This handbook is a description of a Title VII Family Literacy Project implemented through El Paso Community College Literacy Programs in the El Paso, Texas area. The perspective is that literacy education in culturally and linguistically diverse areas must be an evolving, developmental process. The intergenerational Family Initiative for English…

In 1980, Kentucky reported the nation's lowest percentage of adults, aged 25 and older, who had graduated from high school. Legislators were inundated with recommendations for reform. The result was the enactment of the Parent and Child Education (PACE) pilot program (1986). In the PACE program, parents without high school diplomas attend classes…

Cooperation among service providers of the young and old is essential in times of decreasing resources and increasing needs. This article reviews characteristics of successful and exemplary intergenerational programs, which can be found in almost all areas of human services, and presents program models responding to diverse populations and…

Describes the MAGIC ME program in which urban middle school students visit and form relationships with the elderly in nursing homes. The importance of meaningful long-term service is demonstrated through anecdotes of the interaction between students and older adults. MAGIC ME has a history of success in many communities. (SLD)

Describes one university's experiment with joining elementary students and preservice teachers in intergenerational literature discussion circles to enhance preservice teachers' learning about reading and the teaching of reading. Both groups enjoyed the literature circles. Resulting themes provided insights about the reading process, the nature of…

Family literacy programs reflect a recent trend in educational reform that has proven to be a successful educational model for all members of the family unit. Based on the literature that links family involvement to student achievement, these initiatives focus on empowering parents of school children. These programs have been particularly…

This paper describes a field-based effort in which practicing teachers collaborated with a university researcher to develop, inaugurate, and maintain a family literacy program. In this context, family literacy is an intergenerational program serving all members of the family, meeting the needs of adult family members as individuals, not just as…

The six articles in this issue attempt to answer questions that have arisen due to the increase in programs that cross existing or traditional age barriers in literacy education. They draw upon recent and current research and practice both in the United Kingdom and the United States. "Family Literacy: An Intergenerational Approach to…

The report presents an evaluation of the Ysleta Independent School District (Texas) state-funded Even Start Project, a comprehensive family literacy program consisting of adult education (basic skills, English as a second language, citizenship, transition to college), intergenerational literacy classes with preschool children, early childhood…

The Culebra Road GED/JOBS (General Educational Development/Job Opportunities and Basic Skills) class provides recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) with remedial academic instruction, job preparedness training, and training in parenting skills. At the suggestion of one of its students, the class undertook a project that…

This document relays the stories of nearly 100 Tennessee adults whose lives were changed through participation in some form of adult basic education (ABE). The document begins with a brief explanation of how Tennessee's 102 ABE programs are administered and definitions of the following forms of ABE: Families First (a 20-hour weekly course of basic…

The Cleveland Public Schools developed a family literacy program to address the needs of both parent and child and attempt to break the cycle of illiteracy. Fifty parents who were Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA)-eligible participated in the project. They attended one of four 9-week sessions. Course content included literacy, preemployment and…

A panel of experts from a variety of disciplines was convened to advise policymakers about what is known about instructional effectiveness in adult and family literacy situations. The panel concluded that, although little research examining instructional effectiveness in family and adult literacy programs is available, a great deal of "best…

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…

Analyzes kibbutz adolescents' behavior at four biographical stages: voluntary community service, military service, leave of absence from the kibbutz, and higher education. Determines a distinct association between the socializing agents in the kibbutz and the development of democratic values. (MJP)