At the request of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, 17 agencies in the Pittsburgh area began a planning process to form a single administrative body for all adult basic education and literacy programs. This project supported the hiring of a planning consultant, the convening of planning meetings and a retreat, and thorough documentation of…

This manual contains materials for a numeracy course for adult industrial workers. In addition to assessment tests, seven units are provided. Unit topics are whole numbers; fractions; decimals; percents, median, and range; measurement and signed numbers; ratio/proportion and introduction to algebra; and computer literacy using algebra software.…

The Kenan Trust Family Literacy Project was implemented during the 1988-89 school year at three model sites in Louisville, Kentucky, and four in North Carolina. The model was designed to teach undereducated parents together with their 3- or 4-year-old children. Children participated in a comprehensive preschool program while adults studied in…

Testimony offered to the United States Department of Education focuses on the need to legitimize the value of adult biliteracy, particularly among the Hispanic population. Using the demography of Lawrence, Massachusetts as an example, it is suggested that English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) instruction alone will not lower the language barrier…

Based on a successful project in Nebraska, this manual was developed for use in establishing a structured all-volunteer adult basic education (ABE) program in small communities or satellite locations. The greater part of the manual covers the various steps a volunteer leader should follow to establish this kind of program, beginning with a section…

A study identified the reading and mathematics job requirements for three sales and service jobs. Subjects were 296 employees of a marketing division of a large telecommunication company. The readability of 420 passages from job and training materials was assessed by the Flesch Reading Ease index, which generated a value that was transformed to a…

Religion pervades all aspects of Saudi Arabia, the conservative home of Islam, where the constitution is the Quran and law is interpreted by religious scholars. A formal adult basic education program was initiated in 1960. As part of the country's modernization since the early 1970s, the Saudi government has begun an enormous nation-building plan…

This issue of a quarterly newsletter focuses on alternative assessment methods in adult basic education. It is occasioned, as explained in the opening editorial, by the announcement of the requirement for use of the 1987 edition of the Tests of Adult Basic Education for pre- and posttesting of basic education students in New York City, beginning…

In order not to waste the time of the people working hard and sacrificing to become literate, literacy must offer them a real opportunity to change their life situation. Although many literacy programs are designed to fit the everyday lives and situations of their students, the same is not true for programs that teach arithmetic. Most adults…

Literacy Foundation Memphis, Memphis City Schools Adult Education, and Kimberly Clark engaged in a cooperative venture to implement an intensive industry skills enhancement program for employees of Kimberly Clark. The effort continued to develop, refine, and expand the industry immersion model located on site, with 80 hours of instruction…

Southwest Missouri State University and The Literacy Connection developed a joint proposal to seek funds for the creation of a literacy corps in the Ozarks. The project determined that 92,000 southwest Missourians are functionally illiterate. The university provides coursework for student volunteer tutors. Student coordinators have been hired to…

Accounts differ as to the state of adult literacy education in China. One scholar says that programs are contracting severely, whereas Chinese officials contend that programs are operating with more students and more efficiency. A true picture of literacy education in China depends on research and statistics that are being gathered. The overall…

A study measured the effectiveness of traditional classroom instruction versus computer-assisted instruction (CAI) in raising the competency levels of adults enrolled in adult basic education (ABE) classes one grade level for each 80 hours of instruction. Classes were conducted in Indianapolis and Richmond, Indiana, from November 1988 to April…

This study guide for adult basic education (ABE) teachers and administrators is based on the Principles and Techniques for Effective ABE Staff Development developed by the National ABE Staff Development Consortium. The principles are based on staff development research from both the adult education and K-12 communities. The format of the guide was…

Intended for practitioners involved in working with groups in basic education, this book provides some ideas on suitable approaches. An introduction addresses where group work takes place and why a group approach is used. A discussion of starting points covers first meetings, planning and preparing, and teaching aids. A description of a group…