Throughout the years, career and technical education (CTE) has focused on teaching technical competencies and related academic skills that prepare students to enter and advance in a variety of career fields and postsecondary education. Program and course descriptions are reviewed on a regular basis to ensure that the technical and academic skills…

This guide is designed to assist States, agencies, and/or facilities who work with youth who are neglected, delinquent, or at-risk (N or D). The information in the guide will benefit those who are (a) interested in implementing pre-posttests, (b) in the process of identifying an appropriate pre-posttest, or (c) ready to evaluate current testing…

The United States incarcerates more people than any other country in the world. Among those incarcerated are juveniles. However, the higher the education obtained, the less likely it is that those previously incarcerated will reoffend. Legislation such as No Child Left Behind and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act set the structure…

This issue of a quarterly newsletter focuses on alternative assessment methods in adult basic education. It is occasioned, as explained in the opening editorial, by the announcement of the requirement for use of the 1987 edition of the Tests of Adult Basic Education for pre- and posttesting of basic education students in New York City, beginning…

The study's purpose was to use the Adjective Check List (ACL), a self-administered personality assessment instrument, to determine whether there were response differences between a sample of Adult Basic Education (ABE) students and the general test norms. The ACL was administered to 142 students in ABE high school completion programs in Des…

Adult basic education (ABE) is an ideal venue for developing health literacy skills. Literacy and numeracy assessments used in ABE were identified and the most common were examined for health components. Only the Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System (CASAS) included health. The two most common health literacy assessments used in general…

Instruction at three levels is outlined in this public school adult basic education curriculum guide. Development of reading, writing, oral communication, and arithmetic is stressed at Level I (grades 1-3). Mathematics, reading (with attention to phonics and word structure), and English are enlarged upon in Level II (grades 4-6). Level III (grades…

Identifying individuals with specific learning disabilities (SLD) is a complex task, particularly for adult populations. Adult agencies such as vocational rehabilitative services or adult basic education often use different SLD definitions and criteria, are often understaffed, have limited resources, and have a shortage of staff trained on SLD…

Four major types of approaches to learner assessment are standardized testing, materials-based, competency-based, and participatory assessment. Standardized tests are easy and inexpensive to administer. Objections are their intrinsic defects and misuse. Materials-based assessment, the practice of evaluating learners on the basis of tests following…

Learner assessment is conducted in adult basic education and adult English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) educational programs for many reasons: to place learners at appropriate instructional levels; to measure ongoing progress; to qualify students for enrollment in academic or job training programs; to verify program effectiveness; and to demonstrate…

A semester-long study examined the assessment instruments and techniques currently being used by companies participating in the Wisconsin Workplace Partnership Training Program (WWPTP). Twenty-four instruments that may be categorized as either standardized tests, competency-based and criterion-reference measures, or participatory assessment…

Several issues should be considered in selecting assessment instruments and procedures for use in adult literacy programs. Teachers must consider the purpose of the assessment; the appropriateness of the assessment instrument for adults; the reliability, validity, and practicality of the instrument; whether the assessment is culturally sensitive;…

England's Learning and Skills Development Agency welcomes the introduction of a coherent national funding and delivery strategy for adult literacy, numeracy, and English for speakers of other languages (ESOL). The agency believes that the strategy should incorporate the lessons of previous literacy and numeracy initiatives and build on examples of…

This newsletter reports on the activities of Equipped for the Future (EFF), which is a National Institute for Literacy (NIFL) initiative that develops content standards to ensure that every adult can gain the knowledge and skills needed to fulfill real-world responsibilities as workers, parents, and citizens. A message from the NIFL…