Weblog: October 2006
Media Advisory: The Literacy Institute Hosts International Forum
The Literacy Institute at Virginia Commonwealth University will host the second annual international LESLLA Conference on November 2-3, 2006, at VCU.
LESLLA was founded in 2005 to address the needs of immigrants who have little or no schooling in their native language and are trying to learn a new language. LESLLA 2006 brings together a group of international experts to explore how ground-breaking research can be applied in the classroom and in policy making.
The conference features more than twenty presentations and discussion groups, opening with an address on "A National Citizenship Implementation Plan" and including the U.S. premiere of the European Quality Label Prize-winning film, "Newcomers to Morocco," which documents what happens when Dutch literacy teachers become the students in an Arabic class in Morocco. Working groups of experts will develop research and action recommendation for international implementation. The Literacy Institute, a partnership between the Virginia Literacy Foundation and Virginia Commonwealth University's School of Education and Center for Public Policy, is proud to host this event.
The Literacy Institute: Mark Emblidge, President of the Virginia State Board of Education and Executive Director of The Literacy Institute at VCU; Barbara Gibson, Associate Director of the Literacy Institute and Manager of the Virginia Adult Learning Resource Center
LESLLA Founders: Martha Young-Scholten (Newcastle University, UK); Jeanne Kurvers (Tilburg University, Netherlands); Ineke van de Craats (Radboud University, Netherlands)
Plenary Session Speakers: Jeff Chenoweth, Division Director of National Operations and Support for Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC); Heidi Spruck Wrigley, Senior Researcher, LiteracyWork International; Joy Kreeft Peyton, Director of the Center for Adult English Language Acquisition (CAELA) and Vice President of the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL) Nancy Faux, ESOL Specialist at VALRC Larry Condelli, Managing Director of the American Institutes of Research
In addition:Local, national and international ESOL teachers and researchers
For press information, contact: Hillary Major, Phone: 804-828-7535, Email: hmajor@vcu.edu; for secondary contact, Victoire Gerkens Sanborn, Phone: 827-2638, Email: vjsanbor@vcu.edu
New Communications Toolkit is Excellent
A GUIDE TO NAVIGATING COMMUNICATIONS FOR THE NONPROFIT Cause Communications' Communications Toolkit -- A guide to navigating communications for the nonprofit world is a comprehensive resource offering practical information in virtually every area of communications -- from how to develop and budget a communications plan to what tools you need to help raise awareness and funds. The toolkit is practical and easy-to-use, making it a must-have guide for nonprofit newbies, veterans, and anyone in between seeking to revolutionize communications with strategic marketing, advertising, branding, media relations, event planning and more. Tips, templates and strategy outlines are based on more than 25 years of experience from the professionals at Cause Communications, and on information from national qualitative and quantitative audits of what nonprofits need in the area of communications. The book was made possible by support from The Annenberg Foundation, The California Endowment, The James Irvine Foundation and The Marguerite Casey Foundation. Click here to order a copy of the publication or download the 134 page document.
This entry comes from the October 27 issue of PenWeekly NEWSBLAST
Examiner/Program Manager Conferences and Technological Developments
Between October 4-6, Virginia's Adult Education program managers and GED examiners held annual conferences to talk about upcoming changes in the GED test and trends in classroom instruction. Although most of the details are still developing, it was revealed that the Office of Adult Education and Learning (OAEL) will be mandating content standards for Virginia's GED instruction, and on a national scale, changes are on the horizon for the GED test itself. A few anecdotal items are worth noting.
First off, according to the GED Testing Service, most GED test-takers are more computer savvy than adult educators may realize. By 2011, we can expect to see computer-based testing, and initial field testing shows that adult learners are performing just as well on a computer as on a paper and pencil test. It would be reasonable to infer from this that the GED test will eventually present questions that relate directly to the online experience that has become so common in today's workforce and the traditional high school setting. So, be sure to check out VALRC's online professional development and Polilogue discussions about eLearning, so you can keep pace with the technological needs of today's adult learners. Another harbinger of the GED's shift toward technology are Virginia's new systems of online test registration and nearly instant online retrieval of GED scores. Clearly, Virginia's field of Adult Education is committed to staying ahead of the curve.
