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, please
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
March 9,
2009
Bulletin
#295
Dear
Colleagues,
Calls for
participation, employment, funding,
and conference and workshop
opportunities, online
and other resources.
To post information, and/or to receive
the bulletin via email, please
contact the AEPDC or leave a message at
(401-863-2839).

Janet Isserlis
NOTICES -
– in
addition to events listed here, a recently updated list of events
(including workforce development workshops, new practitioner
orientation, standards overview - and rescheduled events) can be
found at http://www.ric.edu/aepdc/calendar.php
Offer VALUE membership
opportunities to your students
Student leadership organizations are a critical
component of any education system. VALUE is a national student
organization. VALUE is currently very active in making
sure that student voices are heard. The Rhode Island Office of
Adult and Career and Technical Education is very interested in
supporting student and alumni organizations
and has supported several in the career and technical education
arena. As for adult education participants, EDP assessment candidates,
and GED test takers and graduates, it
is important to clarify that membership fees in reputable student
leadership organization is an allowable expense. Please, feel free to
review the membership materials contained
in the link below and discuss with your students, alumni, test
takers, and staff.
http://valueusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=85&Itemid=104
Rhode Island Adult Education Conference,
Tuesday, May 19th at Rhode Island College.
Call for participation here (word
document)
ESOL
share Tuesday, March 10th, 3 pm at the Genesis Center, 620 Potters
Avenue, Providence.
Michele Rajotte will share websites and
computer-based learning activities designed to help adults find
information, services and learning tools they need.
Have other ideas? please bring those as well.
Transitions from ESOL to ABE –
what
do we need to know? A group of practitioners have been discussing
what we need to learn and how we can help each
other as more and more learners leave ESOL classes and move into
ABE
classes and programs. How can we support learners and one another
in making these
shifts? Please come to share ideas, questions and
suggestions. Please come to share ideas, questions
and suggestions.
Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday,
March 17th, 4:15 at the Genesis Center/
practitioner share Tuesday, March
31st at Reflections Café, corner of Wickenden and Governor
Street, Providence.
Urban League of Rhode Island, Inc. Early
Learning Childcare Center 246 Prairie Avenue, Providence
Now Enrolling Infants to 5 years old Monday - Friday from 6:30 AM
– 5:30 PM
Before and After School Program
Children ages 5-12 years old. Monday – Friday from 6:30 AM – 9:00
AM After School from 2:30 – 5:30 PM
Please call Dawn Olagbegi at 401-351-5000 ext 166 for more
information or to enroll your child/children in our quality and
affordable childcare programs.
Applications forms are available at the Urban League of RI.
Urban League Of RI operates a DCYF licensed childcare program and
accepts DHS childcare subsidies. Sliding scale fee is also available
for working parents.
A Merlyn's
Pen Writing Contest is
launched. If you know a young writer 12-18 who might like to
participate, please visit http://www.merlynspen.org.
Entry is free. You're also invited to learn which of
today's acclaimed novelists were published in Merlyn's Pen--as teens.
Their early works appear in the Merlyn's Pen New Library of Young
Adult Writing. Look at "Success Stories" under "You Succeed" at the
home page.
R.I. immigrant leader is go-to
man for new arrivals 02/23/09, by Hillary Russ - profile of immigration
leader Juan Garcia http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090223/NEWS/902230323
from Thursday notes,
March 5, 2009
President Calls for Postsecondary Education,
Training
President Obama, in his first address to a joint session
of Congress, called for every adult in the United States to commit to
at least one year of education or
training beyond high school and set as a national goal to have
the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020.
http://ednews.org/articles/34324/1/President039s-Address-to-Congress-Full-Text/Page1.html
He said, " … I ask every American to commit to at least one year
or more of higher education or career training. This can be community
college or a four-year
school; vocational training or an apprenticeship. But
whatever the training may be, every American will need to get more than
a high school diploma. And
dropping out of high school is no longer an option. It's not just
quitting on yourself, it's quitting on your country─and this country
needs and values the talents
of every American."
