Literacy Florida!
Encyclopedia
Volunteers for Adult Literacy in Florida
As of August 2008 Literacy Florida! Inc., was renamed Volunteers for Adult Literacy in Florida. VALF provides grants, training, and technical support for adult and family literacy
programs using trained volunteers.
More about the purpose of the name change and activities of VALF can be found at:
Blog: http://literacyfloridavolunteers.blogspot.com/
Wiki: http://literacyflorida.wikispaces.com/
Some 74 million adults in the United States lack minimum literacy skills; one in five adults is still not literate and two-thirds of them are women. Statistics on Florida can be found at the Florida Literacy Coalition. http://www.floridaliteracy.org/about_literacy__facts_and_statistics.html
VALF provides information and services to Florida literacy volunteers and providers in program management, adult learner
persistence, communications and networking, technical assistance and training, public affairs
, advocacy
, and student leadership. Starting in 2008, the organization started a small grant program for members.
The organization is a non-profit association serving smaller community-based groups and those sponsored by agencies utilizing volunteers across the state. VALF is a member of ProLiteracy Worldwide
. Agencies running volunteer literacy programs include libraries, churches, school systems, and colleges. Civic clubs such as Altrusa have a history of supporting literacy and some of clubs have helped adult literacy programs get started.
Florida's volunteer literacy programs reach adults who read at the lowest reading
level and those needing help learning English. Programs are administered through public libraries such as the Jacksonville Public Library (Florida)
or by independent nonprofit groups.
Potential volunteers do not need to have teaching experience. Those who tutor conversational English do not need to know a foreign language.
Most programs require volunteers to attend a tutor training workshop on basic reading
workshop or on English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL
) to learn how to tutor. Some programs provide combined workshop. Each program develops their own criteria for participation, but tutors are often required to be 18 years old and have a high school diploma. Most must attend an initial training and participate in in-service opportunities and agree to tutor weekly for six months to a year. Well organized programs provide ongoing support for tutors and students.
Programs also use volunteers as tutor trainers, in administrative functions and for tutor and student support.
LFva holds their annual meeting at the Florida Literacy Conference which is sponsored by the Florida Literacy Coalition http://www.floridaliteracy.org in the spring.
As of August 2008 Literacy Florida! Inc., was renamed Volunteers for Adult Literacy in Florida. VALF provides grants, training, and technical support for adult and family literacy
Literacy
Literacy has traditionally been described as the ability to read for knowledge, write coherently and think critically about printed material.Literacy represents the lifelong, intellectual process of gaining meaning from print...
programs using trained volunteers.
More about the purpose of the name change and activities of VALF can be found at:
Blog: http://literacyfloridavolunteers.blogspot.com/
Wiki: http://literacyflorida.wikispaces.com/
Some 74 million adults in the United States lack minimum literacy skills; one in five adults is still not literate and two-thirds of them are women. Statistics on Florida can be found at the Florida Literacy Coalition. http://www.floridaliteracy.org/about_literacy__facts_and_statistics.html
VALF provides information and services to Florida literacy volunteers and providers in program management, adult learner
Adult learner
Adult learner or mature learner is a term used to describe any person socially accepted as an adult who is in a learning process, whether it is formal education, informal learning, or corporate-sponsored learning.Adult learners are considered distinct from child learners due...
persistence, communications and networking, technical assistance and training, public affairs
Public policy
Public policy as government action is generally the principled guide to action taken by the administrative or executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. In general, the foundation is the pertinent national and...
, advocacy
Advocacy
Advocacy is a political process by an individual or a large group which normally aims to influence public-policy and resource allocation decisions within political, economic, and social systems and institutions; it may be motivated from moral, ethical or faith principles or simply to protect an...
, and student leadership. Starting in 2008, the organization started a small grant program for members.
The organization is a non-profit association serving smaller community-based groups and those sponsored by agencies utilizing volunteers across the state. VALF is a member of ProLiteracy Worldwide
ProLiteracy Worldwide
ProLiteracy is an international nonprofit organization based in Syracuse, N.Y., that supports the people and programs that help adults learn to read and write.-History:...
. Agencies running volunteer literacy programs include libraries, churches, school systems, and colleges. Civic clubs such as Altrusa have a history of supporting literacy and some of clubs have helped adult literacy programs get started.
Florida's volunteer literacy programs reach adults who read at the lowest reading
Reading (process)
Reading is a complex cognitive process of decoding symbols for the intention of constructing or deriving meaning . It is a means of language acquisition, of communication, and of sharing information and ideas...
level and those needing help learning English. Programs are administered through public libraries such as the Jacksonville Public Library (Florida)
Jacksonville Public Library (Florida)
The Jacksonville Public Library is the public library system of Jacksonville, Florida. It primarily serves Jacksonville and Duval County, and is also used by the neighboring Baker, Nassau, Clay, and St. Johns Counties. It is one of the largest library systems in the Florida, with a collection of...
or by independent nonprofit groups.
Potential volunteers do not need to have teaching experience. Those who tutor conversational English do not need to know a foreign language.
Most programs require volunteers to attend a tutor training workshop on basic reading
Reading (process)
Reading is a complex cognitive process of decoding symbols for the intention of constructing or deriving meaning . It is a means of language acquisition, of communication, and of sharing information and ideas...
workshop or on English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL
English language learning and teaching
English as a second language , English for speakers of other languages and English as a foreign language all refer to the use or study of English by speakers with different native languages. The precise usage, including the different use of the terms ESL and ESOL in different countries, is...
) to learn how to tutor. Some programs provide combined workshop. Each program develops their own criteria for participation, but tutors are often required to be 18 years old and have a high school diploma. Most must attend an initial training and participate in in-service opportunities and agree to tutor weekly for six months to a year. Well organized programs provide ongoing support for tutors and students.
Programs also use volunteers as tutor trainers, in administrative functions and for tutor and student support.
LFva holds their annual meeting at the Florida Literacy Conference which is sponsored by the Florida Literacy Coalition http://www.floridaliteracy.org in the spring.