At the Murphy Centre in Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador, Jennifer Hierlihy is helping adult learners rebuild their confidence and skills through ACCESS to Learning, a program that supports individuals who have faced barriers or interruptions in their educational journey. Serving adults over the age of 18 who are disconnected from formal education, the program focuses on building foundational literacy, numeracy, digital literacy, and life skills. The program is also offered in St. John’s, Corner Brook and Happy Valley Goose Bay.
Many of the learners that Hierlihy supports have struggled with traditional education due to undiagnosed learning challenges, mental health issues or socio-economic barriers. As a literacy practitioner, her goal is to help learners gain the foundational skills needed to pursue further education, particularly high school equivalency courses, and ultimately gain better employment opportunities.
The Murphy Centre has utilized several of ABC Life Literacy Canada’s free adult literacy programs over the years, including UP Skills for Work, ABC Connect for Learning, ABC Money Matters, and most recently, ABC Everyday Numbers. ABC Everyday Numbers is a numeracy program that offers free resources to adult learners looking to improve their math skills.
Learning as a path to rehabilitation
One of the Murphy Centre’s most impactful ACCESS to Learning program outreach is to the Bishop’s Falls Correctional Centre, a partnership that’s been running for nearly three years. Hierlihy travels to the facility two to four times a month to deliver literacy, numeracy, and life skills programming. Since the Spring, she has facilitated seven ABC Everyday Numbers workshops to 35 incarcerated individuals. She has found the program especially helpful for easing the fear many adults have around math.
“A lot of people say right away, ‘Oh, I hate math, I’m not good at it,’” says Hierlihy. “But these are foundational skills, and not everyone has them.”
Learners at Bishop’s Falls Correctional Centre come with a wide range of abilities. Many have not completed high school, while some have been self-diagnosed with ADHD or other learning challenges. “We open the program to anyone who’s interested in attending.”
ABC Everyday Numbers offers free workbooks, video lessons and online courses on five math topics, including patterns, multiplication, estimation, rates, and probability. Hierlihy says she typically runs two to three sessions per topic, and has seen how the program has positively impacted social connection and self-esteem.
“The way the curriculum is developed gives the participants a focus, something to talk about. Everyone can learn something, regardless of their skill level.”
For those in the justice system, these kinds of programs are often viewed as a positive step in rehabilitation. Hierlihy has even received messages from former participants who’ve left the facility and reached out to say how valuable the sessions were in helping them plan for a better future.
Meeting learners where they are
Beyond the correctional system, ACCESS to Learning in Gander also runs monthly literacy programming through community partners like the Salvation Army. These sessions reach low-income adults, many of whom experience mental health challenges. In just a few sessions, Hierlihy has worked with more than 40 learners in these community settings.
Hierlihy says the ABC Everyday Numbers curriculum has been a flexible and approachable resource for teaching numeracy skills that matter in everyday life.
“If you’re shopping and need to stay within a budget, estimating helps you figure out what you can afford. Adults need to be able to do basic estimation and multiplication. For example, if you’re buying something in the store and it has tax on it, you need to be able to calculate that percentage to see if you can afford it.”
Transforming fear into confidence
Hierlihy acknowledges that numeracy often feels more intimidating than literacy for many learners.
“With math, it’s very black and white; you’re either right or you’re wrong. There’s no gray area like in writing or discussions. That can be tough for people who didn’t get the support they needed in school.”
But with ABC Everyday Numbers, learners don’t just gain math skills, they gain confidence. One of Hierlihy’s standout success stories is of a student who came to the program without a high school diploma. With support from the Murphy Centre, he built his foundational skills and is now studying in an Adult Basic Education program at college, working toward his high school diploma so he can apply to trade school.
“He knows he needs high school to get a better job and have a better life,” Hierlihy says. “It was so positive to see him be able to do that.”
To learn more about ABC Everyday Numbers and to bring the free program to your community, visit abceverydaynumbers.ca.
