In this response to Stephen Brookfield's "Why White Instructors Should Explore Their White Racial Identity" (EJ1246146), Edith Gnanadass writes her response from the point of view of an adult educator with a multiplicity of identities in her critique of Brookfield's concept by going beyond his call for reflection of one's own whiteness.…

Adult literacy is a long-lasting issue in modern US and adult literacy education often falls off the radar of the support system for education. This study examined and synthesized extensive literature relevant to adult literacy education with a focus on minorities in the US. It identified progresses and challenges in three major issues in adult…

The agents most successful in reaching and teaching those most in need of basic skills instruction are the community-based organizations (CBOs). They come into being in response to social and economic problems faced by their constituents--disadvantaged minorities, the poor, the unemployed, and the alienated. Because of their close ties to the…

Culturally derived barriers to participation--such as negative social-structural forces and culturally insensitive programs--hinder minority participation in literacy education. Effective programs empower learners to become critically reflective citizens aware of the structural forces affecting their lives while helping them acquire needed skills…

In its third year of funding, Project VITAL (Volunteers In Training Act and Learn) was designed to provide literacy training to 500 librarians, coordinators, and volunteers working in literacy programs. Through the techniques of improvisational theater, structured scenarios were enacted dealing with illiteracy, women's concerns of domestic…

A study was conducted in the seven Acadian regions of Nova Scotia to identify the basic educational needs of the Acadian population, identify appropriate responses to those needs, and develop recommendations for adult literacy, basic education, and academic continuing education. Results are presented in this report, in both French and English. An…

This is the second of a two-part article identifying various deprived groups and contributions which educational broadcasting might make to help them. Author gives examples of ways that the broadcasting services of many countries are trying to overcome some problems of deprivation. (Author/CSS)

Accounts differ as to the state of adult literacy education in China. One scholar says that programs are contracting severely, whereas Chinese officials contend that programs are operating with more students and more efficiency. A true picture of literacy education in China depends on research and statistics that are being gathered. The overall…

Illiteracy is a serious problem for older people, particularly for older minorities. Of the 23 million adults in the United States classified as functionally illiterate, 44 percent are over 50, and those 60 and over account for about one-third of the totally illiterate population. Being illiterate to whatever degree diminishes the employment…

This report contains tables and a narrative summary of significant findings from a study of participants in the adult education literacy program operated in the state of New York for the year 1979-80. Charts and tables provide data on nineteen aspects of the program. These are annual program goals, student demographic composite, unemployed…

Describes Alpha Ontario, an adult literacy center located in Toronto. Highlights include a historical background; collection development; adult basic education; marginalized or minority groups within the literacy movement; cataloging issues, including subject headings, classification, and language; public services, including outreach programs and…

A perspective that sees adult literacy only in job-related terms is too limiting for a participatory democracy. In place of the prevailing metaphor "adult literacy as consumerism," a view of adult literacy education as an imaginative, social, and communal process of story telling promotes individual and social development. (SLD)

This report contains materials from a workshop to provide training in audiovisual materials development for women and other disadvantaged populations, such as slum dwellers, minorities, and migrants. The proceedings section contains an introduction, objective, and summaries of opening, workshop, and other presentations. Chapter 1 provides details…

A project was conducted in Australia to put together guidelines for developing gender-inclusive, ethnic-inclusive, and nonagist material in adult literacy curricula. Another purpose was to develop examples of adult literacy curricula exemplary in the use of nonsexist, nonagist, and nonracist material. This document combines the executive summary…

African Americans are underrepresented in adult literacy programs. African-American adult literacy students were interviewed on their reasons for program attendance and nonattendance. Timing was the most important factor determining attendance. Subjects believed the educational system made learning difficult for them, and increased literacy would…