We experimentally tested whether students (n = 509) read our study's consent form and if they were honest in self-reporting their actions. In our experimental deception group (n = 245) we inserted a requirement for a mandatory blood donation in our consent form and found that only 11.4% of our experimental group were aware of what they had agreed…

A study of the application forms for Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, public assistance, food stamps, Medicaid, and Medicare was conducted to examine the frequently occurring unfamiliar, specialized vocabulary words. It was found that 76 such words occurred at least ten times in the documents studied. A large number of other…

The study of reading in restricted contexts ultimately short changes children. The continuous proliferation of research data results in teacher training courses that are overloaded with marginally relevant material. A vast number of "teachable skills" are isolated, and well-meaning publishers produce sophisticated but unnecessary materials;…

In order to assess various reading and writing abilities of adults, for comparison with corresponding abilities of pupils in grades 7 through 12, and to investigate the extent to which adults' reading and writing abilities can be regarded as satisfactory, answers to a series of tests and questionnaire data were obtained from random samples of…

After reiterating the findings of an earlier examination of job literacy, this paper discusses the results of a job literacy survey involving interviews with 107 individuals representing 100 occupations ranging from short-order cooks and assembly-line workers to lawyers and corporation vice-presidents. Other aspects of the research findings…

Research was conducted into the metacognitive awareness of electronics workers in completing job reading tasks. The study examined how successful adult readers make decisions about why, when, and how to use reading on the job. It also identified unique aspects of the job reading context that both require workers to control their reading…

Three mentally retarded adult residents of a group home were trained to read survival words in four conditions (in the group home with one trainer; in the group home with two to three trainers; one trainer in the group home and the natural environment; and two to three trainers in the group home and the natural environment). Training was…

The School Transition to Employment Partnership (STEP) Employability Curriculum is a competency-based evaluation and training program for special needs students, designed to ensure successful transition from school to employment. The STEP curriculum was developed through a partnership of state and local education agencies, representatives of state…

Teachers are faced with the problem of needing to do a better job of teaching the basics and the astrobasics (those skills needed to understand and respond to the complex bureaucratic demands of the space age, especially reading and filling in such forms as those required for class registration, student loans, and income tax preparation). At least…

In a response to the Mikulecky and Diehl examination of work-related literacy, this paper points out the need for data based on ethnographic approaches to research and more realistic assessments of text difficulty. Also suggested are questions to which future research might respond: How much of functional literacy is really functional competency?…

In this study, a subset of the adult functional reading items from the National Reading Survey was administered to a group of approximately 80 adults, together with a set of materials designed to assess decoding skills. The purpose of the study was to determine whether or not the inability to answer the adult reading tasks correctly is…

To devise a list of functional sight vocabulary words, a search was made of numerous curriculum guides and books, school district curricula, and several commercial materials purporting to teach such words. This search provided 16 word lists with a total of 466 different words and symbols. The word lists ranged from as few as five words to as many…

A functional reading program, as distinct from the standard middle school reading program, specifically ensures that all students will acquire the reading skills necessary for survival in our society. Survival reading behaviors to be achieved include the ability to read labels on packages, to locate references in a newspaper, or to translate…

Adaptive assessment procedures are a means of determining the quality of a reader's performance in a variety of reading situations and on a variety of written materials. Such procedures are consistent with the idea that there are functional competencies which change with the reading task. Adaptive assessment takes into account that a lack of…

This paper describes a research project which was designed to analyze the extent of functional literacy at different grade levels in Sweden. Functional literacy is defined here as the use of the mechanics of reading for different information purposes. A test battery was administered to 2600 students in grades six through twelve. The test battery…