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<title>NCPR Topical RSS: literacy</title>
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<description>Latest North Country Public Radio regional news by topic. Topic=literacy.</description>
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<copyright>&#x2117; &amp; &#xA9; 2013, North Country Public Radio</copyright>
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<description>NCPR provides locally-produced news stories from around the Adirondack and North Country regions of New York State, as well as Western Vermont, and Ontario and Quebec in Canada.</description>
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<title>In this first grade, knitting is the focus</title>
<link>http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/20113/20120710/in-this-first-grade-knitting-is-the-focus</link>
<description><![CDATA[ (Jul 10, 2012) Most schools in the United States begin teaching students to read from the time they enter kindergarten.  In fact, it’s not hard to find 4-year-olds learning the letters of the alphabet and even reading easy words in preschool.However, not every early-learner starts that way. For our collaboration on literacy with WEBEZ’s Front and Center, Linda Lutton brings us the story of a school in the Great Lakes region that is taking a radically different approach. [<strong><a href="http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/20113/20120710/in-this-first-grade-knitting-is-the-focus">full story</a></strong>]]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 10 Jul 2012 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Filling out social service forms, without digital literacy</title>
<link>http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/20096/20120705/filling-out-social-service-forms-without-digital-literacy</link>
<description><![CDATA[ (Jul 5, 2012) Throughout Front and Center, our continuing collaboration with WBEZ , we’ve been exploring issues of literacy and how that affects people in school life and work. Usually when you hear the word “literacy” you think of reading and writing. But a new form of literacy is becoming increasingly important: digital literacy. Front and Center’s Shannon Heffernan has this story about one bridge in the digital divide.Support for Front and Center comes from the Joyce Foundation, improving the quality of life in the Great Lakes region and across the country. [<strong><a href="http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/20096/20120705/filling-out-social-service-forms-without-digital-literacy">full story</a></strong>]]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Jul 2012 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>For Syracuse refugee community, literacy an important step toward citizenship</title>
<link>http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/20046/20120627/for-syracuse-refugee-community-literacy-an-important-step-toward-citizenship</link>
<description><![CDATA[ (Jun 27, 2012) One of the first obstacles refugees face when trying to adjust to a new life in the United States is English; the language gap makes everyday life difficult. Many refugees can’t even read or write in their first language and native illiteracy makes earning citizenship a very steep climb indeed. In our continuing collaboration on literacy and illiteracy with WBEZ Chicago’s Front and Center project, Durrie Lawrence reports on how one refugee community in Syracuse prepares for one of the most important tests of their lives. [<strong><a href="http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/20046/20120627/for-syracuse-refugee-community-literacy-an-important-step-toward-citizenship">full story</a></strong>]]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 27 Jun 2012 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Literacy seen as key to refugee success in America</title>
<link>http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19957/20120611/literacy-seen-as-key-to-refugee-success-in-america</link>
<description><![CDATA[ (Jun 11, 2012) Since the founding of the United States, immigrants have played a role in creating communities. In some “rustbelt” cities, they’re responsible for reinvigorating former manufacturing towns. In Buffalo, for example, more than 1000 refugees arrive every year. They are helping revive this shrinking city after a half century of decline. Most immigrants are illiterate in their native languages, yet they are expected to learn English upon arrival. Literacy is seen as the refugees’ the best chance to contribute to their new home and become successful in America. For our collaboration on literacy with WBEZ’s Front and Center,  Daniel Robison brings us this story from Buffalo, New York. [<strong><a href="http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19957/20120611/literacy-seen-as-key-to-refugee-success-in-america">full story</a></strong>]]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jun 2012 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Time&apos;s running out on the old GED</title>
<link>http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19953/20120608/time-apos-s-running-out-on-the-old-ged</link>
<description><![CDATA[ (Jun 8, 2012) 39 million Americans, a fifth of the population, never completed high school, one of the factors used to measure literacy rates. Of those, only about 1% earn a GED certificate or the equivalent of a high school diploma each year.  The test, which has been around since 1942, is poised to undergo major changes to prepare its recipients for a competitive workplace.  For Front and Center, Laurie Stern has this story from Minnesota. [<strong><a href="http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19953/20120608/time-apos-s-running-out-on-the-old-ged">full story</a></strong>]]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 08 Jun 2012 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>A high school confronts its reading troubles</title>
