Essential Skills Projects
Name of Group Title of Project Description
Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE) Local 459 The Workplace Integrated Literacy and Computers Project The Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE), Local 459 will design and create an approach, based on the "Integrated Model" created by UNITE in 1997, within the workplace context, to provide support to practitioners who use computers as a teaching and learning tool. To do this, the project will identify a model for the use of computers by workplace literacy instructors as a tool to manage student learning, to assist in lesson preparation and activity development, and to facilitate the writing process. An instructor training session will be developed and delivered to discuss the use of the model, gain project feedback and provide an opportunity for trainers to network and collaborate. A Practitioner Resource Handbook will be developed to assist workplace educators in combining literacy and computer instruction. In addition, a promotional package will be created to help develop awareness of the integrative instructional methodology and the workplace model. Evaluation will be conducted through receiving feedback from all project participants and from the field. The project will explore and discover ways to teach and learn literacy and computer skills within the workplace.
United Brotherhood of Carpenters & Joiners of America, Local 343 Improving Job Site Skills Project. Phase I - Organizational Needs Assessment The main goal of the project is to determine the necessary workplace literacy skills of carpenters on the job site and to develop recommendations for programs to improve these skills. The techniques used included; a mail out questionnaire to all carpenter members of Local 343, an employer survey, employer interviews, on site observations and interviews, and focus groups.
United Brotherhood of Carpenters & Joiners of America, Local 343 Improving Job Site Skills Project, Phase II - Improving Job Site Communication Skills Phase II of the project was design to address the concerns and recommendations made in Phase I (1994). The project aims to develop a workplace literacy seminar for trade instructors; to review existing courses to identify workplace literacy skills, to develop course outline for speaking, writing & spelling, reading and English as a second language, to develop a supervisory skill course and to explore alternate methods of course delivery.
United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America Local 579 and 2564 Needs Assessment The project will assess the extent of basic literacy problems among union members, their willingness to participate in a basic education program and the most suitable program delivery, locations and times.
United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Allied Workers of America Local 27 (LAC) Language Competency Training Program The Carpenters LAC has created the first carpentry specific Language Competency Training Program. This project will see the development of a course instructors manual which will enable the program to be used by other organizations.