Staff of the Adult Learning Resource Center in Des Plaines, Illinois, expanded their traditional program of adult education support services to include workplace training and support. A Workforce Education Provider Discussion Group was established. (Author/JOW)

The functional literacy discourse ignores the ideological role of literacy in society and enables workers to be blamed for poor economic performance. A more meaningful concept of literacy at work includes understanding workplaces as communities of practice and inclusion of the voices and experiences of workers. (SK)

Suggests that workplace literacy is a serious concern and most companies are doing nothing to address the problem. Discusses how several companies are dealing with the issue. (JOW)

Test scores of 106 employees on the Test of Adult Basic Education showed combined reading level in comprehension and vocabulary to be above 12th grade. Educational background was correlated with reading ability. Management perceptions of employee reading deficiencies were contradicted by these results. (SK)

Western Australia Department of Training is supporting a Literacy and Numeracy Pilot in which providers identify the literacy and numeracy skills their projects address, how skill needs are assessed, and what strategies are used to deliver instruction. Three industries are targeted for the pilot, which attempts to make literacy and numeracy…

Examines the nature and effects of predominant understandings or formulations of the relationship between literacy and work. Evaluates what workplace literacy programs have typically been designed to do. Discusses possible ways for future programs to create real opportunities for all participants to be truly involved in the process of workplace…

Considers how in many school districts and states, English teachers are being influenced to more directly address the teaching of workplace literacy within the English curriculum. Suggests some functional ways that educators might weave workplace literacy into the existing fabric of the classroom without displacing the important things currently…

Purpose: This paper aims to analyse, through the lens of learning network theory, ways in which external VET practitioners work within private enterprises to promote learning within these organizations. Design/methodology/approach: The paper is based on analyses of six case studies in two Australian States, each comprising a vocational education…

Companies across the United States provide workplace English classes to non-native-English-speaking employees to increase productivity, retention, and on-the-job safety. Institutions that financially support the programs often require evidence of learning through standardized tests as a prerequisite for continued funding. However, the tests…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the paid and unpaid work time and learning activities of a small longitudinal sample (n=286) of continuously employed Canadians over the 1998-2004 period. Design/methodology/approach: A sub-sample of those who responded to two national surveys carried out in 1998 and 2004 and who were continuously…

Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to explore individual and collective workplace learning and the connections between them in the contemporary industrial work. Design/methodology/approach: Two case studies were carried out in the Finnish package-supplier sector. The research methods applied were standardized observations and qualitative…

This guide, which is intended for project directors, coordinators, and other professional staff interested in marketing adult basic skills and workplace education programs to business, presents a six-step process for developing a marketing plan. Discussed first are the purposes of marketing and considerations in marketing workplace education to…

Examines how conflicts between management and workers over division of labor are enacted in two manuals--the official manual operationalizing Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regulations and a "translation" of the official manual--governing tax examiners' work in an IRS Service Center. Finds that systemic differences between the manuals…

Discusses a research project exploring the thought it takes to do physical work, the cognitive processes involved in various blue collar and service occupations like waitressing, hairstyling, plumbing, welding, industrial assembly, and the like. Considers the way occupations are categorized, defines intelligence, and thinks about learning and…

Interviews two practitioners in the field of business communication to better understand developments in business literacy and information skills. Concludes with a brief discussion of the opportunities for business communication experts in enhancing literacy in the workplace. (SG)