To learn to read, the brain must repurpose neural systems for oral language and visual processing to mediate written language. We begin with a description of computational models for how alphabetic written language is processed. Next, we explain the roles of a dorsal sublexical system in the brain that relates print and speech, a ventral lexical…

Despite efforts to promote literacy in the early years, millions of people in the United States and countless more abroad are functionally illiterate. The importance of improving adult literacy proficiency is unquestionable; however, the pedagogical approaches to support this monumental undertaking have been scarcely researched. Moreover, the…

This article emphasizes the importance of understanding local contexts to provide appropriate education for teachers about literacy instruction. The author reviews general problems that follow from extrapolating from unrepresentative research samples and the errors and deficit conceptions that follow from assuming that all cognition takes place…

Even a quick glance at international data reveals something troubling: There is an increasing economic and educational gap between Africa and the rest of the world. If we look just a bit deeper, we find that economic and educational stagnation may simply be the inevitable outcomes of broad educational failure for millions of rural African…

Reading standards are regarded by many as the true yardstick by which to measure school effectiveness, and the relative standards achieved by different generations are often debated by adults. Some young people do not perceive reading to be of anything like such importance, however, using digital communication habitually and easily. Each year a…

Paulo Freire's pedagogy was developed in reaction to the state of "periphery" of illiterate farmers in Brazil and Chile. However, his thinking, which illuminated capitalism's oppressive nature in the classrooms, was enthusiastically accepted in the "centre" and he became a global point of reference for social action. In this…

Despite 60 years of evidence linking juvenile illiteracy and delinquency, practitioners and policymakers have been painfully slow in the implementation of evidence-based reading interventions for incarcerated juveniles. We will present the Texas Juvenile Justice Tiered Instructional Model, an evidence-based reading program model created…

In outlining the framework offered at the UNESCO Regional Conference in support of Global Literacy (New Delhi, November 2007), it was pointed out that concepts of poverty, sustainable development and particularly of literacy and innovation have themselves been in continuous re-construction. An analysis of the context and condition for literacy…

The problem of functional illiteracy emerged in world science in the second half of the twentieth century, when it became obvious that in and of itself, the number of years a person spends in schooling does not guarantee a high level of professional and personal literacy. The problem was not manifested in the same way in the different national…

Describes the Chinese effort to eliminate adult illiteracy. The author discusses purposes of adult education, history of adult literacy education, adult illiteracy statistics, the design of literacy education, curriculum construction, teaching methods, evaluation of the literacy education process, impact of literacy education, and implications of…

This article reports on the authors' application of Freire's ideas as put forward in "Pedagogy of the Oppressed" regarding issues of adult illiteracy and disabled women in Trinidad and Tobago. The author used Freire's concept of the importance of learning the words of the oppressor, of getting people to talk together, of the teacher…

Shares ideas for classroom activities based on use of the students' senses. The activities are especially helpful for use with students with no or minimal literacy skills. (EKN)

In an effort to respond to Vermont teachers' and tutors' need for learning disabilities instruction, the Stern Center for Language and Learning developed a model program to teach adults with learning disabilities. The program included 12 hours of instruction presented over Vermont interactive television to over 100 adult basic education (ABE)…

Both a case study of a middle-aged Mexican migrant woman's attempt to learn to read and write and a personal account of the tutor's discovery of some of the social and psychological factors that kept her illiterate. Discusses methodology, materials, techniques, conflicting conceptions of literacy, and sociocultural expectations. (RDN)

This handbook is designed for individuals who tutor hearing impaired adults in literacy skills. It provides general information about a number of topics: adult learners; deaf adult learners; deaf awareness; deaf culture; communication tips; language, communication, and literacy for deaf adults; and teaching strategies. A 13-page report describes…