Adult basic education students manage adult responsibilities and obligations and personal goals related to school. They commit their time and limited resources and thus are investors in their own learning. As investors, their voices matter. When one countywide adult basic education program implemented a systemic plan to ask students upon entry…

Adult education and literacy has never been more valued in Iowa than it is now. Adult Education and Literacy (AEL) empowers individuals to become self-sufficient by providing the basic skills and knowledge necessary to complete a secondary education credential and helps them meet their education and career goals. Nationally, AEL programs serve 1.5…

Adult Education and Literacy (AEL) empowers individuals to become self-sufficient by providing the basic skills and knowledge necessary to complete a secondary education credential and helps them meet their education and career goals. Nationally, AEL programs serve 1.5 million adults who are no longer in school and who lack basic literacy and math…

This paper attempts to identify some tools to help practioners think about, debate and plan Workplace Literacy and Essential Skills (WLES) programs. Such tools are necessary so that discussions between practitioners aiming to clarify good practice and successful approaches can get beyond mere descriptions of what happened. In order to compare and…

This article describes an action research project in which the members of a basic English class for adults over 50 at a Colombian public university undertook the mission of discovering their potentialities as autonomous learners. By means of the reflective use of the language portfolio, the members of this course guided the planning and execution…

While the majority of adults who take the General Educational Development (GED) test do so in order to continue their education, few go on to enter postsecondary education. Yet, these same adults stand to make substantial economic and personal gains when they use their adult secondary credential to move from the ranks of high school dropout to…

This guide provides suggestions and materials for the development and implementation of a Health Literacy Forum to be coordinated by a local, county, or state Department of Public Health. Health Literacy Forums, already implemented in several cities and states, have increased awareness about literacy skills of U.S. adults and health implications.…

The National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) and the National Adult Education Professional Development Consortium (NAEPDC), with funding from the National Institute for Literacy, created a one-day workshop to assist practitioners and administrators in adult basic education, TANF (Transitional Assistance for Needy…

This guide provides step-by-step instructions to facilitate a multi-session study circle for practitioners on the topic of accountability. Practitioners will read and analyze research and discuss how to apply it in their classrooms and programs. In the first session, the Study Circle group will examine the concept of performance accountability in…

The author examines the evolution of the current Australian demographic and its implications for the delivery of public library services. The "baby boomers", the generation born between 1946 and 1961, are the next cohort to be seriously in need of housebound services, and the characteristics and likely needs of this group are considered…

This study of social capital employs data from the Longitudinal Study of Adult Learning (LSAL), funded by the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) and conducted at Portland State University to increase understanding of the learning process of adults with limited formal education. It provides longitudinal data on…