Recent research from the K-12 field indicates that professional development (PD) is a necessary (although not sufficient) factor in improving teacher quality. The research also clearly identifies ways to make professional learning activities for teachers effective. Yet the adult basic education and literacy (ABEL) field is not, for the most part,…

"Focus on Basics" is a publication of the U.S. Division of World Education, Inc. It presents best practices, current research on adult learning and literacy, and how research is used by adult basic education teachers, counselors, program administrators, and policymakers. "Focus on Basics" is dedicated to connecting research…

Adult basic and literacy education (ABLE) is a complex undertaking that serves diverse learners with a variety of needs. Although no definitive list of adult education principles exists in the literature, the following principles have been identified in multiple sources devoted to principles of effective adult education: involve learners in…

This proceedings contains 30 papers: "What Matters in Planning a Conference" (Ahmed et al.); "Faculty Motivations for Learning To Teach at a Distance with Instructional Technology" (Armstrong); "The Use of Literature in Qualitative Research" (Austin, Babchuk); "Reading Women's Lives" (Baker-Clark);…

This book, developed for adult educators who teach or tutor reading in General Educational Development (GED) classrooms and for teacher trainers, contains 18 fact sheets on learning and thinking, each about 10 pages long. The following fact sheets are included: (1) Literature Is Not Science; (2) Making Connections; (3) Mental Models; (4) Thinking…

As part of the "National 'What Works' Evaluation for Adult ESL Students," a meeting of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) literacy experts and stakeholders was convened (May 10, 1996) to examine what theory and practice have to say about how ESL students acquire literacy skills, prevalent instructional approaches and methods, assessment issues to…

This document contains 43 papers presented at a conference on research in teaching adults at the University of Exeter, England, in 1998. Among the papers are the following: "Reconstructing Academic Practice: Research and Teaching in a University School of Adult Education" (David Boud); "Re-searching Adult Education Practice:…

The Adult Multiple Intelligences (AMI) Study investigated how multiple intelligences (MI) theory can support instruction and assessment in adult literacy education across different adult learning contexts. Two interwoven qualitative research projects focused on applying MI theory in practice. One involved 10 teacher-conducted and AMI…

A panel of experts from a variety of disciplines was convened to advise policymakers about what is known about instructional effectiveness in adult and family literacy situations. The panel concluded that, although little research examining instructional effectiveness in family and adult literacy programs is available, a great deal of "best…

In this volume of "Adventures in Assessment," an annual literacy education journal, teachers and practitioners write about their experiences with standards-based reform initiatives at the state and national levels. The following seven articles are included: "What Makes a Good Teacher?" (Marie F. Hassett); "Successful…

In a series of mathematics education workshops in which teachers from adult basic education and vocational education worked together to design teaching situations on particular contents in mathematics in order to make explicit and bring into reflection the teaching strategies used by each group. The workshops constituted a common space of…

This document contains four monographs on serving adults with learning disabilities. The preface (Mary Ann Corley) explains how the papers were commissioned. The primary and secondary characteristics of learning-disabled adults and the implications of those characteristics for adult literacy programs are discussed in "Characteristics of Adults…

The Adult Multiple Intelligences Study was the first systematic effort related to multiple intelligences (MI) theory in adult literacy education. The study's findings regarding MI theory served as the foundation for a study of MI theory's implications for adult literacy practice, policy, and research. The study was conducted across 10 different…

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…

This paper recounts observations of differences in the interactions of adult students when they are engaged in traditional worksheet tasks in contrast to small group activities and summarizes recent research on the benefits of group work in adult mathematics learning. It offers a selection of group and pair activities designed to foster…