In 2020, the Brooklyn Museum Education Department, like many departments in museums across the globe, engaged in a reevaluation of its programs and priorities in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. As we reassessed what responsive programming could and should look like for our audiences, the Adult Learning Division within Education decided to…

This paper looks at some issues around "learning to read" from the viewpoint of a social practice concept of literacy for both child and adult literacy. This calls for an ethnographic approach that, although increasingly common in the field of adult literacy, is less common in the policy and practice of schooling; there, a more…

This article presents findings from a case study of an adult literacy program. The author conducted this IRB-approved study as part of a three-year, research-based, community-engagement project that partnered the literacy program with a writing center at a large public research university. The author argues that the participatory methods afforded…

This study investigates how literacy was constructed at an adult literacy organization's volunteer tutor-training program. By drawing on qualitative analysis of training texts used during training, such as training evaluations, and data gathered from interviews with experienced tutors, it is possible to identify the assumptions about literacy…

Many adults need help with literacy learning. This is extremely challenging for the tertiary education sector and workplace-situated learning organisations. E-learning may be an effective and efficient way to improve the delivery of teaching of basic skills to learners. Our research study included five embedded case studies within one tertiary…

Describes the Chinese effort to eliminate adult illiteracy. The author discusses purposes of adult education, history of adult literacy education, adult illiteracy statistics, the design of literacy education, curriculum construction, teaching methods, evaluation of the literacy education process, impact of literacy education, and implications of…

AN OBSERVATION TEAM OF SPECIALISTS VISITED SITES OF 35 SEPARATE ADULT EDUCATION PROGRAMS IN MANY STATES. INTERVIEWS WERE CONDUCTED WITH ADMINISTRATORS, TEACHERS, AND ILLITERATES. MATERIALS WERE EXAMINED, CLASSROOM INTERACTIONS WERE OBSERVED, OBSERVATIONS WERE MADE OF TEACHER AND STUDENT BEHAVIOR, AND ANALYSES WERE MADE OF THE FUNDAMENTALS…

A systems perspective of adult literacy assessment stresses use of comprehensive, holistic strategies. For literacy methods, systems theory emphasizes the holistic nature of the adult in relation to the complex web of systems. Systems theory applied to materials reflects the plurality of literacies and the need for a variety of materials. (SK)

An evaluation was conducted of the Arkansas adult education for homeless persons program funded through the Stewart B. McKinney Act. Evaluation activities included the following: a review of program applications; onsite inspection of the classrooms and materials for the homeless; observation of class activities; and interviews with program…

The focus of the experimental functional literacy project is the health and nutritional status of the young child; the target population are pregnant women and new mothers in rural Indian villages. (AJ)

The Bronx Educational Services (BES) was funded by the National Institute for Literacy to conduct activities to meet the following three objectives: (1) to develop and implement an evaluation to assess whether BES students improve their reading skills to a statistically significant degree as measured by the Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE);…

This paper presents a case and some ideas for integrating basic skills development with occupational training. Explaining why traditional instructional methods do not work in the workplace, the paper summarizes learning theories that support work force literacy programs. It explains how to identify the skills needed in the workplace, provides…

The effectiveness of open-entry/open-exit classes was compared with that of classes in which students were required to attend a specific number of hours. Effectiveness was determined by examining academic growth, attendance, retention, and achievement of program goals. Fifty-one students entered basic education classes at the start of the project,…

This booklet is part of the "Getting to Grips with..." series, which is intended for the general reader who wants to understand important trends in vocational education and training. It is designed to provide the reader with an understanding of the main practical aspects of on-the-job training. The booklet is in two parts. The first…

Suggests adult literacy practitioners must, among other things (1) respect students, (2) reject the labelling and classifying of them, (3) establish good personal relationships with them, (4) be open to varied pedagogical techniques, (5) help students experience success, and (6) support preservice and inservice staff development. (MM)