12
January—February 2010 Guides Can Help Transform Adult Education to Grow a Skilled Workforce OVAE Thursday Notes, October 15, 2009 In October 2009, the National Center on Education and the Economy released its Guide to Adult Education for Work: Transforming Adult Education to Grow a Skilled Workforce. The new report, funded by the Walmart Foundation, lays out specific steps policymakers, program administrators, and providers can take to begin to transform existing programs into adult education for work programs. It includes: a vision for constructing a comprehensive career pathways system to better meet our nations’ skill needs; a framework for an effective adult education for work program with 23 quality elements in seven focus areas designed to prepare adults for both postsecondary learning and work; and benchmarks and promising practices that illustrate quality elements already implemented in programs across the country. The guide includes a selfassessment tool that providers can use to evaluate their programs against a recommended set of benchmarks, identify gaps, and plan strategically for change.. An Employer Guide to Adult Education for Work: Transforming Adult Education to Build a Skilled Workforce is also available. Guide to Adult Education for Work: Transforming Adult Education to Grow a Skilled Workforce www.jff.org/sites/default/files/ adult_ed_work_guide.pdf. Employer Guide to Adult Education for Work: Transforming Adult Education to Build a Skilled Workforce www.jff.org/ publications/workforce/employerguideadulteducationworktran/907. Bureau of ABLE Act 48 Procedures Reminder On October 27, 2009, Amanda HarrisonPerez, Division Chief of the Bureau of ABLE, issued a memo regarding Act 48 procedures. The memo read as follows: The Bureau of ABLE has issued the guidance ABLE Act 48 Procedures to clarify responsibilities and requirements for earning Act 48 hours for completion of professional development activities through the ABLE Professional Development System. Program administrators should review the guidance and make sure that they and their staff understand it. Questions can be sent to Susan Reeve, Professional Development System Coordinator, 7177875532 or [email protected] . Please see page 8 , ABLE Act 48 Procedures , for details. In this issue: Central Northeast Professional Development Center 8 N. Grove Street, 2nd Floor, Suite #1 Lock Haven, PA 17745 Phone: 5708934052 Fax: 5707481598 http://ciu10.schoolwires.net Transitioning College Placement Tests Workforce Resources Research to Practice Newsletter Staff Dawn Rafter Mary Mingle Melissa Adams Contributors: Diana Statsman CNEPDC The Central Northeast Professional Development Center is a project of the PA Department of Education, Bureau of ABLE and CIU #10 Development Center for Adults. Central Intermediate Unit #10

January February 2010

  • Upload
    mmingle

  • View
    434

  • Download
    2

Embed Size (px)

DESCRIPTION

The Jan/Feb 2010 edition of the CNEPDC newsletter created for regional PA ABLE programs and featuring a selection of current resources to support transitioning to work and post-secondary education and training.

Citation preview

Page 1: January February 2010

 

January—February 2010 

Guides Can Help Transform Adult Education to

Grow a Skilled Workforce OVAE Thursday Notes, October 15, 2009

In October 2009, the National Center on Edu‐

cation and the Economy released its Guide to 

Adult Education for Work: Transforming 

Adult Education to Grow a Skilled Work‐

force. The new report, funded by the  

Walmart Foundation, lays out specific steps 

policymakers, program administrators, and  

providers can take to begin to transform  

existing programs into adult education for 

work programs. It includes: a vision for con‐

structing a comprehensive career pathways 

system to better meet our nations’ skill needs; 

a framework for an effective adult education 

for work program with 23 quality elements 

in seven focus areas designed to prepare 

adults for both postsecondary learning and 

work; and benchmarks and promising  

practices that illustrate quality elements  

already implemented in programs across the 

country. The guide includes a self‐

assessment tool that providers can use to 

evaluate their programs against a recom‐

mended set of benchmarks, identify gaps, 

and plan strategically for change..  An Em‐

ployer Guide to Adult Education for Work: 

Transforming Adult Education to Build a 

Skilled Workforce is also available. 

Guide to Adult Education for Work:  

Transforming Adult Education to Grow a 

Skilled Workforce 

www.jff.org/sites/default/files/

adult_ed_work_guide.pdf. 

