Join OLC for our 2nd Webinar with Dr. Sarah Eaton!

May 16, 2011 — ontarioliteracycoalition

Dr. Sarah Eaton

We asked you to help us pick our June webinar topic  - and the poll results are in! June 7th at 1:00PM EDT, Dr. Sarah Eaton will be hosting OLC’s second webinar - ”New Trends in Education: Formal, Non-formal and Informal Learning – Implications for Evaluation and Assessment”!

Informed by the latest research, this program addresses trends in learning and education with regard to formal, non-formal and informal learning as defined by the Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation (OECD). Educators are beginning to think beyond the brick-and-mortar walls of the traditional classroom when it comes to learning. There is a growing trend towards valuing non-formal and informal learning. In this workshop you will learn the differences between each type of learning, emerging trends for how to value and assess learning that happens in non-formal and informal contexts.

By the end of this session, you will:

  • Have a broad overview of new trends in education
  • Gain a deeper understanding of formal, non-formal and informal learning and what it means for literacy
  • Know how to take an asset-based, “can do” approach to evaluation and assessment by focusing on learners’ abilities, rather than their deficiencies
  • Be able to work with your learners to become more reflective and self-aware
  • Be able to better empower your learners to become responsible for their own learning throughout the lifespan
To register for the webinar, please click here.
Posted in Announcements, Events, Learning for Work, OLC News, Spotlight On Learning, Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , . Leave a Comment »

OLC Hosting our First Webinar… with Alan Kay!

April 20, 2011 — ontarioliteracycoalition

Alan Kay of The Glasgow Group

At OLC’s Spotlight on Learning conference, Alan Kay’s workshop “Be The Best Leader You Can Be: Solutions Focused Coaching Techniques” was voted one of the best at the conference. Miss the workshop, or want more insights? Join Alan as he hosts OLC’s first webinar on May 10, 2011 at 1:00PM EDT!

This free, interactive one hour webinar focuses on different solutions to encourage organizations and employees to use leadership and coaching techniques to improve quality of developing and delivering services.

In this webinar, we will:

  • Assess different kinds of leadership required to enlist and motivate people to reach their highest potential
  • Discover your own leadership style
  • Review the principles behind Solution Focused thinking
  • Understand how Solution Focus helps find useful change, amplify it and get to solution talk and actions
  • Look at team coaching as an interactive, developmental process which enables coaches to find their own solutions
  • Review a few tools you can use right away to create positive results in your organization, employees and yourself!

…  and much more!

To sign up for the webinar, please click here.

Posted in Announcements, Events, Public Awareness, Spotlight On Learning, Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

Agents of Change Continue to Inspire

April 15, 2011 — ontarioliteracycoalition

Over the past few months, OLC has been busy visiting some our Agents of Change across Ontario. Read about the YMCA’s Learning Opportunities Program, CNIB’s Literacy Program for Deafblind Adults, and the North Bay Literacy Council‘s staff and learners to see how they continue to motivate, educate, and inspire.

Vilma Wright - Literacy Specialist, Tara Pishghadam- Literacy Specialist and Volunteer Coordinator, and Jacqueline Gibson - Director of YMCA Literacy Program, YMCA

YMCA Learning Opportunities Program: OLC staff met with one of YMCA’s Learning Opportunities Program students, Trevor, whose gratitude for the program and their incredible staff was truly palpable. YMCA’s program has not only helped this once shy individual with his grammar, math, and computer skills, but has helped him come out of his shell. “[I]t’s given me self-confidence in different areas in different ways,” he says, “[t]his place makes you grow – your mind, body and soul…”

Ashley Bartolo - Teacher, Deb Deschamps - Learner, and Lee Garrett - Specialist, Deafblind Literacy, CNIB

CNIB Literacy Program for Deafblind Adults: OLC met two deafblind learners, David and Deb, from CNIB’sprogram in Hamilton, whose dedication to learning and perseverance to overcome daily obstacles is moving – their progress a testament to the hardworking staff at CNIB. Both individuals use an enhanced computer to write and print their own columns which the classroom proudly boasts on its walls.

Julie Patterson - Literacy & Health Program Manager, Jane Jackson - Executive Coordinator, and Johanna Mutch - Student-Tutor Coordinator at the North Bay Literacy Council

North Bay Literacy Council: OLC met with Julie Patterson and Johanna Mutch who spoke to us about The North Bay Literacy Council’s initiative to promote health literacy in the community. The North Bay Literacy Council is holding a Literacy and Health Symposium in August to promote the education of understanding of health information – both from a health practitioner’s and a consumer’s point of view.

