This report offers a brief account of Iraq's recent mass literacy initiative, considered within the broader context of illiteracy problems throughout the Arab world. The Iraqi experience is noteworthy for both the size and the unique character of the campaign launched by that nation's Arab Ba'ath Socialist regime. (Author/SJL)

A study of the various facets and dimensions of literacy programs in South Asia indicates that literacy is viewed as a means of human resource development geared toward meaningful participation of all sectors in society, with individual programs varying according to the magnitude of illiteracy, national goals, linguistic setting, and regional…

Summarizes adult education projects in Spain from Friends of the Country Societies in 1793 to Luzuriaga's Free Institution of Education. Describes present reform movements in the post-Francco era and various models: open education, popular schools, public adult education, peasant schools, popular universities, and centers for culture promotion.…

Examines the failure of adult literacy programs in North America. Argues that the problem's scope and funding limitations demand cost- effective measures: prevention of early childhood deprivations that stunt cognitive development, replacement of many full-time programs with part-time or drop-in programs, and use of volunteers. (SV)

Slow growth of female literacy in Pakistan can be attributed to negative attitudes toward the status of women; religious, social, and political factors; and poverty, among others. Males receive more education than females, especially in rural areas. (SK)

Illiterate people are stigmatized by myths such as failed lives, poor self-concept, and the equation of poverty with illiteracy. Illiterate people respond to stigma by "passing" and "covering"; the stigma of association affects adult literacy education. (SK)

Describes a literacy expert's frustrating experience with Harry, an intelligent, resourceful, and illiterate man who was more afraid of tackling reading and writing than of jumping out of a helicopter. Unfortunately, some adults who have been mistreated in school are eager to become literate but lack courage to take the first step. (six…

Conventional wisdom dictates that television is responsible for a steep decline in literacy in United States. Because literacy has many definitions, it seems more productive to consider library circulation figures; average personal expenditures on books, magazines, and newspapers; and national surveys of reading habits. All indicate a growing…

Analyzes the usage of four metaphors (school, medical and industrial, military, and banking) that commonly appear in the United States' media and in public speeches that dramatize illiteracy. Argues that educators need to be aware of the strategic use of language in this adult literacy context. (SR)

Addresses concerns at the community, state, and federal level regarding illiteracy that have led to the demand for educational reform. Quotes statements from the 18th century to the present. Discusses the social/cultural context of literacy and learning, and casts a critical eye on several documents significant to the nation's view of literacy and…

Contends most people in Third World need functional and development-oriented literacy (FDL) if they are to contribute meaningfully to illiteracy eradication and attainment of sustainable national development in respective countries. Arguing current literacy instruction approaches in most Third World countries can't sustain FDL, suggests adoption…

Culturally sensitive visual aids designed to help convey drug information to nonliterate female adults requiring antibiotics were developed. Researchers conceptualized the messages, and a local artist produced the visual aids. Comprehension and compliance with prescription instructions were evaluated (N=78). Results and practical implications are…

Examines reluctant readers, or aliterates, and identifies three distinct types: dormant, uncommitted, and unmotivated. Habits and attitudes of literate, aliterate, and illiterate students are presented, including enjoyment of reading, primary cognitive responses, and feelings about other readers. (LRW)

Children affected by dyslexia exhibit a deficit in the categorical perception of speech sounds, characterized by both poorer discrimination of between-category differences and by better discrimination of within-category differences, compared to normal readers. These categorical perception anomalies might be at the origin of dyslexia, by hampering…

This study investigated the knowledge and strategies that nonliterate adults use to identify print. Participants were 20 low-socioeconomic status Brazilian adults ranging in age from 20 to 74 years. Participants' ability to identify common environmental signs displaying varying degrees of contextual information was investigated along with their…