 

Employer Guide to Adult Education for 

Work: Transforming Adult Education to 

Build a Skilled Workforce www.jff.org/

publications/workforce/employer‐guide‐

adult‐education‐work‐tran/907. 

Bureau of ABLE

Act 48 Procedures Reminder

On October 27, 2009, Amanda Harrison‐

Perez, Division Chief of the Bureau of ABLE, 

issued a memo regarding Act 48 procedures.  

The memo read as follows: 

The Bureau of ABLE has issued the guidance 

ABLE Act 48 Procedures to clarify responsi‐

bilities and requirements for earning Act 48 

hours for completion of professional devel‐

opment activities through the ABLE Profes‐

sional Development System. Program  

administrators should review the guidance 

and make sure that they and their staff un‐

derstand it. Questions can be sent to Susan 

Reeve, Professional Development System 

Coordinator, 717‐787‐5532 or 

[email protected]

Please see page 8 , ABLE Act 48 Procedures , 

for details. 

In this issue:

Central Northeast  

Professional Development 

Center 

8 N. Grove Street,  

2nd Floor, Suite #1 

Lock Haven, PA 17745 

Phone: 570‐893‐4052 

Fax: 570‐748‐1598 

http://ciu10.schoolwires.net 

Transitioning

College Placement Tests

Workforce Resources

Research to Practice

Newsletter Staff 

Dawn Rafter 

Mary Mingle 

Melissa Adams 

Contributors: 

Diana Statsman 

CNEPDC 

The Central Northeast  

Professional Development 

Center is a project of the 

PA Department of  

Education, Bureau of 

ABLE and CIU #10   

Development Center for 

Adults. 

Central

Intermediate

Unit #10

Page 2: January February 2010

Placement Tests           World Education’s College for Adults 

                  www.collegeforadults.org 

Not all community colleges use the same placement tests. 

You should look at the school’s website to determine 

which test they use. There are usually three main place‐

ment tests. They test math, reading, and writing abilities.  

The following are some sites of commonly‐used tests 

which include  sample questions: 

 

 

 

 

ACCUPLACER Test  (computer test) 

www.testprepreview.com/accuplacer_practice.htm 

 

COMPASS   (computer test) 

www.act.org/compass/sample/index.html 

 

ASSET   (paper‐and‐pencil test) 

www.act.org/asset/pdf/guide.pdf 

 

For more information about preparing for placement 

tests, visit the College for Adults Placement Tests Web 

page at www.collegeforadults.org/admissions/

placement.html . 

The Gap: Examining the Difference Between the

GED ® and College Placement Tests

   Ms. Goodman’s presentation focused 

on the most common college place‐

ment tests and compared them to the 

GED. To view the presentation materi‐

als and see the comparisons, visit: 

www.collegetransition.org/profdev/

strands/Sandy%20Goodman%20‐%

20The%20Gap.pdf.   

Ms. Goodman emphasized that the 

minimum academic requirements for 

new students, the choice of placement 

entrance tests and subtests, and how 

scores are interpreted and placements 

made, are up to each higher education 

institution. Adult education programs 

supporting students as they transition 

to post‐secondary education should 

get to know the local community  

colleges, training programs, and 4‐year 

schools in their regions. Some sugges‐

tions for becoming familiar with indi‐

vidual school requirements include: 

Having adult education staff take 

the college placement tests at local col‐

leges and institutes 

Reading college course catalogs 

for Development Education and credit 

course sequences, descriptions, and 

cut‐off scores 

Speaking to Developmental Edu‐

cation instructors about their course 

content, texts and materials, and skills 

needed to succeed 

Reviewing Developmental Educa‐

tion and credit course textbooks. 

 

The presenter also made the following 

recommendations for adult education 

programs: 

Incorporate pre‐algebra and alge‐

bra concepts into ABE or Transition 

curricula. 

Incorporate college‐level reading 

texts and higher order synthesis and 

evaluation skills into ABE or  

Transition curricula. 

Introduce longer essay‐writing 

activities and writing for a variety of 

purposes. 

Teach test‐taking skills such as: 

 

 ‐ Use college placement test sample 

questions for practice tests. 

 

 ‐ Have students use computers to  

prepare for computer‐adaptive tests 

(CATs) which require skills such as 

screen reading, scrolling, mouse skills, 

composing and editing.) 

