This chapter reviews the implications of policy as it has affected adult basic education over the last 25 years and problematizes the increasing institutionalization and stability that it has brought to the field.

Forty-one percent of U.S. adults ages 25 and older have no more than a high school education, and 26.5 million people in that age bracket--12 percent of them--lack even that. Today, many adult basic education (ABE) programs are run by the local K-12 school district, but academic courses and career training are frequently lumped together with…

The National Guard Youth ChalleNGe program is a residential, quasi-military program for youth ages 16 to 18 who are experiencing difficulty in traditional high school. This report covers the program years 2018-2019 and is the fourth in a series of annual reports that RAND Corporation researchers have issued over the course of a research project…

According to the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), a large proportion of adults in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries have low literacy proficiency levels. There exist widespread stereotypes about adults who have difficulties with reading and writing, stereotypes which…

Throughout the field of corrections in the United States, the prevalent question in regard to reentry preparation of offenders is, "what works?" With a renewed focus on providing meaningful program opportunities for offenders that enable real and sustained changes for reentry success, which has been partially driven by overcrowded prison…

Much of the public does not realize that incarcerated individuals have the opportunity, and at times are mandated, to participate in adult education programming. Thus, teaching in the corrections setting is something that many people never consider as a career option. There are no undergraduate or graduate majors that can prepare someone to teach…

Adults who are unsuccessful in completing their educational program will not receive the needed certification or diploma to be competitive in a global economy and job market. The completion percentage of adult basic education learners remains low at an adult basic education site in a Western state. The purpose of this study was to better…

In dealing with over-indebtedness and poverty, numeracy appears necessary for affected persons, in order to use the scarce money available with foresight and to avoid financially negative decisions. However, numeracy as an essential part of (financial) basic education for adults has not yet been systematically taken into account in German debt…

For nearly one year, the EdTech Center at World Education led a field test of the unique mobile app, Learning Upgrade. In this report, we share use scenarios and observations gleaned from this research in adult English speakers of other languages (ESOL) and basic education programs across the U.S. The field test helps us better understand how and…

This publication introduces Curriculum globALE, a basic competence framework for the training of adult educators worldwide. By providing a modular, competency-based framework and cross-curricular approach, Curriculum globALE is unique in its aim to professionalize adult learning and education (ALE) on an international scale, via the competencies…

In practice, adult basic education activities are educational activities that adults engage in systematically so they can gain new forms of knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values for self-sustenance to ensure self-improvement and national development. Achieving these requires an appropriate approach which is vital for the participation of…

Observing the transition from industrial work to more and more digitalised work in the last decades, in this paper we discuss changes in employment and the relevance of numeracy in adult basic education and in working environments. In a knowledge society, the demand for highly qualified professionals is growing. It is questionable what effects…

This qualitative study examines how six Adult Basic Education (ABE) students perceived success in their personal and academic lives. Policy discourses concerning ABE learners offer perspectives on success, and these discourses influence, correspond with, and contradict learners' discourses on success in various ways. However, the organizational…

This qualitative study is designed to illuminate the factors that drive motivation and academic confidence in adult learners and how these factors influence their desire to persist in Adult Basic Education programs. Specifically, it interrogates the classroom environment and identifies teacher behaviors and other elements that may influence…

For linguistically diverse students, the path to college is often defined by language. Depending on assessments and institutional policies, students may be placed into course sequences in developmental English, adult basic education, and/or English as a Second Language courses. The purpose of this study was to better understand developmental…