New TCALL Project Supports Adult ESL Literacy Curricula

9/16/09

With support from the Barbara Bush Texas Fund for Family Literacy, the Texas Center for the Advancement of Literacy and Learning (TCALL) has developed the new Workforce ESL Curriculum Support Project.

The project will widen the availability of the Texas Industry Specific ESL (TISESL) curricula, a rich instructional resource for introducing adult English language learners to vocabulary used in the workplace, particularly in the healthcare, sales and service, and manufacturing industries. The sheer volume of print materials included in TISESL can be an obstacle to some literacy programs that are interested in implementing the curricula, but have limited budget for printing.

TCALL will coordinate with other literacy leaders in the state to make this resource available in a comprehensive, supported context, including print materials for local programs, along with training and technical assistance as those programs implement the curricula in the coming year. The project prioritizes making TISESL available to community-based or volunteer literacy programs that do not receiving funding from Texas Education Agency.

In late August, TCALL organized a two-day training hosted by Region 6 Education Service Center in Huntsville. Five community-based or volunteer literacy programs from around the state participated in the training: Adult Reading Center of Pearland, Arlington Reads, East Texas Literacy Council, Huntsville Area Literacy Council and Victoria Adult Literacy Council.

Participating programs received a complete set of hard copy TISESL materials and a classroom set of student workbooks in the industry area each program selected to implement this program year. Follow-up technical assistance for the programs will be provided by TCALL Adult Literacy Specialist Federico Salas-Isnardi.

More information about TIESEL. For more information about the Barbara Bush Texas Fund for Family Literacy, visit www.barbarabushfoundation.com.