The Westcoast Reader is an award-winning literacy newspaper for beginning adult readers in British Columbia, Canada. Its purpose is to help English as a second language (ESL) and adult literacy learners develop reading skills, while providing interesting and relevant information with an adult focus.
Local, national, and international news stories are adapted from The Vancouver Sun and The Province by the editor for use in The Westcoast Reader. The newspaper also provides information on a variety of topics including health, safety, law, government services, and everyday life.
The editor writes and edits the newspaper that is published 10 times per year (from September to June). There is an Assistant to the Editor.
Articles in the newspaper are written at three levels of difficulty, providing entry points to reading for a variety of learners (from elementary school students to senior citizens). The province of British Columbia considers the newspaper to be an introduction to Canadian daily newspapers, as well as an orientation for immigrants to aspects of Canadian life and culture.
Each issue of The Westcoast Reader is accompanied by Teachers’ Notes that include exercises and activities for learners as well as suggestions and resources for teachers. The notes can be downloaded each month from The Westcoast Reader website. Teachers can also find links such as videos, photos, maps and articles, which help educators to expand on the stories.
Front page articles from each issue is read aloud and posted on the The Westcoast Reader website as an audio file. Learners can listen to the text and read along at the same time. News articles are now being uploaded weekly online. The Westcoast Reader Learning Community was a pilot project made possible through funding from the government of Canada.
Educational programs for adults, libraries, and multicultural agencies in British Columbia can receive the newspaper free of charge. The newspaper has an estimated readership of 125,000 in 300 B.C. communities.
Funding for The Westcoast Reader is provided by the BC Ministry of Advanced Education with assistance from the Pacific Newspaper Group. Capilano University Capilano University in North Vancouver provides support services.