Research Forum: Media Literacy for Adult Learners: Enhancing Critical Thinking Skills in the Digital Age
In today's world, media literacy is an essential skill for adults to participate in academic, professional, and community activities. This webinar will explore the importance of media literacy in adult education, providing practical tools and strategies to help learners critically evaluate media sources, understand the impact of media on society, and navigate the digital landscape with confidence. Participants will gain insights into fostering critical thinking and media analysis skills among adult learners, empowering them to become informed and engaged community members.
Integrated and Contextualized Workforce Skills
Hosted by San Joaquin Adult Education Consortium How can you prepare your learners to succeed in the workforce? Find out what employers say are essential skills for today's workforce. This 2-hour session shows you how to integrate transferable skills seamlessly in the adult education classroom. It also offers examples of contextualizing instruction by using workplace activities and forms.Registration Information:This training is offered as part of the professional development day for the San Joaquin adult education consortium. Event registration through the consortium may be required. For more information, visit https://www.sjadulted.org/
Integrated and Contextualized Workforce Skills in the ESL Classroom, Escondido Session 1
Hosted by Escondido Adult SchoolDescription How can you integrate and contextualize your instruction? We will examine what employers identify as essential skills for today's workforce and explore the projected fastest growing jobs and skills required in those occupations. You will investigate local job trends and discuss how to incorporate transferable skills into your English as a Second Language classroom. This CoP offers examples of contextualizing ESL instruction seamlessly by using workplace activities and forms.This CoP takes place on Moodle and at Escondido Adult School and runs for 6 consecutive weeks, from 02/23/2026 to 04/05/2026. There will be asynchronous online activities, including forum discussions and job-embedded lesson planning and implementation, before, in-between, and after the required two Face-to Face sessions. These three-hour in-person workshops are scheduled for Tuesdays, March 3 and March 17, 5:00pm - 8:00 pm at Escondido Adult School.Participants who successfully complete this course will receive a certificate of participation (16 hours).Registration Information:This tailored regional CoP is designed for ESL teachers at Escondido Adult School. There is no registration fee to participate; CALPRO professional development opportunities are available to all California Adult Education Program (CAEP) agencies and employees.
Integrated and Contextualized Workforce Skills in the ESL Classroom, Escondido Session 2
Hosted by Escondido Adult SchoolDescription How can you integrate and contextualize your instruction? We will examine what employers identify as essential skills for today's workforce and explore the projected fastest growing jobs and skills required in those occupations. You will investigate local job trends and discuss how to incorporate transferable skills into your English as a Second Language classroom. This CoP offers examples of contextualizing ESL instruction seamlessly by using workplace activities and forms.This CoP takes place on Moodle and at Escondido Adult School and runs for 6 consecutive weeks, from 02/23/2026 to 04/05/2026. There will be asynchronous online activities, including forum discussions and job-embedded lesson planning and implementation, before, in-between, and after the required two Face-to Face sessions. These three-hour in-person workshops are scheduled for Tuesdays, March 3 and March 17, 5:00pm - 8:00 pm at Escondido Adult School.Participants who successfully complete this course will receive a certificate of participation (16 hours).Registration Information:This tailored regional CoP is designed for ESL teachers at Escondido Adult School. There is no registration fee to participate; CALPRO professional development opportunities are available to all California Adult Education Program (CAEP) agencies and employees.
Registration Deadline: Integrated and Contextualized Workforce Skills in the ESL Classroom, Escondido
Hosted by Escondido Adult SchoolDescription How can you integrate and contextualize your instruction? We will examine what employers identify as essential skills for today's workforce and explore the projected fastest growing jobs and skills required in those occupations. You will investigate local job trends and discuss how to incorporate transferable skills into your English as a Second Language classroom. This CoP offers examples of contextualizing ESL instruction seamlessly by using workplace activities and forms.This CoP takes place on Moodle and at Escondido Adult School and runs for 6 consecutive weeks, from 02/23/2026 to 04/05/2026. There will be asynchronous online activities, including forum discussions and job-embedded lesson planning and implementation, before, in-between, and after the required two Face-to Face sessions. These three-hour in-person workshops are scheduled for Tuesdays, March 3 and March 17, 5:00pm - 8:00 pm at Escondido Adult School.Participants who successfully complete this course will receive a certificate of participation (16 hours).Registration Information:This tailored regional CoP is designed for ESL teachers at Escondido Adult School. There is no registration fee to participate; CALPRO professional development opportunities are available to all California Adult Education Program (CAEP) agencies and employees.
