Thank you Cheryl.

 

Your program really has bent over backwards to accommodate your
families. And it sounds as if they appreciate it. Thanks for taking the
time to respond so thoroughly.

 

 

 

Gail J. Price

Multimedia Specialist

National Center for Family Literacy

325 W. Main Street, Suite 300

Louisville, KY 40202

gprice at famlit.org

502 584-1133, ext. 112

 

 

Join us for the 17th Annual National Conference on Family Literacy!
"Literacy Grows Families and Communities"
March 30, 31, & April 1, 2008-Louisville, KY
Register online at www.famlit.org/conference

 

________________________________

From: familyliteracy-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:familyliteracy-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Cheryl Brown
Sent: Thursday, January 10, 2008 2:04 AM
To: The Family Literacy Discussion List
Subject: [FamilyLiteracy 924] Re: Peppermints Help Test-Takers

 

Hi Gail,

 

This may be a bit long-ish

 

You asked:  Can you explain a little about what you mean by process,
what obstacles individual students have made you aware of, and what you
do (have done) to help students overcome these obstacles? Are they the
same obstacles/barriers you described as generic?

 

By process, I mean barriers for individual adults/families emerged and
are overcome/removed through interaction with the program staff and/or
other community agencies.  Some barriers emerged only after others were
removed.  Because this was a pilot project, we felt that we could adapt
and be responsive to the parents in the program.  Most of the obstacles
we/they encountered were beyond the initial generic list we had cited in
our program porposal (transportation, childcare, nutritious snack,
on-site childcare, etc).  For example:

 

Health:  In our program, children and parents attended.  Sometimes the
children were too sick to attend.  They had a constant cold, ear
infection or flu, or a mother with three children would go though
chicken pox, one child at a time, and miss significant time.  Since our
program also focused on health (it was called "Family Learning and
Health")  we talked about what we did as parents to keep our children
well:  improving immune system by including fruits and vegetables and
eliminating sugars and processed foods; discussing food allergies and
sensitivities and perceived controversial topics about nutrition (milk
consumption, breast feeding, feeding on demand; etc).  We attempted to
provide many sides of a single healht/nutrition issue, so that parents
could make informed choices.  We also ate nutritious food at the
program, had alternatives on hand (like rice milk and buckwheat flour)
and sometimes made recipes with families that they could then use at
home.  Being lactose intolerant and sensitive to gluten myself also
provided a different paradigm model.

 

Other health issues, like head lice, made it difficult for parents to
attend.  One parent had poor eyesite and could not see the nits to
remove them; another parent was overwhelmed and had called two health
agencies for help and was considering calling child protection on
herself just to get help.  The details of the process of getting rid of
lice (like washing all bedding in hot water and vacuuming everywhere and
repeating the treatment after 10 - 14 days) needed to be explained to
everyone with this issue.  We just asked how they wanted us to help -
for some families we obtained the shampoo, for others we gave more
hands-on help, like demonstrating how to remove nits.

 

Attendance Policies:  In the adult literacy programs we had worked in,
learners needed to attend 80% of the time they committed in order to
stay in the program.  Had we adhered to that policy in this propgram, we
would have had to ask every family to leave.  Some families missed three
consecutive weeks due to illness or other issues.  We decided to
re-think the attendance policy and ask the parents what we could do
differently to maintain continuity for them.  Some parents wanted us to
bring them work they could do while they were home and faithfully
completed it.  Others just wanted us to keep in phone contact to avoid
feeling isolated.  We decided that no one would be asked to leave, even
if they did not return, which resulted in a feeling of success,
especially for one parent, who cited she had been asked to leave every
program she had attended as a parent.  We maintained an on-site class
and limited in-home support for families that requested it for the
duration of the pilot.

 

Lack of social support networks:  Some parents had difficulty trusting
other adults with their children, or lacked family nearby, or family who
cared enough to help.  One mother wanted to write the GED test, which
was held on a Friday night and Saturday (outside regular day care
hours).  Her neighbour was her only babysitter and was unreliable.  When
the first opportunity to write the test came her babysitter backed out
at the last minute.  She had to wait two months for the next write and
create a back up strategy.  Unfortunately, her network was so small that
she only trusted her neighbour and program staff with her child. Her
neighbour did back out, and I cared for her child while she wrote the
test, taking her child out to her at lunch on Saturday so she could
breastfeed.  

