Two facts have become clear since passage of the Workforce Investment Act in 1998. First, when low-skilled individuals increase their basic skills, these higher skills pay off in the labor market in the form of higher employment and earnings. Second, these earnings increases are typically modest and fall short of what people need to become…

This document expands upon the discussion of standardized tests in federal legislation and Department of Education rules and regulations, in order to guide practitioners in using these tests and alternative assessment methods more wisely. Amendments of 1988 that address the uses of standardized tests, the federal regulations that implement the…

This paper reviews significant events and resources that have emerged since the 1992 publication of "Adult Literacy Education: Current and Future Directions. An Update" by Hanna Fingeret. It analyzes major milestones in research and practice in literacy education that have occurred in the last decade. The paper begins by looking at the…

A review of current literature identifies three growing trends. First, there has been an increase in legislatively mandated accountability that requires taxpayer-funded education and research programs be demonstrated effective by "scientifically based research." To receive federal monies programs must emphasize quantitative,…