No Guarantees

Not everyone you encourage to take a literacy course will do so. People who have developed self-confidence and who are motivated may be interested in new learning. Others, who feel less secure, might take the step if the right kind of program is available to them.

For someone who has been unemployed for a long time and who feels cut off from other people, your concern may make the difference. If a person lacks self-confidence and has reached the point of really not caring about anything, your efforts may not work. But the person may be glad to know you cared enough to try.

A literacy agency can help

When you talk to someone about taking literacy training, you can work with them to look into the kinds of courses that are available in your area. The first thing you can do is contact a literacy coalition or network if there is one near you. Many major cities have literacy networks and coalitions which link the various agencies that provide literacy training, and so do each of the provinces. With one phone call to a literacy network or coalition, you can find out about all the different courses the person can choose from in your community. If there is no literacy network or coalition in your community, contact a literacy agency or school board directly.

Some communities offer many different kinds of literacy courses. Community-based literacy organizations, literacy councils, libraries and other social service and voluntary agencies, teach adults to read and write. So do community colleges and school boards.

English as a second language

Many of these organizations also offer courses for people who learned another language before English or French. Programs teaching English or French as a Second Language are different from literacy programs. They can offer cultural support to a person learning a new language and a group setting that puts them in touch with other people who speak their first language.

Let the person make the decision

Talk with the person about the kind of literacy program that best meets their needs. In most places, people can join literacy programs at any time of the year, after a short wait. Some programs are specially set up so that people don't feel they are back in a school. The people running those programs understand that some literacy learners had bad experiences in school.

Literacy programs provide support for the individual and take account of that person's needs in planning the courses. You can talk about these things with the person and with the people who run the literacy program. Ask about how the literacy program sets goals and how it will measure the person's progress. Make sure the person taking the course is comfortable with the way the program will be run.

Literacy programs can be private, offering one-to-one classes with volunteer tutors. Other courses are given in small, informal groups. Classroom courses are available for people who prefer a formal setting. People can follow programs fulltime or part-time, or even for just a few hours each week, if that's all the time they have.

The literacy upgrading course a person chooses should match that person's special interests and needs. Some programs offer counselling support as well as literacy training. Others put people in touch with other people who share similar problems or goals, so they can offer each other support. Along with teaching people how to read and write, some programs offer training in other life skills, such as finding a job, running a household, or raising children.

Keep in touch

Even if the person who takes your advice and joins a literacy program doesn't need the service your agency provides any more, keep in touch. The person may need to talk to someone who understands them as well as you do. Learning to read and write is not just a matter of figuring out what letters and words mean.

Literacy brings changes to people's lives. As the person thinks about getting a new job, becomes frustrated because the learning process seems slow, or decides that finding a new literacy teacher would be a good idea, your help can be very important. As the person's life changes, you can be somebody they can count on, someone they can go back and talk to. It may not take much of your time or energy, but it can mean a lot to someone facing new life challenges.