 

 ‐ Teach test‐taking strategies for  

multiple‐choice tests. 

 

 ‐ Teach relaxation techniques. 

 

 ‐ Review specific school testing center 

hours, policies, etc. with students. 

CNEPDC Newsletter Page 2 

By Sandy Goodman, National College Transition Network, delivered at COABE’s 2007 National Conference 

Page 3: January February 2010

President’s Council of Economic Advisers (CAE) Call For

Functional Context Education (FCE) and Non-Cognitive

Skills in Adult Basic Education

Page 3 January—February 2010 

   In a recent report, President 

Obama’s Council of Economic Ad‐

visers (CEA 2009) called attention to 

problems with the nation’s adult 

education and job training system 

saying, “Many of the components of 

the Obama Admini‐

stration’s vision of a 

well‐functioning post‐

high school education 

and training system 

cannot be achieved 

with the current, of‐

ten conflicting and 

confusing, maze of 

job training programs spread across 

several Federal agencies. (p. 19)” 

   In the report, the Council addresses 

the need for effective curricula in 

adult basic skills (English, literacy, 

numeracy‐LLN) and job training 

programs. Included in its examples 

of curricula changes that research 

indicates would lead to improve‐

ments in participation, retention, 

achievement in learning, program 

completion, and greater work oppor‐

tunities, the Council referred to 

“contextualized learning” and the 

growing importance of “non‐

cognitive” skills. 

   In its focus on “contextualized 

learning,” the Council referred to 

practices that were first outlined as 

effective based on adult job training 

and literacy research in a book by 

Sticht, Armstrong, Hickey, & Caylor 

(1987).  This book outlined the prin‐

ciples of Functional Context Educa‐

tion (FCE), one of which called for 

the integration of basic skills and 

occupational skills education. Later, 

in 1991, when Sticht served as a 

member of the Secretary of Labor’s 

Commission on Necessary Skills 

(SCANS), FCE principles were in‐

cluded in the 

first report of the 

SCANS and  

referred to as 

“contextual 

learning.” 

   The Council’s 

report endorses 

the FCE princi‐

ple of integrated 

or embedded basic skills and occupa‐

tional education and states, “… one 

of the more promising curricular 

innovations that helps to improve 

student success is contextualized 

learning, in which adults obtain basic 

skills in the context of occupational 

training. Not only does this allow the 

students to progress through the 

programs more quickly but it also 

helps to keep them engaged with 

relevant examples and applications. 

(p.20)” 

   In discussing contextualized learn‐

ing, the Council states, “Another 

common element of successful pro‐

grams is that they are based on ap‐

propriate curriculum and pedagogy. 

Washington State’s I‐BEST program, 

for example, blends basic skills and 

occupational training to generate 

more contextualized learning, where 

traditionally these have been segre‐

gated into distinct programs. The 

result is a more effective approach to 

teaching adults who need both basic 

skills and job skills. A recent analysis 

conducted by researchers at the 

Community College Research Center 

at Columbia University’s Teachers 

College suggests that it is highly ef‐

fective.  I‐BEST students were far 

more likely than similar basic skills 

students to improve basic skills and 

earn college‐level credits. As another 

example, Alan Krueger and Cecilia 

Rouse studied a workplace educa‐

tion program that also taught basic 

skills in an occupational context. The 

authors reported positive impacts on 

earnings, job promotion, perform‐

ance awards, and job atten‐

dance.” (p. 18) 

   In addition to its focus on contex‐

tual learning, the SCANS (1991) re‐

port identified a number of compe‐

tencies that were thought increas‐

ingly necessary in the changing 

world of work. Among these were 

Personal Qualities such as Responsi‐

bility, Self‐Esteem, Self‐Management, 

Works With Diversity, Participates 

as Member of a Team, and others 

which have more recently been re‐

ferred to by the umbrella term “non‐

cognitive skills.”     In its 2009 report, coming almost 

two decades after the SCANS report, 

the Council addresses these types of 

SCANS competencies and states, 

“Although ‘interactive’ skills, such as 

effective communication and the 

ability to work well with others, 

have not traditionally been studied, 

By:  Tom Sticht, Posted on the National Institute for Literacy’s Adult Literacy Professional Development  

E‐Mail Discussion List, August 26, 2009 

“… one of the more promising 

curricular innovations that 

helps to improve student suc‐

cess is “contextualized learn‐

ing,” in which adults obtain 

basic skills in the context of 

occupational training.  