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Remarks-of-President-Barack-Obama-Address-to-Joint-Session-of-Congress/
Keenan Testifies on AEFLA Before House
Subcommittee
Cheryl L. Keenan, director of OVAE's Division
of Adult Education and Literacy, testified Feb. 26 before the House
Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning,
and Competitiveness http://edlabor.house.gov/hearings/higher-education/
on reauthorization of the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act
(AEFLA). Keenan emphasized
the key role adult education can play in America’s economic
recovery because it provides basic literacy skills that are critical
for gaining employment that provides family
-supporting wages. http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ovae/pi/AdultEd/index.html
FY 2010 and 2009 Budgets Move Forward
The administration announced on Feb. 26, a
broad overview of its FY 2010 spending targets, including the overall
Department budget request. Detailed budget
proposals will be submitted to Congress in April. Budget
books and briefings for associations will be available then. Meanwhile,
the House passed a HR 1105,
making FY 2009 appropriations that could level-fund adult
education for the remaining seven months of fiscal year 2009. The
Senate is expected to act on it soon.
The Department posted state-by-state estimates http://www.ed.gov/about/overview/budget/statetables/09arrastatetables.pdf
of education funding under the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/79/70/7970.pdf
learning
opportunities
from the
American Foundation for the Blind: AFB CareerConnect® presents two
free online seminars for professionals working with children and adults
with
visual impairments.
Session 1: Lifelong Learning in Career Education April 28, 2009,
2–3:30 pm (EST)
Dr. Karen Wolffe, Director, Professional Development and
CareerConnect, will discuss the career education model, how to help
move children and
adults through the appropriate stages of the model, the
activities and resources available to instruct children and
adults with visual impairments in career education, and more.
Session 2: Determining Current and Future AT Needs April 29,
2009, 2–3:30 pm (EST)
Ike Presley, Project Manager, Professional Development, will show
attendees how to create a "toolbox" for success by presenting the tools
needed to access and create printed
and electronic information. This session will also feature
professionals with visual disabilities discussing the career planning
techniques and assistive technologies that have
helped them compete in the workplace and advance their careers.
Both seminars will broadcast live to your computer. For more
information, and to register for one or both webcasts today,
visit http://www.afb.org/careerconnect,
or contact 888-824-2184 or careerconnect@afb.net.
Brought to you free-of-charge through the generous support of
AT&T.
The Unseen Impact of Culture on the ESOL
Learner Presenter: Robin Lovrien Schwarz
March 17, 4:00 – 5:00 ET
Culture plays a large, and often unseen, role in how adult
English language learners learn. In this webinar, the impact of culture
on learning will be illustrated
with some anecdotes and information from research. Find out how
you can learn more about your own cultural biases, as well as those of
your learners.
References for reading and learning will be provided.
Robin Lovrien Schwarz, M.Sp.Ed:LD, has been a consultant, trainer
and writer in the field of learning difficulties in adult ESOL learners
for 20 years.
Currently, she is conducting multi-year professional development
for ESOL teachers in NY State and at a school for adult ESOL learners
in Washington, DC,
where she resides. Fee per session: $30.00
Non-Members $20.00 Members
Fee per video of this session and other archived sessions: $30.00
Non-Members $20.00 Members
Easy, fast ONLINE registration now available for all NAASLN
events! http://www.naasln.org/webinars.htm
If you have any questions, you can email us at
info@naasln.org or leave a message at 888-5NAASLN (888-562-2756)
new on MLOTS
(Media Library of Teaching Skills) at http://mlots.org,
a free web-based video library of short classroom or tutoring adult
literacy education
(including ESOL) videos. The library was created to enable adult
education teachers to have a video window on other adult education
teachers' classes for
program-based or PD center-based online or face-to-face
professional development workshops, study circles and courses. Of
course individual teachers can
access it, too. Each MLoTS-made video is based on state content
standards and/or research, theory or best practices. There is also an
MLoTS page with links
to adult education videos made by others, as MLoTS is intended as
the "go to" library for adult literacy education classroom videos.
