Azusa Library :: The Dream Of Citizenship Is Alive And Well

The Dream Of Citizenship Is Alive And Well At Azusa Library

SGV Tribune: 11.21.2019 by Anissa Rivera

For Miguel Requelme, 34, of Covina, action is hope.

Born in Mexico, and brought to America at age 3, he grew up grateful that his parents sacrificed so much to give him a better life. Requelme graduated from Wilson High School in Long Beach in 2003, married in 2005 and is the proud father of two daughters. He worked his way up in the fast food industry and is now a general manager.

“As a naturalized citizen, I am looking forward to starting my own business this upcoming year,” Requelme said.

But first, he made time to celebrate Azusa’s newest crop of American citizens. Requelme, after all, is himself a graduate of the Inspired Citizenship program at Azusa City Library.

Arlene Calderon, adult literacy program coordinator at Azusa City Library, invited Requelme to speak to 33 newly-minted Americans at a Nov. 9 celebration.  READ MORE >>

Flashcards :: Amazingly Simple Technique Lets You Learn Anything in 5 Minute via Incs

The Ultimate List  

Best DIY Flashcard Apps

This Amazingly Simple Technique Lets You Learn Anything in 5 Minutes and Remember It Forever

Inc: 2.13.2018 by Minda Zetlin

If you're struggling to master a complex topic, a new language, or anything else that seems to strain your brain, Michael Nielsen has a suggestion for you: Try flashcards. Nielsen is a scientist and a research fellow at Y Combinator, and he's written books on such brain-straining topics as quantum computing and neural networks.

In a recent series of tweets, he explains his process and why he finds flashcards so useful. Silicon Valley insiders have been passing his advice along and asking for details about how he does it.

Nielsen says he first started memorizing flash cards (using an app called Anki, although there are lots of options) two years ago. Since then, he's memorized more than 9,000 flashcards, reviewing them while doing things like standing in line for coffee or riding in transit. He says he spends a total of about 20 minutes a day reviewing flashcards.

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Nielsen has a simple rule: If learning something could save him five minutes in the future, then he'll put whatever it is onto flashcards because it takes less than five minutes total to learn things this way.

1. Spaced repetition

This is what Nielsen sees as the reason for his success. Research has long shown that we absorb information better when it's repeated, but also when we have time to rest and reflect between study or practice times.  READ MORE >>

Redlands Library :: Success Stories In Redlands Literacy Program Are As Unique As Its 100-Plus Learners

Success Stories In Redlands Literacy Program Are As Unique As Its 100-Plus Learners

The Redlands Adult Literacy Program is expanding with a family literacy class beginning in September

Redlands Daily Facts: 9.08.2019 by Diane Shimota, Adult Literacy Coord-A.K. Smiley Library

New volunteers sometimes ask how the Redlands Adult Literacy Program measures learner success. Most adults join the literacy program to improve their reading and writing skills in order to get a new or better job, help their children with their homework or further their own education, but reaching these goals is as unique as the 103 adults who were served by the program last year.

Some adults who ask for literacy assistance have little or no foundation in reading. At this level, participants learn to read basic words for the first time. For example, one adult learner recently celebrated being able to read and write 80 of the 100 most common words in the English language. Knowing how to read these 80 words has opened the door for him to begin reading sentences, stories in picture books, and signs that he comes across in his daily life.

One tutor was very excited to report that her learner was now reading fluently, which enabled him to understand what he reads. Now he is excited about reading biographies and learning about famous people in history.

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Adult learners have a wide range of writing skills. Some learners begin by writing two-word responses to questions, then later progress to writing full sentences and then stories. Their enthusiasm for writing continues to grow. This year 40 learners wrote and submitted their works for publication in the adult literacy anthology, “Our Stories, A Collection of Writings, Volume 2.” (Volumes 1 and 2 are available for checkout at the library.) Authors were invited to read their stories aloud at the June 2019 Celebration of Authors. It was heartwarming to observe how the adult learners’ family members saw their loved ones in a new light, as they witnessed their newly gained skills and confidence.  READ MORE >>

Next Tutor Orientation

January 28, 2020 - 6:00 pm

Please call the Redlands Adult Literacy Program

office at 909.798.7565, ext. 4138 

Literacy Library Jobs :: Yolo County

Literacy Library Jobs – California

Family Lit Asst – PT

Yolo County Library

plan,develop, and implement family literacy services and programs

DEADLINE:  NOV 25

Literacy Clerk – Temporary

Salinas Library

support student and family literacy programs

DEALINE: OPEN

Library Literacy Aide – PT

Huntington Beach Library

staffs the literacy office & assists literacy volunteers and adult literacy students

DEADLINE:  OPEN

BayNet Library and Information Network

CLA Career Center

CalOpps

Library Jobs in California

Literacy Gap Map :: Adult Illiteracy May Drive $1.4T Loss In GDP via Politico

Literacy Gap Map

Adult Illiteracy May Drive $1.4T Loss In GDP

Politico: 11.14.2019

The nation could counter those costs with the eradication of illiteracy — bringing all adults up to a level where they can interpret and infer information from complex texts — said Jonathan Rothwell, Gallup’s principal economist.