President’s Council Continued 

 on page 6 

Page 4: January February 2010

The Goodling Institute for Research in Family Literacy at The Pennsylvania State University and the 

National Center for Family Literacy are sponsoring a new National Family Literacy Discussion List. 

Gail Price of the National Center for Family Literacy will moderate this list. The Discussion List will 

provide a forum for discussing family literacy program operation and instructional practices,  

research and evaluation, and policies and advocacy. To subscribe, send a message to National 

FamilyLiteracy‐L‐subscribe‐[email protected] . No subject or message text is required. 

 New ABLE Website Reminder

Having trouble finding the ABLE website lately? This is a reminder that the old PDE website at www.pde.state.pa.us, which includes ABLE at www.able.state.pa.us and Family Literacy at www.pafamilyliteracy.org, was unpublished December 1, 2009. All official documents and key resources are on the new ABLE Pages at www.education.state.pa.us. Click on the Programs menu item on the left and then on the link labeled Adult Basic & Literacy Education. Please direct technical questions about the new website to the Webmaster at [email protected]. Content questions can be directed to Tana Reiff at [email protected].

CNEPDC Newsletter Page 4 

Jobs for the Future (JFF): Education for Economic Opportunity www.jff.org

What is “Jobs for the Future” (JFF)?  

JFF identifies, develops, and pro‐

motes new education and workforce 

strategies that help communities, 

states, and the nation COMPETE IN 

A GLOBAL ECONOMY.   

             Links of Interest:  

Connecting Literacy and Work  

www.jff.org/projects/current/

workforce/connecting‐literacy‐and‐

work/918 

With funding from the Dollar Gen‐

eral Literacy Foundation, Connecting 

Literacy and Work encompasses 

three strands of JFF work that are 

strengthening the connections be‐

tween adult literacy and workforce 

development: 

 ‐ Connecting adult literacy to em‐ployment; 

 ‐ Building the capacity of literacy networks to partner with sector‐

based workforce development initia‐

tives; 

 ‐ Technical assistance and documen‐

tation.  

Together, these activities will deepen 

and disseminate strategies that ad‐

vance low‐skilled adults in their ca‐

reers through tighter linkages be‐

tween adult literacy and workforce 

initiatives at the community level.  

GED to College 

www.jff.org/projects/current/

education/ged‐college/841 

JFF is working to increase the range 

and number of high‐quality path‐

ways into and through postsecondary 

education for low‐income young peo‐

ple, especially those most in danger 

of being left behind in our economy. 

The GED to College initiative is 

growing a new pathway that pro‐

vides students who have dropped 

out with what they need to succeed 

in postsecondary education. 

 

Key Design Features of a GED to 

College Pathway 

www.jff.org/sites/default/files/

GEDtocol‐

lege_design_elements_072109.pdf 

New National Family Literacy Discussion List

Page 5: January February 2010

Page 5 January—February 2010 

Educational Technology Clearinghouse

The Florida Center for Instructional Technology (FCIT) 

and the Educational Technology Clearinghouse (ETC) 

provide digital content, professional development, and 

technical services supporting the appropriate integration 

of technology into K‐12 and pre‐service education.  The 

resources available on this site are available to every‐

one.  Please visit http://etc.usf.edu for resources such as:  

Presentations ETC 

Free backgrounds for Keynote or PowerPoint presenta‐

tions, selection of themes, templates and links to other 

presentation resource sites.  

Clipart ETC 

Free education clipart with choice of im‐

age sizes and source information for 

proper citations in projects. 

 

Links to resources by subject matter 

Includes links to resources for adult edu‐

cation! 

“A teacher 

affects eternity; 

he can never 

tell where his 

influence 

stops.” 

 

~Henry Brooks 

Adams 

The mission of Women Employed is to improve the economic status of 

women and remove barriers to economic equity. 

 

Visit www.womenemployed.org/?id=38 to find Women Employed Ca‐

reer Coach, a complete program that will help your student learn about 

good careers, set a career goal, and make plans to reach it.  Your students 

can take a FREE Online Career Test to learn about their interests and start 

on a new path. 

