Department of Education

Literacy
services
The LINC Tasmania literacy network is being
3.2.1
extended under the state government’s Adult
Literacy Action Plan to provide more support
for Tasmanians, particularly those living in regional
communities. The extension to LINC Tasmania’s
literacy coordinator network progressed during
2010–11 with 19 coordinators appointed and 394
volunteer tutors operating in urban and regional
communities across the state. An extra 100 tutors
are in training and a further three coordinators are
being recruited to commence in July 2011 to work
with the Department of Justice to support prisoners
and offenders. Literacy coordinators work with a
team of volunteers to help people access support and
programs to build adult literacy skills in communities and
workplaces. Literacy coordinators have been undergoing
comprehensive training and collaborate regularly to build
skills and knowledge and share experiences.
In addition to expanding the literacy coordinator network,
the government’s action plan also provides $300,000 per
annum to support literacy skills development initiatives
across LINC Tasmania. This funding is being distributed
across the LINC network to develop and implement
learning programs that attract, engage and support new
clients to develop their literacy skills.
Community
learning
To better ensure that LINC Tasmania is serving
the needs of all Tasmanians, community learning is
structured around two key themes, each aimed at
different target groups:
• Work and Life Skills provides learning opportunities
designed to develop skills which enhance pathways
for work, further learning and or social inclusion.
It targets job seekers, second chance learners,
low socioeconomic groups or groups who are
disadvantaged in ways that negatively impact upon
their capacity to contribute to the community.
• Leisure and Lifestyle offers fee-based courses to
clients seeking leisure activities such as relaxation
or recreational pursuits, or clients seeking personal
fulfilment, knowledge or skills which may be loosely
related to vocational or community development.
The priority for community learning is to extend
access to second chance learners requiring foundation
and employability skills development in order to
enter formal training, the workforce, or for everyday
life. In order to improve learning opportunities that
support the existing and emerging learning needs of all
Tasmanians, the community learning program is offered
directly to Tasmanians through the network of urban
LINCs and regional centres.
Participation in the traditional Adult Education program
(now known as Leisure and Lifestyle) has declined by 27%
between 2005 and 2010. Since assuming responsibility
for Leisure and Lifestyle from TAFE Tasmania in
October 2006, LINC Tasmania has worked hard to
improve the program’s ongoing viability. Strategies
have included consolidating programs, introducing an
online enrolment system, revising fees, and improved
course advertising. Despite these strategies, enrolments
have continued to fall due to a decreasing client base,
changing demographics, the current financial climate and
competition from low-cost community programs or
other providers.
LINC Tasmania is building a contemporary community
learning program that will place greater emphasis on
basic Work and Life Skills courses and second chance
education, which may be supported by activities linked
to the Tasmanian Adult Literacy Action Plan. This focus
is aligned with the Tasmanian Skills Strategy to connect
more people to work and their community by removing
barriers to participation, and improve adult literacy skills
which is vital to increasing participation and productivity
in Tasmania.
Re-imagining
Libraries
Re-imagining statewide reference services continues
to be a key strategic focus for LINC Tasmania.
It is re-shaping the statewide reference collections
and services to meet the needs of clients seeking
information in the 21st Century. The strategy is being
delivered through national cooperation and its focus
on online service delivery, and emphasis on digitisation
of our significant documentary heritage, has resulted
in over 201,722 culturally or historically significant
documents being digitised and made available online in
the past financial year. The strategy has also reduced the
duplication of those collections that are held and shared
through distributed national collections.
The strategy is aligned to the principals of the national
Re-imagining Libraries agenda which outlines the way
in which libraries will embrace new opportunities in
service delivery to address the impacts that changes in
technology are having on the service model.
Collection The principles of the Reference Collections Policy and the
management Retention and Withdrawal Policy for Library Materials and
Donations, provide the framework for selection and
de-selection—reflecting a preference for acquiring
reference resources in electronic format where available
and appropriate. These policies, in conjunction with
the broader national agenda of the Re-imaging Libraries
Collaborative Collections initiative, have been the impetus
for significant changes to the storage and collection
management of the general reference collections.
Over 50% of the collections were assessed and major
collection relocations have resulted in two key outcomes:
contemporary collections with a mix of digital and print
resources, and increased capacity for the storage of
Tasmanian material.
Physical storage space and capacity was upgraded at the
Tower Building, 91 Murray Street. Additional compactus
were installed on four floors and the existing Heritage
and Reference Collections were reconfigured into more
logical arrangements. The transformation of storage
area coincided with the transfer of the large collection
of Tasmanian railways records from National Archives
Australia which highlighted the need to improve facilities
and make better use of available storage space.
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LINC Tasmania