A program was conducted by the Food and Beverage Workers Union in Washington, D.C., to provide workplace literacy classes for food service workers in the city's government agencies, universities, and museums. A curriculum for workplace literacy skills was developed, sites were selected, and students were recruited. From a target audience of…

Developed to assist employers in implementing a company-sponsored, on-site workplace literacy program for their employees, this guide is the result of experiences gained by the Seattle-King County, Washington, Private Industry Council, its partner agencies, and participating local employers. The guide contains sections on the following stages in…

This guide describes the process used by the Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association of Greater Lowell, and Altron, Inc., a local manufacturer, to design, establish, and operate a workplace literacy program. The first chapter outlines steps and considerations in setting up the program, including the establishment of a successful collaboration,…

This coursebook contains materials for a course to help participants in a workplace literacy project put together a solid presentation that they can deliver with confidence. The course's stated goals are as follows: to enable participants to prepare interesting and informative presentations, use visual aids to enhance presentation, deliver…

A February 1990 meeting, held at El Paso Community College (Texas) honoring language and cultural diversity in the adult literacy field is summarized. The report describes the conference's tour activities sampling local cultural sites, presents "quotable quotes" of participants and leaders, and reviews the issues and trends in literacy…

Presenters at a public hearing testified about strategies that were working and those that were considered not to be working in the Wisconsin vocational education system. The strategies that were cited as "working" were: education provided to businesses by VTAE (Vocational-Technical Adult Education district) colleges; interaction between…

The Bethlehem Area Chamber of Commerce, using a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Education, developed a model program to demonstrate the effectiveness of a business-based network to improve the literacy level of the local work force. The project involved increasing business member awareness of literacy needs, creating linkages among…

To increase understanding of workplace literacy, a study investigated whether data from structured interviews conducted in two previous studies of job literacy and job performance relationships support the process model of literacy proposed by Linda Flower and John Hayes, "A Cognitive Process Theory of Writing." In both studies, this…

Some researchers estimate that 99 percent of occupations require some ability to read. Yet, illiteracy is a present and growing problem for many businesses. Some researchers contend that the basic educational system does not prepare workers to read on the job. Many teachers consider reading an elementary skill and do not focus on it in higher…

The lack of emphasis on occupational literacy competencies in most public school reading curricula leaves students poorly prepared for the demands of the workplace. Most jobs require mastery of the following literacy competencies: technical vocabulary; locating and using information; following directions; and self-monitoring of comprehension and…

To measure the effectiveness of the Basic Skills Education Program (BSEP) reading curriculum--eight reading skill modules employing military job-specific reading materials and used by the U.S. Army in Europe (USAREUR)--and to provide information for improving it, a study examined 183 soldiers from 38 European posts who were enrolled in the BSEP…

Many secondary and postsecondary basic skills programs are designed to assist students whose ability to succeed in traditional subject matter instruction is in question. Research done in business, industry, and particularly in the military provides procedures that may increase the likelihood of success in such programs. Analyses of on-the-job…

This training manual is designed to help English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) teachers and supervisors successfully develop a workplace ESOL class. Four modules include: (1) "Knowing and Presenting Your Adult Education Program to Business and Industry" (e.g., introduction to Tennessee's Workplace ESOL Initiative, the four-step…

This report describes a meeting of Canadian partners who had experience in workplace literacy and represented different sectors that was convened to develop two lists of priorities for possible projects--those of interest to all sectors and of interest to each sector. Participants identified six clusters of priorities across Canada:…

This publication contains nine articles about the process of doing research by literacy practitioners and volunteers in several areas of the Ontario (Canada) literacy field. "Implementing a Workplace Program: A Look Back" (Maria Ioannou-Makrakis) describes the process followed and the learning outcomes from planning, implementing, and…