Women Employed Career Coach

Wikimedia Commons is a media file repository making available public domain and  

freely‐licensed educational media content (images, sound, and video clips) to everyone, in 

their own language.  

Wikimedia Commons uses the same wiki‐technology as Wikipedia and everyone can edit it. 

It is free and everyone is allowed to copy, use, and modify any files freely as long as the 

course and the authors are credited and as long as users release their copies/improvements 

under the same freedom to others. The site is maintained by volunteers and everyone is en‐

couraged to participate by contributing their work, translating help texts into a language 

other than English, improve images, identify unknown objects, and contribute their legal 

knowledge on copyright questions and deletion requests.  

Visit http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page for more information. 

Wikimedia Commons

Technology Tidbits  

Page 6: January February 2010

 

President’s Council of Economic Advisers, Continued

...continued from page 3 

nor perhaps valued, by educators, there is growing awareness of 

their importance for adult success. Researchers have highlighted the 

growing importance of “non‐cognitive” skills in the labor market 

and argue that a range of behaviors that reflect “greater student self‐

awareness, self‐monitoring, and self‐control” are key indicators that 

students are able to effectively learn and succeed in a modern post‐

secondary environment.” (p. 10) 

 

The attention to contextualized learning and non‐cognitive skills by influential policymakers and  

advisors to the President of the United States provides vitally important recommendations for changes 

to the AELS.  We can just hope that these same policymakers and the President will find the financial 

resources to make it possible for adult educators to implement these recommendations across the Adult 

Education and Literacy System of the United States. 

CNEPDC Newsletter Page 6 

Can the Web Save Professional Development?

www.edweek.org by Anthony Rebora

   “Six or seven years ago, I was as‐

signed to write a piece for Education 

Week’s Web site summarizing the 

latest research on teacher professional 

development. Somewhat to my sur‐

prise, I found that there was a great 

deal of consensus among researchers 

and other experts on the qualities of 

effective teacher‐learning activities. 

The studies and articles I reviewed 

stressed the need for collaboration, 

teacher inquiry, practical instructional 

tasks, relevant subject matter, and con‐

sistent follow‐up.” 

   “Unfortunately, the experts also 

agreed that professional development 

defined by these traits wasn’t exactly 

flourishing in schools. For financial 

and structural reasons, schools were 

still tied to the one‐shot workshop 

model, which pretty much no one 

seemed to like.” 

The piece I wrote [referring to an arti‐

cle on professional development] did‐

n’t mention the use of interactive tech‐

nology for teacher‐learning activities, 

because at the time such programs 

were in their infancy. But since then, 

of course, online professional develop‐

ment initiatives have mushroomed. 

Online courses, webinars, discussion 

groups, social networks, blogs, wikis, 

and Web‐based workspaces have all 

assumed prominent spots in the 

teacher‐PD lexicon. 

   And in light of that research consen‐

sus I wrote about, it’s not hard to see 

their attraction for teachers: Digital 

platforms harbor the potential to sup‐

port learning experiences that are in‐

herently personalized, interactive, and 

sustained. Because of their flexibility 

and convenience, meanwhile, they can 

often be readily integrated into educa‐

tors’ professional lives. 

   You have to wonder: Can digital 

technology help break the decades‐

long hold of generic “sit‐‘n‐git” profes‐

sional development? That is the ques‐

tion underlying this issue of the 

Teacher Professional Development 

Sourcebook. 

   The core of the answer, I think, is 

provided by Harvard ed‐tech profes‐

sor Chris Dede in our interview with 

him: “Only if people use the tools 

well.” 

 

Teacher Professional Development 

Sourcebook, Volume 3, Issue 1, Octo‐

ber 1, 2009 www.edweek.org/tsb/

articles/2009/10/01/01ednote.h03.html   

Retrieved November 18, 2009 

                 

Page 7: January February 2010

Page 7 January—February 2010 

Free Health Literacy Materials in English and Spanish Provided by Kim Rossman, Tutors of Literacy in the Commonwealth

Adult educators can download free health 

literacy materials at 

www.jointcommission.org/PatientSafety/

SpeakUp/  developed by the 

Joint Commission, together with the  

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Ser‐

vices, and aimed at improving medical 

treatment through better doctor‐patient 

communication. 

