TIES Rolls Out Suite of Simulators to Help Newcomers with Digital Skills

Imagine not being able to write an email or access online banking. Many newcomers don’t have to imagine it — it’s their reality.

“Newcomers, especially our literacy learners, often have gaps in their digital skills or digital literacy,” LCE Curriculum/Project Developer Jeremy Wilson said.

“These would be tools that they may not have grown up with.”

That’s why TIES (The Immigrant Education Society) is rolling out a suite of simulators to help newcomers learn essential digital skills.

Developed by the nonprofit’s LCE (Literacy Centre of Expertise) team, the LINCmail and LINCchat simulators are already up-and-running. Soon-to-be released: web app LINCtype and the much-anticipated LINCbank simulator.  

“It’s so important,” LCE Lead Donna Clarke added. “What year are we? 2026! These are necessary life skills right now.”

How LINCmail and LINCchat work…

LINCmail provides LINC (Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada) students with a step-by-step tutorial for “everything” email.

“We found that a lot of our learners were struggling with using email. Whether it’s logging into email, reading emails, writing emails,” Wilson said.

“Another important thing was using email safely. They weren’t able to differentiate between legitimate emails and maybe those that were spam.”

Clarke pointed to a simple scam that most people have probably received — the lottery win scam.

“It looks exactly like a real email. You may be thinking, ‘Oh my gosh I’ve won $10,000! Can you believe it?!’ So, then they click on the link to get their money only to get, ‘Oh oh. You clicked an unsafe link.’”

The simulators allow students to use a mock email address and practice how to use all its functions — safely.

“They can practice sending emails using a fake email account that doesn’t actually exist so there’s no harm in trying,” Wilson explained.

“If they send the wrong thing, or they put the email address in wrong, or they’re reading an email and they’re practicing clicking links — it will give them a warning message as opposed to actually installing a virus for example.”

LINCchat works the same way, allowing learners to practice reading and typing text messages.

The much-anticipated LINCbank simulator…

The LCE team is extremely excited for the upcoming release of its online banking simulator.

LINCbank will allow instructors to teach students how to use mobile banking — again in a safe, private way.

“You can’t practice sending an e-transfer without consequences, and without sending it,” Wilson said.  

“So here you get to practice logging in, paying off bills, getting information, checking balances etc.”

Wilson remembers his students standing in bank lineups for hours during the pandemic because they didn’t know how to use online banking. With this simulator, those waits will be gone.  

But Clarke says it’s about more than that. She says by teaching these skills in the classroom, no one will be left behind in this increasingly digital world.

“A number of our students don’t have a computer at home, or they don’t have a phone that can do these things,” she pointed out. “So here, we can in class, all go into the computer room together and practice the same skills together.”

“We’re all starting on an equal footing” 

The team is also rolling out a web app helping students with typing skills. Similar to the simulators, LINCtype will allow students to practice micro-skills, transferable skills, to any digital device.

LINC classes are funded by IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada).

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Additional information:

https://literacycentre.immigrant-education.ca/

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Media RSVP, Interviews & Inquiries:

Tomasia DaSilva

Media and Relationship Strategist

Email: tomasiadasilva@immigrant-education.ca

Phone: 403-291-0002