As a result of a growing immigrant population in the United States, many adult education programs are working with new populations of adult learners who need to learn English. There is a need for a strong workforce of trained and knowledgeable practitioners who can work effectively with adults learning English and facilitate transitions to…

Professional development, a continuing process of activities that enhance professional growth, should be planned and managed by the individual. Although part-time adult educators may be able to consult with supervisors in planning professional development, more often they work in relative isolation and must take sole responsibility for their…

This issue of the journal, "Seeds of Innovation," focuses on the teacher as learner, on creating successful supportive learning environments for professional growth and development. It draws from experiences of Tennessee adult basic education (ABE) practitioners who participated in the 1993-94 Literacy Trainers Institutes and the 1994-95 Learner…

This paper defines professional certification as a voluntary process regulated by a profession to measure competencies possessed by its practitioners. A hierarchy of motives for certification is illustrated, and its importance for the fields of adult education and human resource development (HRD) is emphasized. The evolution of the concept of…

This article highlights the sources and methods that will help the adult educator discover ideas that can be developed into unsolicited proposals for the funding of projects. The following sources of ideas are listed: colleagues and friends, literature reviews, current events in the popular press, speeches by noted authorities, proceedings of…

This worksheet is intended to assist adult basic education teachers in organizing personal learning projects. Based on the learning approach advocated by Malcolm Knowles and a teacher training model developed through Project ACT, the worksheet includes information on the attributes of good teachers and development of a contract for self-directed…

A study examined issues of teacher professionalization within adult literacy education. Relevant research and theory on professionalization were reviewed, the historical experiences of other professional fields were examined, data on state certification requirements for adult basic education (ABE) teachers were analyzed, officials from states…

This book focuses on helping individuals to be effective educators and on helping improve the practice of continuing professional education. It identifies the elements of effective practice for continuing professional educators. The most common and important types of situations that continuing professional educators face, the range of choices open…

This book draws on recent scholarship in adult education to provide practical ideas for adult educators on how to stimulate and support their own development as educators and better understand the process of professional development as adult learning. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the diverse contexts within which educators work and the nature…

This book provides a practical orientation as well as a conceptual framework for understanding the administrative process by examining the primary elements, functions, and processes involved with effective administration of adult, community, and continuing education agencies and organizations. The book is organized in nine chapters. Chapter 1…

This package for presenters contains an 84-hour professional development course designed to train and support teachers of adult numeracy and mathematics in adult literacy and basic education. The information for presenters provided at the beginning includes material on how the course was developed, content and structure, and lists of resources and…

This Teaching Adult Learners Kit (TALKit) is an inservice "cafeteria" that offers many choices to the workshop planner/facilitator. The core of the kit is a series of structured workshop activities designed to help teachers build a teaching foundation--a working philosophy for adult education. Activities focus on three areas: the philosophy of…

This course aims to give experienced practitioners additional knowledge and skill in relation to the following: changing contexts of national policy and delivery practices in adult literacy and basic education; current theories, issues, and concerns informing practice in the field; and their own practice in light of these reviews. It is intended…

This guide is designed to assist professional development facilitators responsible for helping Virginia's adult literacy practitioners develop and implement the professional development plans that constitute a key component of the state's professional development system for paid and volunteer literacy training providers. The following are among…

This guide is for teachers, tutors, counselors, and others working with adult learners in programs of literacy, adult basic education, General Educational Development test preparation, and English as a Second Language. It is a compendium of short articles written by 50 adult basic educators in Pennsylvania. The articles provide background…