Presentations

November 2009 Training Event Presentations:

Keynote Address: “Understanding Learning Disabilities”

Workshop Title: “Assessing Learning Disabilities”

Professor Linda Siegel, University of British Columbia

Dr. Linda S. Siegel is a professor in the department of Education and Counseling Psychology and Special Education and holds the Dorothy C. Lam Chair in Special Education at the University of British Columbia. She is currently the President of the Division of Learning Disabilities of the Council of Exceptional Children. She specializes in dyslexia and other learning disabilities and has developed a system to both detect children at risk for reading difficulties and to provide intervention to reduce or eliminate their reading difficulties.

Workshop Description (ppt – 3.3MB)

The goal of this workshop was to provide an understanding of learning disabilities. The subtypes of LD were discussed, including the cognitive difficulties and the strengths of each subtype. Some general information about remediation and accommodations were provided.

The participants learned about the administration of the achievement tests to determine whether or not there is a learning disability. Tests of reading, spelling, writing, arithmetic and mathematical problem solving were presented.

Participants discussed the analysis of errors that individuals make and how to provide help based on those errors. Some issues around adult ESL learners were discussed.

“FASD: Understanding this Invisible Disability”

John Gotowiec, FASD Trainer and Program Coordinator

John Gotowiec has been working in the social services field for the past 24 years. He is the Program Coordinator for the West Coast Alternate program, a collaborative school project with Templeton Secondary School in Vancouver, specifically designed for student’s with a diagnosis under the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder umbrella.

As a Trainer for the FASD Collaborative Roundtable (a consortium of agencies working towards a seamless FASD service delivery system), John has presented to a wide range of community partners and professionals on what FASD is and the behaviours associated with it as strategies in working with this population. John has made many presentations specifically on FASD to: foster parents, teachers, school counselors, police officers, social workers and other community members.

Workshop Description (ppt – 2.3MB)

Topics covered were: understanding the impact of prenatal alcohol exposure of the brain, incidence & prevalence, cognitive and adaptive deficits, impact on intelligence, primary and secondary disabilities, competencies and delays, general needs and a discussion of effective strategies.

“Head, Heart, Hands and Self: Teaching Math to Adult Learners”

Kate Nonesuch

Kate Nonesuch has been working in the field of adult literacy for 25 years, as an instructor, workshop presenter, practitioner-researcher and writer. Her primary role was teaching English, but, due to historical accident, she is presently thought of as a “math person”. At present she is writing a practitioner training program for Literacy Nova Scotia. Her goal is to make public everything she knows before she retires. She lives in Victoria. Kate.Nonesuch@viu.ca

Workshop Description (ppt – 1.9MB)

Many adult learners expect math class to be a sea of boredom interspersed with flashes of fear. Sometimes the anticipation of the flashes of fear casts a fog of anxiety over the sea of boredom. Very little learning happens under these conditions, so it falls to the instructor to change them. This workshop will invite participants to engage in demonstrating, testing or practicing some proven techniques for teaching math to adult learners (nobody will have to do anything embarrassing). Techniques include using manipulatives, social math, practice that is not boring, and marking for confidence. The focus of the workshop is using the techniques in a holistic spiral-shaped process that integrates math learning with metacognition, positive emotional states, automaticity, and learner engagement in the learning process.

“Work Experience: A Bridge Between the Classroom and the Workplace for Students with LD”

Laverne Thompson, Access Work Experience Programs, Capilano University

Laverne Thompson, M.Ed. (Lesley University, Cambridge, MA) has been part of the Access/ASE faculty team since 1992. In ASE she uses a wide range of strategies to assist students in developing an awareness of their strengths and limitations and to develop strategies for problem solving. Laverne has worked from 1991-2005 with the Douglas College Therapeutic Recreation Department. Laverne has acted as the Coordinator for the Access/ASE Programs at Capilano University since January 2006. She is the current Chair of the Provincial Post Secondary ASE Programs Articulation and Co-Chair of the Provincial Disability Resource Network.

