This document addresses issues related to the problem that many U.S. citizens do not have literacy skills adequate to meet their needs and ambitions. The first section of the paper provides an overview of the problem, discussing how to define literacy, how it has been measured, some estimates of how many people are illiterate, who they are and…

Adult literacy programs need reliable information about program quality and effectiveness for accountability, improvement of practice, and expansion of knowledge. Evaluation and assessment reflect fundamental beliefs about adult learners, concepts of literacy, and educational settings. Resources for planning program evaluations include surveys,…

The Family Support Act of 1988 is based on the assumption that education, training, work experience, and support are the way to reduce welfare dependence. The Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training program in the act requires participation of many welfare recipients in state job training programs. Comprehensive welfare reform programs in…

The first phase of a longitudinal study of the factors that encourage adults to enter and remain in adult literacy programs and the effects program participation has on their lives obtained information on students in a sample of 70 classes in 1988-89. The sample was stratified on literacy provider agency, whether the class was basic education (BE)…

The National Adult Literacy Initiative calls for a collaborative effort among the public, private, voluntary, and military sectors to address more effectively illiteracy through adult education. One of the first points in the initiative calls for continued educational services funded by the federal government and administered by the states. Other…