In October, the MLoTS team video recorded a workshop at the
Massachusetts Coalition for Adult Education Conference, Network08.
We showed two classroom videos (numeracy and ESOL) and we video
recorded a small group of teachers discussing the videos. Find these
two classroom videos,
and the teacher discussion videos, at:
ESOL/ESL Video: Food Vocabulary and Verb Tenses http://mlots.org/lorrie/lorriepage.html
Numeracy/Mathematics Video: Ratio and Proportion http://mlots.org/abby/abbypage.html
We would love to hear what you think of these videos, especially
the new "Teacher Discussion" videos.
- David J. Rosen, President Media Library of Teaching Skills,
djrosen@mlots.org
Two new
sections of the online course, Research-based
Strategies and Models for Adult Transitions to Postsecondary Education,
are open for registration.
In this course you will read and discuss research on the
changing workforce and
examine reasons why adult learners need to go beyond the GED to advance
their earning potential, and examine
program models that support adult transitions to postsecondary
education. For information, or to register:
http://www.professionalstudiesae.org
Scroll down to College Transitions and click on the course title.
Course dates: March 19-May 13 or April 2-May 27.
Content overview: http://ProfessionalStudiesAE.worlded.org/pdf/ct_overview_Mar09.pdf
Registrations accepted on a first come basis. For more
information about the course and the policies. please read the Course
Overview at
http://www.professionalstudiesae.org
If you have any questions about registering for these courses please
contact Leah Peterson at lpeterson@worlded.org.
COLLEGE PREPARATION FOR ADULTS:
The Rhode Island Transition to College (RI TTC) at Project RIRAL
is now enrolling
Transition to College is an intensive college preparation program
that provides student success workshops and academic instruction in
reading, writing, math,
computer, and study skills. Career Exploration using the
DISCOVER online career exploration and Mentoring workshops are
included. Students also receive
assistance with Financial Aid and college applications and
academic advising. While attending Transition to College,
students enroll in College Reading at the
Community College of Rhode Island.
Transition to College is holding Information Sessions for their
fall Evening and Weekend programs on Tuesday,
March 17 - 5:00 pm and Saturday,
March 21 - 5:00 pm.
Transition to College meets in downtown Pawtucket and at CCRI.
Providence. Funding is provided by the Rhode Island
Department of Education and the Nellie Mae
Educational Foundation, in collaboration with the Community
College of Rhode Island.
Contact: Marie Crecca-Romero, Program Director at 722.9800
or email MarieCrecca-Romero@riral.org
<mailto:MarieCrecca-Romero@riral.org> .
from
World Education:
The fall/winter issue of the excellent journal, Field Notes,
with a focus on transitions from ABE
to college, is now online, and includes articles such as "A
Student's Perspective of a College Success Class" by Katie Shaw,
"Technology Tools for
College Success" by Pat Weisberger, and "Students Leading Students:
An
Interactive Campus Tour Model" by Karen Van Kirk. http://www.sabes.org/resources/publications/fieldnotes/index.htm
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
Applications Being Accepted for Grants from
the National Book Fund
ProLiteracy's National Book Fund (NBF) supplies books and
materials to local adult basic education and literacy programs. The
resources available through
the NBF are from New Readers Press, the publishing division of
ProLiteracy. In addition to New Readers Press materials, National
Book Fund grants may
also be in the form of ProLiteracy’s online self-paced
professional development courses. Programs providing direct service in
the areas of basic literacy,
adult basic education, English as a second language (ESL), and
family literacy will be considered for support. Applications must be
postmarked by April 10
or earlier to be considered.
For grant guidelines, application, and order forms for New
Readers Press materials and online professional development courses,
please see http://www.proliteracy.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=356
Programs awarded a grant must provide a cash contribution to
ProLiteracy equal to 20 percent of the grant award.
