We have family learning classes for parents and their children to learn together. Children’s educational attainment can be improved through family learning and, as a consequence, there is greater parental involvement in children’s education.

There are also benefits in reducing offending behaviour, reduction in social isolation and better access to social services through attending learning opportunities.

Research into the work of adult learning has shown that it is vital in tackling the underlying causes of poverty, social inequality and health and well-being. The support and care that is offered to vulnerable people can help to improve mental health and have long-term benefits in making positive life choices.

Above all, adult learning is a relaxed and enjoyable way to develop skills, improve confidence and make new friends. It is mostly free at the point of delivery and can be a life-enhancing experience for a wide range of people.

Summer 2011 Issue 10

This edition• Adult Learner of the Year

• Employability Focus

• SQA Awards

• Volunteering

• Dyslexia

• Learners’ journeys

Adult LearningAdult Learning in Stirling provides a range of learning opportunities which support employability, families to learn together and offers offenders the chance to learn for a new direction in life. Our community based programme allows local people to learn computing, new languages and develop their creative skills. We also have a range of opportunities that support volunteer development.

In an average month we have learners ranging from 16-92 years in age participating in learning and a recent snapshot identified that in Stirling from Sept-Dec 2013 there were:

• 112 adult literacies participants• 72 English as a Second or Other Language (ESOL) participants• 156 community class participants• 68 programmes running weekly term time• 49 learners engaged in accredited programmes (SQA/ASDAN)• 52 ASPIRE project work related participants• 18 MILL project offender literacies referrals

Adult Learning is vital in helping people achieve accreditation and progression to further education and employment and learners often comment on the improvements in self-esteem, health and well-being that their involvement with the Team brings about.

new class programme now available at www.stirling.gov.uk/adultlearning

WintEr 2013/2014

Linda Meechan- Adult Learner of the Year 2013

The 2013 award for Learner of the Year was presented to inspirational learner, Linda Meechan.

After the death of her daughter,

Linda took over the care of her grandchildren whilst also coping with her own health issues. Motivated to do the best for her grandchildren and to ensure she could do everything she could to support their learning, Linda took part in a range of learning opportunities.

Currently attending the Foot in the Door programme at the YT club in Cultenhove, she has developed skills in completing forms and using ICT including learning about digital photography, how to use an e-reader and e-mail. All of the learning that Linda has undertaken has been focused on supporting her family life.

Linda was instrumental in setting up the homework club at Cultenhove so other children could get help with their learning.

Due to her motivation to learn and enthusiasm to support others the judging panel said, “Linda was an excellent candidate for Learner of the Year.”

Adult Learners’ CelebrationAdult Learners celebrated their learning at the annual celebration held at the Golden Lion in Stirling in June.

More than 200 people attended the event including learners, family and friends, staff, volunteers, partners and local councillors. Learners were recognised for their achievements in literacy, numeracy, ESOL, ICT and courses such as personal development, languages and creative writing.

Adult Learning Team Leader, Ed Gibbon hosted the event and Assistant Head of Education, Alan Milliken presented certificates and special awards.

Learners and guests enjoyed a ceilidh after the presentations with music from the Riverside Ceilidh Band.

This year’s special awards went to:

Learner of the Year – Linda Meechan

Aspire Learner of the Year – Keith McLaughlan

Special Awards – Vi Stein, Jacqueline Murray, Sadie Devine, Jackie Balfour, George Townsley, Scott Dawson

John Reilly Award for ICT – John Reilly

Volunteer of the Year – Owain Carter

Group of the Year – Learner Blog

Volunteer’s 10 years service – Jim Guinnessy, Jim Adamson, Maureen Early, Moira Stobbs, Fiona McDougall

Off the Page -

In September, Stirling poet, Billy Letford visited the Cowane Centre and recited some of his poetry as part of the Off the Page Festival. He also worked with learners and staff to write a poem. The event was hosted by the Blog

Group. Donald and Ian were inspired to write a poem about the visit:

At the Cowane CentreOn the 12th of SeptemberFrom twelve till twoWas a day to remember

The Bloggers groupHad a special guestA cool poet named BillyWho’s simply the best

He spoke to us about being a poetAnd read some of his stuffVery soon, the audienceJust couldn’t get enough

Then he said we’d write our ownAnd we were all astoundedThe thought of us all being poeticHad left us all dumfounded

