Founded in 1983 as the Dryden District English Committee, our association re-branded as the Dryden Literacy Association in 1987. Our logo was redesigned in 2019, and we began operating as Bridges – Dryden & Area Adult Learning Centre. As Champions of Lifelong Learning, we are supporting adults aged 18-64 to accomplish their goals through education pathways.
Overview of Literacy and Basic Skills
The Ontario Literacy and Basic Skills (LBS) program helps adults in Ontario to develop and apply communication, numeracy, interpersonal and digital skills to achieve their goals. The LBS program serves learners who have goals to successfully transition to employment, postsecondary, apprenticeship, secondary school, and increased independence. The program includes learners who may have a range of barriers to learning.
The Ontario Adult Literacy Curriculum Framework (OALCF) is the cornerstone of Employment Ontario’s LBS Program, helping adults to achieve their goals of further education, work, and independence. The OALCF is a competency-based framework that supports the development of adult literacy programming delivered through the Literacy and Basic Skills (LBS) Program.
Through the LBS Program, individuals access five services that contribute to the successful completion of a learner plan. Service providers may focus on preparing learners for different goal paths but each learner, regardless of the focus of the service provider’s programming, receives the same five services:
- Information and Referral
- Assessment
- Learner Plan Development
- Training
- Follow-up
Who Can Participate?
The LBS program focuses on adults who reside in Ontario and are unemployed, with special emphasis on people receiving income support. The LBS program is also open to employed Ontarians who need to improve their literacy and basic skills to maintain or upgrade their work skills. Services are free and are offered on-site at approximately 185 service providers across the province, in directed and self-directed format, and online through e-Channel service delivery.
The Literacy and Basic Skills (LBS) program serves adult learners:
- who are Ontario residents;
- whose literacy and basic skills are assessed at intake as being less than the end of Level 3 in one or more of the following OALCF competencies (operating in either a print-based or using digital technology format):
- Find and Use Information
- Communicate Ideas and Information
- Understand and Use Numbers
- who are at least 18 years old. On an exception only basis, LBS service providers may serve young adults between ages 16 to 17 who demonstrate the maturity to benefit from adult education. However, returning to the regular school system should be the priority for these learners; and
- who are proficient enough in speaking and listening to benefit fully from the language of LBS instruction (English or French). This eligibility requirement does not apply to Deaf learners.
To ensure that the literacy needs of learners from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds are addressed, LBS services support programming for Deaf, Anglophone, Francophone and Indigenous learners.
Literacy Service Planning and Coordination Process
Regional networks support all stream and sector LBS service providers by facilitating the literacy service planning and coordination process in each community. The process involves all LBS service providers and, where possible, other community services. Its purpose is to facilitate effective and efficient delivery of the LBS Program within a broader system of education, training and labour market attachment services.
Literacy Service Planning helps to ensure that there is no duplication or gaps in service within the local area. The principal product of the local planning and co-ordination process is the Literacy Service Plan.
Serving Dryden & Surrounding Area
- Located within the Northwest Literacy Service Area in 12 communities.
- Sharing resources with a number of province-wide agencies.
Literacy Northwest Service Area
Kenamatewin Native Learning Centre Lake of the Woods Adult Learning Line Atikokan Literacy Inc. Red Lake District Adult Learning Centre Sioux-Hudson Literacy Council Valley Adult Learning Association Anishnawbe Skills Development Program Confederation College Canadian Hearing Services
Novocentre Thunder Bay Literacy Group Centre de formation pour adults de Greenstone Manitouwadge Learning Centre