ProLiteracy organizational members provide only 10 percent of the
grant award! Explore the many other benefits of becoming an
organizational member.
Mini-Grant
Opportunity Access for All
Abilities (AAA)
Businesses Community Organizations Recreation, Social &
Cultural
Centers Expand your membership or customer base. Apply for up to
$2500
to increase
access for people with disabilities to your services,
events or activities. Application
Deadline – March 2, 2009
- details
and application are available at
http://www.sherlockcenter.org
Click on
AAA Mini-Grants or Call (401) 456-8072 (v), (401) 456-8773 (TDD)
Sponsored by: Paul V. Sherlock Center @ RI College Accessible
Rhode Island VSA Arts of Rhode Island
- 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.
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.
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 employers publicize
openings
effectively. Anyone seeking a job that makes a difference in Rhode
Island
can join the list.
Any non-profit, government or private sector
employer
advertising a paid position related to the public interest or
community
concerns can post a free job listing.
Positions must be paid but
may be part-time, full-time or temporary.
To join the list as a job seeker or to post a
job
as an
employer go
to: http://www.ricommunityjobs.org
Rhode Island Community Jobs is supported by
the Swearer
Center
for Public
Service at Brown University and the Rhode Island Campus Compact.
If you have questions about this service, please contact us
at
ricomjob@brown.edu
online
/ resources available
Uses of Technology in the
Instruction of Adult English Language Learners, by Sarah
Catherine K. Moore att
http://www.cal.org/caelanetwork/pd_resources/usestechnology.html
The brief discusses three ways of using technology with adults
learning English—onsite, blended, and online—and briefly describes
examples of specific
technologies and programs for adults learning English. It
concludes by identifying issues to consider when using technology and
by offering suggestions for
further research. Although specific programs are mentioned, they
are provided solely as examples; their inclusion in the brief is not
intended as a product
endorsement. Data show that in the 2005-2006 program year, adult
English language learners received an average of 72 hours of classroom
instruction, less
than 2 hours per week. Integrating technology in instruction for
adult English language learners may offer the flexibility to extend
learning beyond that
available in a formal program and thus increase opportunities for
language and literacy learning. It may also offer access to new
opportunities for interaction
among students and between teachers and students. - Miriam Burt
moderator, Discussion list for those working with adult English
language learners, mburt@cal.org
(note: of the sources cited in the brief, this referece, to
Lower-Literacy Users is of particular interest to those working with
both ABE and ESOL learners:
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20050314.html)
The New England Literacy Resource
Center (NELRC) has published the findings of action research
done by 18
New England adult education programs that
investigated persistence
strategies in their varied contexts over the course of a semester. This
report of the New England
Learner Persistence Project is online
at http://nelrc.org/persist/report09.pdf.
In addition to describing the
specific strategies and outcomes that resulted in each program, the
researchers concluded that
persistence can be improved by addressing
key adult needs, such as the need to feel competent or the need for a
sense of community.
To see other work being done at NELRC, see http://www.nelrc.org/expertise/index.html.
- Andy Nash, New England
Literacy Resource Center
On
February 12th, the National Commission on Adult Literacy was
represented on a panel that appeared before the Subcommittee on Higher
Education, Lifelong
Learning, and Competitiveness (of the House Committee on
Education and Labor). The written and supplemental testimony for this
appearance is available from
the Publications page of the Commission's website http://www.nationalcommissiononadultliteracy.org
) and CAAL's site http://www.caalusa.org
-- as items
NC-CAAL4 and NC-CAAL5.
