[EDLING:1713] ESL Learning Tool for the Residential Construction Industry

[Francis M. Hult]

National Association of Home Builders

http://www.nahb.org/news_details.aspx?sectionID=148&newsID=2944

HBI and Retention Education LLC Launch Specialized ESL Training Tool

SED De Saber - Home Builders Edition 


July 18, 2006 - Home Builders Institute (HBI), the workforce development arm 
of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), partnered with Retention 
Education, LLC, to develop Sed de Saber™ - Home Builders Edition, an English 
as a Second Language (ESL) learning tool for the residential construction 
industry.
 
“With nearly two and one half million Hispanic workers fueling the nation’s 
home building industry, Sed de Saber™ - Home Builders Edition represents an 
enormous opportunity for home builders to recruit and retain skilled workers, 
fortify business relationships, increase efficiency, loyalty and promote job 
site safety,” said Michael Sivage, Albuquerque builder/developer and HBI 
Chairman.
 
Sed de Saber™ - Home Builders Edition will feature seven interactive books 
that use the world-renown LeapFrog Enterprises, Inc.™ technology. Users learn 
at their own pace, on their own time, more than 500 vocabulary words and over 
340 phrases specific to home building.
 
The program takes about 16 weeks to complete and includes an assessment tool 
to gage progression at set intervals. Each Sed de Saber™ kit is reusable and 
can be shared among workers, family and friends. “This is a breakthrough ESL 
tool that offers our industry a tailor made solution to language barriers 
typically found on residential construction job sites nationwide,” added 
Sivage.
 
A team of home building industry subject matter experts is providing content 
to ensure the material is relevant, accurate and true to the daily activities 
and interactions on the job site. 
 
“Retention Education partnered with HBI to produce the most pertinent, 
effective and specific language learning program available to the home 
building community,” says Bill Groux, Retention Education’s founder and chief 
executive officer.  “Sed de Saber™ - Home Builders Edition is created by home 
builders, for home builders to foster better communication on the job site, 
and empower users to advance their skills – and their lives.”
 
The Sed de Saber™ - Home Builders Edition kit includes a Quantum Pad™, 
microphone learning system, seven books with data cartridges, headset, power 
adapter and carrying case.
 
ABOUT HOME BUILDERS INSTITUTE: Home Builders Institute (HBI) is the workforce 
development arm of the 225,000-member National Association of Home Builders 
(NAHB). HBI is a non-profit organization offering craft education, training 
and placement programs for the residential construction industry. For more 
than 30 years, HBI programs have trained people in the trades, promoted the 
industry as a career and helped the residential construction industry and NAHB 
membership address its workforce needs.
 
ABOUT RETENTION EDUCATION: Retention Education, LLC is a workforce development 
company committed to the development and distribution of educational products 
that help Hispanic adults improve their work skills and their daily lives.  
Retention Education, LLC first released Sed de Saber™ , which translated means 
Thirst for Knowledge, for the hospitality industry in 2005.  Since then, 
25,000 units have been sold.