To learn more about these organizations, and to watch videos of our Agents of Change, please visit our Spotlight on Learning: Becoming Agents of Change website.

Posted in Adult Learning Centres, Public Awareness, Spotlight On Learning, Uncategorized. Leave a Comment »

The Wait is Over – OLC’s New Spotlight on Learning: Becoming Agents of Change Website Has Finally Launched!

March 16, 2011 — ontarioliteracycoalition

For three days last October, literacy professionals came together to discuss and share ideas about how to bring literacy and essential skills to the forefront of issues in Canada at OLC’s Spotlight on Learning: Becoming Agents of Change conference.

This website is host to workshop videos, resources, downloads and much more, and we will continually be adding to it over the next few months, so if you missed the conference or just want to refresh some topics, this website is your go-to tool. The conference may have ended, but the learning continues!

Highlights of the site include:

We want to hear from you. Questions or Comments? Have a resource you would like to add? Want us to profile a change you or your organization made after the conference? Contact olc@on.literacy.ca and let us know!

Be the change you want to see in the world by becoming an Agent of Change, and visit the new Spotlight on Learning website today!

Posted in Announcements, Events, OLC News, Public Awareness, Spotlight On Learning. Leave a Comment »

A.C.E. Program at St. Clair College Growing Quickly

December 13, 2010 — ontarioliteracycoalition

Enrollment at St. Clair College’s A.C.E. (Academic & Career Entrance) Program, Thames Campus in Chatham is exceeding expectations.

What started as a pilot project at the beginning of 2010 – A.C.E., Thames Campus is now a full-fledged program with 5 part-time instructors and an ever-increasing number of adult learners. They’ve gone from zero learners to over 100 in less than a year.

Deb Wilmott, Mark Benoit and Louise Markovich

The program began from the recognition that there is a need in the area: there is a large population in Chatham-Kent without a grade 12 diploma and the area has a higher than average unemployment rate.

So far the response by learners to the program’s pilot courses has been very positive: of the 45 learners who took the first pilot courses, 16 are now enrolled in post-secondary programs at St. Clair College and 12 are now employed in the community.

A.C.E. staff attended Spotlight on Learning: Becoming Agents of Change to learn more about the field and best practices.  Hear more about this new but growing program on OLC’s soon-to-be-launched Spotlight on Learning Website – coming early 2011!

Posted in Public Awareness, Spotlight On Learning. Leave a Comment »

Atikokan’s Learning Centre Provides Local Residents Skills for Employment

December 6, 2010 — ontarioliteracycoalition

April Girard, Atikokan; Allison Mullin, OLC; Vijaya Chikermane, OLC; Jeannine Stus, Atikokan; Melanie Luptak, Atikokan

Atikokan Literacy Incorporated’s Adult Learning Centre is more than just a literacy program: it’s a community of people who come together to learn, talk and support each other through life’s ups and downs. That’s what OLC learned after spending the day there last Thursday – the first stop on our road trip through Ontario.

Atikokan is a small (just over 3000 people), rural community about two and a half hours northeast of Thunder Bay.  Its literacy program is the only one of its kind in the area – meaning its six full-time staff members are a busy group.

Atikokan’s Learning Centre offers a variety of programs, including General Education Development (G.E.D.), Academic Career Entrance (A.C.E.), intro to computers, reading, writing, math and many more areas, including specific grant programs.

Since mining is also a growing industry in the area – mining companies are currently prospecting land around Atikokan in hopes that mining sites will soon be built, creating hundreds of jobs in the area – Atikokan’s Learning Centre has now completed two mining training courses. These courses take students into the wilderness, teaching them basics such as safety training, reading a compass, line tracing and many other skills that will give them the training needed to gain employment when these mines  eventually open.

Holiday Potluck at Atikokan's Adult Learning Centre

It’s a small program doing important work. More information about Atikokan Literacy Inc. and its staff that participated in OLC’s Spotlight on Learning: Becoming Agents of Change conference will be made available on OLC’s upcoming Spotlight on Learning website, coming end-of-January 2011.  And stay tuned over the coming weeks as OLC continues to highlight Agents of Change in the literacy field!

Posted in Funding, Public Awareness, Spotlight On Learning, Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , . Leave a Comment »
« Older posts
Newer posts »
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.