The article considers the use of the Holmes Social Readjustment Rating Scale as a device for helping to assess the learning needs of adult basic education participants. (Author)

A study sought to apply the Navy's Academic Remedial Training (ART) program to illiterate adults by concentrating on intensive reading instruction. Administrators from the City of Memphis selected 16 participants based on employee interest and need. They were primarily middle-aged, black males with four years of education who earned between…

This manual is designed to serve as a step-by-step guide for managers of volunteer adult literacy sites. It discusses day-to-day responsibilities, suggests procedures, and provides forms and directions for their use. The guide is organized in four sections. Following information on the guide and background information on literacy education in…

These curriculum materials were collected from teachers in the Lehman College Adult Learning Center (New York). They include various activities and resources, such as a series of questions about the aims of teaching adults, a list of sources for adult basic education (ABE) materials, poems, and autobiographical materials. Teaching suggestions and…

The Family Support Act of 1988 requires each state to set up a Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Program (JOBS) to provide a work/education/training program for recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) by October 1, 1990. The law provides a broad outline for JOBS leaves the critical decisions to the states; hence, the major…

Education within prisons can be viewed as a form of rehabilitation to enable inmates to return to society. However, many prisoners lack fundamental education and have negative attitudes toward learning. This leads to problems in the areas of teaching prisoners and justifying educational programs within prison institutions. Correctional education…

This discussion document provides detailed guidance on the resources needed to provide high quality learning opportunities for adults who want to improve basic communication skills. Background material is provided on the size of the literacy problem, the response of educators, the level of resources allocated for adult literacy and basic skills,…

This essay attempts to forge links needed between literacy and economic activity by demonstrating analytical methods for relating the production and consumption of goods and services in an economy to the requirements for literacy among its workers. First, work force literacy is described within an economic framework. Second, economy-literacy links…

A study examined the quest for social equity by one adult education institution in New Zealand. It placed social equity in the wider context of recent developments in New Zealand society and explored models for conceptualizing social change. These models included the adaptive framework, helping/coping strategies, and allocation policies. A social…

This critical issues paper presents information on the young people served by the New York City Adult Literacy Initiative. It profiles the youngest students, ages 16-24, who were served by the Initiative in the program year 1987-88. Since more than 95 percent of youth enrolled in literacy classes were enrolled in Basic Education and English for…

A study examined the incentives and barriers to participation in adult basic education programs for African-Americans in New York City. Data were collected in a series of focus group meetings. Participants were potential students who had contacted but not yet enrolled in a program. They saw strong personal motivation as the essential factor in…

This report presents findings of an evaluation of Australia's Adult Literacy Action Campaign (ALAC) to determine whether ALAC was promoting the development of communication, literacy, and numeracy skills and skills to facilitate greater and enriched participation in society. Chapter 1 sets out the methodology and approach, which included a…

A summary of a 50-state assessment of the organization, composition, staffing, and operations of State Job Training Coordinating Councils (SJTCCs), conducted through telephone interviews with Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) or SJTCC administrators, produced a sketch of SJTCC procedures and practices. Some of the findings of the summary…

For many learners in adult basic education (ABE) or General Educational Development (GED) classrooms, the difference between staying with the program and leaving prematurely is often related to the degree of the student's involvement with other members of the class. Grouping students to work together has both support- and learning-related…

This article addresses major philosophical orientations and shows how they have practical import for practitioners of adult education. The philosophical approaches presented are conceptual (linguistic) analysis, phenomenology, hermeneutics, critical theory, and existentialism. References are made to selected works by writers in adult education who…