One of the goals of education in Canada is to prepare young people to participate in paid work, either as employees or self-employed. Many educators faced the challenge of preparing youth for the highly competitive and changing global marketplace by calling on employers to articulate and communicate their needs. In an attempt to address the…

In British Columbia, Canada, two population-based databases have been linked at the level of the individual child: the "Early Development Instrument", a Kindergarten school readiness measure; and the "Foundation Skills Assessment", a Grade Four academic assessment. Utilising these linked data, we explored the early school…

This bibliography was compiled for the 2006 Summer Institute at The Centre for Literacy-"Accountability and Public Trust: Restoring the Balance." The selections include lectures, research studies, policy papers, and government documents that describe and analyze recent concepts of accountability in the context of government funding in…

The provincial movement toward a "return to the basics" in Ontario seems more a matter of political manipulation than a concern for legitimate educational concepts. (MB)

The skills and competencies considered key to participation in Australia's society and work force and the process used to identify them were examined against the backdrop of the development of New Zealand's essential skills and generic competency developments in England and Wales, Scotland, the United States, Canada, and Germany. It was concluded…

Business, labor, and education representatives from Canada and the United States exchanged positions on workplace literacy. Discussed were the need for a consumers' guide to workplace literacy, labor's stake in literacy, educators' negotiations with businesses in providing services, and program evaluation. (JOW)

This mathematics data bank of generic objectives was developed as the major element of an implementation of Comprehensive Achievement Monitoring in the Individualized and Personalized Adult Basic Education Program of the Canadore College (North Bay, Ontario) Continuing Education Division. The bank contains approximately 900 objectives organized…

The International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey (IALSS), released on November 9, takes a closer look at Canadians' ability to deal with everyday literacy demands. In today's information-based society and economy, literacy is more important than ever. IALSS defines literacy as one's capacity to "use printed and written information to…

Clarifies the meaning of the life skills approach by looking at appropriate content and methods. The content of the life skills approach includes the themes of knowing and developing oneself and effective communication and relationships with others. (Author/BEF)

Examines contemporary "technocratic" and "progressive" approaches to literacy. Discusses "functional literacy" in relation to the classical model of "high literacy." Suggests research be guided by considerations of contextual factors influencing acquisition and use of literate abilities and organized in…

Studied factors accounting for elementary school achievement. Analysis of achievement test results in language arts and mathematics in Calgary (Alberta, Canada) shows that social class variables explain up to 45% of the variation, with student-body characteristics explaining 6% to 11% and school-based variables explaining a further 3% to 6%. (SLD)

The "return to the basics" movement, emphasizing clear, specifiable skills, has stirred interest at all levels of the Canadian educational community. (MB)

Describes two educational programs designed to assist disadvantaged adults in personal development and social adjustment. (SB)

This publication reprints the text of the Accountability Framework for the Adult Literacy Education System and Core Quality Standards for Programs in Ontario. The framework describes how the Ontario Training and Adjustment Board (OTAB) is accountable to Ontario's adult literacy education system and explains how OTAB-funded programs are accountable…

This paper describes the three phases in the evolution of the Mount Royal College (Canada) Learning Assistance Program, beginning with the clinical approach (1969), moving to a credited class structure (1970), and finally to the present non-credit workshop approach (1971). The Learning Assistance Program was established to help students needing…