Workshop Description (ppt – 559K)

Laverne gave a brief overview of the ACCESS programs, with an emphasis on classroom teaching content designed to prepare the students to participate more fully in the community and in the workplace. This overview included a description of how the work experiences are set up to reinforce the student’s learning through the practice of entry level skills in a real world workplace.

Laverne discussed a range of content and instructional strategies that she and her colleagues have used when teaching students with a diverse range of extraordinary learning needs in the ACCESS Work Experience programs. Laverne presented some recent research findings related to Essential Skills and people with disabilities preparing for employment.

During the interactive component of this session, participants were presented with some case studies, and worked in small groups  with a case study to discuss and determine ways to maximize the student’s success both in the classroom and in the community.

“Digital Spaces for Students with Disabilities: Multimodal Web 2.0”

Natasha Boskic

Natasha Boskic is an Educational Technology Manager in the office of External Program and Learning Technologies (EPLT) in the faculty of Education at the University of British Columbia (UBC). Her main work is in instructional design and faculty training in online learning. Her specific focus is on online collaborative and communication tools, student engagement, and different delivery models. Natasha has managed various programs in the area of eLearning, locally in Canada and internationally. She received a BC Innovation Award for Support and Service for her Web Accessibility project in 2007.

Workshop Description (To see power point, click here – scroll to ‘Workshops’)

According to the World Health Organization, between 750 million and one billion of the world’s six billion people have a speech, vision, mobility, hearing or cognitive disability. Despite the fact that the usage of computers requires achieving some level of technical literacy, it is unquestionable that the Web has opened the doors to new possibilities for many people. This is especially true for those who have a sensory, physical or cognitive impairment, and for whom technology offers a potential for communication, education and managing everyday tasks. As the world’s population ages, many more people will need assistance with problems with vision and hearing, and limited mobility. If we make the digital environment accessible, people can remain engaged and productive regardless of their age and (dis)ability.

In this workshop, Natasha described both at technical solutions (hardware and software) and instructional strategies to address the diversity of learners and their learning styles. In particular, the participants  explored various Web 2.0 social spaces and discussed pros and cons of using them for individual and collaborative knowledge building.

“Understanding ADHD”

Dr. Anthony Ocana

Dr. Ocana is a physician who listens. He did his BSc in pharmacology, his MSc in Clinical Nutrition and MD at the University of Toronto. He completed his residency in Family Medicine in Calgary in 1993. For the last 15 years he has practiced family medicine with an emphasis on mental health. In 2005 he was certified in Addiction Medicine. In 2007 he co-founded the North Shore ADHD Clinic in West Vancouver.

Workshop Description

This workshop addressed the following questions, terms and realities:

What is ADHD? Is it real?	Epidemiology
Societal and economic consequences of ADHD	Neurotransmission deficits in ADHD
How to identify a learner with ADHD	ADHD in relationships
ADHD at work	Etiology
ADHD Co-morbidity	Why treat ADHD?
Why treat ADHD with medicine?	How to support those learners with effective strategies and accommodations

Panel Discussion: “Learning in a New Language: Learning Disabilities, Trauma and the Power of Social Connections ”

Overview of research and practice with English Language Learners who may have learning difficulties: contributions and conversations with practitioners working in different adult literacy contexts.

Carolyn Pendleton

I’ve had the great fortune to teach adult ESL/Literacy in Canada for the last 19 years mainly working with refugees and immigrants in “Settlement Language Programs” in both Ottawa and Vancouver. After completing my CTESL at Carleton University in 1990, I worked with learners in Ottawa at various places including the Continuing Education Depts. of the School Boards and The Language Training Centre of Ottawa. Since moving back to Vancouver in 1994, I’ve had the opportunity to work at MOSAIC, Burnaby School Board, Vancouver Community College, UBC, as well as ISS (The Immigrant Services Society of B.C.) where I have worked for the last 13 years.

Over the years, many learners I’ve worked with have fled from war, fighting, torture and the stress of surviving in refugee camps for years. Others have been victims of domestic and other forms of abuse/violence. All of them have had to deal with the ups and downs, the stresses of being immigrants in a new country. These are all forms of “trauma”. Among these students, there have been some with suspected or diagnosed mental health issues and/or learning disabilities. They bring complex challenges to the learning process in the adult ESL classroom. I look forward to sharing my experiences including some of the approaches we have taken as ESL instructors to support these learners in their language development, mental health and overall settlement in Canada.