Minnesota Literacy Council's online
training site – for out of state
users:
The courses for adult learners and educators on the Minnesota
Literacy Council (MLC) online training site are developed and
maintained by MLC staff through
supplemental service grants from the
Minnesota Department of Education. They are provided free of charge to
Minnesota’s adult learners, teachers, volunteers, and
other Adult Basic
Education practitioners. Out-of-state visitors are welcome to explore
the site to access learning resources as well, but we cannot offer CEUs
or
course completion certificates to out-of-state users. If you are
a
not a Minnesota resident, you are welcome to browse the self-access
online learning materials,
but please do not submit course assignments
as we will not be able to respond to your
submissions. http://online.themlc.org/
from The
National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) : National Assessment
of Adult Literacy: Indirect County and State Estimates of the
Percentage of
Adults at the Lowest Literacy
Level for
1992 and 2003, from the National Assessment of Adult Literacy
(NAAL). The report provides the only available snapshot
of adult literacy rates for individual
states and counties. The report, based on the 2003 NAAL and the 1992
National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS),
will serve as an important source of literacy information for
policymakers and researchers. The report will be accompanied by
an interactive web tool, which will
show data for all states and counties. The tool will also provide
the
ability to compare states, counties, and progress in states and
counties over time.
http://nces.ed.gov/naal/estimates/index.aspx
(estimates) and http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2009482
Refugees
From Iraq Now Available
his publication provides in-depth information about refugee
groups from Iraq, describing the various ethnic and religious
communities of Iraqi Arabs (both
Sunni and Shi’a), Iraqi Christians, and others. Topics include
history, conditions
in countries of asylum, characteristics of the refugee population,
cultural
features of each of the different communities, religion,
language, education, and resettlement
considerations. http://www.cal.org/topics/ri/backgrounders.html
online: LessonWriter.com is a free website
where teachers can copy, paste and submit any text (an article, essay,
story, etc.) and create comprehensive, standards
-based lesson plans and student materials in minutes.
LessonWriter is a simple, fast and free way to use authentic,
high-interest content to motivate students while delivering the
explicit language instruction that ELL's
need in both English and content-area classes. There are advanced
features that can differentiate instruction for multilevel classes and
class tracking features that will
automatically scaffold lessons.
http://www.lessonwriter.com
RI DLT's
Rhode Island Red job search
feature is now drawing job postings from ALL local jobs boards (except
Monster.com).
To access this resource visit RI RED http://www.dlt.ri.gov/rired/
-- under quick menu click job search; choose location search criteria,
provide job title or other
criteria. Source codes are listed at the bottom of the page
Lots to do at the library
Providence
Public Library's calendar of events: http://www.provlib.org/calendar.asp
talk about it The Impact of the
Findings of the National Early Literacy Panel
The Family Literacy Discussion List will facilitate a panel
discussion about recommendations of the National Early Literacy Panel
(NELP) and their impact on
educators, parents and other children’s caregivers. Three members
of the NELP will participate in the discussion. The discussion will
take place March 9-13.
Please read the details below, think about the questions, raise
questions of your own, and prepare for an exciting look at the findings
of the National Early Literacy Panel.
Background
The National Early Literacy Panel (NELP) was convened in 2002 to
conduct a synthesis of the scientific research on the development of
early literacy skills in
children ages zero to five. The objective for convening the NELP
was to identify interventions and practices that promote positive
outcomes in literacy for
preschool children.
The National Institute for Literacy (NIFL) acted as lead agency
in this project, in consultation with cooperating agencies from the
Partnership for Reading. The Nation
Center for Family Literacy, working closely with NIFL,
coordinated NELP’s work in the completion of the synthesis. The panel’s
report, Developing Early Literacy:
Report of the National Early Literacy Panel, was officially
released on January 8. This report serves as the basis for several,
research-based recommendations for
parents and the early childhood community, including educators,
caregivers, and Head Start providers on promoting the foundational
skills of life-long literacy.
Guest Panelists
Laura Westberg is Director of Special Projects/Research at the
National Center for Family Literacy. In this capacity, she oversees
research and evaluation across
the organization for determining the effectiveness of products
and services that contribute to the literacy development of young
children through adults. Her
responsibilities include project management and supervision,
project design, product development, research and evaluation, and
proposal and grant writing. Ms.
Westberg directed the work of the National Early Literacy Panel
and coordinated a meta-analysis on parent involvement in children’s
reading acquisition for the
National Institute for Literacy.