 

Materials, including a video and pamphlets 

in English and Spanish, teach 

patients, for example, how to prevent 

medication mistakes or infection.  The 

campaign is part of the Joint Commissionʹs 

patient Speak Up safety program.  

“The 

significance of 

a man is not in 

what he 

attains but in 

what he longs 

to attain.” 

 

~Kahlil  

Gibran 

Are you new to the world of adult education, or know someone that is?  Do you wish that you 

had some guidance to help you get through those first few months/year of teaching adults?  

The CNEPDC would like to help you!  Beginning January 4, 2010 the CNEPDC will again be 

offering the online course Adult Education Overview.  The course introduces practitioners to 

the field of adult education, exploring several topics of interest.  In addition, help/FAQs and 

links for more information about specific aspects of each topic are readily available.  This is a 

self‐paced course lasting six (6) weeks, and awards 18 Act 48/Professional Development hours.  

Please visit e‐Campus and register today (make sure you register for the 01/04/2010 training, as 

there are several listed!).  We look forward to “meeting” you! 

Attention New Teachers!

Adult Education Overview is For YOU!

Council for the Advancement of Adult Literacy (CAAL) released The Power of Technology to Transform Adult Learn-ing: Expanding Access to Adult Education and Workforce Skills Through Distance Learning. This 65-page paper is based on a 9-month project directed by Dr. Mary L. McCain of TechVision 21 in Washington, D.C. Federal and state government is the primary audience, but CAAL also aims to help inform private sector engagement and assist pro-gram and curriculum development professionals. Among the report's recommendations are to establish a national web portal to meet the needs of both adult learners and professional/skilled ICT users; federal incentives to encour-age and help states integrate technology-assisted learning into overall adult education and workforce skills planning; projects to support the development of distance learning in a variety of areas (such as distance learning certifica-tions, performance measures that validate ICT literacy, and online learning assessment); a strong research, analy-sis, and evaluation program; and activities to foster stakeholder involvement, including the philanthropic and busi-ness communities. The Power of Technology includes a primer section on the tools of technology. Another section presents exemplary national and state technology-based program models for instruction, professional development, and program/data management. Findings of recent research on distance learning are presented and analyzed, and an extensive bibliographic appendix is included. The report is available as NC-CAAL11 from the CAAL website at www.caalusa.org/POWER_OF_TECH.pdf . It can also be purchased directly from CAAL ($20 plus postage, volume discounts available). 

The Power of Technology to Transform

Adult Learning

Council for the Advancement of Adult Literacy (CAAL), October 21, 2009 

Page 8: January February 2010

Page 8  CNEPDC Newsletter 

Page 9: January February 2010

PAACE is currently busy 

planning for the 45th Annual 

PAACE Conference.  This 

year’s conference will be 

held at the Penn Stater Con‐

ference Center Hotel in State 

College, PA from June 1‐3, 

2010.  This is an excellent 

opportunity for professional 

development and network‐

ing for all aspects of adult 

education in Pennsylvania.  

Please visit the PAACE web‐

site at www.paacesite.org for 

more information on  

conference registration. 

Proposals are now being 

accepted for the PAACE 

Conference.  The submission 

deadline is February 1, 2010. 

PAACE Conference Com‐

mittees are now being 

formed.  If you would like to 

share your ideas and be in‐

volved in a committee, 

please contact Lori Keefer 

via email at [email protected] 

or call 412.661.7323. 

The CNEPDC will again be 

helping to send adult educa‐

tion practitioners to the 

PAACE Conference.  Admin‐

istrators should check their 

email for details sent from the 

CNEPDC on PAACE Scholar‐

ships!  Application guide‐

lines, as well as the applica‐

tion form, can be found in the 

email.  We hope to see you in 

State College in June! 

information collected on this Web 

site useful.  

 

Users are encouraged to work 

through the Interest Profiler, Work 

Importance Profiler, and Assess 

Yourself assessment.   

Comprehensive information on 900 

occupations includes state specific 

wages, worker attributes, and job 

Developed by the PA Department 

of Education and PA  

Department of Labor and Industry, 

the Pennsylvania CareerZone 

(www.pacareerzone.com) is an 

online career exploration and plan‐

ning system designed  

specifically for PA current and fu‐

ture jobseekers. Educators and 

counselors will also find the  

characteristics. There are 300 career 

videos.  Job  

openings on America’s Job  

Exchange are accessible within 

each occupation profile.  