Sandra Slind

Sandra Slind is the Coordinator of Access Community through English (ACE), and ESL/Life Skills program, for immigrants with mental illness delivered through Vancouver Community Mental Health Services (VCMHS) of Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH). She has worked with ACE since its inception in 2000. Her work in the area of mental health began in 1990 when she worked as an ESL teacher with International Organization of Migration (IOM) in Vienna piloting the ORR’s Primary Prevention and Promotion of Mental Health program.

Amea Wilbur

Amea Wilbur is an ESL teacher with Access Community through English (ACE). She was the Regional Coordinator of Frontier College 2000-2005. She is currently working on her Doctorate in Education at UBC with a focus on trauma and ESL. For her M.Ed she researched and developed a tutor-training manual for tutors working with Live-in Caregivers. She has two young sons, Oscar and Ari.

Suzanne Smythe

Suzanne Smythe has worked as an adult literacy educator for over twenty years in Nicaragua, South Africa and the Lower Mainland of BC. Currently, she is a lecturer in literacy and adult education at Simon Fraser University, and is working on new professional development and training qualifications for adult literacy educators. Suzanne’s doctoral research explored gender lenses in family literacy work and she believes strongly in the importance of meaningful and empowering community involvement in schools.   She has been a central contributor to the “whole life approach to learning disabilities in adult literacy settings” project and is very excited about the potential of this project to harness the creativity and knowledge of the adult literacy field to support all adults to learn.

“Understanding Traumatic Brain Injury: Consequences for the Learning Environment”

Mel Kaushansky, Ph.D.

“Hope for Overcoming Ineffective Memory Recall”

Wendy Henderson

Wendy has spent more than twenty-five years in the classroom. She has trained young men in West Africa to become teachers and worked in Tokyo with Japanese businessmen fast-tracked for overseas business positions. Presently, she facilitates adult literacy classes and educational programs in the downtown East side. She loves the hands on, relational aspect of her profession and the chance to learn from as well as instruct her students.

Workshop Description

Problems associated with memory recall are serious barriers to learning. They impact learners’ emotional well being as well as cognitive skills. This workshop focused on exploring a computer-based multi-sensory program from a practitioner’s perspective, and how this therapy process enables participants to become “learning ready”. The workshop examined how memory recall problems and the nine week Learning Skills Improvement (LSI) course offered to learners helps improve memory recall. The practitioner  shared practical suggestions on how this multi-sensory program can be adapted to help those struggling with this learning disability, in specific subject areas.

“Structure of Intellect/Integration Practice Protocol”

Michelle Lebeau

Michelle Lebeau has been working in the literacy field for the past 18 years, working in a wide range of contexts. In her current work at Capilano University in Squamish, Michelle coordinates and instructs literacy programs, including the VISION program, a brain-based learning program based on the use of the Structure of Intellect (SOI). This program provides assessment of 26 cognitive abilities and 11 perceptual skills (e.g., sensory integration abilities) and provides a series of books-, computer- and physically-based activities to improve under-developed skills.

Workshop Description

Michelle provided a very brief explanation and a short introduction to some of the physical exercises used in the SOI-based VISION program, using balance boards, bean bags and other equipment. She  also provided a brief written description of the SOI program, with contact information for anyone wanting to learn more.

“Mindfulness Meditation: Centering & Check-in”

Deborah Prieur

Deborah Prieur BSW, MA has been practicing mindfulness mediation since 1990. For the past ten years she has been teaching mindfulness-based stress reduction courses in the community and facilitating workshops for organizations, conferences and support groups. Deborah brings a deep appreciation for the practical and transformative aspects of mindfulness practice and a strong commitment to creating supportive and respectful learning environments.

Workshop Description

In this half hour experiential session participants had an opportunity to bring mindful awareness to body and breath, to center and renew the thoughts and emotions arising from their day in preparation for small group reflection.