Summary

As a key literacy organization in York Region, Vaughan Public Libraries have been actively offering resources, services, and programs to support literacy development of all types for every age group.  Check out VPL's website and program guide for the cool offerings for all literacy types. This post highlights the resources that support Adult Basic Literacy.

September 8 is an important date for Vaughan Public Libraries because it’s the UNESCO International Literacy Day. While the theme of the International Literacy Day this year is “promoting literacy in the digital era,” aiming to explore how digitalization has been impacting literacy development around the globe, I would like to speak a bit more broadly about literacy in this post and share how Vaughan Public Libraries can help our adult learners.

What is literacy? Literacy is often known as the ability to read and write, but it’s more than that. To properly define literacy, we need to put literacy in the context of achieving specific functions and goals and understand that literacy is crucial to fulfill those specific functions and goals. So, “competency” can be considered a synonym for “literacy” in this sense.  To meet the increasing demands in all aspects of life these days, adults need to acquire various essential literacy skills, and this is a continuous, life-long process.

With that understanding, ABC Literacy has now expanded the concept of literacy and identified eight literacies under the umbrella of Life Literacy. The organization advocates that “Life Literacy signals the importance of life-long and life-wide literacy and learning. It’s the literacy skills you need to live your life fully and the new skills you need to acquire throughout your life.  Having adequate literacy skills means being able to understand, evaluate, use and engage with written texts. It also means being able to participate in society, achieve your goals, and develop your knowledge and potential.” Life Literacy includes:

• Civic Literacy – the skills needed to effectively participate in your community
• Cultural Literacy – understanding and accepting the traditions of a group of people
• Digital Literacy – being able to keep up with changes in technology
• Family Literacy – learning together to improve the whole family’s skills
• Financial Literacy – having the confidence to make sound financial decisions
• Health Literacy – feeling empowered to advocate for one’s health
• Math Literacy – understanding and applying math concepts in real-life situations
• Workplace Literacy – managing the demands of a job in a healthy, productive way

Basically, the ability to read and write is the foundational literacy that fuel all the life literacies above. In my opinion, math literacy should also be considered a foundational literacy to support learners to develop all the other literacy skills; interestingly, ABC Literacy highlighted it as one specific literacy type. Regardless, there is no harm for that – it’s probably better, since math does have its own characteristics and require specific teaching and learning plans for learners to develop specific skills.

Acquiring all the life literacies will offer adult learners the opportunity to participate in society fully and lead a fulfilling life. As the key literacy organization of Vaughan, VPL has been actively offering resources, services, and programs to support literacy development of all types for every age group.  If you’re interested, please feel free to check out our website and program guide for our cool offerings for all literacy types. In this post, I would like to highlight a few resources that support Adult Basic Literacy. If you know someone who may benefit from what we offer, please read on!

To support the adult learners in our communities for their diverse needs, be it educational or recreational, VPL offers an array of collections on various topics. Whether you are an educator teaching adult learners or a student planning to go back to school, whether you want to switch jobs or just want to learn a new skill, you can find something useful in our general collection as well as our Adult Basic Literacy Special Collection; for example, we have math books on how to use math in sports, buildings, and other real life scenarios, and we have fiction and non-fiction books written in clear language, with pictures to help adult learners understand the text. Please check out the following reading list to take a glimpse at this collection:

I must also mention that we have a cool database named Brainfuse which has a specific portal, the Adult Learning Centre™, to support adult learners. It offers high school equivalency preparation, Microsoft office help, resume writing, and much more. They even have live tutors from 2 PM to 11 PM to offer real-time support! To access the database, all you need is your library card number and PIN.

For intellectually disabled adults who belong to a learning centre, a daycare, or a home, we also offer in-library or outreach storytelling and activities at selected locations. Please speak to our staff to find out more if you are interested.

There are other literacy organizations out there to support adult learners as well. Check out ABC Life Literacy Canada’s free but valuable online resources and courses when you have a moment.  ABC Life Literacy Canada is a national charitable organization that champions literacy by empowering adult learners, raising awareness, and supporting the adult learning sector. The other national charitable organization United for literacy also offers resources and programs to support learners of all ages. Lastly, if you’re looking for a service provider close to you to help you improve your foundational skills, you can check out the Ontario website where you can request an appointment with a service provider.

If you are interested or know someone who may benefit from the above-mentioned resources, services, and programs, please speak to a VPL information staff member. We are always happy to discuss your needs further!