In the United States, approximately one in ten adults -- nearly 36 million people -- lack basic literacy and numeracy skills, while 27 million adults lack a high school diploma. Over the last decade, new models for adult education have emerged that integrate basic skills education with workforce and college-readiness training. These integrated…

This handbook provides information about the Idaho Basic Skills Project as well as processes to help identify participants who will create a successful Basic Skills Team for the school. The handbook begins with a series of questions that are intended (1) to help administrators understand the project better and (2) to help them decide on the need…

The potential of minimum competency testing cannot be realized unless school districts engage in the complex processes of competency-based program development. (Author/MLF)

Describes the development and implementation of Pasadena's minimum essentials program in English. (IRT)

This journal provides an account of pilot site visits and other professional notes from July 1989 to June 1990. It begins with a description of an initial meeting to determine the author's role in the Applied Academics Project, namely that of facilitator of the integration of academic and vocational education with local teachers. Other entries…

This document provides a methodology for reviewing all components of a cooperative vocational education program in order to increase the program's ability to benefit students. An introduction provides an overview of cooperative vocational education. It lists benefits to the student, school, employer, and community and discusses the relationship of…

This module provides a framework for designing a functional curriculum for students with disabilities. Topics addressed include designing and using a functional curriculum, analyzing student needs, and conducting job analysis. A list of 14 references is included, and examples of forms are provided. The guide includes a list of definitions and uses…

The development and implementation of the Dallas Independent School District's Basic Objectives Assessment Test (BOAT) are described. Beginning in 1979, this minimum competency test was administered system-wide to all students in grades 8-12 (except for those enrolled as special education students), and beginning in 1983 it will be used in…

This publication focuses on California Assembly Bill 3408, legislation mandating secondary schools to develop performance standards and performance tests for students. The paper analyzes progress made in implementing the legislation in California and outlines some of the barriers to successful implementation. The author explains several testing…

This guide is designed to assist Texas Job Training Partnership Act program staff and Private Industry Council (PIC) members in developing quality local youth competency systems that reach beyond the state-established minimum criteria. Section I discusses background, purposes, and limitations of the document and cites additional sources of…

A project was conducted in Illinois to determine what basic skills were needed in vocational education and how they should be taught. A multiple methods approach incorporating interviews, observations, surveys, and document analysis was employed to obtain data from the literature, and from practitioners, administrators, and experts in the fields…

A project was conducted to develop an integrated basic skills instructional program in an education service cooperative to serve grades 7-12 vocational students in 13 rural school districts in Arkansas (Grant and Jefferson counties) as a follow-up to the vocational assessment process. The Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) chose the Arkansas…

A third-party evaluation of the District of Columbia Experience Based Career Education Program (D.C. EBCE) was conducted in 1978. The program involved tenth- and eleventh-grade students in an individualized program of study that included academic instruction and career development opportunities. Using the Context, Input, Process, and Product…

This paper reviews service delivery models used with learning-disabled adolescents and proposes two alternative models of services. Components of an effective program include intensive basic skills instruction, explicit instruction in coping skills, successful completion of classes required for graduation, and planning for postgraduation life. (PB)