26TEN Glenorchy LEARNs Launch

Glenorchy City Council (GCC), in partnership with 26TEN will launch a new project 26TEN Glenorchy LEARNs at an afternoon tea at Glenorchy City Council chambers on Wednesday 25 October at 3pm.
GCC Acting General Manager will officially launch the program which coincides with 26TEN Week that runs from 23 – 28 October. The theme this year is ‘Reading, writing, counting. Families together’.
GCC’s Project Coordinator Toni Shea-Butler said Glenorchy is a community that encourages and supports learning.
“That is the vision of GCC for the future of Glenorchy,” she said.
“There are so many success stories of people who have improved their reading and writing skills which is now benefiting them and having a ripple effect to their families.
“Glenorchy, like much of Tasmania, has significant barriers to learning with low participation and attainment in education and training across all age groups.
“By working together with business and community, GCC aims to build a community that values lifelong learning, where everyone is encouraged to continue to learn and reach their potential to lead fulfilling and productive lives.”
Tameeka Jamieson of Glenorchy has taken steps to increase her literacy skills which has given her confidence to enrol in a Certificate III in Business.
“The thing that helped me so much as well was all the help and encouragement from a staff member at Leprena – Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress,” she said.
“Having family, colleagues or friends to help you with your journey is a huge benefit and one I really appreciated.
“I am now employed as an administration officer at Leprena, so this shows what learning has done for me and shows how having someone who believed in me, encouraged me and continues to support my studies is helping me to achieve a new goal.”
This new project, 26TEN Glenorchy LEARNs; building a learning community is a whole of community approach to addressing the learning needs, issues and challenges of our community. The project aims to increase knowledge and awareness of adult literacy within the Glenorchy community and increase the use of Plain English with business, community and service providers. The project will encourage others to become involved with helping to support people with their learning, or to take the first steps on their own learning journey.
26TEN is a Tasmanian campaign for adult literacy and numeracy which has 3 aims:
• Everyone knows about adult literacy
• Everyone is supported to improve their skills and help others
• Everyone communicates clearly
Did you know that 50% of adult Tasmanians do not have the skills they need for everyday life? This means they may have trouble with filling in forms, reading safety signs, getting their driver’s licence, reading to their children, or using internet banking. It also means that they may not enrol in courses that give them a better chance of getting a job.
Too many adult Tasmanians are held back because their reading, writing, numeracy and speaking skills are not enough for the demands of daily life and work.
26TEN aims to change this by helping businesses, community groups, government, educators and individuals to work together so all adults have the skills they need.
Parents and carers are a child’s most important teacher in the early years. Children learn from birth when their parents talk, sing, rhyme and read with them. Unfortunately, parents with low literacy often lack the confidence to read or rhyme to their children. By improving literacy in parents, the literacy in children improves and benefits our families, communities and workplaces.
Carolyn Docking Glenorchy City Council Communications and Marketing Advisor