The adult literacy education field draws on research from several disciplines to support the work of educating the 40-44 million U.S. adults who lack the skills to obtain and maintain family sustaining work opportunities (Kirsch et al., 1993). Adult literacy research that documents the prevalence of low literacy in the adult population is useful…

This article explores the relationship between literacy and oracy in the context of "Plazas Comunitarias," a basic education programme in Spanish for immigrants in the United States. I reflect on my experiences as a former "Plazas" facilitator, analyse key literacy materials from the programme and offer observations on reading…

Since independence, Timor-Leste has taken initiatives to improve adult literacy and successive governments, international NGOs and donor agencies have been involved in literacy programmes. This paper explores the non-formal literacy programmes with a particular focus on the Second Chance Education Project (SCEP), an accelerated learning model that…

The authors describe how a community museum created and curated by adult education students acted as an innovative and student-centered model to support learners in developing and demonstrating their literacy skills and knowledges. Using a case study approach to document and analyze students' counterstories (i.e., stories that disrupt dominant…

Play is a universal human experience. Often regarded as the unique purview of children, an emerging body of research points to the importance of playfulness in adulthood. This article reports on the research and observations of two teaching artists working in Connected, a Sydney Theatre Company adult-literacy-through-drama programme. This article…

This article reviews the adult literacy campaign in the 1970s in the United Kingdom (UK) and the influence of Paulo Freire's thinking on how we worked. We argue that much adult literacy provision had been designed to 'domesticate' rather than 'liberate'. The mid-1970s 'Right to Read' campaign in the UK rejected this approach (BAS, 1974). The use…

This paper argues that part-time adult literacy facilitators (ALFs), who are often employed in large numbers, have the potential to become agents for a wider approach to development, especially through involvement with the adult learning targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Drawing on international ethnographic-style research into…

Adult education has a rich history in Iowa of providing services that assist adults in improving their skills, achieving their educational goals, and transitioning to further education or employment. Instruction is designed for adults functioning at the lowest levels of basic skills and/or needing English language instruction to advance their…

This article draws on work with communities in the rural and remote towns of Brewarrina, Wilcannia and Enngonia, New South Wales (NSW) to explore the relationship between low adult literacy levels and the continuing alienation of Aboriginal communities from educational decision making. Building on the analysis of community-school relations…

This article focuses on the implementation of the Cuban "Yes, I Can" adult literacy campaign in Indigenous Australian communities in north west New South Wales (NSW). It examines the interplay between empowerment, disempowerment and commodification in education in Australia in order to assess what new elements the Cuban "Yes, I…

This article explores whether looking at adult literacy teaching through the lens of Lave and Wenger's "community of practice" approach to learning provides useful additional insights into adults learning to read, especially the role of the adult literacy facilitator. Using some case studies of facilitators from the Ethiopian Integrated…

This article draws on the theories of Mezirow, Foucault, and Holland and colleagues to investigate how students were positioned in relation to their own experiences, what opportunities they had to overcome their negative positioning in relation to the power structures that inform the worlds in which they move, and how their changed practices…

The continuous professional development of educators is not only essential to highly maintain their expertise levels and ensure that their knowledge is up to scratch, but also to catch up and adopt new pedagogical tools, skills and techniques. The advent of the Web 2.0 brought about a plethora of digital tools that teachers have not only struggled…

This article examines perceptions of indigenous women of the "Bilingual Indigenous Education Model for Life and Work" (MIB) programme which the Mexican Government initiated a decade ago as an alternative route for indigenous youth and adults into basic education. Programme objectives include the promotion of equal access to quality basic…

This article reports on a specific case of the READ Center--a community-based literacy organization (CBLO) in Richmond, Virginia--and its attempt to develop promotional materials that will encourage low-literate adults to enroll in literacy programs. The article also offers insight on how literacy organizations may utilize the practical experience…