Family Literacy Day

January 27th, 2011 is Family Literacy Day, an initiative of ABC Life Literacy Canada to encourage families to read and learn together all year long. Oakville Public Library has these government publications covering various aspects of literacy:

Me read? And how! Ontario teachers report on how to improve boys' literacy skills. Ontario Ministry of Education, 2009.
This guide is intended for educators at the primary and secondary levels who are developing and delivering literacy programs for boys, but it is also helpful for parents who might want to advocate for the use of these strategies in their schools.

Towards an understanding of gender differences in literacy achievement. Education Quality and Accountability Office of Ontario, 2010.
Research has shown that girls "have a significant and consistent advantage in literacy from an early age over boys," and this advantage is found internationally. Researchers used EQAO data collected in Ontario to study the gender gap.

Education indicators in Canada: an international perspective. Statistics Canada and Council of Ministers of Education, 2010.
This annual study compares educational systems in Canada with those of OECD countries.

Measuring up: Canadian results of the OECD PISA study. Statistics Canada and Council of Ministers of Education, 2010.
This study tracks the performance of Canada's youth in reading, mathematics and science.

New government resources @ OPL

Towards an understanding of gender differences in literacy achievement
The Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) produced this report to provide insight into the "significant differences in students' success across schools... [It] provides an initial exploration of such differences, focusing on the literacy achievement gaps that exist between girls and boys in elementary schools in Ontario."

Your guide to doing business with the Government of Canada: A 5-step approach for small and medium enterprises
"If you own or operate a business and are interested in selling your goods or services to the federal government, this guide will help you understand the basics of procurement... The guide is divided into five steps - understand the process, register your business, promote yourself, search for opportunities, and bid on opportunities."

Witness to war: Reporting on Afghanistan 2004-2009 by Adam Day
Adam Day is a Canadian reporter who has taken four trips to Afghanistan, and he says, "it's always the same experience - a comprehensive and sometimes jarring process of becoming bewildered." This collection of stories is an "attempt to document the experience of the Canadian Forces at war."

Social network site privacy: a comparative analysis of six sites
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada examines six social networking sites from a privacy perspective, "looking at the stated mandate, the financial underpinnings..., [their] history and the user demographics." The six sites that are assessed are Facebook, Hi5, Linkedin, LiveJournal, MySpace, and Skyrock.

Preparation for the English-as-a-second-language evaluation
Preparation a l'evaluation du Francais langue seconde
While these practice guides are produced for use by employees in the Public Service Commission, they may be useful for anyone studying English or French as a second language.