With the advent of the UN Literacy Decade launched in 2003, there is increased emphasis on monitoring and evaluation of adult literacy around the globe. The present paper presents an overview of the main approaches that have been taken to measure adult literacy within and across countries. A particular focus of the present review is to compare and…

At a series of four "Issues That Matter" meetings held by the Education Department's Office of Vocational and Adult Education over the last academic year, nearly 80 college leaders gathered to discuss issues urgent to community colleges. All are familiar--the need to create career pathways, improve articulation and developmental education, and…

QEd is a five-issue series for the adult education community--literacy educators, paraprofessionals, program directors, and volunteers. QEd brings ideas and information from the expanding scientific research base on how adults learn to read. This first issue tells the story of how researchers are using the high quality, scientific standards that…

This new report by Migration Policy Institute's (MPI's) National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy examines the funding formula used to distribute Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Title II federal funds for adult education, literacy, and English as a Second Language instruction. Though all adults with limited English proficiency (LEP) are…

The General Educational Development (GED) Tests are widely used to certify a high school level of academic knowledge and skills. The popularity and profound influence of the GED Tests have elicited numerous studies on the outcomes of obtaining a GED credential. Most studies on labor market outcomes for GED credential recipients have targeted…

This newsletter, published five times a year, features articles on issues of concern to adult, family, and youth literacy practitioners, as well as recommended resources, announcements, and teaching strategies. (1) Creating a 21st Century Adult Literacy System (Martin C. Finsterbusch); (2) What Research Can Tell Us (Stephen Reder); (3) Skills the…

The publication is based on the "Adult Readiness Roundtable" Project co-sponsored by CAAL and the National Center on Education and the Economy on April 6-7, 2009. It is not a transcript of the Roundtable discussion; instead it reports on a two-day discussion meeting among a group of exemplary adult-education-for-work programs from around the…

This Support Document reports in detail on two of three components of the methodology. The first part of this document features the literature review, focusing in particular on the three areas of health literacy, financial literacy and literacy in the justice sector. It also includes a background section on policy. The second part of the Support…

When it became clear that existing literacy efforts would not be enough to enable some countries to reach Education for All (EFA) Goal 4 (a 50 percent improvement in levels of adult literacy), UNESCO launched the Literacy Initiative for Empowerment (LIFE, 2006-2015). 35 countries with literacy rates below 50 percent and/or a population of more…

Background/Context: Educational researchers have long sought to understand the factors that enable or constrain persistence in non-formal family literacy and adult education programs. Scholars typically posit three sets of factors influencing persistence: situational (learners' life circumstances), institutional (programmatic factors), and…

This review of literature on South Asian nomads is part of a series of monographs on educational access published by the Consortium for Research on Educational Access Transitions and Equity (CREATE). In the context of India, most recent work has focused on access to the education system for the poor. CREATE research in India has focused on …

This publication contains the results of the conference "South-South Policy Dialogue on Quality Education for Adults and Young People" that took place in Mexico City in 2005. Articles were written by participants who presented their national programmes from the governmental perspective, which were reflected in the literacy policies, but…

When an adult student from China says he learned English from listening to the radio or a literacy teacher mentions that she is reading a book recommended on "Oprah", they are illustrating how popular media are used for informal adult learning. This chapter examines some of the issues and implications surrounding how a sector of adult learners,…

Although information and communication technologies have become an integral part of life in the United States, they have not yet been adequately integrated into adult language and literacy programs. This raises concerns because of the potential value of technology for enhancing learning and because of the vital role of technological proficiency as…

Literacy policy and programming in developing countries continues to be influenced by the assumption that without literacy, an adult is unable to function on an equal basis in society and that an individual can be easily categorised as either literate or illiterate. Although this has led to prioritisation of primary schooling over adult literacy…