He asked about our favourite thingsAnd beckoned us to tellThen he asked for greater detailAnd for all our names, as well

Before we knew itWe’d made ourselves proudHaving written our poemWe were reading it aloud

Isn’t it truly amazingJust what you can doWhen you have an expertTo guide and teach you

The Bannockburn Study Group’s project, Exploring Routes to Learning, was recognised by Scotland’s Learning Partnership during Adult Learners’ Week 2013 for achievement in learning and the group was presented with their certificate at the Learners’ Celebration. Due to the success of the programme the group has been invited to write a case study for the European Lifelong Learning National Agency Website. The project can be viewed at http://www.exploringroutestolearning.eu/.

Adult Learning News

Poet Visit

Exploring Routes to Learning Project receives recognition

Putting new skills to good useAfter taking voluntary redundancy with Stirling Council, Linda started ICT classes with the Adult Learning Team to develop her skills and confidence to obtain new employment. She wanted to be able to use the computer with confidence and have a good knowledge of different programmes without relying on her children to help her.

Linda became very proficient in using the Web and also Microsoft Office. She started a blog about making meals from leftovers and is also compiling a recipe book, based on her Italian family background.

With her new found skills, Linda has now managed to secure a position in the food industry. She uses the computer and computerised till at work with confidence and can work independently. She uses her computer skills more fully and puts together menus at work.

Storytelling across the ages As part of the national Tell a Story Day in November, members of staff from the Adult Learning Team in partnership with St Ninians Library, organised an intergenerational story-telling event. Some members of the library’s reminiscence group and children from the local primary school shared stories about Halloween then and now.

There was dookin’ for apples, scary stories and daylight guisin’.

Ed Gibbon, Team Leader for Adult Learning, said, “The Tell a Story Day was a wonderful opportunity to work in partnership with libraries and schools and for both adult learners and children to enjoy learning together”.

Employability Focus...Supporting learners progress with work and studiesThe Adult Learning Team’s ASPIRE Project is funded by Stirling Council and the European Social Fund. The project offers 100% funding towards workplace training costs to help employees sustain their employment or to help employees progress at their work. Since the start of the project in 2009, nearly 500 employees from the Stirling area have received support. All of these learners have gained new skills for work and many of them have achieved high level qualifications to support them in the workplace.

One beneficiary of the project, Agnieszka, came to Scotland in 2007 from Poland. At first she felt very isolated as her English was very basic and her confidence dropped. After a while Agnieszka started attending ESOL classes in Balfron through the Adult Learning Team, which she attended for a few years. As Agnieszka’s English improved, her confidence grew and in 2009 she started as a self-employed cleaner in the area. Later, Agnieszka felt that she needed to improve her written communication skills to help her progress her cleaning business. Through a new ESOL for work class with the Aspire project, she was able to improve her communication skills, including writing emails and marketing.

Agnieszka has now progressed on to further studies at Forth Valley College whilst still continuing to expand her business and employing an additional member of staff. The ESOL classes have also helped Agnieszka pass the ‘Life in the UK’ test and she is now awaiting a response from the British Government.

“The English lessons helped to boost my confidence, my personal life and my business.”

Dyslexia Support Dyslexia Awareness Week took place across Scotland during November. Dyslexia affects one in ten people and each person has a unique set of difficulties and strengths. Although dyslexia can affect reading and writing, short-term memory and organisation, there can also be strengths in creativity and visual skills. Adult Learning in Stirling can support learners with dyslexic difficulties to find strategies to help their reading, writing and numbers.

Former Stirling adult learner, Dougie, has been affected by dyslexia throughout his life. He never told anyone and would avoid anything that involved filling in forms. Over the years he has developed a range of strategies and uses assistive technology to help him at home and at work. Determined to improve his skills, Dougie started a class at adult learning that focused on finding ways to help him with his reading and writing. He also discovered Dragon Naturally Speaking, a computer program that uses voice recognition technology to transform spoken words to text. He now uses the software in his work in the construction industry to write emails, letters and reports and search for information.

For Dougie, a big part of getting help was getting over the fear of telling someone that he had difficulties with reading and writing. “Don’t be frightened to go and speak to people to get help, there are others out there, don’t bottle it up otherwise you will be unhappy”.

