This review provides a background summary of the Commonwealth's involvement in the field of adult literacy in Australia. The review is not research based and does not make recommendations, but it highlights the issues that are important for the future direction of the Commonwealth's involvement in the field. The review is organized into seven sections: (1) terms of reference and purpose of the review; (2) background and government policies; (3) a summary of the provision of adult literacy programs--state based and Commonwealth funded; (4) issues in adult literacy; (5) an overview of adult literacy programs, organized into the Commonwealth programs, labor market programs, aboriginal programs, and adult migrant education programs; (6) state programs; and (7) summary of issues for future directions. Following 26 references, appendixes report literacy education policies, expenditures, and statistics. (KC)