Traces the history and philosophy of core skills. Suggests that, although the way they are used in training and vocational education has positively changed the way skills are viewed, the approach is narrow in outlook, especially the General National Vocational Qualifications, and may not serve the best interests of industry or society. (Author/JOW)

In fall 1992, the Iowa Department of Education began pilot tests of the Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System (CASAS), an assessment system evaluating reading, math, and problem solving in a life skills context for adult remedial programs. This document provides reports from the nine community colleges that served as test sites, describing…

The statewide (Maryland) educational accountability plan described in this report was adopted in 1973 and called for the development and establishment of the following: statewide goals in reading, writing, and mathematics; local goals and objectives in each of 24 school systems in conformance with state goals; a comprehensive and uniform statewide…

A workplace literacy project had two goals: (1) to improve the productivity and efficiency of the manufacturing industry in Chicago and Cook County, Illinois, by providing workplace literacy instruction to workers who lack the basic skills required for their jobs; and (2) to improve educational programs to meet manufacturing industry needs by…

To overcome various reporting constraints, numerous strategies have been developed to facilitate accurate and timely reporting of data concerning the impact of Louisiana's State-Funded Compensatory/Remedial Program. These strategies include: (1) using existing statewide communication networks; (2) employing the Basic Skills Test (BST) as the major…

This monograph contains the proceedings of a conference that provided a forum for those who design, develop, conduct, evaluate, or administer competency-based educational programs for adults regardless of the program setting. Introductory materials include an overview of the conference, an introduction, and a foreward that summarizes the previous…

Part of a series of publications prepared by Hawaii's state department of education, this report details some of the curriculum development projects in progress during 1979-80. Each project description lists objectives; needs served; products anticipated upon completion as well as at the end of the 1979-80 school year; major activities; number and…

The Adult Reading Academy, a federally-funded service of the Phoenix Union High School District, serves native- and foreign-born adult students who are deficient in the basic skills of reading, writing, arithmetic, and oral communication. In 1980/81, the program served 476 students at 17 sites. Approximately 24 percent of the clients served were…

This report describes in detail a performance objective curriculum designed to help disadvantaged prekindergarten and kindergarten urban children attain the skills required to be at grade level in reading and mathematics and at the national norm in I.Q. by grade 1. The program is designed to systematically develop students' skills in 10 critical…

In fall 1978, Sacramento City College initiated the Higher Education Learning Package (HELP) to promote the success and retention of students with basic skill deficiencies while mainstreaming them into regular courses. Students work with instructors and tutors in small groups and on a one-to-one basis. Using an integrative team teaching approach,…

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…

The back-to-basics movement and public demands for educational quality guarantees have led state education agencies (SEA's) to examine their options in four areas: definition of the basics, relevant curricular and programming alternatives, alternatives for evaluating achievement of basics-related goals, and methods of reporting achievements to the…

This handbook is designed to assist Massachusetts schools in utilizing members of the community, teachers, and administrators in developing a system of evaluation to monitor student progress and measure program effectiveness. Emphasis is placed on the establishment of quality control procedures for alternative learning experiences, such as…

A project was conducted in Pennsylvania to determine what changes might improve the effectiveness of the State's adult basic education (ABE) program. Northcutt's construct of functional competency adult performance level (APL) and Mezirow's program evaluation model provided the basis for the project's two components: APL assessment and program…

A workplace literacy project for the manufacturing industry in Chicago and Cook County, Illinois, developed this competency-based curriculum guide for basic skills instruction. The introduction outlines manufacturing trends that make certain basic skills critical for workers. The project's six-part model is outlined: initial contact, needs…