The article examines causes of adult illiteracy and notes the effects of failure to progress at the early stages of reading development, often due to inadequate language experience and stimulation. Suggestions for promoting language acquisition and comprehension are offered. (CL)

Argues that on-the-job reading makes special demands upon readers. Presents a technical reading strategy that involves a five-step prereading checklist and four postreading analyses. (FL)

The effectiveness of tangible and social reinforcement with and without positive practice on the remediation of letter reversals in a 20-year-old severely retarded male was investigated. Tangible reinforcement plus positive practice increased accuracy of letter recognition which was generalized and maintained seven and ten months after training.…

Details a study indicating that the minimal level of literacy necessary for adults in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is very high. Provides a master list of vocabulary words, symbols, numbers, abbreviations, computational skills, and writing skills needed for functional literacy. (MKM)

Designed to provide information about people's listening and reading skills, this battery of tests provides information about how well an individual or group listens or reads in comparison to the young adult population used as a norm for this assessment battery. The battery was developed for use with youth and adult populations at or above 10…

This paper explores the patterns and processes used by adult students of English as a second language (ESL) when they guess at the meanings of nonsense words in a reading text. The findings suggest that while word-unit processing is a major component of both first- and second-language reading, a major difference between first- and second-language…

Two "sacred cows" inherent in reading instruction for disabled readers are rejected: Disabled readers must be taught with simple reading materials, and most teaching time must be spent on reading skills. Two case studies illustrate the teaching of decoding skills and "dyad reading" of books selected by the disabled reader.…

Suggests linguistic guessing strategies designed to help older students with reading problems. (FL)

This publication is designed to help Neighborhood Networks centers create programs that meet the goals of adult literacy learners. (The centers provide residents of federally assisted or insured properties with training in economic self-sufficiency.) Chapter 1 highlights the special characteristics of adult learners--the challenges they face and…

This document is an annotated bibliography of recommended print materials for English-speaking adults reading at the seventh-grade level or below. (Sixty percent of the titles are at fifth-grade level or below.) More than 95 percent of the titles are paperbacks. The titles were selected for their broad appeal to the average adult new reader.…

Diversity is welcomed at the Jefferson Davis Campus, Mississippi Gulf Coast Junior College, where the commuting students include teenagers, retired military personnel, displaced homemakers, the foreign-born, blacks, the full-time employed, and senior citizens. The students are counseled to take a reading and study skills class if their reading…

Basic skills instruction can be tied to work performed on the job by conducting a Workplace Educational Skills Analysis (WESA). WESA is a systematic process used by the Wisconsin Workplace Partnership Training Program to identify and analyze the basic educational skills required on the job. Basic skills are identified in seven areas: (1)…

CHOICES, a literacy program for homeless families, piloted a program at the Women's Emergency Shelter in Champaign, Illinois and later expanded its services to A Woman's Place, a domestic violence shelter, in Urbana, Illinois. The CHOICES program offered weekly language activities for the children and gave mothers information about developing…