I recently attended parent teacher conferences for my son and it made me think about the work we do in ‘undoing’ what happens to our students. In many ways, we spend a lot of our time in adult education reflecting on how our students have taken what happened to them when we were at secondary school (or even primary school) and try to re-write their scripts to be one that suits them in their current educational journey. You are not good at this yet. You are not yet competent. Effort is the most important thing, not the score.
But something shifted in me during these interviews when I realised that these teachers were merely experimenting with their teaching. There was no moment there that I believed they were trying to maliciously set my son on a path of educational difficulty, or to develop maths anxiety, or to instill stress when presenting to a classroom. These are the things that we develop. But I wondered how much of it was a result of how our teachers taught us (and our adult students) and how much of it was what we interpreted.
I also don’t want to paint us as perfect teachers. We often miss the mark, but undoing our learning is perhaps the strongest thing we can do to move forward. Not because it changes what we once believed, but because it tells us that the undoing is actually possible.
To that end, I had a ball presenting for ACAL recently. You should have received a link to view this presentation. If you have any questions about it, let me take this opportunity to invite you to get in contact. I am always interested in talking about my research.
Liam Frost-Camilleri
VALBEC President
VALBEC Membership
You can join or renew online.
https://valbec.org.au/membership/
If you join in August, September or October, deduct 50%. Renewal falls due the following February
Members receive:- Fine Print three times a year – a high quality journal for discussion and debate about good practice, theory and policy issues. Feedback and contributions are actively sought from members about content and issues.
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eVALBEC – our e-mail communication keeping members informed of professional development activities, general committee activities and more up to date policy changes.
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Discounts for the Annual Conference and other VALBEC statewide professional development.
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Issues-based forums.
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Focus on significant policy issues impacting on the field.
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Free numeracy resources
ALL ESL
Assorted free ESL resources (games, conversation topics, worksheets, etc.)
Cambridge English Language Teaching
Online lessons and worksheets to compliment Cambridge University Press’s Ventures curricula.
https://www.cambridge.org/us/esl/venturesadulted/venturesarcade/
Fine Print is a professional journal for discussion and debate about adult LLND practice, theory and policy. It is produced three times a year and distributed to VALBEC members.
In the most recent issue of Fine Print, you can read Rosanna Matovinovic’s tips for supporting and engaging students with disabilities.
If you are an experienced LLND teacher like Rosanna, why not share your wisdom with your colleagues by writing an article for Fine Print.
Contact editor Deryn Mansell to talk about your ideas: fineprintvalbec@gmail.com
ALA are planning a Numeracy webinar on Thursday 10th November 3:30 -5:00 pm for Learn Locals. It will be on scaffolding basic numeracy concepts so if you are in a Learn Local keep an eye out.
CGEA are planning a half day professional Development session next term. More information to follow once it becomes available.
September 1st - 8th - Adult Learners Week
Organisation: Adult Learning Australia (ALA)
Australia's only national celebration and promotion of all forms of adult learning.
National/State: National
Website: Adult Learners Week
September 1st - Indigenous Literacy Day
Organisation: Indigenous Literacy Foundation
Indigenous Literacy Day aims to help raise funds to raise literacy levels and improve the lives and opportunities of Indigenous Australians living in remote and isolated regions. We need your support to help raise funds to buy books and literacy resources for children in these communities
National/State: International
Website: www.indigenousliteracyfoundation.org.au/indigenous-literacy-day
Carlton Neighbourhood Learning Centre
EAL / AMEP Teacher, Foundation College
CNLC is a vibrant Learn Local RTO working with communities in the LGAS of Yarra, Melbourne and beyond. We need a new manager for our EAL and pre-accredited programs.
Closing date: September 4th
View position descriptioneVALBEC
eVALBEC is the monthly electronic newsletter of (VALBEC) the Victorian Adult Literacy and Basic Education Council and is sent to about 1000 practitioners on the first of each month (other than January). It is also available in the ‘News’ section of our web site
Disclaimer:
The activities, goods and services mentioned in eVALBEC are not endorsed by Valbec in any way. People should make their own judgment about the suitability of each item.
How to submit items: https://www.valbec.org.au/evalbec