The goal of this study was to describe how underlying vocabulary knowledge manifests into vocabulary usage, and in turn, how usage predicts writing quality among adult basic education (ABE) learners. ABE learners were administered tasks that measured vocabulary knowledge, in the forms of both vocabulary breadth and depth. Participants were also…

Adult basic education students manage adult responsibilities and obligations and personal goals related to school. They commit their time and limited resources and thus are investors in their own learning. As investors, their voices matter. When one countywide adult basic education program implemented a systemic plan to ask students upon entry…

Adult education and literacy has never been more valued in Iowa than it is now. Adult Education and Literacy (AEL) empowers individuals to become self-sufficient by providing the basic skills and knowledge necessary to complete a secondary education credential and helps them meet their education and career goals. Nationally, AEL programs serve 1.5…

Adult Education and Literacy (AEL) empowers individuals to become self-sufficient by providing the basic skills and knowledge necessary to complete a secondary education credential and helps them meet their education and career goals. Nationally, AEL programs serve 1.5 million adults who are no longer in school and who lack basic literacy and math…

The goal of this meeting was to discuss the challenges of adult education and mechanisms to better understand and address those challenges through research. The meeting was structured around three panel discussions representing the perspectives of State directors of adult education programs, adult education researchers, and education research…

This paper attempts to identify some tools to help practioners think about, debate and plan Workplace Literacy and Essential Skills (WLES) programs. Such tools are necessary so that discussions between practitioners aiming to clarify good practice and successful approaches can get beyond mere descriptions of what happened. In order to compare and…

These two documents are products of a project to improve the capability of the Pennsylvania Regional Staff Development Centers to provide current, research-based workplace literacy training and technical assistance to adult basic and literacy education programs. The final report describes these project activities: development of training materials…

In 1985-1986 the Pima County Adult Education program conducted an adult basic education (ABE) curriculum project that was intended to devise materials for use in determining and remediating content gaps in the district's adult basic education and high school equivalency programs. The needs assessment instrument, which was designed to discover…

Originally designed to serve 400 employees, the Mott Community College (MCC) Workplace Literacy Project provided instruction in basic workplace skills to 566 employees from 20 companies. The cost was 2 percent lower than projected. All participants were assessed and counseled on the basis of the assessment tests. Individualized training plans were…

Mercer County Community College (New Jersey) and six small businesses used federal grant money to develop a model program of workplace literacy that would assist 600 adult workers with inadequate basic skills in performing their jobs. In analyzing the overall skills of the work force, the literacy audit identified these basic skills/literacy…

A visually oriented educational model that was originally developed for use with children was adapted for use with adults in an adult basic and literacy education class. The four-step visual literacy model required students to perform the following actions while reading an entire novel: visualize, inquire, read, and apply. A General Educational…

This final report contains a ten-page narrative and extensive appendixes of materials regarding, and products developed by, a project to develop assessment and educational techniques serving the adult basic education (ABE) student with learning disabilities (LD). The narrative discusses activities (and results) concerning these five project…

Many adults in basic literacy programs tend to drop out if they cannot see the program's relevance to the real world. In response to this problem, Odessa College (Odessa, Texas) developed, implemented, and evaluated an innovative program for adult education through technology designed to provide high quality, multimedia literacy education directly…

This project report describes the development of a literacy curriculum that introduced the elements of democracy. After reviewing existing print and video materials, a curriculum design team of literacy practitioners and civic activists prepared a draft curriculum and pilot tested it in six adult literacy classes. Based on feedback from teachers…

A survey instrument developed in 1991 by the Massachusetts Job Council to ascertain basic information regarding funds spent on job training and to provide state policymakers with information about those being served and what services are being provided was used as a model to develop a program assessment instrument. The program assessment…