This paper documents Iraq's efforts to conquer the problem of illiteracy brought about by an inadequate educational system, lack of incentive to become literate, low standard of living, and low levels of school attendance. A general historical perspective of education in Iraq and the Arab world is presented followed by a tracing of the history and…

Americans aged 60 years and older now represent the largest age cohort of functional illiterates. Educational systems have not adequately addressed the needs of this group. Many older Americans, for whom English is a second language, need instruction in both English and basic literacy skills. Many older adults living at or near poverty levels have…

A systematic model for accelerating the process of developing the word decoding skills and building the vocabularies of bilingual adults was used among prison populations in Rockland County, Dutchess County, Suffolk County, and Essex County, New York, as well as in work-study programs in community centers in New York City. Literacy levels of the…

Traditional adult education has been literacy-oriented, but the curriculum content and methodology has been inadequate in maintaining motivation and interest. An important effort to eradicate these problems has been the Farmer's Functional Literacy Program in India. This major project relates adult education and training in modern agricultural…

This pamphlet is the result of working papers prepared for the 1969 UNESCO meeting held to analyze problems associated with implementing an experimental world literacy program. Functional literacy is distinguished from traditional literacy as being an integral part of the economic and social development of the area in question, not isolated or an…

This annotated bibliography consists of materials in the ERIC system that deal with teaching English as a second language to persons who are illiterate, or functionally illiterate, in their native language. The items in the bibliography were obtained by means of a computer search of "Currnt Index to Journals in Education" and "Resources in…

Information obtained in a survey of the uses of radio and television in connection with literacy work in 40 countries of the world is presented. Much of the information consists of replies to Unesco questionnaires on the subject. The countries surveyed were: Algeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo (Brazzaville), Ethiopia, Gabon,…

The concept of functional literacy is defined as literacy integrated with the occupation of the learner and directly related to development. Its ultimate goal is to assist in achieving specific socio-economic objectives by making adults receptive to change and innovations and by helping them to acquire new vocational skills, knowledge and…

This report presents results from a computer-assisted search of the medical and public health literature published between 1990-99 that addressed literacy issues in health care and in health promotion education. Following a brief introduction on the subject of health and literacy, the literature search methods are described and the choice of…

This booklet, which was developed for adult literacy educators in Australia, summarizes selected research on health practices, communication, and literacy and outlines some issues that adult literacy teachers might consider in their work. The booklet begins with three anecdotes previewing the practical everyday challenges that literacy poses for…

Women's literacy programs in rural Mali were studied through observation and surveys of 42 participants and 29 nonparticipants. Few participants acquired literacy skills, those that did rarely used them, and literacy acquisition had little socioeconomic impact on women's lives. General constraints on literacy usage in rural villages are discussed,…

Reports the effectiveness of Thailand's Functional Literacy and Family Life Planning project in the village of Nonglungka, based upon several months of observation by the author. Concludes that, although literacy skills were improved, the participants did not apply this knowledge to their daily lives. Makes suggestions for improvement of the…

To achieve the intergenerational social reproduction of labor, all societies develop suitable institutional arrangements for the delivery of "Education and Training for Work" (ETW). Three programs together constitute the bulk of ETW initiatives in almost every country on the globe: functional literacy (FL), workplace literacy (WPL), and technical…

This booklet profiles seven participants in Colorado adult literacy and basic skills education programs and describes the effects that participating in literacy and adult basic education have had on participants, their families, and their communities. The first profile illustrates the positive effects that parents' participation in literacy and…

This manual is part of a Mexican series of instructional materials designed for Spanish speaking adults who are in the process of becoming literate or have recently become literate in their native language. The manual is an instructor's guide to teaching carpentry to adult students with little or no formal education. The goal of the course is to…