CALP Connections: March 2023

A Message from Tanya Mercredi, Vice Chair & Chair of the Governance Committee

Welcome, March! March 20th is the official start of spring and I couldn’t be happier! 

The days are getting longer at the farm, where I live with my husband. We’re shaking off our semi-hibernation winter routines and are getting ready for brand new seasons of renewal, growth and change. We’re preparing for new babies, new plants, and learning new and better ways of doing things. I always approach these new seasons with curiosity because I know that nature is going to teach me something new – it does every time. I am very much an adult learner in these situations. 

My name is Tanya Mercredi and I am the Rimbey Coordinator of Ponoka & Rimbey Adult Learning. Last month marked my sixth year in this role, and much like at home, my curiosity has driven me in this position and I found there’s always something new, exciting, and relevant to learn.  

My curiosity sparked when I first read that the CLN Board was recruiting new members.  I knew I was going to apply, but then I became curious about other things:

• Do I even know enough about being a board member and have the confidence to make a valuable contribution amongst such esteemed colleagues? Hint: You do!
• Am I going to look like a fool if I have to ask questions because I don’t understand something? Not in the slightest.
• Will my voice (and opinions) be heard – and matter? Absolutely.
• Will the demands of being on the board interfere with my job? It hasn’t yet, and because the time away is minimal and my travel is compensated, my own board is more than willing to support my involvement. 

On top of sharing the answers to my own questions, I would like to highlight a few of the benefits I have found serving on the CLN Board of Directors. 

• I am working with some wonderful committed and knowledgeable people who are both generous and kind in sharing their expertise.
• The conversations are always insightful, engaging, and forward-thinking.
• I’ve learned so much about being on a provincial board and board governance and always felt supported in learning the role. This, in turn, has helped me work with my own board.
• The networking opportunities are outstanding!
• There is something that makes me feel very “connected” working with a group of people who share a passion for helping adult learners and the adult learning community.
• All of this has contributed to my growth both personally and professionally.

The CLN Board has gone through and will continue to go through renewals, growth, and change and I am very grateful to be part of this ‘season’ on the board.

We are looking for CALP members to join our board!  I would encourage anyone interested in becoming a board member to contact our Chair, Colleen Thiessen at ed@wetaskiwinlearning.ca. Colleen is very gracious in answering any questions you might have. You may also reach out to any of the other board members.(Find out more about the board members on the CALP Portal here: https://calp.ca/cln-board-of-directors.html).  

CLN Board nomination and applications can be found on the CALP Portal:

CLN Board Member Position Description

CLN Board Member Nomination Form

I hope everyone is well and has a wonderful spring!

Literacy and Learning Symposium 2023

REMINDER: Symposium 2023 Registration Deadline is April 21st!

CLN invites you to join us at Symposium 2023. It will be another year of extensive and relevant PD mixed with connecting and networking time, as requested by you on your evaluations from our last Symposium.

Our theme for 2023 is:

SPARK: Learning. Connections. Inspiration. Curiosity. Innovation.

The dates are:

Tuesday, May 9th to Wednesday, May 10th – Virtual event

Thursday, May 11th to Friday, May 12th – In-person event in Edmonton

If you haven’t checked it out yet, here’s a glimpse of what to expect.

Registration Reminder:

This year, there are 2 types of Symposium registration options to select from:

1. Virtual + On-demand Access - $50 per person (*includes all virtual event sessions, plus select recorded sessions)
2. In-person All-access - $150 per person (*includes all virtual event sessions, plus select recorded sessions, plus all in-person sessions)
   
   

To find full details about the Symposium, just click on the "Symposium" tab from the CALP Portal's main navigation menu, or go to https://calp.ca/symposium/home/about-the-symposium.html 

And don’t forget to check out our Symposium Planning Tools and Hotel Booking information (for the in-person event – group block held until April 19th) and more on the tabs on the left sidebar.

REMINDER: Looking for Adult Learner Speakers – DEADLINE is March 10th!

The Symposium Planning Committee is currently taking recommendations for two Adult Learner Speakers at Symposium 2023. The first presentation will be online on Tuesday, May 9th and the second will be in-person on Thursday, May 11th.

If you know an adult learner who would be interested in speaking about their learning journey within CALP, please CLICK HERE to find out how you can submit your recommendation.

The selected speakers will receive a $200 Honorarium.

2023 CALP Wages & Staffing Survey - Now Open!

The CALP Staff Wages & Staffing Survey (2023) is now open for submissions. Thank you to everyone who contributed to shaping the survey, 

The deadline for submissions is March 13, 2023

Please submit this survey for each paid role within your organization, to help us gain the fullest understanding of the current state of CALP wages and staffing. You may choose to ask each staff person to complete the survey, or you may make multiple submissions yourself (one for each position). This survey is anonymous.

https://calp.ca/submissions/calp-wages-and-staffing-survey-2023

Note that this survey is specifically for organizations with a Government of Alberta CALP grant. If you have any questions, please contact Ellen Rodgers at office@calp.ca

Thank you in advance for your contribution to this project!

Upcoming Professional Development Opportunities

Registration is Now Open for April Training Events

Apr 3 Opening Doors to Community  Need ideas for building relationships with community organizations and businesses? In this session you will learn how to talk about literacy with community and how to do a literacy audit using the Opening Doors: A Literacy Audit Tool Kit.

