Sunday, October 18, 2009

Ethiopia Reads Newsletter, September 2009

Ethiopia Reads is an organization that works to improve literacy and create a culture of reading in Ethiopia, in order to bring hope, vision and educational skills to a new generation of Ethiopian children. It has established its own libraries for children in local schools, publishes books in local Ethiopian languages and trains teachers and librarians to nurture a love of reading.

Click here to view the Ethiopia Reads website
.

Click here to read their September 2009 newsletter.

Masresha Kibret works with Ethiopia Reads. He was a delegate to the 6th Pan African Reading For All Conference in Dar Es Salaam in August 2009.

Monday, October 12, 2009

Ethiopia Reads and the Rural Library and Literacy Expansion project

Mr. Masresha Kibret of Ethiopia was a delegate at the 6th Pan African Reading For All Conference in Dar Es Salaam in August.

Masresha works with Ethiopia Reads, an organization that works to improve literacy and create a culture of reading in Ethiopia, in order to bring hope, vision and educational skills to a new generation of Ethiopian children. It has established its own libraries for children in local schools, publishes books in local Ethiopian languages and trains teachers and librarians to nurture a love of reading.

Their current project, Rural Library and Literacy Expansion, supports the growth of the Awassa Reading Center and the Donkey Mobile Libraries Program. The project is sponsored by American Jewish World Service.

The slideshow below shows pictures of a recent inauguration of a new school library in an Ethiopian village, including a visit from the donkey mobile library.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Imagine Ìsoyà: A life transforming functional literacy project in South-western Nigeria

Click here for full text of paper by Toyin Kolawole:
"Imagine Ìsoyà: A life transforming functional literacy project in South-western Nigeria"


Abstract: This brief account presents the outcome of an externally funded adult literacy project of a University-based rural development programme in South-western Nigeria. Employing a reflective form of writing, the report provides a historical antecedent of the Isoya Rural Development Programme of the Obafemi Awolowo University in Nigeria. It goes further to outline the process of implementing a functional literacy project funded by the United States based International Reading Association (IRA). The paper, therefore, tells the success stories of the project since inception by highlighting the participatory approaches employed in enhancing the sustainability of the adult class.

Keywords: Functional adult literacy, International Reading Association, reflexive writing, participatory, sustainability.