Blog Archives
Tough Times for Adult Literacy in Ontario
The Adult Literacy world is facing some tough times in 2011.
Cutbacks are expected to hit all of Ontario’s Literacy and Basic Skills organizations, though the effects will be felt throughout Ontario, in workplaces, social services and homes.
Good Learning Anywhere started in 2003, reaching people in remote areas of Ontario, and giving them a chance to upgrade their skills.
2009 was a big year for Good Learning Anywhere. The Province’s Budget Initiative for 2009-10, 2010 -11 gave our program the opportunity to grow and reach so many more people in need of basic upgrading and literacy skills. Many Ontarians living in remote and rural areas have had the ability to access services previously not available to them – and now may be denied these services again.
Now, with that two year funding about to disappear, Good Learning Anywhere, along with Literacy groups across Ontario, will be forced to cut back services, and in some instances, shut their doors.
But all is not lost.
You can help.
As a Canadian citizen and a taxpayer, you have a voice.
By sending a letter to your MPP, you will add your voice to those learners and literacy practitioners who know the value of adult education and training.
If you would like to send a letter to your MPP, please fill out this form below and we will help you send it out!
Improving Skills and the Internet: Reading Text
Hands up if you like to read!
Did you know World Literacy Canada estimates that 22% of Canadians struggle to read road signs, prescription bottles and can’t fill out application forms?
And did you know that reading text is one of the 9 Essential Skills identified by the Office of Literacy and Essential Skills?
ABC Life Literacy even calls reading a muscle, and like all muscles, if you don’t use it, you lose it.
So, what do you do if you want to improve your reading, but you don’t really know where to begin.
Well, as my colleagues already know, I’m a strong believer in the power of the Internet and what it can give back to the user, and I think that the Internet can be a powerful tool to improve your reading skills.
So, let’s explore some ways that you can use the Internet to improve your reading.
1. Use TTS technology.
TTS, or text to sound is a wonderful tool that you can use for free. It does exactly what it says it does, it takes a paragraph and reads it back to you. So, if you want to catch up on the news, find out who Drew Hayden is, or discover the world of micro-organisms, you can use a TTS program to read along with the text. What a great way to improve your reading skills. Here’s a good program to use. Natural Reader will read back any text that you paste into the reader box.
2. Use a dictionary.
Did you know that Google is like a dictionary? Try it out. Type in the word matriculate in your search box. The definition will pop up right away! So when you are reading and you come upon a word that you’re not quite sure of, use Google.
3. Follow the links.
Those blue and underlined words that you find on a web page aren’t just for decoration. If you click on them, you’ll be taken to a whole new world. My favorite way to learn about things is to go to Wikipedia. Go ahead, click on the blue word. Then, type in a famous person or event that you want to learn more about. If you’re not comfortable, use your TTS to read the words while you follow along.
4. Take a Reading Class.
We offer reading and English courses that help you with your reading skills. By signing up with us, you can take any of our courses for FREE. You can even call us at 866-550-0697 (free call) to talk to someone about your learning goals, or visit our website to see our course calendar for times and dates.
5. Read Your Favourite Song.
That’s right, read it. Websites like songlyrics.com and elyrics.com hold tons of lyrics to popular music. Reading the words to your favorite songs will improve your reading ability AND you’ll finally get the words right!!
6. Play games.
Playing word games is a fun way to improve your reading skills. Check out websites like wordgames.com and Faceboook. Yes, Facebook. The social media platform has many word games to improve your reading skills. Check out this article on the top 5 word games on Facebook.
7. Read what you love.
I believe that the things that we are good at are the things that we love. So, when you’re improving your reading skills, don’t read something you’re not crazy about. Read stuff that you are passionate about. Once you are more comfortable and are ready for more, explore: there is a whole world out there waiting for you.
So, what do you think?
Will some of these jump-start your reading journey? Do you have other ideas about using technology to improve reading?
Use the comment section below to leave your thoughts.
Hi speed internet a human right?
Hi speed internet a human right.
I’ve seen this statement before. It’s nothing new.
Nor is the fact that northern communities, northern citizens of this fine country are still relying on dial-up Internet.
Dialup.
Internet.
An ugly pairing of words in this day and age.
Check out this article, understand that not having access to hi-speed Internet is not just an inconvenience. No. Hi-speed Internet means that you can’t access the modern world, the elearning world. It means that you can’t properly take part in the learning and communication revolution that is taking the world by storm.
So how, tell me, is the north supposed to compete? How are northern communities supposed to grow? How are northern citizens ever going to be able to step away from the crumbling forestry industry and the plague of un and under employment?
Canada, Give the north the same chance, the same opportunities as the rest of the nation.
Learner of the Year – Krystle S.
Being an adult learner is not a simple thing: when you make that decision to upgrade your skills, life doesn’t stop, and it certainly doesn’t take it easy on you either. There will always be bills to pay, children to feed, family members to deal with and countless other things that get piled on top of the stress of going back to school.
Knowing the day-to-day challenges faced by many of our learners, we wanted to recognize and celebrate their achievements.
We thought long and hard about what qualifies a learner for distinction. Is it perfect attendance? Regular participation? Excellent marks? What distinguishes a learner from the rest?
While those things are wonderful achievements, and things that we also recognize, we realized that we were looking for something else when searching for “Learner of the Year”.
Krystle S., a twenty something learner from Southern Ontario embodies what it means to be Good Learning Anywhere’s “2009-10 Learner of the Year”.
Krystle is a woman who has persevered, who has stood up to challenges, who has supported her peers and led by example. She has taken the skills and teachings of our courses and has forged her own path to success and continual learning.
What better role model can there be?
As GLA’s 2009-2010 Learner of The Year, a surprise package was sent to Krystle in recognition of her achievement.
Here’s what Krystle had to say:
“I got the package the other day that you mentioned would be arriving. You can’t imagine how surprised and thrilled I was to see that I had won an ipod nano and got a certificate too! I was stunned and speechless at first and then really happy!”
“My experiences in SHLC classes have really convinced me that I can do Centra classes and meeting you has helped me realize that there are programs for adults out there and options for us to finish our education. So I really owe both you and SHLC a lot. Please relay my thanks to everyone. I really appreciate the certificate and ipod nano, its a great reminder for me to keep with it. Taking these classes has actually inspired me to go back to school and work on my OSSD.”
“It’s also inspired my dog Tyson to continue with his puppy classes after graduating and starts his next grade level this month! Thanks again, Krystle and Tyson”
Krystle, Tyson, well done!
Good Learning Anywhere hits the books, online
How good does it feel to be acknowledged?
It doesn’t matter if it’s an official award or even a tagged-on “way to go” in an email. It feels darn good.
Good Learning Anywhere was acknowledged in a very big way this week by The Sioux Bulletin.
Read the full article below:
Good Learning Anywhere Hits the Books, Online
Thank you Shayla from The Sioux Bulletin. Job well done!
