Adult literacy programs in New York City serve persons with a wide range of employment needs and expectations. Information from the Literacy Assistance Center provides the following impressions about the adult learner population: (1) approximately one-half of the students attending programs are working, but lengthy periods of unemployment among…

To make some of the effective schools research known to parents, this chapter reviews case studies of schools with low socioeconomic status children whose achievement is higher than expected. The three most important characteristics of the effective schools in the cases studied were found to be discipline, leadership, and structured attention to…

Two significant reports that were published recently have important implications for policymakers, employers, and literacy workers. "Workforce 2000," commissioned by the U.S. Department of Labor, is intended to help shape federal workplace policies and programs as the nation moves toward the next century. The report documents labor patterns and…

The symbolic function of curricular debate, as it is manifested in the minimum competency testing movement (MCT), is investigated. Curricular debate necessarily reflects the demands of the society in which it arises. The topics that are addressed spring from this milieu and the language in which issues are couched must be appropriate to it.…

More than thirty states, as well as numerous local school districts, have adopted some form of student minimum competency program. Such programs vary widely in their purposes which range all the way from instructional and curriculum planning to deciding whether students are promoted from grade to grade. Thus far, there has been little actual…

A study of student skill levels and remediation needs was conducted at Grande Prairie Regional College (GPRC). The study involved: (1) a survey of the literature on the underprepared learner, basic skills, remedial and developmental education, learning skills centers, assessment and placement, attrition, faculty development, and program…

Drawing from an extensive literature review and interviews with faculty and administrators in the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD), this study report examines successful practices in basic skills instruction in community colleges. After providing background on the importance of basic skills programs in light of the increasing number…

This material is designed to examine the research on how children acquire basic addition and subtraction concepts and skills. Two major lines of theories of the development of basic number concepts, called logical concept and quantification skill approaches, are identified. Major recurring issues in the development of early number concepts are…

The 17 articles in this journal issue focus on a response to the basics movement. Specific topics covered in the articles include the following: a definition of literacy, the meaning of the basics, the back-to-the-basics movement from a historical-linguistic perspective, behavior modification and the teaching of English composition, developing…

Educational malpractice suits represent an attempt to apply tort law to educational outcomes to redress a student's knowledge deficiencies. Following a review of the fundamentals and the judicial treatment, an argument is set forth for recognition of educational malpractice as a cause of action; allowing such claims may help improve the public…

Excerpts from two chapters in a forthcoming book, "Imaging Education: The Media and the Schools in America," show the public's remarkable constancy in values over the past 30 years. According to the polls, what Americans have persistently wanted in public schools are conservative institutions that are safe and that teach respect for…

A literature search to identify and analyze mathematics interventions for students with mild-to-moderate mental retardation found the focus of instruction has shifted since 1989 from basic skills instruction to computation and problem-solving instruction. Techniques such as constant-time delay, peer tutoring, time trials, and direct instruction…

This article reviews the literature on life skills curricula and instruction for students with learning disabilities, focusing on intervention and follow-up/follow-along studies. Suggestions for designing research programs that address these issues are offered. A list of life skills books is appended, along with charts listing papers on theory,…

This review of the literature focuses on the effects of deinstitutionalization (moving from state institutions to community living arrangements) on the adaptive behavior of persons with mental retardation. The selection process for the 18 studies receiving in-depth review is detailed. Two tables detail changes in three categories of behavior for…

Effective teaching in adult basic education (ABE) is especially complex and difficult due to context--specific factors that function synergetically to impede success in teaching and learning. These distinctive attributes include open enrollment, irregular attendance, time on task, student diversity, and teacher characteristics. Research concerned…