Differentiated Instruction to Support ELLs in Content Classrooms
Hosted by Sweetwater UHSD Adult EducationThis tailored three-hour in-person CoP is designed for faculty at Sweetwater UHSD Adult Education. Using scaffolding, differentiation, and explicit strategy instruction, this interactive workshop empowers CTE instructors to support English Language Learners in their class. The session will showcase effective instructional practices that leverage learners' strengths and support strategy development in contextualized learning. Registration Information:This tailored regional CoP is designed for the Sweetwater Adult School teachers.There is no registration fee to participate; CALPRO professional development opportunities are available to all California Adult Education Program (CAEP) agencies and employees.
Accelerated Learning to Facilitate Career Pathways (Online)
This course is underway and no longer available for registration.Course Description:This course will introduce participants to a wide variety of strategies for both program and classroom that move students towards their career goals in the most efficient way possible. Agencies are encouraged to register as a team of at least two members but may include up to four members. An assumption behind this team approach is that that program changes have to be implemented and led by administrators but cannot be successful without the understanding and support from teachers. This course takes place entirely online and runs for four consecutive weeks. Weekly participation is required, though participants may, during a given week, log in whenever they wish. Two live webinars will be scheduled during the course; webinar dates and times will be announced and posted. Participants who successfully complete this course will receive a certificate of participation (14 hours); they are also eligible to apply to CSU Sacramento for 1.4 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) if they wish.Goals:Define the concepts of career pathways and accelerated learning Identify the role of adult education in the career pathway process and ways in which accelerated learning can help students overcome barriers to success Describe a variety of accelerated learning strategies Initiate planning for the implementation of one or two selected accelerated learning strategies Develop problem-solving approaches to address implementation challenges Select continuous improvement strategiesRegistration Information:There is no registration fee to participate; CALPRO professional development opportunities are available to all California Adult Education Program (CAEP) agencies and employees.Registered participants will receive final confirmation and details by Friday, March 6, 2026. Waitlisted participants will also receive an update regarding their enrollment status by that date.Contact Information:Please contact calpro@air.org with any questions.
Supporting Adult Learner Transitions to Postsecondary Education & the Workforce
Hosted by the Central Valley Mother Lode Regional Consortium (Designed for member community colleges and adult education consortia in the Central Valley)The goal of this CoP is to support adult learnersâ postsecondary and workforce transitions bybuilding adult education consortia and program staffâs capacity to implement evidence-based practices that facilitate learner transitions.identifying ways to enhance support services, program structures, and regional partnerships. prioritizing improvement actions and identifying challenges and solutions for implementation.Registration Information:This tailored regional CoP is designed for the members of the following adult education consortia: Kern Adult Education ConsortiumMerced Gateway Adult Education NetworkDelta Sierra Adult Education AllianceSequoias Adult Education ConsortiumState Center Adult Education ConsortiumWest Hills Adult Education ConsortiumWest Kern Adult Education ConsortiumStanislaus Mother Lode (Yosemite) Adult Education ConsortiumThere is no registration fee to participate.