Adult Learning Team Volunteers were acknowledged at Stirling Council’s Customer Service Stars awards, which took place at the Council Chambers in Old Viewforth in November.

The volunteers were nominated for their outstanding work and commitment to learners and the team over the last year.

Owain Carter, Adult Learning Team Volunteer of the Year, said, “For Margo and me to receive the Customer Service Award on behalf of all the volunteers was a great honour. We know that our learners benefit from having volunteers in classes and it’s fantastic for this to be recognised”

The volunteers in the Adult Learning Team bring a range of skills and experience that complement the work of the Team. Volunteers support the work of the tutors in classes by providing individual support and sometimes taking a lead on a particular part of the lesson.

Adult Learners’ Reps in the Spotlight

The Adult Learners’ Reps meet once a week to produce a weekly Blog and support staff on a variety of mini projects. They are also involved in meeting new learners at the Cowane Centre to show them around and provide information.

Donald’s story “Since I’ve been at the adult learning classes, I have gained qualifications, made lots of friends and had opportunities that I wouldn’t have otherwise had. It has been life changing for me, it has given me lots of confidence and inspired me to

do other courses. I have learnt how to do fractions, percentages, algebra and geometry, graphs, weighing and measuring. What I have learned has helped me in so many different ways. The classes have made a great difference and boosted my confidence.”

Follow the Adult Learners’ Blog http://adultlearnersblog.wordpress.com/

Adult Learning Volunteers are Customer Service Stars!

Accreditation Success

A number of learners achieved SQA and ASDAN accreditation with the Adult Learning Team and some of these successes are highlighted here:

Well done to the learners working at Westerlands Care Home on achieving their SQA qualification. Everyday Communication at Access 2 level enabled learners to

develop their skills in reading, writing, listening and speaking.

Topics relevant to the learners’ work within a care home environment included; talking about jobs, personal information, families, daily routines, likes and dislikes, home and neighbourhood, writing notes and describing people.

After completing their four assignments, all of the learners passed the unit. The unit builds on the learners’ national qualifications, gives motivation, self-esteem and enhances the work that they do in helping and caring for unique individuals.

Dementia awareness continues to be integrated into the ASPIRE ESOL classes at Westerlands Care Home following a successful project that Stirling Council and Alzheimer Scotland delivered to migrant workers in the care sector in the Stirling area.

You can find out more about the project by viewing online at www.stirling.gov.uk/aspire-learning-for-work.

SQA Award in Numeracy Congratulations to our learners Marianne Jack, Gordon Bryce, Garrie Knight and Claire Barclay on receiving their SQA Core Skills awards in Numeracy.

Gordon is also working towards SQA Core Skills Communications and an ASDAN qualification in Employability. As well as his classes at Adult Learning, Gordon has two work placements through Stirling Council’s Employability Service. Gordon has a strong desire to succeed and says, “The Adult Learning Team has taken the time to help and not marginalise me.”

Garrie is an Adult Learning Team Learner Rep and is also part of the Blog Group. He has improved and gained confidence, not only in himself, but in his interaction with others.

Since starting Adult Learning in April, Claire has worked hard to brush up her numeracy skills. As well as attending her numeracy class, she has studied at home and attended an additional class to help her achieve her award.

Marianne started classes some years ago because she had no formal qualifications and, although she was working, did not feel very confident in her ability in literacy or numeracy.

Over the weeks and months Marianne worked through the numeracy curriculum until she felt more confident. She then began to apply these skills to real life situations such as; looking at household bills and calculating to see if they were correct: cooking and working with recipes, noting both the Imperial and Metric measurements and weighing using both scales.

For Marianne, attending classes at Adult Learning has been a worthwhile effort and made a difference in her life. Now Marianne feels more confident handling numerical calculations and is able to help her family. Receiving her certificate from the SQA has made her so proud of her efforts as this is the first national qualification she has received.

SQA Award in ICT Well done to learners Elizabeth Lamb, Hugh Coyle, Gordon Parkhill, Linda Robertson and Volunteer, Jim Adamson from the Bannockburn Study Group on receiving their SQA Core Skills awards in ICT. Learners completed units in file management, using applications such as Microsoft Word, searching for information and internet safety.

Volunteering in the Spotlight

Tom, Volunteer Adult Learning Team

I have been a volunteer with the Adult Learning Team for around five years, assisting in

literacy, numeracy and basic IT/Communication classes.