 

Poverty:  Many individual barriers were related to poverty.  One mom
missed time becasue she would keep her kids home on rainy days as they
had no rainboots.  One mom would miss time because she was taking her
VCR to the pawn shop to get some money to buy her children a lunch and
then take it up to the school for them.  In these situations we relaxed
out attendance policy, noting that this was important for this parent,
and attempted to connect the parent to community resources that would
assist them with these issues, sometimes taking a 'field trip' to a free
clothing outlet in a church or food bank.  Often, parents needed help in
the winter transporting food from eth food bank to their residence,
which we assisted with when possible.

 

 

Learning Goals:  Our program proposal contained a Parent - Child
Activity day with planned activities for parents and children.  We
quickly found out that they were not interested in the pre-planned
activities and attendance was low on these days.  We decided to
brainstorm with parents and co-construct activities they were more
interested in.  Our committment to be learner-centered made this an easy
shift.

 

 

Hope this helps.

Cheryl :)

 

 

	----- Original Message ----- 

	From: Gail Price <mailto:gprice at famlit.org>  

	To: The Family Literacy Discussion List
<mailto:familyliteracy at nifl.gov>  

	Sent: Tuesday, January 08, 2008 10:27 AM

	Subject: [FamilyLiteracy 906] Re: Peppermints Help Test-Takers

	 

	Hi Cheryl,

	 

	Thanks for your comments. "Timing is everything" they say and I
am glad the timing of our posts was good for you.

	 

	You mention that you now are thinking of barriers as a process,
"as individual as the learners themselves, that provides specific
assistance for overcoming obstacles to participation." 

	 

	Can you explain a little about what you mean by process, what
obstacles individual students have made you aware of, and what you do
(have done) to help students overcome these obstacles? Are they the same
obstacles/barriers you described as generic?

	 

	 

	 

	 

	Gail J. Price

	Multimedia Specialist

	National Center for Family Literacy

	325 W. Main Street, Suite 300

	Louisville, KY 40202

	gprice at famlit.org

	502 584-1133, ext. 112

	 

	 

	Join us for the 17th Annual National Conference on Family
Literacy!
	"Literacy Grows Families and Communities"
	March 30, 31, & April 1, 2008-Louisville, KY
	Register online at www.famlit.org/conference

	 

	
________________________________


	From: familyliteracy-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:familyliteracy-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Cheryl Brown
	Sent: Monday, January 07, 2008 10:33 PM
	To: The Family Literacy Discussion List
	Subject: [FamilyLiteracy 903] Re: Peppermints Help Test-Takers

	 

	Hi all,

	 

	Barriers is an extremely interesting topic for me and I have
spent some time thinking and writing about it over the last decade.
Essentially, we focus on Relationship, Content and Environment. We use
William Glasser's Choice Theory to guide our behaviour in relationship
building and setting environment, and a learner/community centered model
for content (basically, we adapt what we do to individual learner's or
community's wants and stated needs - some may remember as Student
Centered Individualized Learning from Frontier College Student
Handbook).  

	 

	I've personally shifted my thinking about barriers from what
I've been calling a 'checklist approach' (generic list of barriers, like
transportation, childcare, healthy snack, etc) to thinking about it as a
process, as individual as the learner's themselves, that provides
specific assistance for overcoming obstacles to participation.  Funny
this topic should happen to come up today - we've just talked about
writing a paper about this, so if you're interested in hearing more, let
me know off list.

	 

	Cheryl Brown, Community Literacy Coordinator

	Quality Learning New Brunswick

	Saint John, NB

	Canada

	sjfamlit at nbnet.nb.ca

	 

		----- Original Message ----- 

		From: Gail Price <mailto:gprice at famlit.org>  

		To: The Family Literacy Discussion List
<mailto:familyliteracy at nifl.gov>  

		Sent: Monday, January 07, 2008 4:10 PM

		Subject: [FamilyLiteracy 901] Re: Peppermints Help
Test-Takers

		 

		Hey Jeri,

		 

		Don't we all wish that keeping learners in our programs
were as easy as providing peppermints and bottled water? 