Pennsylvania CareerZone uses 

data from version 12.0 of the O*Net 

Database.  

Visit www.pacareerzone for more 

information. 

PAACE Conference Updates

Pennsylvania Career Zone: The Place to Learn About Careers in

the Keystone State

The Right Question Project on Facebook

The Right Question Project, visit http://www.rightquestion.org.  To read stories 

from teachers and tutors who have used the RQP method with learners, as well 

as share ideas and network, visit them on Facebook at 

www.facebook.com/pages/The‐Right‐Question‐Project/288907585462?ref=ts#.  

Click on “Become a Fan” at the top center of the page. 

Many of you have heard of 

The Right Question Project 

(RQP).  But for those of you 

who have not, it is a non‐

profit educational organiza‐

tion offering strategies to 

people in low and moderate‐

income communities the 

power to advocate for them‐

selves.   To learn more about 

Page 9 January—February 2010 

The 45th Annual

PAACE Conference

June 1-3, 2010

The Penn Stater

Conference Center

Hotel

State College, PA

www.paacesite.org

Page 10: January February 2010

You can find new partnership models for transition programs in a report by the Workforce Strategy  

Center and funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Employers, Young Adults and Postsecondary 

Credentials: A Practical Typology for Business, Education and Community Leaders. The report offers 

models for education and training programs involving employers in efforts to help disadvantaged young 

adults attain post‐secondary credentials leading to career track employment. The study identified 14 

model programs led by five distinct types of organizations: community‐based organizations, community 

and technical colleges, employers, industry, and social enterprise organizations.   Find the report online at 

www.workforcestrategy.org/publications/WSC_employer_involvement_2009.10.20.pdf.  

Workforce Strategy Center Report Offers Partnership

Models for Post-Secondary Success OVAE’s Thursday Notes, October 29, 2009

The mission of the National Coalition for Literacy (NCL) is to advance adult education, family literacy, and Eng‐

lish language acquisition in the U.S. by increasing public awareness for the need to increase funding and pro‐

grams; promoting effective public policy; and serving as an authoritative resource for the field on national adult 

education issues. 

National Coalition for Literacy

www.national-coalition-literacy.org

Oral-Language Skills for English-Learners Focus of Researchers

 ‐ Research studies show oral‐language teaching can 

help acquire academic vocabulary. 

 ‐ Academic words need to be taught explicitly. 

 ‐ Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) 

was reviewed (30 strategies typically provided to regu‐

lar content teachers as professional development.  In‐

cludes a strong focus on oral‐language development). 

  

To read the full article, please contact any CNEPDC 

staff member and we will be happy to provide this to 

you. 

A research article published by Education Week states that 

“Educators and researchers who specialize in the education 

of English‐language learners are putting new emphasis on 

the importance of teaching oral English.”  The National 

Center for Research on the Educational Achievement and 

Teaching of English‐Language Learners (CREATE) held a 

conference on October 5‐6 about teaching oral language and 

literacy to English –language learners (ELL).  Items dis‐

cussed were as follows: 

 ‐ Oral language is often forgotten about. 

 ‐ Oral skills are not just for ELL, but also for at‐risk students. 

Page 10  CNEPDC Newsletter

Education Week, October 21, 2009 

Jackie Taylor 

NCL Technology Coordinator 

Public Policy Co‐Chair 

[email protected]  

Contact information for the National Coalition for Literacy: P.O. Box 2932 

Washington, DC 20013‐2932 

Fax: 1.866.738.3757 

Page 11: January February 2010

Besides reauthorizing adult educa‐

tion and literacy programs, the 

Workforce Investment Act of 1998 

authorized a new Workforce In‐

vestment System and provided 

guidelines for the organization of 

the system to be implemented in 

each state. In Pennsylvania, the 

system is managed by the PA De‐

partment of Labor and Industry 

and advised by the PA Workforce 

Investment Board (PAWIB). 

The Act also requires that states be 

divided into regional Workforce 

Investment Areas (WIAs). Each 

WIA is overseen by a group of 

representatives from area busi‐

nesses, unions, schools, universi‐

ties, and social service agencies. 

