News Release

MONCTON (GNB) – Premier Brian Gallant unveiled Unleashing the power of literacy: New Brunswick’s Comprehensive Literacy Strategy at the Edith Cavell School in Moncton today.

“Improving literacy rates is crucial for New Brunswick’s economy,” said Gallant. “It is even more important for improving the quality of life of children and families in our province.”

Key priorities identified in the New Brunswick comprehensive literacy strategy include:

• Supporting parents to maximize their children’s optimal development by proposing a single-point of access from birth to early childhood and public school services.

• Providing quality programs, services and intervention for children and families according to their individual needs.

• Providing effective, timely and targeted literacy interventions to ensure that the needs of the range of learners are met.

• Exploring ways to provide learning opportunities beyond the traditional school day, giving priority to those who are most vulnerable.

• Working with employers to develop adult literacy and essential skills training that meet labour market needs.

• Engaging and supporting learners in adult literacy and essential skills training that advances them toward their individualized employment and learning goals.

• Improving co-ordination, collaboration, communication and shared ownership across government departments, other levels of government, early learning centres, schools, post-secondary institutions, employers and community-based organizations.

• Providing support and coaching to families to enhance literacy skills at home and at school.

To support these efforts the government has also invested nearly $2 million to support the hiring of more than 35 new literacy leads. The province has earmarked a $7 million per year investment in literacy programming for both children and adults in the 2017-18 provincial budget.

“In recent months I have had the pleasure of meeting with literacy partners and we all share the same goal, a commitment to literacy and lifelong learning,” said Finance Minister Cathy Rogers, who is the minister responsible for literacy. “To improve literacy skills, we will work together with an enhanced focus on co-ordination. Our strategic and collaborative approach to support literacy will create a job-ready workforce for generations to come and enhance the quality of life for New Brunswick families.”

The Provincial Literacy Strategy builds upon the recommendations in the report The Power of Literacy Moving towards New Brunswick’s Comprehensive Literacy Strategy co-authored by Marilyn Trenholme Counsell and Liane Roy.