		 

		Persistence is a complex issue and is pretty highly
individualized, yet is something all adult education programs have to
deal with. Studies over the years about persistence have suggested ways
to keep students in programs-i.e., having a goal and making progress
toward it; enjoying the classroom relationship with other learners;
having an intake process that effectively counters barriers to
attendance; and helping with logistical barriers such as transportation
and child care, etc. 

		 

		How about it list subscribers-share your practical
experience with us.  What do you do to ensure that you keep learners in
your program? What have you tried that has worked well? What has not
worked quite so well?  

		 

		Gail J. Price

		Multimedia Specialist

		National Center for Family Literacy

		325 W. Main Street, Suite 300

		Louisville, KY 40202

		gprice at famlit.org

		502 584-1133, ext. 112

		 

		 

		Join us for the 17th Annual National Conference on
Family Literacy!
		"Literacy Grows Families and Communities"
		March 30, 31, & April 1, 2008-Louisville, KY
		Register online at www.famlit.org/conference

		 

		
________________________________


		From: familyliteracy-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:familyliteracy-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of jalsails at aol.com
		Sent: Wednesday, January 02, 2008 11:15 PM
		To: familyliteracy at nifl.gov
		Subject: [FamilyLiteracy 893] Re: Peppermints Help
Test-Takers

		 

		Gail, 

		 

		Back when Brain Research was hot (about 10 years ago) we
read research on the negative effects of dehydration on concentration
and fatigue. We (LIFT, Missouri's Literacy Center) began providing
bottled water at all of our workshops which in turn motivated family and
adult literacy staff to provide it for their adult learners. Drinking
water was encouraged to maximize extended attention spans for study and
test taking. Perhaps it was the halo effect, but we had enthusiastic
feedback. Now, if we'd used ordinary tap water to preserve the
environment, added a peppermint candy to cut the frustration, and given
ginger snaps for pregnant moms to reduce nausea, we may have made the
news!

		 

		What other practical strategies appear to spark and
maintain learner persistence?

		 

		Jeri Levesque, Ed.D.

		Evaluator, Missouri and Kentucky Even Start

		LIFT
		
		
		-----Original Message-----
		From: Gail Price <gprice at famlit.org>
		To: The Family Literacy Discussion List
<familyliteracy at nifl.gov>
		Sent: Wed, 2 Jan 2008 12:23 pm
		Subject: [FamilyLiteracy 891] Peppermints Help
Test-Takers

		Just for fun!

		An article titled "Peppermint prepares test-takers, a
study says" recently appeared in the Middletown Journal, Middletown, OH.

		The articles states, "Candy canes greeted test-takers at
Middletown's Adult Education center Friday before the General
Educational Development exam. The purpose of the treats was two-fold:
spread a little holiday cheer and awaken the test-takers, said Principal
Rose Marie Stiehl. A NASA-funded study revealed that the smell of
peppermint decreases fatigue and frustration by 15 percent and 25
percent respectively and increases alertness by 30 percent, said Stiehl.
Ever since the study, the center has offered peppermints to
test-takers."

		 

		And Middletown's Adult Education programs seems to be
doing very well. You can read the article at
http://www.middletownjournal.com/hp/content/oh/story/news/local/2007/12/
29/mj122907gedcanes.html

		I think I'll buy a stash of peppermints for my students.
How about you? 

		 

		 

		Gail J. Price

		Multimedia Specialist

		National Center for Family Literacy

		325 W. Main Street, Suite 300

		Louisville, KY 40202

		gprice at famlit.org

		502 584-1133, ext. 112

		 

		 

		Join us for the 17th Annual National Conference on
Family Literacy!
		"Literacy Grows Families and Communities"
		March 30, 31, & April 1, 2008-Louisville, KY
		Register online at www.famlit.org/conference

		 

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