Approximately 25 million adults are currently reading below the fifth-grade level, and another 35 to 40 million adults read between the fifth- and eighth-grade levels. This is particularly significant for the American press inasmuch as the average daily newspaper is written at a minimum of a ninth-grade reading level. A number of unexamined…

Although the majority of today's young adults meet or surpass the "literacy" standards of 25 years ago, they often lack the level of literacy needed to meet current demands. The National Assessment of Educational Progress studied a nationally representative sample of 3,600 young American adults, aged 21 to 25, to determine how well they could…

This handbook, which is an outgrowth of educational workshops for Portage County (Ohio) Literacy Coalition members, is intended as an introductory text for individuals desiring to become effective supporters of adult literacy efforts in local communities. The context and purpose of the handbook's development are explained in the introduction.…

This paper was designed to assist educators and employers as they plan curricula in language and communication skills for students and employees entering, or experiencing a transition to, automated work settings. The strategies presented in this paper may be adaptable to secondary school business skills and basic English courses, pre-employment…

This booklet provides background information on literacy for television and radio broadcasters. It focuses first on the numbers of functionally illiterate persons in the United States and what those numbers mean. Central to understanding those numbers, as pointed out by the booklet, is the definition of illiteracy that is used, a definition that…

This document provides a rationale for a company to install a workplace skills program and suggestions for finding help in implementing such a program. Topics covered include the following: (1) changing literacy standards; (2) the changing work force and high performance workplaces; (3) cost of hiring new employees versus training current…

This paper was prepared to provide background information for use by a committee on adult literacy, composed of superintendents, assistant superintendents, principals, teachers, school board members, curriculum specialists, business leaders, individuals from higher education, legislators, and legislative staff. The purpose was to highlight…

This resource kit, which is intended as a tool for training managers and training providers interested in planning language and literacy training programs for workplaces throughout Australia, consists of a magazine and three booklets detailing the following: the benefits of language and literacy training, sources of further information, and…

This book is directed at the following audiences: adult educators and others who are either involved in or desire to become involved in community-based work; students of education, the social sciences, or related disciplines who desire information on community involvement as a career or means of fulfilling civic responsibilities, and persons in…

This magazine, which is designed for managers of Australian companies who are interested in raising their firms' productivity and meeting quality standards by developing a comprehensive approach to workplace communication, includes a variety of materials for and about improving communication within their organization. Most of the magazine is…

A survey called the Literacy Check-Up was conducted in South Carolina's Lancaster and Chester Counties in April-May 2000. The survey was designed to identify existing literacy services, determine how well the area's existing literacy programs were meeting participants' needs, and determine the community's capacity for serving adults in need of…