In this Issue

1. Season's greetings

2. VALBEC Conference - May 19, 2017

Call for presentations

3. Showcasing Innovation in Teaching Practice

4. Help your students understand their working rights

5. Fine Print

From the Vault

6. (Largely free) Resources

Numeracy

A Fuller Sense of Self - book and video

'Resilience: Stories of Applied Learning'

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1. Season's greetings

The VALBEC committee would like to take this opportunity to wish all of our members and friends a safe and joyous festive season and all the very best for 2017. 

We are really looking forward to the 2017 conference 'Teaching Learning - Reflecting on Practice' and planning is underway for the first of our forums early in the new year. 

The committee will continue to reflect on our own learning and practice by having input into each eVALBEC by reviewing an e-learning tool of our liking. We hope you have enjoyed reading our committee's input this year - From the Vault - where members have reviewed a favourite article from our archived selection of the VALBEC journal Fine Print. 

Best wishes, VALBEC committee 2016.

2. VALBEC Conference - May 19, 2017

As teachers, we are continually learning from our students and working to improve our practice and learner outcomes. At the same time, we seek to expand our knowledge about teaching and learning in adult language, literacy and numeracy.

This conference will explore how and what we learn as teachers and how this is transferred into the classroom.

The following questions will be explored:

1. What informs our decision-making and practice in learning about teaching?

2. What does evidence-based research tell us about teaching adults?

3. How do we know we have made a positive impact on adult LLN learning?

4. How do we continue to learn about different approaches to learning and teaching?

This day will also provide us with lots of information sharing and new skills from workshops, networking and keynote speakers.  At the 2017 conference, we encourage teachers to reflect on their own learning as well as the learning of their students.

More about the conference

Call for presentations

You're now invited to submit a proposal for a

• Presentation (mainly lecture style session with the speaker imparting knowledge to the audience)

• Workshop (involves the audience in active participation for the majority of the session)

• Visual presentation (at lunch break presenters are available to other conference participants)

More details and how to submit

3. Showcasing Innovation in Teaching Practice

Are you an innovative teacher? What exactly is innovation in our practice?
This YouTube channel has been set up as part of an ACFE funded project to showcase innovation in Learn Locals and support teachers to share their knowledge. There are eight short four-minute videos that describe how teachers have approached a challenge, came up with an innovative idea and implemented changes in their practice. See here for more information.
Some holiday viewing! – https://goo.gl/B2H9LF

4. Help your students understand their working rights

You may have heard recently in the news about migrant, refugee and foreign workers being exploited by some businesses. See the report in The Age.

The Footscray Community Legal Centre published some materials a couple of years ago that simply explain workers rights through different scenarios.
These materials can both aid the teachers understanding of employment rights and be used in a LLN class for discussion.

There are worksheets, script, activities and answers that accompany each short video.

More

5. Fine Print

Thanks to all who contributed to Fine Print in 2016. Each edition has been packed with great reading. Over the summer break you might make time to read over past editions for pleasure and inspiration. I hope you have enjoyed the monthly recommendations to delve into the Fine Print archive. I thank the VALBEC committee for their work in revisiting articles on a range of relevant topics to bring them to eVALBEC readers' attention.

Do consider writing for Fine Print in 2017. Send your suggestions and contributions to info@valbec.org.au

From the Vault

Social learning: resource platforms and the dynamics of 'push' and 'pull'

Fine Print 2014 Vol. 37 #3 article by Colin Lankshear
A few weeks ago, I was able to use Google Cardboard Virtual Reality glasses. This was a simple device that is used alongside my smartphone and a free app. Within a minute of downloading the app onto my phone, I was able to boat alongside humpback whales and visit historical monuments around the world. Colin's article highlights that the most effective learning offers immersive experiences closely aligned to the real worlds that our learners encounter.

Since Lankshear's article was written, VR technology and equipment is now even more widely available and affordable. A quick search online reveals that the glasses I used can be purchased for around $15.

I acknowledge that paddling alongside breaching whales may not be an everyday experience that we anticipate for our LLN learners. However, the immersive nature of VR creates learning experiences within a safe environment and allows adult learners to explore, make mistakes and practice their skills.

Anna Cranney

6. (Largely free) Resources

Numeracy

'Building Strength with Numeracy' - practical, tested resources for teachers to use in a range of settings and made accessible online. Each section of each topic is a PDF allowing immediate downloading, printing and use by teachers and students.

The first six topics are provided as a free download for all numeracy practitioners.

** The topics 'Decimals and 'Measurement' are free to VALBEC members and available for a small charge for non-members.

Building Strength with Numeracy

A Fuller Sense of Self - book and video

Six people described why they returned to education and how that decision shaped and changed their lives for the better. The stories illuminated their lives and learning experiences, describing the challenges they faced, the events that provoked their return to 'school', and ultimately how their lives had changed and shifted following that decision.

Five years on we revisit these students and their stories, to find out where they are now and to discover if and how learning continues to influence their life journey. We tracked down three of our original storytellers - Linda, David and Sue.

A Fuller Sense of Self

'Resilience: Stories of Applied Learning'

Resilience: Stories of Adult Learning is an anthology of adult learner stories, a testament to the resilience of human lives, the critical role of lifelong learning, and how adult literacies weave through our journeys, visibly and invisibly.

The editors gathered the authentic voices of learners across many different adult learning environments in Australia and the UK, collecting over a hundred stories and publishing them in a collection in multiple formats, including paperback, e-book and PDF.

Available as a free digital download or order a printed book version.

More