<link>http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19914/20120601/a-high-school-confronts-its-reading-troubles</link>
<description><![CDATA[ (Jun 1, 2012) Earlier this week, we learned what life has been like for a man who’s just learning to read and write at age 48. He remembers shame at school dances, and being shunned as &quot;slow.&quot;Students who can’t read by the time they’re in high school often have deep challenges with learning disabilities…and self esteem. By one count, as many as 70 percent of incoming high school students are behind in reading. Not a little behind, but 2 to 3 GRADES behind. It&apos;s a problem that cuts through urban and rural settings.For Front and Center, Linda Lutton reports on how one Chicago school is dealing with the problem. [<strong><a href="http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19914/20120601/a-high-school-confronts-its-reading-troubles">full story</a></strong>]]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Jun 2012 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Can TV make kids better readers?</title>
<link>http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19903/20120531/can-tv-make-kids-better-readers</link>
<description><![CDATA[ (May 31, 2012) More than two decades ago, the Federal Communications Commission enacted the Children’s Education Act. The goal was to increase the amount of children’s educational programming on television. Since then, the airwaves have offered a variety of children’s television programs that aim to educate as well as entertain. Some shows even try and use television to make better readers. But have they succeeded? For Front &amp; Center, our collaboration with WBEZ Chicago, Anthony Martinez has the story. [<strong><a href="http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19903/20120531/can-tv-make-kids-better-readers">full story</a></strong>]]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 31 May 2012 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Escaping a world where words are walls</title>
<link>http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19894/20120529/escaping-a-world-where-words-are-walls</link>
<description><![CDATA[ (May 29, 2012) By some estimates as many as one in eight American adults has extreme difficulty reading and writing. In parts of the North Country, the situation may even be worse, with one in five people struggling with basic reading skills.As part of our series on literacy, we wanted to find out what it&apos;s like to live in a world where the written word is incomprehensible. It&apos;s a world where things as commonplace as a road sign or a restaurant menu can be baffling.  It&apos;s also a world where a sense of shame and alienation are common.Brian Mann profiled one man who&apos;s been working with Literacy Volunteers of Clinton County for three years, trying to escape that world.Note: Brian Mann&apos;s story was produced in collaboration with WBEZ Chicago&apos;s Front &amp; Center project. [<strong><a href="http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19894/20120529/escaping-a-world-where-words-are-walls">full story</a></strong>]]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 May 2012 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Literacy efforts rely on volunteers</title>
<link>http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19889/20120528/literacy-efforts-rely-on-volunteers</link>
<description><![CDATA[ (May 28, 2012) Literacy advocates in the North Country say nearly 1 in 5 adults in St. Lawrence County has a problem reading.  That means things like filling out a job application or taking a driving test may be challenging, or beyond their abilities.  At the same time, funding for literacy programs has dropped dramatically in recent years.  North Country programs now rely almost entirely on volunteer tutors.  Anne Mazzotta wanted to get involved with literacy efforts in St. Lawrence Country after she retired as a nurse and counselor. This was about ten years ago.  But she ran into a problem: In a county where around 17% of adults had problems reading, there was no literacy program.  Mazzotta called Literacy of Northern New York, in Watertown. Martha Foley has more. [<strong><a href="http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19889/20120528/literacy-efforts-rely-on-volunteers">full story</a></strong>]]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 May 2012 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>A life devoted to literacy</title>
<link>http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19618/20120410/a-life-devoted-to-literacy</link>
<description><![CDATA[ (Apr 10, 2012) For more than 50 years, Ruth Colvin and her husband have traveled to more than 60 countries and provided literacy training in Africa, Asia and South America.  In 1962, Colvin founded Literacy Volunteers of America. She&apos;s also written many books on basic literacy and English as a second language.  Colvin was inducted into the National Women&apos;s Hall of Fame in 1993 and awarded a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2006.  Tonight at 7 pm in Griffiths 123 at St. Lawrence University, she&apos;ll share stories her new book, Off the Beaten Path: Stories of People Around the World.Now 95-years-old, Colvin has filled her Syracuse home with art and souvenirs from around the world, but she told Todd Moe that working with people and sharing their stories are favorite aspects of her career. [<strong><a href="http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19618/20120410/a-life-devoted-to-literacy">full story</a></strong>]]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 10 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
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