This group is called the Local 

Workforce Investment Board 

(LWIB). At least 51% of the board 

must consist of representatives 

from area business and industry. 

LWIBs, under the guidance of a 

board chairperson, engage in stra‐

tegic planning, policy develop‐

ment, and oversight activities 

within the Workforce Investment 

Area. ABLE programs should also 

be represented on each LWIB by 

an individual appointed by the 

ABLE programs in the Workforce 

Investment Area. 

Because LWIB members are vol‐

unteers, each Workforce Invest‐

ment Area must be managed by 

an organization or management 

entity. The management entity, 

under the direction of an organiza‐

tional director, conducts the day‐

to‐day operations of the LWIB, 

serves as the fiscal agent, and em‐

ploys staff to carry out activities 

related to board operations and 

compliance with legislative re‐

quirements. Many ABLE Coali‐

tions include a representative of 

the management entity in quar‐

terly meetings to share informa‐

tion and ideas. 

Do you know in which Work‐

force Investment Area(s) your 

program is located? Many ABLE 

programs serve learners in more 

than one WIA so ask your ad‐

ministrator. Do some investigat‐

ing to find out who chairs your 

LWIB(s) and the name of the 

organization managing work‐

force development activities in 

your area(s). 

commercials were produced, bill‐

boards and postcards were  

designed to promote SCOLA to 

those who wanted to improve 

their skills.  By now, you have 

probably seen a TV commercial 

on WNEP, or heard one on one of 

the Entercom radio stations, or 

seen one of the billboards.  You 

may also have seen the postcards 

in an emergency room or a local 

agency.   

This project could never have 

come to fruition without the 

dedication of our wonderful 

Leadership Lackawanna 

Last fall, Leadership Lackawanna 

notified SCOLA that the project 

we had submitted was accepted 

by Leadership Lackawanna for 

one of their group projects.  Six 

up‐and‐coming community lead‐

ers were assigned to the pro‐

ject:  Nicole Alaimo, Karen 

Capulish, Ken Knelly,  Katie  

Leonard, Barry Linger, and 

Teresa Mislinski.  With the assis‐

tance of Nancy Dressel and the 

oversight of Diana Statsman, the 

campaign, “Read Better.  It’s not 

too late.” was developed by the 

group.  Scripts were written, 

group.  They were the creative 

minds that developed all the 

products and also helped in se‐

curing the talent and fund‐

ing.  Special thanks also must go 

to all our partners in this pro‐

ject:  WNEP TV, Entercom Radio, 

Verizon, Margaret Briggs Foun‐

dation, Lamar Advertising, Dan 

Simrell Advertising, Scranton 

Printing, FastSigns, Keystone 

Community Resources, and espe‐

cially, Leadership Lackawanna. 

Youtube link:  

www.youtube.com/watch?

v=0tCAe2H2xXc 

Who Guides and Manages the PA Workforce Development System? The second article in a series explaining the role of ABLE programs in the PA Workforce Development System

Leadership Lackawanna Helps SCOLA Reach New Heights By Diana Statsman, SCOLA Volunteers for Literacy

Page 11 January—February 2010

Page 12: January February 2010

INSIDE:

 

The CNEPDC has a change of address...for our website, that is! If you have our old website

bookmarked (www.cnepdc.org), we will continue to run it for a bit, but please note that we

have moved to http://ciu10.schoolwires.net. From the “Professional Development”

menu at the top,

right-hand side, click on Central Northeast Professional Development Center, and there we

are. We will continue to provide you with the same information that we have in the past, just

at a different location with a different look.

We want to hear from you. Is there something you would like to see on our site? Finding it hard to navigate? Let us

know! Contact any PDC member with your ideas!

http://ciu10.schoolwires.net This publication was supported in part by the U.S. Department of Education through the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Bureau of Adult 

Basic and Literacy Education. However, the opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the position or the policy of the U.S. Department 

of Education or the Pennsylvania Department of Education.  No official endorsement of these agencies should be inferred. 

Act 48 Procedures 

SCOLA Volunteers for 

Literacy 

Center for Applied Lin‐

guistics (CAL) Resources 

CNEPDC’s New Website! 

Central Northeast Professional Development

Center

8 North Grove Street

2nd Floor, Suite #1

Lock Haven, PA 17745