This article describes how public, nonprofit, and private partners in Detroit are working to improve and expand adult foundational skills development opportunities and connect them to workforce training as the city begins to make an economic comeback. It outlines the adult foundational skills challenge in Detroit, chronicles the work of a strategy…

Adult education's mission is a critical one. It seeks to provide the large and diverse population of adults who lack basic skills, a high school credential, or English language skills with the competencies they need to be productive workers, family members, and citizens. Federally funded adult education serves learners in three types of programs:…

Title II of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 directs the federal government to conduct a national assessment of adult education, including activities to understand the extent to which adult education strategies positively affect learners. A systematic review of the research on the effectiveness of particular strategies in adult…

This brief describes the Basic Education for Adults (BEdA) programs that bridge the gap between school and work, thereby creating pathways to college and careers for Washington's emerging workforce. BEdA programs teach foundational skills--reading, writing, math, technology and English language--so adults can move through college and into…

Reviewing the development of the Adult Performance Level (APL) Project and its life coping skills curriculum, the author focuses on adoption of the APL Competency-Based High School Diploma Program in correctional institutions. (SK)

Information about the participation of adults in basic skills education was gathered in the 1995 National Household Education Survey, which investigated participation during the 12 months prior to the telephone interviews. Of the 23,969 adults sampled for the adult education component, 80 percent completed the interview. Key findings included the…

Findings from past research suggest that teachers in successful adult basic education/general educational development programs know how to adapt basic skills instruction to the concerns and ability levels of adult students. Results of an informal Mississippi survey illustrate that many teachers are unprepared to teach disadvantaged students basic…

The purpose of this paper is to describe basic skills students in relation to their participation in basic skills and their success in transitioning to college-level classes, and the momentum they gain towards college success from this participation. In the period of time covered by the data used for this analysis, 24 colleges offered I-BEST…

The General Educational Development Tests can be used to place adult basic education students for study, to measure progress achieved, to enable students to qualify for postsecondary education, and to evaluate program effectiveness. (SK)

Technology transfer, for purposes of this paper, refers specifically to the importing of a methodology from one setting to another in order to meet previously unmet needs. The Job Skills Education Program (JSEP), a computer-based functional basic skills curriculum originally developed for the U.S. Army, has been "transferred" to the…

A study was conducted among adults enrolled in adult basic education (ABE) General Educational Development (GED) courses to determine their perceptions of the impact of the ABE/GED programs on their employment/economic position, skill and knowledge acquisition, community involvement, attitudinal changes, personal relationships, and continuing…

Based on research and teacher experience, this resource guide contains teaching methods and activities that teachers can use in teaching mathematics to adult basic education and General Educational Development students. The following eight sections are included: (1) an alternative method for teaching percents; (2) unit conversion or dimensional…

The 146 tests described in this bibliography include measures of expressive language, language development, articulation, language or communication problems, morpheme development, receptive skills, language proficiency, and social-communication skills. Types of tests include achievement, aptitude, screening, and diagnostic instruments. Various…

A project was undertaken to provide an educational support program for adult basic education (ABE) classes by using educational outreach workers to help immigrant and other local residents in Hawaii acquire basic skills. The project goals were to (1) identify and recruit at least 250 adults in need of ABE; (2) develop an outreach strategy to…

This catalog provides descriptions of specific adult education programs funded under Sections 306 (a) (4) and 309 (1 and 2) of the Adult Education Act. It consists of three sections: project summaries, a subject index, and statistical matrices. Project summaries are organized alphabetically by state of origin and grouped under headings of major…