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Summer Institute 2008: ESL and
Literacy
June 26 - 28, 2008: Papers and Presentations
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Papers
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Presentations
The following is a list of presentations made at the 2008 Summer
Institute, by day and time, with links to presentation
materials where available.
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9:45
a.m. - International
Perspectives on ESL
and
Literacy: Common and uncommon issues - Heide Spruck Wrigley,
Literacy Work International, Fellow, U.S.
National Center
on Immigrant Integration Policy.
10:45 a.m. - Integrating
ESOL into a National Adult Literacy and
Numeracy Framework: Achievements
and
challenges in Skills for Life (UK) - Helen
Casey, Executive
Director, National Research and Development Centre for Adult Literacy
and
Numeracy (NRDC), Institute of Education, University of London, UK.
1:00 p.m. - How
does policy drive practice? Insights
from an Ontario
study of ESL
Literacy - Sarah
Bukhari, Director
of Program and Business Development, Ontario Literacy Coalition; Lesley
Brown,
Executive Director, Ontario Literacy Coalition. See Powerpoint.
3:00 p.m. - Focus
Group on Best Practices and
Learner Profiles: Informing
an ESL Literacy Handbook - Emily
Warne, Bow Valley College, Calgary.
Bow
Valley College is
putting
together a handbook of best practices and learner profiles for teachers
of ESL literacy. The handbook will address the broad scope of
ESL literacy, both in terms of learner outcomes and learner
profiles. It will be teacher-friendly and include information
on how to access community support. We seek to teach the
whole student and to recognize the enormous diversity in our
classrooms.We are looking for
feedback: What would
you like to see in a handbook? What
would help you most? What are the
profiles of your learners?
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June
27, 2008
9:10
a.m. - Capturing
what counts: Issues and
options in meaningful assessment of
language and literacy -
Heide
Spruck Wrigley, Literacy
Work International, Fellow, U.S.
National Center
on Immigrant Integration Policy. See
Powerpoint.
It is difficult to
design appropriate
responses to student needs without sound assessments that tell us what
students
can do with language and literacy, including literacy in the native
language. In this
session, we will discuss assessment
approaches that show promise for identifying learner needs as well as
models
for documenting learner progress. We
will present a video of a new model called the ESL Reading
Demonstration, a
one-on-one assessment that can be used with individual learners but can
also be
adapted for groups. Ways
of using the
native language of the learners to gain a better sense of needs, goals,
and
proficiencies will also be explored.
9:50
a.m. - A
voice from the field: Heide’s
strategies in practice - Janet Isserlis, Adult Education Resource Centre, RI. See
Powerpoint.
See background paper (not presented at Institute)
10:45
a.m.
- Bridging
from LINC to Basic Education and Literacy as
academic preparation: A college
model - Dan Danforth,
Program
Head, ESL and Literacy, Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and
Technology (SIAST). See Powerpoint.
1:00
p.m.
- ESL
in rural Alberta
communities – What
do practitioners need? Results
from a provincial
survey - Berniece Gowan,
Candice Jackson,
Dawn Seabrook de
Vargas
(Literacy Alberta,
NorQuest College).
See Powerpoint.
NorQuest College in Edmonton,
Alberta, contracted Literacy Alberta to
conduct a survey designed to gather the views of rural ESL
practitioners on the value of formalized ESL training. An online survey
questionnaire was posted on the Literacy Alberta and Community Adult
Learning network electronic conferencing sites. Respondents were asked
to indicate how highly they placed formalized training, and to identify
the ideal conditions that would encourage them to enroll in such
training. The presentation will focus on what rural providers said they
need to meet the demands of growing numbers of ESL learners living and working in rural Alberta.
1:20
p.m. -
Reflections
from a Community-Based Instructor - Paula Mannington,
Abbotsford Community Services. See Powerpoint.
How do we
move beyond the IALSS data and into the daily lives,
experiences and needs of adult ESL language, literacy, and numeracy
learners? The presenter will share her experiences and the insights she
has gained from working with learners at the lowest levels of literacy,
including those with mother-tongue literacy barriers, in a
community-based, government-funded settlement language program. She
will focus on some of the many challenges this demographic faces both
within and outside the classroom, including family literacy needs that
transcend traditional 0-6 programs; instructional issues related to
scarce resources and rare professional development opportunities;
outreach and retention issues; and problems encountered with
assessment, referral, and service options.
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9:30 a.m. - Targeting
children, teaching parents: Two
program models
- Elizabeth
Walcot, LD consultant, Montreal.
See Powerpoint.
By targeting children, we can begin
to address the second language
needs of the parents. This presentation will discuss two programs that
reach that goal: The HIPPY Project and the Montreal Oral School for the
Deaf’s Tot/Parent Group.
10 a.m. - Violence and learning:
Hidden issues for ESL learners
- Janet Isserlis, Adult Education Resource Centre, RI.
See Powerpoint.
10:45
a.m. - Foreign-trained
professionals: Fast-tracking
ESL and Essential Skills
Learning - Laurel
Madro, Corporate
Readiness Training Program, Bow Valley College.
See Powerpoint.
The Corporate Readiness Training
Program operating for a decade at Bow
Valley College in Calgary prepares foreign-trained professionals such
as engineers, accountants, and geologists to enter the corporate
workplace. The curriculum has evolved from its roots in ESL language
training to more of an Essential Skills/literacy focus. Despite their
credentials, some of the learners score at the lower levels on the
TOWES (Test of Workplace Essential Skills). Nevertheless, their level
of prior education and the workplace focus of the Essential Skills and
the assessment have helped learners better understand the demands of
the office environment and make rapid progress. Over 90% are working in
their fields six months after the end of the training. This session
will discuss what has worked, what we are still implementing and what
did not meet the standard the learners needed to compete in the
corporate community. Feedback from learners who are now working has
been the basis for program change over the years.
11:15
a.m.
- Workplace ESL issues in the UK: Industry
and sector models - Helen Casey,
Executive
Director, National Research and Development Centre for Adult Literacy
and
Numeracy (NRDC), Institute of Education, University of London, UK.
Summer Institute
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in collaboration with The Centre for Literacy of Quebec