This year's program managers meeting saw the unveiling of a draft form of the new GED Content Standards. If you are unfamiliar with the concept of content standards, check out the Content Standards Warehousehttp://www.adultedcontentstandards.org/. According to the draft's preface, "These standards have been written and disseminated to provide a framework for instruction and program design in adult GED programs in Virginia. They are not prescriptive but, rather comprise a guide for what is expected of each learner to know and be able to do in order to pass the GED tests." The OAEL's steering committee that has been busy for the past two years writing these guidelines will be accepting feedback during periodic Polilogue Jams, where drafts of both the GED and ESOL standards can be found. For more information, or if you aren't registered with Polilogue, please contact Debbie Bergtholdt.
Trainer Favorites- Gas Prices!
Keep current with http://www.fueleconomy.org. This is a great site for charts and graphs. Data & Statistics, which includes charts and graphs to a great extent, is one of our students' most challenging subject areas on the GED Math test. And yet it is crucial for life and work. This site may be one way to help, as your student improves computer proficiency as well. Plus: let them check out local gas prices - the lowest...and the highest!
Online Support From Microsoft
Microsoft offers a variety of free support services online. Here are some sites you might want to bookmark for a quick reference:
Microsoft Help and Support: Main Page
Microsoft Troubleshooting and Support
Security Updates from Microsoft
Progress Fall 2006
The fall issue of Progress should be arriving in your mailbox any day now. This issue was focused on Correctional Education, with articles from Dr. Bill Muth, Anita Prince, and an interview with Judy Philpott. Reading through it, you can learn more about the Department of Correctional Education, the Plaza Comunitaria program at the Lunenberg and Coffeewood Correctional Center, and how local programs around the state work in correctional education. If you're not currently subscribed to receive Progress in the mail, you're welcome to read through the latest issue online.
Award for Literacy Educators
From PenWeekly NewsBlast, October 13, 2006
The National Center for Family Literacy/Toyota Family Literacy Teacher of the Year Award is given to an educator who demonstrates exemplary efforts in family literacy to help parents and children achieve their academic, personal and professional goals. Maximum Award: $5000. Eligibility: nominees must have worked for at least three years in a literacy program that provides: children's education, adult education, parenting education (Parent Time), and interactive literacy activities between parents and children (Parent and Child Together (PACT) Time). Deadline: December 1, 2006.
Click here for more information.
Phonics...Phonemes...What's the Difference?
The five components of reading instruction are: - Phonemic Awareness - Decoding - Fluency - Vocabulary - Comprehension
Phonemic Awareness is about speech sounds only. Phonemes are the smallest units of sound in the spoken language. Phonemic awareness means that when a student hears the word "cat," she can take the word apart to hear the individual sounds K/A/T. This does not usually come naturally, but often has to be taught directly. Being able to identify individual sounds in this way is crucial to developing decoding skills. Phonics instruction is a strategy for teaching decoding, which allows learners to recognize words in print. Phonics instruction teaches individual sound/letter relationships so that beginning readers can "sound out" words so that they can read them independently and accurately, and approximate the spelling of them when they write. So... Phonics Instruction builds decoding skills, which depends largely on the student's phonemic awareness.
Got that?
Adapted from Applying Research in Reading Instruction for Adults, NIFL, 2005. Author: McShane
Update on LD
We are excited to offer you the latest issue of Update on LD. This issue focuses on Assistive Technology and Universal Design for Learning. This issue includes a review of an excellent resource available from the Resource Center library, links for free assistive technology resources, and websites where you can learn more about Assistive Technology and Universal Design for Learning. To view it, go to: http://www.valrc.org/publications/updateonld/updateonld0906.htm.