Integrated and Contextualized Workforce Skills in the Classroom, Session I: Transferable Skills for the Workplace (Part 1, Online)
Workshop Description :How can you prepare your learners to succeed in the workforce? Find out what employers say are essential skills for today's workforce. This session shows you how to connect transferable skills in the classroom to the workplace.This is the first of two sessions; each session is broken into two parts (4 webinars total). Part 2 of Session I will take place on May 16, 2024, from 4:00-5:30pm. Session II is geared toward implementing integrated and contextualized instruction for specific content areas.Please note: Registering for Part 1 of either session automatically registers you for Part 2 of that session.Goals :The goal is to provide background on skills transferable from the classroom to the workplace and to teach students how to articulate those skills. Session I emphasizes the need to directly teach transferable skills and the connection between using these skills in the classroom and in the workplace. With an overview and comparison of four frameworks, Session I provides participants an opportunity to reflect on the practice and importance of teaching transferable skills in the classroom.Registration Information :CALPRO professional development opportunities are available to all California Adult Education Program (CAEP) agencies, employees, and consortia members.Contact Information :Please contact CALPRO at calpro@air.org or call 916-286-8803 for more information.
Professional Learning Community (PLC) Institute
What Is A Professional Learning Community (PLC)?
âA professional learning community is educators committed to working collaboratively in ongoing processes of collective inquiry and action research to achieve better results for the students they serveâ (adapted from DuFour, Learning by Doing). LEARN and DO, DO and LEARN!
A PLC is a teacher-led, collaborative team process committed to helping all students learn by addressing the following critical questions:
- What do we want students to learn?
- How will we know if they have learned it?
- What will we do if they donât learn it?
- What will we do if they already know it?
Why Attend The CALPRO Professional Learning Community Institute?
Professional Learning Communities help schools improve and be more accountable by impacting teaching and learning. Join us at the CALPRO PLC Institute to explore the core characteristics and processes on how to effectively implement a professional learning community that focuses on student learning outcomes and creates a system for sustainable school improvement.
A Professional Learning Community (PLC) naturally aligns very tightly with both WASC accreditation expectations and Continuous Improvement Plan (CIP) goals because all three are built around the same core idea: ongoing, data-driven improvement of student learning.
- Need Evidence of Student Work and Collaboration for WASC Accreditation?
Evidence of student work and collaboration in a PLC shows how programs examine student learning and use it to drive improvement. This includes analyzed student work samples, assessment results, and documentation of team discussions where staff identify gaps and adjust instruction, demonstrating both student achievement and a collaborative, evidence-based approach to continuous improvement. - Need to Establish a SMART Goal Around Student Learning for Your Continuous Improvement Plan?
Participation in the PLC Institute helps programs develop SMART goals focused on student learning. These goals provide a clear, data-driven roadmap for continuous improvement, guiding teams to monitor progress, adjust strategies, and improve student outcomes over time. - Need to Learn How to Use Data to Inform Instruction?
Participation in the PLC Institute builds participantsâ ability to use data to inform instruction and improve student learning. Teams analyze student data to identify needs, guide instructional decisions, and continuously refine practice based on results.
Benefits Of Participating In The PLC Institute:
- Shift school culture to focus on learning results.
- Develop PLC processes of inquiry to achieve better results for the students you serve.
- Establish collaborative teams to identify essential student learning.
- Work collaboratively to develop common formative assessments for learning.
- Work collaboratively to analyze evidence of student learning and use that evidence to learn from one another.
- Embed professional development that fosters the ongoing processes of collective inquiry and action research.
- Eighteen months of PLC implementation coaching support
CALPRO PLC Institute
CALPRO's experienced and knowledgeable staff is excited to offer an intensive, multi-session PLC Institute for teams of program administrators and professional development specialists/lead teachers to learn to improve student learning outcomes by establishing professional learning communities. CALPRO typically accepts up to 8 programs a year for this institute. Each of the selected agencies will send a team of three to include its agency director and two teachers (and/or administrators designated to serve as professional development practitioners) to participate in the initiative.
Who Is Eligible To Apply?
Any California Department of Education, Adult Education Office WIA Title II, or California Adult Education Program (CAEP) funded agency may apply. The Agency Director/Principal and a nominated lead teacher or PD staff member will participate as a team in the CALPRO Professional Learning Community Institute. Click here to apply.
For More Information
For more information, contact coordinator Sudie Whalen.