Rothwell said his findings help quantify a well-known relationship between literacy and earnings performance at the individual level and GDP at the macroeconomic level.

He conducted the analysis of existing data for the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy and presented the findings on Wednesday at the foundation’s inaugural National Summit on Adult Literacy.

The foundation also released a map showing literacy levels by county and the impact of literacy on health and income. More than 36 million adults in the U.S. lack basic literacy skills, according to the foundation, and there are many clusters of low-literacy counties in the South, particularly along the Mississippi River, in western Alabama and from Georgia up through the Carolinas.

Literacy Reports & Statistics

Adult

2019: Adult Literacy in the United States, NCES 2019-179

2019: Literacy Gap Map, Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy

2013: OECD Skills Outlook 2013: First Results from the Survey of Adult Skills, OECD

2009: Literacy of America's Least Literate Adults, NAAL 2003

2006: Literacy of America's College Students, AIR

2007: Literacy in Everyday Life, NAAL 2003

2003: National Assessment of Adult Literacy, NAAL

2000: Programs for Adults in Public Library Outlets, USDE, NCES

1992: National Adult Literacy Survey, NALS

Upland Library :: Trivia and Silent Auction :: Nov 16

Trivia and Silent Auction

Upland Library Adult Literacy

November 16

3:30 pm - 5:30 pm

Trivia and Silent Auction Nov 16

Rescue Brewing Co.

Are you looking for a rewarding way to volunteer in your community while helping an adult improve their life? Volunteering at the Upland Public Library’s Adult Literacy Program is a wonderful way to offer service to your city. The Adult Literacy Program provides free, private, one-on-one tutoring for adults seeking assistance in improving reading and writing skills. After an initial interview, the adult learner is matched with a volunteer-tutor and they meet once or twice a week at the Upland Public Library. Adult learners set their own goals based on their needs. Here are some of the areas where our specially trained tutors can help:

•            Tutoring for the GED or citizenship test.

•            Reading and writing improvement

•            Comprehension and spelling improvement

Since its start in 1989, the completely grant-funded Adult Literacy Program has successfully impacted the lives of over 1,000 individual adult learners with the help. For more information, or to volunteer as a tutor, please contact the Literacy Coordinator at (909) 931-4211.

Los Angeles Public Library :: Enfoque en la alfabetización: un sueño hecho realidad

Enfoque en la alfabetización: un sueño hecho realidad

LAPL Blog: 8.07.2019 by Randall Hinson, Librarian, Office of Education and Literacy

En julio del año pasado, tres estudiantes emprendieron su camino hacia la alfabetización a través de Leamos, un programa de alfabetización a base de computadora, en la Biblioteca Pacoima. Leamos provee a hispanohablantes, quienes no tuvieron la oportunidad de asistir a la escuela en su niñez, un curso de lectura y escritura en su idioma nativo. También los capacita en nociones básicas del uso de la computadora y sirve como precursor a clases de inglés como segundo idioma.

Nueve meses después de comenzar el curso, dos estudiantes aplicadas y trabajadoras siguen trabajando hacia su sueño de poder leer y escribir. La Sra. Ana Teresa Batrez y la Sra. Silvia Barahona García llegan a la biblioteca cada lunes, por dos horas, a reforzar y extender sus conocimientos. Hasta la fecha, han leído textos de todo tipo - incluyendo: libros infantiles, titulares de periódicos, solicitudes de empleo, etiquetas de comida y medicina, pistas de crucigramas, horóscopos y reflexiones de estudiantes que han cumplido el curso.

La meta de Ana es escribir la historia de su vida, la cual ha sido un triunfo sobre la adversidad, para compartir con otros e inspirarlos. Silvia quisiera usar su alfabetización para avanzar en su trabajo y ser reconocida como la persona capaz que es. Cada una de ellas está modelando para sus hijos y/o nietos la importancia de perseguir un sueño y mantenerse en curso. No cabe decir que también han sido una fuente de inspiración para sus maestros.

Focus On Literacy: A Dream Come True

Randall Hinson , Librarian , Office of Education and Literacy

In July last year, three students embarked on their path to literacy through Leamos, a computer-based literacy program, at the Pacoima Library. Leamos provides Spanish speakers, who did not have the opportunity to attend school in their childhood, a reading and writing course in their native language. It also trains them in basic notions of computer use and serves as a precursor to English as a second language classes.

Nine months after starting the course, two applied and hardworking students continue working towards their dream of being able to read and write. Mrs. Ana Teresa Batrez and Mrs. Silvia Barahona García arrive at the library every Monday, for two hours, to reinforce and extend their knowledge. To date, they have read texts of all kinds - including: children's books, newspaper headlines, job applications, food and medicine labels, crossword clues, horoscopes and reflections of students who have completed the course.

Ana's goal is to write the story of her life, which has been a triumph over adversity, to share with others and inspire them. Silvia would like to use her literacy to advance her work and be recognized as the capable person she is. Each of them is modeling for their children and / or grandchildren the importance of pursuing a dream and staying on course. It cannot be said that they have also been a source of inspiration for their teachers.  READ MORE >>