The Transfer of Learning in Workplace Literacy Programs (2006-2008)
(Canada and United Kingdom)
SSHRC funding
Principal Investigator

The purpose of this two-year project is to understand how the transfer of literacy learning occurs among employees in workplace literacy programs. Transfer of learning is defined as the literacy skills that an employee gains from formal or informal training at the workplace that are applied to the responsibilities of work, family and community. The scope of the project is to investigate how employees participating in different models of literacy skills training transfer and apply their learning. Three key questions guide the study: (1) What types of literacy skills do employees transfer back to their jobs, to their family life and to their community? (2) What teaching strategies do trainers in workplace literacy programs use to promote transfer of learning? (3) Are literacy skills that are learned formally through programs or informally at the workplace transferred in the same way? The methodology for this investigation will use a mixed research design employing both qualitative and quantitative strategies. Using a multitude of data collection methods and data analyses techniques, several different program sites in the transportation and service sector in Canada and in the United Kingdom will participate in the study. Seed funding was obtained in 2004‑2005 from the Canada/United Kingdom University Partnerships Program, through the Foundation for Canadian Studies to initiate the collaboration on the study. Four data sources will be used in the investigation: participant observation, semi-structured interviews with trainees, trainers and workplace supervisors, an informal learning survey and a lifelong learning inventory. Qualitative data sources will be analyzed using Nvivo and the Dynamic Concept Analysis method (Kontiainen, 2002) which includes the use of software to build conceptual models of individual learning trajectories. Quantitative data sources will be subjected to various statistical techniques such as reliability co-efficients, frequency tables, chi-squares and analysis of variance.

Establishing the Reliability and Validity of the Northern Pain Scale for use with Inuit Children and Adults (2005-2007)
CIHR funding
Co-Investigator

In times of illness, injury, or after surgery, in hospital and at home, good pain management is important for a speedy recovery. Both children and adults that are in pain need the right medicines to keep them comfortable. A pain assessment scale is an important tool that nurses use to obtain information about pain intensity and to plan and evaluate the treatments for patients in pain. Currently, there are no reliable and valid pain scales or information about pain treatments in Inuktitut for Inuit children and their families. The purpose of this project is to test the Northern Pain Scale, to see if it is easy for children and adults to understand and use, and to see if it is preferred over the FACES scale. The Northern Scale is an adapted version of the Wong Baker FACES scale, which is a cartoon scale with six faces that show increasing amounts of pain. The Northern Pain Scale was developed in collaboration with Yupik Eskimo adults in the Bristol Bay area of Alaska, and is used by patients, families, and nurses that are taking part in a community-based palliative care program. In a series of interviews we will ask children and adults to use the two scales and a numerical rating scale to rate the pain depicted in a series of cartoon pictures.

Informal Learning Practices and Media Perceptions of Adults with Low Literacy Skills (2003-2005)
HRSDC funding
Principal Investigator

This two-year project investigated two perspectives: an inside view of the informal learning practices of adult literacy learners; and views of adult literacy learning as portrayed by the mainstream media. The first aspect of the project set out to explore whether the low enrolments in literacy programs really means that adults with limited literacy skills are not interested in learning. Five grass roots literacy providers representing different regions and program models were invited to form a research team. These field researchers participated in a two-day workshop to learn basic ethnographic research methods in order to collect and analyze data and prepare narratives that tell of the learners' experiences. Intense data collection occurred for three months with learners in each community. Several key findings emerged. Much informal learning undertaken by adults with low literacy is driven by their life roles as family members, neighbourhood volunteers, and employees. Self-directed learning projects and shorter learning events occur frequently in the home, in the local neighbourhood, and in the organizational structures at work. Adults with low literacy are highly motivated and engaged when working on self-directed learning projects. They will use a variety of skills and practices to gather the information they need to achieve their project goals. The second aspect of the project was intended to examine how the media portrays adult literacy learning. For four months, through a media-monitoring firm, news clips were gathered and analyzed. The rich learning lives of adults with low literacy skills and their creative ways of managing their lives were not reflected in the perceptions of the public. However, other findings suggest that volunteer-based literacy programs are being seen as the main service provider; literacy skills are most often associated with the job-related skills needed for adults who want to enter or improve their position in the workforce; and literacy funding is perceived as coming from a variety and combination of sources. Five different reports for practitioners, researchers and policy analysts are posted on the NALD Website at: www.nald.ca/.

Collaborative Learning Styles and Teaching Models in Adult Literacy Programs (2001-2005)
(Canada and United Kingdom)
SSHRC funding
Principal Investigator

The purpose of this study was to investigate how adult students learn collaboratively with other peers in both formal and non-formal adult literacy programs and what teaching styles best support this learning. A multi-site case study research design was used involving several different literacy organizations in Eastern Ontario, Canada, and in Central London, United Kingdom. Findings suggest that collaborative learning is the cement that bonds the various building blocks in a community of literacy practice across small, large and tutorial types of programs. Central in this framework is the component called the Instructor's Philosophy and Teaching Perspective which helps explain the teaching and learning transactions. Further results indicate that this type of learning model involves several key factors such as social learning behaviors, teaching strategies that favour peer collaboration, movement from guided learning to independent learning and agency. Implications of the study focus on adult literacy practitioners, researchers, and policy makers.

Action Research in Workplace Literacy Education (2002-2004)
HRSDC funding
Principal Investigator

Based on a project that sought to train instructors to conduct action research in a real-life context, this research was designed to help literacy instructors use action research in workplace education programs. The final handbook is organized in three parts. The first part describes action research as a type of practice-based research. It outlines two models that can be used in conducting an action research project and then discusses the major steps of identifying a problem, collecting and analyzing data, and implementing an action strategy. The second part of the handbook describes eight action research projects, written up as case studies. These projects were conducted by practitioner-researchers and included topics such as increasing learner motivation, adapting teaching styles, and enhancing learning with the Internet. The case studies illustrate the actual process used in conducting action research and provide examples for critical reflection on findings that were used to solve common workplace literacy program problems. The third part of the handbook contains support information needed to carry out action research projects and contains an annotated bibliography of 21 references on action research and a set of exercises that match the steps in conducting an action research project. The handbook is available through ERIC ED 462557.