Apr 5 (3 Wednesdays) Tech Talk This training is for CALP staff to gain the understanding they need to be flexible and adaptable when training others in technology, and to enhance existing classes or design new ones that better address the rapid changes occurring in the world of technology. The instructional approach is transferrable across digital devices and applications. 

Apr 4 Introduction to Copyright When can you use content you find online (e.g. images, videos, music, resources) with your instructional materials or on your website? This webinar will take a brief look at Canadian copyright law, the types of works covered by copyright and the education exemptions available through fair dealing. We will discuss the use of print and online materials in the classroom and in online education environments with a focus on copyright issues when using images from the internet and using movies, music, and other media as classroom resources.

Apr 13 (3 Thursdays) Numeracy and Foundational Math Instruction In this numeracy and math instruction series we’ll explore the difference between numeracy and math, assessing a learner’s strengths and needs (including our own, as instructor-learners), and features of good numeracy and math instruction.

Apr 25 Plain Language for Your CALP Do you have experience writing plain language documents? Do you manage or maintain your organization’s website or social media pages? Would you like to improve your plain language skills? In this workshop, you’ll apply plain language principles and techniques to review your own marketing materials including brochures, posters, websites, and social media platforms.

March Events

Mar 23 New CALP Staff Webinar If you are new in your role in CALP, and still looking to get the lay of the land, please join us to connect with your colleagues from across the province. 

Communities of Practice

Mar 20 CALP Community Talks About…Teaching Online Let’s talk. CLN is creating a monthly space for a conversation highlighting one topic that is timely, responsive and relevant to your work. Each topic will be important, impactful and/or actionable because it will be drawn directly from the experiences and wisdom from the field. Regardless of whether you are new or experienced CALP staff your perspective is welcome, and we hope you can join us next month to discuss “Teaching Online.”

Apr 13 Holding Safer Spaces Open Circle - Prioritizing You! Are you your last priority? Do you find yourself taking care of others before yourself? What are the emotions and experiences that emerge the most often, and that you struggle to label? Join the circle, explore the places we go…, and move towards better work/life balance.

April 17 Save the Date! CALP Community Talks About... Topic coming soon!

Connection Cafes

Join your peers in informal online discussions facilitated by CLN staff. Grab a coffee, bring a question, share a success or challenge, and settle in for five minutes or all sixty.

• Ask Us Anything Metis and Indigenous Worldview: Apr 4
• North Connections Cafe: Mar 22, Apr 17
• East Central Connections Cafe: Mar 22, Apr 17
• West Central Connections Cafe: Mar 29, Apr 24
• Central Connections Cafe: Mar 22, Apr 26
• South Connections Cafe: Mar 29, Apr 19

Literacy In Action

Adult Literacy Resources

Finding adult literacy resources can sometimes feel like finding a needle in a haystack.

The CALP portal is a good place to find adult literacy resources. To find what you are looking for, you can refine your search and narrow the number of resources to look through. 

The "Collection" search field is a collection of resources connected to each other. From the drop-down list, check out collections titled Creating Learning Partners, Answers May Vary, ESL Literacy Readers or Facilitating Adult Literacy Learning. There is also a featured resource - Teaching Reading: Strategies and Resources, a collection of instructional strategies that can be used to support the development of reading. 

Another place to look is under ‘Categorized as’. From the drop-down menu choose "Adult Literacy" and click search. There are a number of good resources to check out such as Foundational Literacy, Reading Skills for Today’s Adults or Rising to the Reading Challenges of Adult Learners: Practitioners Toolkit and its accompanying assessment tool, Reading Connections Program: Identifying the Sources of Reading Difficulties.

If you are looking for adult literacy resources and not sure what would be good or where to look, contact your RSS or you can reach out to Rebecca Still, CLN Literacy Specialist literacy@calp.ca 

This Month's Spotlight

Plain Language

In 1991, Alberta was the first province in Canada to adopt a plain language law. That law is the Financial Consumers Act. The law says some consumer contracts must be written in “clear and easily understandable language." (Source: Plain Language: Clear and Simple – Trainers’ Guide)

Using plain language means the reader can understand the message the first time they read it.

There are many reasons to use plain language in CALP. Plain language makes documents more inviting to readers because those documents usually don’t contain jargon or unnecessary difficult language. This means plain language documents are often shorter and take less time to read. Plain language websites are simply laid out and easy to navigate. Visitors to the site need only click once (or maybe twice) to get to the information they need. Pages are clean and uncluttered, which makes them easy to see and find information. Using plain language also means fewer mistakes and less time spent correcting those mistakes. It can save you money!

Learners who come to a CALP often struggle with reading and may not sign up for classes because the information is too difficult to find on posters or websites. Using plain language signage and advertising helps make your CALP feel like a safe place to come to.

Plain language is a CALP’s best tool for recruiting learners, tutors, board members, and all-around allies. It’s the thing that makes your documents, posters, and websites easy to read and navigate.

Want to learn more about plain language? Registration for these events is open now on the CALP portal:

Plain Language for Your CALP

Opening Doors to Community