Knowledge Builder: Summer 2006 Issue

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In this issue, health educator Karyn Pomerantz outlines the basics of health literacy and its importance to adult learners. She shares her thoughts on why literacy classes are the ideal gateway to teaching about health, and offers suggestions for practitioners to integrate health lessons into their curricula.

Gathering and utilizing feedback is critical to the success of any organization. Allison Kokkoros of the Carlos Rosario International School shares best practices that have helped her organization collect and utilize stakeholder feedback. She offers various feedback strategies and describes how each has contributed to their ongoing program improvement.

Knowledge Builder: Spring 2006 Issue

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Adolescent English language learners in adult ESL classrooms face challenges in a variety of areas. Likewise, ESL teachers must often juggle the unique characteristics and needs of adolescent English language learners who are in the adult ESL classtroom. Sarah Young (Adult ESL Research Assistant, Center for Applied Linguistics/Center for Adult English Language Acquisition) offers ideas that instructors can implement to support their learners and help them adjust to the US educational system.

In the final article in her five-part series on adults and learning disabilities, Connie Bumbaugh (Executive Director, LVA-NCA) takes an in-depth look at the effects that environmental factors, such as alcohol and substance abuse can have on students and their learning. She offers teaching strategies that may help learners who are dealing with such influences.

Lori Preheim (Adult Education & Training Coordinator, with the Even Start Program at Mary’s Center) shares a tried and true classroom activity that will engage your ESL learners, while improving their literacy skills. She shares her lesson plan and worksheets for this interactive and engaging exercise.

Knowledge Builder: Winter 2006 Issue

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In the fourth of a five-part series on adults and learning disabilities, Connie Bumbaugh (Executive Director, LVA-NCA) illustrates how perception is critical to learning, and how teachers can accomodate learners with different perceptual needs. She highlights basic strategies that instructors can implement to support processing challenges.

Whether you are tech savvy or still feeling your way around the web, your students will be fully engaged by D.C. LEARNs Executive Director Jeff Carter’s project-based learning activity. Using web publishing as an instructional tool, instructors can seamlessly integrate technology skills into learners’ everyday lives.

You can help struggling beginning readers increase their reading levels, according to Ben Merrion (Literacy Outreach Specialist Adult Literacy Resource Center, DC Public Library). He describes in detail, the Phono-Graphix reading method and illustrates how since 1998, this method has helped a large number of his students learn to read.

Knowledge Builder: Fall 2005 Issue

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In her continuing series on adults and Learning Disabilities, Connie Bumbaugh (Executive Director, LVA-NCA) examines the importance that memory plays in successful learning. She outlines strategies that instructors can teach their learners to help them better remember information.

Do you have students that struggle with math? Pilar Oberwetter and Ellie Phillips showcase their Mathbusters workshop, which pulls together strategies and classroom tools into a program that address the GED math gap and leads students to success.

Are you looking to challenge your GED and/or higher education students? Cara Fulton (Founder and lead instructor of Maestro, LLC), shares a classroom debate activity that sharpens her students critical thinking and public speaking skills, using the Opposing Viewpoint series.

Knowledge Builder: Summer 2005 Issue

Download the Summer 2005 issue.

In a continuing series focused on adults and Learning Disabilities, Connie Bumbaugh (Executive Director, LVA-NCA) examines common indicators of attention deficits and offers simple classroom strategies on how to best support adults faced with these challenges.

Do community volunteer tutoring programs always equal success? Effectively training and utilizing volunteer tutors can be a real challenge. DC Reads Director Gabrielle Aponte Henkel shares the essential components that she implemented when adapting her own successful volunteer tutoring programs at DC Reads.

English Pronunciation seems to be a big hurdle to overcome for many ESL students. Jose Gonzalez (Director of Adult Programs at the Spanish Education Development Center), explains the subtleties of why this might be so, particularly among native Spanish-speaking students. Based on his own teaching experience, he offers tips on how instructors can help learners improve their pronunciation and learn ‘real world’ English.

The Spring 2005 issue has been sent to D.C. LEARNs members and will be available for download in October.

Knowledge Builder: Spring 2005 Issue

Download the Spring 2005 issue.

In the cover story of our Spring 2005 issue, Marcia Harrington (Chief of the Adult Literacy Resource Center at the D.C. Public Library) and Diane Knich (former staff member of the Adult Literacy Resource Center) examine the challenges of identifying what type of learner is considered low literacy and determining who defines exactly what low levels of literacy are. Next, in the first of a two-part series, DC Reads Director Gabrielle Aponte Henkel gives us a firsthand look at how the Reading Recovery model, a research-based, one-to-one tutoring program helps low-level children to read and write.

In the first part of a multi-part series on learning disabilities, Connie Bumbaugh (Executive Director, LVA-NCA) looks at how programs, using simple accommodations can support adult learners with LD. Finally, Joanne Schneberger (co-founder/co-director of Notre Dame Education Center) explains the External Diploma Program, a competency-based curriculum for adults to earn a high school diploma.