Victoria Molfese is the Ashland/Nystrand Chair in Early Childhood
Education at the University of Louisville and Director of the Center
for Research in Early Childhood.
She received her PhD in Developmental Psychology from the
Pennsylvania State University and has published journal articles,
books, and book chapters in the area of
cognitive development in infants, children and adults. She has
received grants in support of research activities, including an NIH
funded longitudinal research grant on
brain and behavioral predictors of language, reading and
cognitive development in children from birth through age 13 years. She
currently is conducting research on
early predictors of reading and mathematics abilities in infants
and preschool children, efficacy of mathematics intervention in
preschoolers on improving skills of children
at risk at kindergarten entry and the development of
interventions for infants and preschoolers to mitigate development of
learning disabilities. Dr. Molfese served as a member of the National
Early Literacy Panel.
Timothy Shanahan is the chair of the National Early Literacy
Panel. Dr. Shanahan also is a Professor of Urban Education at the
University of Illinois at Chicago and
Director of the UIC Center for Literacy. He has served as
Director of Reading for the Chicago Public Schools, and is a former
first grade teacher. His research focuses
on the relationship of reading and writing, the assessment of
reading ability, family literacy, and school improvement. He has
published more than 100 articles, chapters,
and books on these topics.
Discussion Questions:
What were the questions that the National Early Literacy Panel
(NELP) answered?
What types of interventions did the NELP look at?
What are the implications of the NELP findings for the
instruction and assessment of young children?
What do the findings of the NELP mean to adult/parent educators?
How can parents best utilize the findings of the NELP to bolster
the learning of their children?
Publication - Read the Executive Summary of the NELP Report,
Developing Early Literacy: Report of the National Early Literacy Panel,
to enrich your
participation in the discussion. It may be downloaded from http://nifl.gov/nifl/publications/pdf/NELPSummary.pdf
A copy of the full report can be downloaded from http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/publications/pdf/NELPReport09.pdf
Free print copies are available from EDPubs at http://edpubs.ed.gov
Workplace
Essential Skills and
GED Connection series 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
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>
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.
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.htm
NAASLN's Mid-Atlantic
Regional Conference - Access to
the Workforce for Adult & Adolescent Learners with AD/HD and
Asperger's Syndrome
February 22–23
This regional conference will draw adult education practitioners,
transition specialists, community college faculty, workforce
counselors, disability advocates,
and others from New York to Virginia. The self-contained
conference site and tight format lends itself to ample time for
small-group discussions of how these
breakthrough strategies apply to the evolving economy; issues
affecting the new workforce; transition to postsecondary education and
the workforce; advocacy
issues and techniques; webinars; leadership options; and
more. The conference will feature three plenary sessions:
ADD and Entrepreneurism...A Curriculum that Works!
presented by Richard Cooper, Ph.D., Learning Specialist
Asperger’s Syndrome, Part I: The Adult Education Class presented
by Bevan Gibson, M.S. Sp. Ed., Director
Southern Illinois Professional Development Center
Asperger’s Syndrome, Part II: Transitioning to Postsecondary Education
presented by Melissa Arnott-Cox, Ed.D., L.P.C.,
C.A.C., Director Academic Success Center, Rowan University,
Glassboro, NJ Registration is limited to 70 overnight registrants
and 80 day-only registrants.
Full registration of $250 covers a day-and-a-half of sessions,
overnight accommodations, all meals, and 24-hour access to a
hospitality suite.
Day-only registration of $135 covers one day of sessions and two
meals.
