Low-literacy and Social Inequality
About 58 out of 100 Canadian adults aged 16 to 65 have the basic reading skills they need for most everyday reading. However, the other 42 of the 100 working-age adults in Canada have lower literacy than is needed to cope with the increasing information demands of our society.The unequal distribution of strong literacy skills in society is associated with economic and social inequalities. Therefore, improving literacy skills across social class lines and between ethnic groups and the sexes is paramount to achieving greater equality of income and opportunity.Many with low literacy skills are uncomfortable disclosing their low literacy skills and asking for help. Low literacy has a strong social stigma, especially in the workplace. As the impact of technology in the labour market grows, workers without the confidence and learning skills to adapt may be left behind. Adults with low proficiency are just as motivated and interested in education as those with higher proficiency. However, they are much less likely to access education and training opportunities due to financial and time constraints. Also, Canadians with low proficiency and less than high school education have much less access to employer-sponsored training than Canadians with postsecondary education.How are low literacy skills impacting social equality? What steps can we take to reduce this inequality? What steps can we take to raise awareness among employers, educators, policymakers about the need to create more opportunities for growth for low-literacy adults.
Level up - Digital Literacy and Health
Positions available: 1Navigating the online world to find reliable health care information is challenging for individuals with low digital literacy. We want to develop a digital health literacy workshop which will give our learners the skills they need to find reliable health information online. The skills covered in this workshop will include online safety and privacy, how to navigate the Alberta Health Services website, finding health care professionals online, booking online appointments, and identifying accurate and reliable online source for health information.The scope of this project is to plan and develop materials for this workshop. This will include lesson plans, learner workbooks, and information pamphlets. If time permits you will also assist with the delivery of the workshop.
Level up - Protecting your device workshop
1 position availableMany of our learners have questions about how to protect their devices and how to keep them up to date. We want to develop resources that could be used in one-on-one tutoring or small group workshops.The volunteer who takes on this project will be responsible for developing these resources as well as leading the first edition of a "taking care of your device" workshop. This will include creating vocabulary sheets for terms such as "virus" and "malware", plain language information booklets about device maintenance, updates, and anti-virus software, as well as lesson plans to teach the material. They will also implement the materials by leading a workshop for our learners.
Level up - Getting to know Edmonton Online Scavenger Hunt
We are looking to develop and fun and interactive activity that will allow our learners to increase their online search skills. The volunteer who takes on this project will create an online scavenger hunt where participants will use their devices to find information about city services and facilities, history, and transit online. They will also develop and lead a workshop designed at teaching how to use online tools such as search engines and maps to find information and navigate our city. Student will do research on different attractions in the city. You will develop a workbook to teach them about basic search skills and a handout for them to record their finding. Positions available 1 student
Project-Based Google Drive Curriculum
Our organization is working on developing project-based learning opportunities for adults in our digital literacy program. In project-based learning, learners are challenged to explore new material using real world problems. We are looking for a team to create a project-based curriculum for Google Drive. You will be responsible for creating lesson plans for a unit where learners use their Google drive and Google applications (Docs, Sheets, and Slides) to solve a real-world problem. You will be responsible for framing the problem, developing lessons suitable for adult literacy learners, and creating lesson materials.
Promotional Video for Literacy
The mission of Project Adult Literacy Society is “Changing Lives Through Literacy.” PALS is a community-based literacy program that addresses the learning needs of adults with low literacy skills. The goal of this project is to collaborate with students to create a video to raise awareness of literacy and the needs of adults with low literacy in the community.This will involve several different steps for the students, including:Familiarizing themselves with PALS, including our mission and goals.Recording a presentation or screencast to share key messaging, raise awareness, and call the community to action.Finding and applying suitable background music.Adding text, transitions, and overlays to the video.Bonus steps in the process would also include:Presenting the video and making edits based on feedback.Recommending ideas and editing tools for future awareness videos.
Accounting (PALS)
Maintain Bank statements & Bank Reconciliations; Maintain Invoices received; File & Maintain the Supporting documents such as - Cheque stubs, Related Invoices and receipts; Prepare Cheque Register; Check data for Accuracy; Prepare budgets for various proposals; Assist with financial reporting; File & Maintain the Funding Agreement & reconcile with funds received as per the agreement; Assist in preparing the Schedules at year-end for Audit.
Sustainability Project
P.A.L.S. is a charitable organization that helps adults improve their literacy skills for better employment or further educational opportunities through one to one tutoring and small group workRelated SDG(s): No poverty, Quality education, Decent work and economic growth, Reduced inequalitiesProject: P.A.L.S works with individuals with extremely low literacy skills. Two challenges that arise from this are that 1) individuals with low literacy skills often have difficulty with identifying where literacy impacts their lives. They have often “made do” for so long that they are unaware of some of the challenges they face such as maintaining prescription medications correctly, accessing job information, or understanding a letter from their child’s school. 2) Lack of study skills or knowledge of how to develop them. As you know, learning is hard work and there are specific skills that students learn and develop to support their lifelong learning. With low literacy levels this can be very challenging to do.These two challenges may be addressed individually as two projects or by a single team as one project. Example potential projects could be a visual systems map showing the areas that literacy impacts and/or a visual study skills development resource that helps adults develop effective study skills to support them on improving their literacy skills.
Appreciation Event for Volunteer Tutors
Volunteer tutors are the core of P.A.L.S. - Project Adult Literacy Society. They meet with an adult learner for 1-2 hours each week on an on-going basis to support them in building their foundational literacy skills in reading, writing, speaking and understanding English, math or basic digital skills. We would like assistance in planning and running an appreciation event for our exceptional volunteers. This event can be in person or online or both. We are currently working with 150 active volunteer tutors.
Barriers and learning challenges of low-skilled adults
Adults with low literacy skills may have negative experiences with the formal school system or face such challenges as learning disabilities, low self-esteem, unemployment, or underemployment. Long-term disengagement from education and training, leading frequently to unemployment and inactivity, makes it extremely difficult for them to find training that matches their preference and potential. Ill-equipped with the skills required in emerging jobs and businesses they are likely to be left behind. Despite the numerous advantages associated with undertaking literacy or basic training, low literacy individuals face barriers that often prevent them from moving ahead.P.A.L.S. is a literacy organization that helps adults with low literacy skills work towards improving their reading, writing, speaking, listening, maths and digital skills. The program is offered free to the learners with the help of volunteer tutors through one-to-one tutoring or small group work. By using numerous qualitative research methods, we want to better understand our clients' literacy needs, barriers, and challenges that they face in order to make progress to better educational opportunities or living wage employment. This research will also try to address the extent to which these adults are aware of the current trends in education, training and employment. What are the gaps that need to be filled to engage or provide these adults with opportunities for continuous learning?The qualitative data should be able to speak to the larger audience about the needs, barriers, challenges, and gaps faced by these adults.