Chloe's Story from the Big Plus

Councillor Margaret Toner, Lifelong Learning Portfolio Holder for South Ayrshire Council said: “Chloe’s learning journey is truly inspirational and clearly demonstrates that there are many learning paths that can lead to improving literacy skills.

“Many people take for granted their reading, writing and numeracy skills, so I think that campaigns such as this are very important to highlight the learning obstacles some people face.

“Chloe wanted to improve her skills, sought help, worked hard and the result is a young woman who now has the tools that will help her reach her goals in the future.”

Look out for Chloe's story in the local press.

Adult Learning Groups

We have beginner IT Groups running in Ayr, Girvan, Maybole and Troon. These are for learners over the age of 16 who want to get started using a computer, going on the internet and sending emails.

There are 2 reading groups in Ayr and one in Girvan. This is where a member of staff reads a story and then the learners discuss it – what they liked or disliked, whether it was any good or not. Sometimes they will discuss what they think the ending might be or the meanings of words from the stories. The groups are fun, interesting and a good way of meeting people and becoming more confident in groups at a pace that suits the learners.

We have a CV group in the Learning Shop on a Tuesday between 11 and 1 for people who need to update or create a CV from scratch.

There’s also a group who meet on Mondays in the Learning Shop for Supported Education and they work on things like telling time and counting money.

For more information on all of our ESOL Groups (English for Speakers of Other Languages) please get in touch. The group abilities range from complete beginner through to those that are ready to start college. We have groups in the Learning Shop and the John Pollock Centre in Ayr.

If you are a learner who would like more information or if you know someone who might be interested in being referred please give us a ring on 01292 263304 to find out more.

CONVERSATION CLASS FOR ESOL LEARNERS

Friday mornings from 11 – 12.30

New 8 week block starts  Friday 14^th February 2014  until Friday 4^th April

At the John Pollock Centre

Mainholm Road

Ayr

KA8 OQD

Practise your English conversation skills and meet new friends.

Free childcare places for pre-school children aged 4 may be available

For further information and to register.  Please contact:

Ann Gentilomo at the Learning Shop

Ann.gentilomo@south-ayrshire.gov.uk

Telephone:   01292 263304

Happy New Year!

Everyone at The Learning Shop would like to wish our learners and tutors all the best for 2014. We’d love to hear if you have any resolutions and if we can help you to achieve your goals in the coming year.

Merry Christmas!

We would like to wish all of our learners and tutors a very Merry Christmas and Best Wishes for the coming year. We look forward to hearing all about your festive break and hope it's filled with the good things in life. We'd also like to take this opportunity to thank everyone that's involved with Adult Learning wherever you are in South Ayrshire!

The Learning Shop will be closed on the 20th December and will open again on the 6th January.

Merry Christmas.

Congratulations!

 

Congratulations to all our new tutors who recently received their certificates for completing the Tutor Training.

We were delighted that Councillor Margaret Toner, the portfolio holder for Lifelong Learning, was able to come along and present the certificates.

It was also great to see Linda Muir back in the Learning Shop. We were able to drag the recently-retired Linda away from her life of champagne and truffles so that she could see the fruits of her labour!

Well done everyone!!

Eric Lindsay

Daily Record Article

 

 

WRITTEN off as a troublemaker, all Chloe McRoberts wanted to do was learn.

The Ayr teen has vivid memories of her school days, struggling to fit in and keep up with classmates.
She recalled: “I was misbehaving constantly and the teacher thought I was a bad child. I struggled a lot. At first, they thought it was my eyesight and that was why I couldn’t read the letters. I always struggled to read.
“We would sit down in a circle and read from a book. When it came to me, I could read it in my head but when it came out I’d just stutter.”
Chloe remembers constantly being told off for what was seen as disruptive behaviour and giving up.
“From primary 3, I just thought there is no point. People thought I was trying to cause hassle, but I was trying to communicate.”
Despite the support of her loving parents, it was assumed Chloe simply wasn’t making the effort and was hell-bent on causing trouble.
She said: “When I was nine, I was diagnosed with dyslexia. But teachers just thought I was naughty. My mum and dad would tell the school it’s not the way I was brought up, it’s the classroom environment.”
Sadly, Chloe’s father David died around this time, causing teachers to believe her worsening behaviour was down to her loss. She had developed an eating disorder and it was assumed she was attention-seeking.
For Chloe, it was the only control she had over her situation.
She said: “I just didn’t understand myself. It was obvious that I was different, so I started to self-harm.”
Things didn’t improve at secondary school, despite a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
This, combined with her dyslexia, meant learning in an unsupported environment was extremely difficult.
“I don’t remember much about secondary school because I was on medication,” said Chloe.
“I remember my first day was hellish. I just broke down. Again, no-one understood. They assumed I came from a dysfunctional family, but that wasn’t the case. It wasn’t how I was brought up. I deliberately kicked up to get out of the classroom.
“It was just such a blur to me, but by my last year there was just no point. It felt like the only person who had faith in me was my mum. I had struggled so hard with writing and spelling but people assumed it was my behaviour holding me back.”
After being excluded from school on several occasions, Chloe was removed in her fourth year by her mum, Rosina, who feared for her daughter’s mental health.
“I knew I was clever and able to achieve things but I was devastated leaving school because I wanted to learn,” said Chloe.
Determined her daughter should get some qualifications, Rosina contacted The Learning Shop adult education centre in Ayr.
“They were so supportive,” said Chloe. “They understand that it’s not because I’m stupid or I don’t want to, I have difficulties they help me with. I needed to start again. We started with the alphabet, covered nouns and verbs and adjectives, how to write sentences and paragraphs. It was fantastic.
“Then I applied to Ayrshire College to study Intermediate English, and when I started I already knew a lot of what we were covering. I got a B. This year I’m doing Higher English, Higher Psychology and Intermediate 2 History.”
She even won the South Ayrshire Council Adult Literacies Learner of the Year award, awarded to her by Coun Margaret Toner in June.
Chloe now hopes to become a vet and has been doing observational work in a local practice for two years.
“I’m learning the same things that the veterinary students who come to the practice do. I’ve wanted to be a vet since I was young,” said Chloe.