Three community organisations will together use $250,000 of national grant funding to run events during Adult Learners’ Week 2012, tied to this year’s theme Digital Literacy.
Parliamentary Secretary for Skills, Sharon Bird, today encouraged adult learners and their communities to participate in projects to be run by Adult Learning Australia, the Tasmanian Writers Centre Incorporated and Community Broadcasting Association of Australia for Adult Leaner’s Week.
Ms Bird said the Adult Learners Week activities include an adult learning awareness campaign using social media, a short story writing competition and a series of audio segments for national broadcasting.
“Adult Learners’ Week is about celebrating and promoting all forms of adult learning, building community capacity and engaging adult learners,” Ms Bird said.
“Digital literacy – this year’s theme – is essential, as society becomes more focussed on technology, not only in our jobs, but in our everyday lives.
“There are a large numbers of Australians, especially adults, who feel lost when it comes to technology.
“Adult Learners’ Week is a chance to show the wide range of opportunities available to adults to take up learning and improve their skills.”
In 2012 the Australian Government is, for the first time, funding a social media project for Adult Learners’ Week to raise the profile of adult learning with hard-to-reach learners. Digital literacy and social media are effective tools to communicate important life messages and opportunities to hard-to-reach learners.
“The adult community education sector helps people gain valuable skills, confidence and knowledge that enable them to go on to further education and training, secure a job or access government services,” Ms Bird said.
The short story writing competition and national broadcasting campaign will complement the social media project and further engage people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.
Adult Learners’ Week is on from 1 to 8 September.
For further information on the many ALW events, visit adultlearnersweek.org