Earlier this year I began supporting a new class at the Salvation Army Centre where staff had started a communication class with local adults who were regular visitors to the Centre.

It is a real pleasure and privilege to work with the learners, all ex-offenders who have not been involved in formal learning for many years and in most cases, decades.

It is obvious that all of the learners have skills, abilities and potential. I have huge admiration for their courage in taking the decision to move away from their old lifestyles and realising that learning could help in their rehabilitation and regaining their self-esteem.

I eagerly look forward to continuing to support the learners with their studies to help them to achieve their goals and becoming valued members of their communities.

Stirling History Project Adult Learners have been developing their literacy skills whilst learning about history. The Wednesday Mayfield group visited the Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum in Stirling and heard Stirling Council’s Archaeology Officer, Murray Cook, talk about the battles of Stirling. The visit also included an opportunity to handle many genuine artefacts including fossils, a Jacobite cannonball and medieval pottery.

Prior to the visit, the learners carried out some research with a historical walk through Stirling to discover many landmarks; the Wolf Craig and the carved wolf on the front of the building, the Golden Lion Hotel, where Robert Burns penned his poem “The Stirling Lines”, the Athenaeum in King Street, with its spire and majestic statue of William Wallace and the public library, which opened in 1904.

Following the museum visits, learners made an advertising poster for the Smith to encourage people to visit. As well as learning about history, learners also had the opportunity to improve their writing, research and ICT skills. Learners now enjoy being able to walk around Stirling and talk to friends and family about their knowledge of the city. To continue their learning, the group are looking forward to a visit to Stirling Castle in December, where they will be able to put their knowledge to good use.

It is a real pleasure and privilege to work with the learners who have not been involved in formal learning for many years and in most cases, decades.

The Adult Learning Team has

taken the time to help and not

marginalise me.

SQA Award in ESOL for Care Workers

Learners in the spotlight

Evelynne’s Story “I haven’t been in full time education for a very long time, since high school. I knew a little about computers but wanted to refresh and learn more. I know about the internet and how to use it but I wanted to learn about creative writing because I didn’t know a lot about that.

I heard about the course through Laura at the Salvation Army and was very interested to come along and give it a try. On my first visit to the course I was very nervous and didn’t know what to expect, but when I arrived everyone was so welcoming and friendly and made me feel relaxed. Help was always at hand if I had any questions, which made it so much easier.

Although I knew how to use the Internet, I wasn’t very knowledgeable about writing a letter or a CV for instance. So, I was eager to learn computer skills which would help me towards getting employment.

Most of the time on the course, I have been researching the life of William Wallace on the internet and summarising my findings in Word documents which will be put into a leaflet.

I have gained more confidence and I am no longer scared of wanting to continue learning.

Since starting the class I feel better within myself, am coping much better and am delighted with what I have achieved. My advice to anyone in the same position as me is to go for it – it could be life changing.”

Learning for Community Involvement

Jackie’s story Jackie has been involved in the Raploch Community View newspaper from the outset, and she produces an article of local interest for every issue of the newspaper. She also encourages others to write and submit their work and she acts as secretary for the group. She puts a lot of work into her writing, taking on

all the new ideas she has learnt in classes and drafting and redrafting work to make it entertaining and suitable for her audience.

The newspaper has become an important part of local community life and Jackie has played an important role in this, along with other members of the committee. Jackie’s increased confidence in her own abilities has led to her being more involved as a community activist and organiser in Raploch. She has played a significant role in several other groups, including Big Noise, the Events Committee, the Ochil Centre and the Raploch Community Partnership.

The newspaper is supported by the Adult Learning Team in partnership with the Community Engagement Team and over the last few years they have organised a range of training courses for the group, including committee skills, article writing, interviewing techniques, editing skills and writing with humour.

• Reading, writing, spelling and numbers• English for speakers of other languages• ICT skills• Family learning• Personal development and confidence building• Languages• Skills for work• Volunteering and more

For further information, call 01786 237517 or email adultlearning@stirling.gov.uk

http:// www.stirling.gov.uk/adultlearning

facebook:https://www.facebook.com/pages/Adult-Learning-Team-Stirling-Council/147816432027472

The Adult Learning Team provide a range of classes including: