students' motivation to learn English and to increase student persistence. This hands-on workshop presents step-by-step demonstrations of classroom techniques and activities for developing oral fluency, using the new "Downtown - English for work and Everyday life," and "The Heinle Picture Dictionary."

Donna Lee Kennedy, Senior Marketing Manager Adult ESL, has presented teacher training and in-services on ESL products and methodology for the publishing industry for over 15 years. She has extensive ESL teaching experience for higher education and corporate training.
Caitlin Driscoll, ESL Specialist, is MA/RI Sales Consultant for Thomson Heinle ESL materials. Previously, she worked at Thomson Heinle as an Assistant Marketing Manager.

lunch 12:15-1:15

Afternoon sessions: 1:15 - 2:15

full descriptions of afternoon sessions available here

university south: Introduction to Workforce Development (WFD): Where to Begin and Where Does it End? Robin Adams

goddard Advocacy - Heidi Collins

greenwood: Using Power Point in the Classroom - John Schieffelin

cowesett: An introduction to Teachers Investigating Adult Numeracy (TIAN) - Michele Bahr

break: 2:15 - 2:30

Afternoon sessions: 2:30 - 3:30

university south: Publisher's session: Silent Reading Fluency: Technology to Improve Speed and Comprehension - Jean Welsh, EdD

goddard: New Teacher Orientation - Janet Isserlis

cowesett: Gender/Sexual Diversities in ABE: Exploring Key Issues - Mev Miller

greenwood: Publisher's session: Improving Student Persistence with Center Stage - Erin Shyamji

exhibitors at the conference

Lou Karger, Alta Book Center Publishers

Tom Benz , Harcourt Achieve/Steck-Vaughn

Jean Welsh, Lincoln Learning Solutions LLC

Lainie Flipp, McGraw Hill Contemporary

Melanie Greitzer, Pearson Longman ESL

Jeff Miller, Kristen Renda, SkillsTutor, A Division of Houghton Mifflin

Caitlin Driscoll, Beatrix Mellauner, Thomson Heinle

and

2006 conference; for previous years' conferences, scroll down