For full session information, site description, accommodations,
driving directions, or to register online, visit NAASLN at
http://www.naasln.org/Regional_2009_conference.htm
Self-Employment Is An Option
Funding For This Project Made Possible By Rhode to Independence:
Pathways to Self-Employment Project
- Thursday, March 12, 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm, J. Arthur Trudeau
Memorial Center, 3445 Post Road, Warwick
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
Consumers, Advocates, Employers, Employment Specialists, ORs
Counselors, Parents, Support Coordinators, Teachers, Transition
Specialists, Job Developers, job coaches…anyone interested in learning
more about self-employment as an option for people with
disabilities
KINDLY RSVP BY March 11- Judy Clark or Joanne Savoie 401-823-0051
ext. 310 or 401-823-0051 ext. 310 E-mail:
jclark@trudeaucenter.org or
jsavoie@trudeaucenter.org
PRESENTER:
David Hammis is the Executive Director for the Center for Social
Capital, specializing in building communities of economic cooperation,
creating high
performance organizations, and focusing on disability and
employment. David maintains an ongoing relationship with the
Rural Institute at the University
of Montana, where he served as Project Director for multiple
self-employment, employment and Social Security outreach training
and technical assistance
projects including the rural Institute’s Rural Entrepreneurship
and Self-Employment expansion Design Project. Dave works with
organizations nationally
and internationally on self-employment, benefits analysis,
customized employment and employment engineering. Dave has worked in
supported, customized
and self-employment since 1988 and is personally responsible for
the implementation of thousands of Plans for Achieving Self Support
(PASS) leading to
employment, self-employment, and enhanced personal resources for
people with disabilities. In July, 1996, Dave received the
International Association for
Persons in Supported Employment Professional of the Year Award
for his Outstanding support and commitment to people with disabilities
especially in the
areas of Career Development and the use of Social Security Work
Incentives.
Sharing Skills – Building Connections,
March 11, in Worcester - Commonwealth Workforce Coalition’s 6th annual
conference.
http://cwc.cedac.org/
Tom
Brillat, formerly of the Education Exchange, currently serves as
Executive Director of the League for the Advancement of New England
Storytelling
(LANES), which will hold its 28th
annual conference in Rhode Island at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick
from March 20-22.
The conference is the Northeast Storytelling Conference (NESC)
and known throughout the storytelling community as Sharing the Fire
(STF). Tom is inviting
his many friends and colleagues from adult education and beyond
to join him at the conference. He swears that there is something for
everyone: storytelling concerts
by some of the best tellers in Rhode Island and New England, both
Friday and Saturday evenings (just $10 each); great keynote speakers -
Jay Allison of National
Public Radio and Rhode Island˙s own - Valerie Tutson; workshops
on storytelling in education, learning how to tell darn good stories,
healing, community and
culture, and much more. CEUs and PDPs are available for teachers
and others. You can also join a story swap session and tell your
own stories or just listen.
For more information about the conference please check the LANES
website at http://www.lanes.org or
contact Tom at director@lanes.org.
MATSOL
Annual Conference :
May 7-8, 2009 at the Sheraton Four Points in Leominster,
MA.
The 2009 conference theme is Multiple Literacies: Launching
English Language Learners into a New Era. There will be a K-12
strand on both days and an
Adult, Workplace and Higher Education strand on Friday,
May
8. Our
keynote speakers will be Stephen Krashen and Jim Cummins.
http://www.matsol.org
COABE
Conference 2009, Louisville, KY
April 17-22
Commission on Adult Basic Education (COABE), Kentucky Association
of Adult & Continuing Education, and Kentucky Adult Education
Council on Postsecondary Education
are pleased to announce a Call for Proposals for the 2009 COABE
national conference. . The goal of the Annual
COABE National Conference is to provide best practices and
program guidance to adult basic education professionals.
http://www.coabeconference.org/
For more information, contact: Lorena Lasky, COABE 2009
Concurrent Sessions Chairperson, Jefferson County Adult &
Continuing Education
Lorena.Lasky@kentuckianaworks.org 502-574-4123
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
street yoga -
Through the teaching of free yoga, meditation and wellness classes we
seek to help homeless youth increase their physical, emotional and
spiritual strength, stamina
and flexibility so they can better meet their own core needs. We
work closely with those service providers striving to help homeless
youth secure safe housing, nutritious food,
accessible health care, employment, clean clothing, educational
choices and human dignity.
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