The National Center for Family Literacy (FCFL) began the Family Independence Initiative (FII) to address the needs of welfare recipients and their families for literacy services. During the FII's development phase in 1997-1998, NCFL funded five family literacy program grantees to develop models of work-focused family literacy services. To satisfy…

This paper examines early childhood development, family, health, and literacy. It places particular emphasis on the need to consider the interrelationships of these factors when attempting to use literacy to improve the quality of life of individuals in developing countries. The paper begins with a discussion of learning capacity and a conceptual…

Family and intergenerational literacy programs provide an opportunity to combine the agendas of adult basic skills improvement and literacy development in children. This overview of practice in family and intergenerational literacy programs identifies trends, issues, and concerns and offers recommendations. The first chapter presents background…

The benefits of family literacy programs for children were examined in a 1997 follow-up study in which 154 parents and 237 children who had participated in a family literacy demonstration program in 1994-1995 were interviewed along with the teachers of a subsample of the children and the demonstration program coordinators. The demonstration…

These eight bulletins, which are intended for literacy instructors, tutors, librarians, and others, contain reviews of literacy materials designed for use in adult literacy, adult basic education (ABE), and family literacy programs. Each review contains some or all of the following: title, author, publisher of the item being reviewed; information…

In September 1995, the Scranton Area Family Center in Scranton, Pennsylvania, initiated a twice-weekly literacy class designed to build low-income parents' educational skills and personal confidence while simultaneously encouraging family literacy activities. Eight parents of children in the Scranton School District attended the class and received…

A field evaluation of 14 community-based family and intergenerational literacy programs identified the most effective strategies, structures, and approaches to reach and teach the "hardest to reach." Information was collected through 90-minute telephone surveys with program coordinators and/or executive directors. Although different in structural…

A project provided family literacy services in Lewistown, Pennsylvania. The "Together We Learn" project had four objectives: (1) promoting family literacy by using the Project PACT (Parents and Children Together) model in two 10-week sessions; (2) improving parents' basic skills so they can work better with their children; (3) assisting…

This document explains an intergenerational literacy project, established by the Kenan Trust in 1988, in which more than 300 adults and children have participated at 7 pilot sites in North Carolina and Kentucky and for which an additional 22 sites in 11 states are planned. The first section relates one participant's experience with the project.…

CHOICES, a literacy program for homeless families, piloted a program at the Women's Emergency Shelter in Champaign, Illinois and later expanded its services to A Woman's Place, a domestic violence shelter, in Urbana, Illinois. The CHOICES program offered weekly language activities for the children and gave mothers information about developing…

A project was conducted in Texas using an intergenerational approach to literacy instruction. Parents received individualized literacy instruction using the Language Experience Approach, as well as instruction designed to help them encourage literacy skill development in their children. Children and parents also worked together on literacy…

The increase in the number of youth under age 18 enrolling in federally funded adult basic and literacy education programs is a trend that is putting increasing pressures on programs designed to serve an adult population. Documenting the extent of the trend is difficult due to the way in which federal statistics on age of program participants have…

A project undertaken to determine the feasibility of integrating components of secondary-level tech prep and school-to-work programs into adult basic and literacy education (ABLE) programs. Applied academics curriculum materials developed by the Center for Occupational Research and Development (CORD) and the Agency for Instructional Technology…

Joliet Junior College's Center for Adult Basic Education and Literacy (CABEL) is responsible for providing adult basic education and support services for adults whose skills in reading and mathematics are below the 12th grade level. Its offerings include instruction in Adult Basic Education (ABE), General Educational Development (GED), English as…

For 2 decades, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has sought to strengthen Nepal's formal and nonformal education systems and elevate the status of women in Nepal. The extent to which USAID women's empowerment and literacy activities have contributed to increasing and improving the basic education of girls in Nepal was examined…