Business, labor, and education representatives from Canada and the United States exchanged positions on workplace literacy. Discussed were the need for a consumers' guide to workplace literacy, labor's stake in literacy, educators' negotiations with businesses in providing services, and program evaluation. (JOW)

This guide raises and discusses questions to guide workplace literacy. The historic context for this handbook is the progress of Project REACH from its inception in 1986 to the present. An introduction considers how an workplace literacy. An introduction considers how an organization's history affects program decisions. Chapter 1 looks at…

This handbook presents reading materials for a distance education course designed to enhance an understanding of the nature of workplace literacy needs and to show how to develop and teach in workplace literacy and basic skills programs. The three reading materials presented in the handbook are: (1) "Developing and Evaluating Workplace…

Points out that, to keep the work force up to date, business, industry, and labor groups are inviting adult basic educators to design and implement retraining programs at the worksite. Provides suggestion for designing custom-made basic skills instruction using work-related materials. (JOW)

Research has shown that an effective assessment of workplace literacy programs requires both formative and summative evaluations. Workplace literacy program impact is best measured using a mixture of standard assessment tests and custom-designed instruments. A broader conception of adult literacy learning can be assessed by using interviews and…

This report focuses on the question of how to evaluate workplace education programs. Chapter 1 outlines the various purposes that those involved in workplace education programs have defined for workplace education and describes program models in place to meet those goals. Chapter 2 sets out three scenarios for evaluation at present: informal,…

This evaluation guide resulted from a 2-year project that conducted literacy audits at 10 manufacturing companies, assessed 3,291 workers, developed customized assessments and curricula, and provided 104 courses to 948 participants in the Chicago area. The guide is a hands-on resource to assist companies, unions, or educational agencies in setting…

An external evaluation of the Champaign County (Ohio) Workplace Literacy Project used the Triphase Evaluation process based on Stuffelbeam's decision-making model (1971). During the input phase, emphasis was on determining needs of workers and employers in order to develop a training program to meet specific identified needs. The process phase was…

A project collected data from small and medium-sized firms (employing fewer than 500) in Michigan concerning workplace education programs. It addressed why firms were or were not offering programs, program characteristics, and program impacts on firms and employees. Case studies of 28 businesses were undertaken from May 1991-July 1992 and a…

This report describes the following components of the Nestle Workplace Literacy Project: six job task analyses, curricula for six workplace basic skills training programs, delivery of courses using these curricula, and evaluation of the process. These six job categories were targeted for training: forklift loader/checker, BB's processing systems…

Site visits to 17 workplace education projects funded in the second year of the Massachusetts Workplace Education Initiative are reported for year 1 and year 2 projects. The year one projects are as follows: EASCO Handtool Company (Springfield), T.J. Maxx Distribution Center (Worcester), laundry workers (Boston/Lynn), AT&T (Lawrence), and…

The Wisconsin Workplace Partnership Literacy (WPL) Program provided job-specific basic skills education to employees at 11 worksites. A total of 1,441 employees were recruited to participate in on-site competency-based educational activities to upgrade their basic skills sufficiently for job retention or advancement. Participants were encouraged…

A project was conducted to improve the productivity and efficiency of 10 manufacturers by providing workplace literacy instruction to workers lacking basic skills required for their jobs, and to improve the capability of educational programs to meet the basic skill needs of the manufacturing industry by developing an evaluation manual for basic…

A 2-year project was conducted to improve the productivity of the work force through improvement of literacy skills in the workplace by providing instruction to employees in the printing industry in the Baltimore (Maryland) metropolitan area; Carroll County and Charles County, Maryland; and York, Pennsylvania. The project was organized with input…

This document profiles Ohio's seven award-winning workplace literacy programs. The workplace literacy programs described are offered by a mix of urban and rural firms which employ between 85 and 2,323 individuals in a variety of sectors. The workplace literacy programs offered by the following firms are described: Cleveland Track Material; L.J.…