Literacy training for churches and women's groups

From BRUCE COPELAND

 

Dear friends,

 

In recent months, I have returned to designing study material to teach reading to the grassroots Papua New Guinea people through literacy programmes. The

literacy programmes are poorly done in this country.

These rely too much on the skill of the teacher. Many teachers in NGOs and churches lack the skill. A resource book is needed.

The best approach is to prepare short stories about people. That is the basis of a programme I am preparing for a church.  When we do this we can tell stories for the learner to read, ask questions for the learner to read and have the learner write answers. The learner is gaining skill in written language.

Then we can take the learner through the basics of the language very quickly. Our stories can be designed to repeat all the basics. A teacher has the task to take the learners through the stories over the time of the course.

We can use the stories to introduce issues that can be discussed while the learner is reading. Issues can be on health, growing up, marriage, violence, parenting, HIV/AIDS, relationships and nutrition.

Learners are getting two courses in one.  The book below has been prepared with 30 stories. It is for a literacy programme based on Tok Pisin. Basics are repeated story by story but the level of difficulty rises story by story.

I would be happy to show any women’s group or church an effective way to conduct literacy training in English or Tok Pisin.