The director of the National Institute of Adult Education describes some of the British strategies for bridging the gap between the acquisition of basic skills and their application to patterns of lifelong education. (SK)

Workplace training at the British offices of Readers' Digest is designed to improve staff skills in communicating with customers. Evaluation of workshops focused on spelling, grammar, and business writing shows that the company is achieving a return on its training investment. (SK)

This bibliography was compiled for The Centre for Literacy's 2004 Summer Institute: "Adult Basic Education: Impact of Policy on Practice: International Perspectives". The references and annotations point to relevant research studies, advocacy papers, and government documents that describe and discuss the role that policy plays in shaping…

Examining literacy and adult education in the United Kingdom (U.K.), this issue is divided into four parts: (1) Introductory Survey, which discusses the U.K. experience in adult literacy; (2) The Provider, which presents agencies involved in adult education; (3) Resources, which describes the Adult Literacy Resource Agency; and (4) Learning…

Discusses formative and summative evaluation techniques used by BBC Education in the United Kingdom to assess the effectiveness of educational broadcasts for various ages. Two case studies are included: one that investigated the use of educational television in primary and secondary schools; and one that focused on adult literacy programs. (three…

Research messages 2006 is a collection of key messages from research projects published or completed by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) in 2006. It covers work undertaken by both NCVER and external researchers through the following programs: (1) National Vocational Education and Training Research Evaluation Program;…

A survey of 11 adult literacy practitioner research networks in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada indicated the following: primary purposes were professional development and outlet for practitioner voice; predominant methods were action and participatory research; 10 had government funding; and challenges included lack of…

Gatehouse Books in Manchester and Pecket Well College in West Yorkshire are publishers of adult basic education materials. They offer different and inspiring models for what can happen when adult literacy work merges with the activities and philosophy of the community writing and publishing movement. (JOW)

Potential community services are described in the areas of adult literacy programs, promotion of the arts, and use of library archives to investigate local history. The importance of the librarian's community involvement is stressed. (MBR)

Describes an experimental literacy class for socially and economically disadvantaged parents in the United Kingdom. Looks at the many factors affecting these adult students' participation and learning. Notes that the literacy students wanted more than functional literacy--literacy had to fulfill the need to express feelings, the need for…

Both the Financial Services Authority and the Basic Skills Agency are committed to supporting those individuals and organisations working to improve the financial capability of themselves and others. The development of the National Strategy for Financial Capability, coordinated by the Financial Services Authority, and the commissioning of a…

Runner is a high-quality educational game designed by the University for Industry (UfI/"learndirect") to attract young adults who find learning in formal educational contexts difficult. A case study evaluation of this novel application of an adventure game genre to literacy learning is discussed, based on observations and interviews in…

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is leading a national strategy to improve the United Kingdom's financial capability (FSA, 2006). The strategy recognises that there is a need for Financial Literacy education across all areas of society, from children in school to mature adults in all walks of life. In order to meet this need and to be…

States that the study of world literacy experience illuminate literacy issues that are often sidelined or ignored in the United Kingdom. Discusses literacy and oral language, literacy and religion, and literacy and gender. (JOW)

Examines the growth of recognition of adult illiteracy in Western Europe and North America since the early 1970s. Discusses the invisibility of the problem, types of illiteracy identified in schools, importance of literacy across the curriculum, links between illiteracy and poverty, and involvement of international organizations. Contains 36…