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Australian Council for Adult Literacy
ACAL eNews
April 2012
ACAL eNews is the electronic newsletter of the Australian Council of Adult Literacy (ACAL) and is distributed free to people interested in adult literacy and numeracy. See below for subscription details or to unsubscribe.
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In this issue
1. Welcome
2. 'Joining the pieces: Literacy and numeracy one part of the picture'
Call for presentations
Keynotes announced
3. VALBEC offer a free conference registration
4. ACAL's letter to Minister Chris Evans
5. IBSA’s Foundation Skills Training Package - feedback sought
6. Getting to grips with the Foundation Skills Training Package
7. Employability Skills Framework Stage 1 Final Report
8. Adults Learning Mathematics Conference
9. Adult Learners Week 1st – 8th September
10. Your chance to win one of six iPads
11. Intention to accredit CGEA
12. WAALC annual conference
13. Unsubscribe
14. Contact ACAL
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1. Welcome
Welcome to the latest edition of the ACAL eNews.
In this newsletter you’ll find the latest update on the ACAL Conference. We are very excited about the conference coming up in Hobart in September. See the interesting range of Keynote speakers in the info below. We hope to see you there.
This edition also provides updates on a several national initiatives including the Foundation Skills Training package and the Employability Skills project.
Don't forget to do the LLN Survey. You could win an iPad!
We hope you enjoy this edition of eNews. Feel free to write to us at info@acal.edu.au if you have any comments or items for the newsletter.
Looking forward to seeing you in September in Hobart,
Geri Pancini, President
2. 'Joining the pieces: Literacy and numeracy one part of the picture'
35th ACAL National Conference hosted by TCAL
Call for presentations
Presentations are still being sought. Accepted proposals entitle you to a discounted fee.
Keynotes announced
TCAL is delighted to announce that the following people have agreed to be keynotes at the forum (Wednesday, Sep 19) or conference (Thursday, Sep 20 and Friday, Sep 21)
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Pat Strauss, Associate Professor, Auckland University of Technology
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Anita Roberts, Innovation and Business Skills Australia (IBSA)
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Bob Boughton, Associate Professor, University of New England, NSW
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James Toomey, Mission Australia
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Susan Devereux, General Manager, Foundation Skills Branch, Skills Group, Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education
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Jane Forward, Department of Education Tasmania
3. VALBEC offer a free conference registration
VALBEC is offering a free conference registration for the ACAL Conference 'Joining the Pieces: Literacy and Numeracy - one part to the picture' for one person who:
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Is a member of VALBEC (you or your organisation)
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Has never presented at an ACAL conference in the past
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Has a great idea for a conference workshop or presentation
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May need some assistance to put a proposal together
4. ACAL's letter to Minister Chris Evans
ACAL wrote to the Senator Chris Evans, Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Science and Research concerning LLN and the May budget.
Copies of the letter were also sent to federal and state ministers and skills training departments.
5. IBSA’s Foundation Skills Training Package - feedback sought
Draft material for IBSA’s Foundation Skills Training Package is now available for public feedback. The Foundation Skills Training Package is being designed to support the foundation skills development needs of learners pursuing vocational pathways at all levels and will include:
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a bank of foundation skills units designed to be used in conjunction with vocational qualifications at all AQF levels to support the achievement of vocational competency
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Skill Sets that combine a number of foundation skills units for specific vocational purposes
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three preparatory qualifications at AQF levels 1 and 2 that are designed to prepare learners for entry into the workplace or vocational training options.
The training package has potential for use with a wide range of learners in many different contexts, and so IBSA would value feedback from all VET stakeholders. Drafts can be viewed on IBSA’s feedback hub. Feedback is required by Friday 18th May 2012
More information and to access the drafts
6. Getting to grips with the Foundation Skills Training Package
WAALC will host two discussion groups (ACAL members welcome) via web-conferencing (Elluminate) to allow people within the adult literacy field to understand and discuss the draft FSTP materials.
Dates:
Thursday 3rd May 2012 9:30am-11:00 am EST (7:30-9:00 am WST)
Tuesday 8th May 2012 4:30PM- 6:00PM (2:30pm- 4:00 pm WST)
Select your time and request a free place from info@waalc.org.au
You will receive a link and instructions by return email within 24 hours. Places are limited and will be allocated on a first in, first served basis.
7. Employability Skills Framework Stage 1 Final Report
This report details the initial findings of Stage One of a project funded by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) to research, develop and implement a nationally accepted, cross-sectoral framework for addressing employability skills. The purpose of Stage One was to identify and define the elements to be included in the Framework.
The project examined recent research about employability skills and generic skills* and their development, as well as a range of current approaches to addressing employability and generic skills from Australia and overseas.
Second and final stage involves
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describing in generic terms the characteristics of each of the skill areas at different stages of development
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working with a variety of organisations that are likely to use the framework, to ensure that it is structured in the most useful way possible
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overseeing a handful of pilot activities, across all sectors, developing tools and protocols based on the framework
8. Adults Learning Mathematics Conference
26–29 June, 2012 in Auckland, NZ
9. Adult Learners Week 1st – 8th September
The theme of this year's Adult Learners Week is "It's only the beginning: Later Life Learning and Career Shifting".
10. Your chance to win one of six iPads
Familiar with adult language, literacy and numeracy concepts? Keen on getting an iPad? Perfect! NCVER, together with Victoria University and Educational Measurement Solutions will be running a short online survey to find out whether performance levels in the Adult Literacy and Life Skills survey relate to those of the Australian Core Skills Framework. It’s sometimes assumed that these levels are equivalent, but are they?
Every completed survey goes into a draw to win one of six Apple iPads.
The survey can be found on the NCVER website under the heading Does 1 = 1? Adult LLN Survey.
11. Intention to accredit CGEA
The Curriculum Maintenance Manager (CMM) General Studies and Further Education is developing an Intention to accredit for the Certificates in General Education for Adults (CGEA) on behalf of ACFE. Submitting an Intention to Accredit is the first step in the accreditation process. The intention to accredit requires preliminary research and consultation to demonstrate that there is a valid need for the skills and outcomes that the courses will provide. As part of this CMM are proposing to conduct a practitioner focus group on Tuesday May 8th.
Feedback can also be provided electronically. For more information contact nadia.casarotto@vu.edu.au or cheryl.bartolo@vu.edu.au
12. WAALC annual conference
At the heart of the matter: Identity and trust in adult learning
11-12 July 2012 Central Institute of Technology
Program to be released soon: if you have a suggestion for inclusion on the program, please contact info@waalc.org.au
13. Unsubscribe
If you no longer wish to receive ACAL eNews, send an email to info@acal.edu.au with 'Unsubscribe ACAL eNews’ in the subject line.
14. Contact ACAL
GPO Box 2283 Canberra ACT 2601