This document begins with an overview of trends and issues in the area of adult literacy. This overview briefly addresses: the number of adult illiterates, the costs of adult illiteracy, adult illiteracy as a barrier to increasing U.S. competitiveness, efforts that have focused on adult illiteracy, the issues that have surfaced, and…

Reviews research on the average reading level in the United States, on how well the average American needs to read, and on what the average American can and does read. (MKM)

Examines the question of illiteracy in the Caribbean relative to international trends in adult education. Identifies Jamaica's JAMAL literacy program and Grenada's Centre for Popular Education as the dominant influences on the development of adult education programs. Views strategic planning, as found in these programs, as a necessity for success.…

Intended for those involved in American social service and educational communities, this book addresses the widespread problem of illiteracy in the United States and the social consequences of this problem. Following an introduction, the chapters in the first section of the book discuss the growing crisis of illiterate America, specifically, the…

Adult functional illiteracy is estimated at more than 20 percent of the U.S. population and 12-19 percent of Indiana residents over age 25 (390,000 to 600,000 adults). In addition, high school dropouts and those who do not seek education past high school also need additional training. Functional illiteracy costs government and business through…

Reading disability is described in this paper as a relative state that will appear different across societies and over the years. It is noted that researchers who claim that their objective is to find methods and materials to make remedial reading unnecessary are unrealistic. An overview of the Danish educational system and society during the last…

A response to United States Senator George McGovern's call for congressional legislation to establish an independent national commission on literacy is necessary. Two considerations that must be taken into account by any individual, group, or commission addressing issues of criteria for competency in literacy are: (1) literacy competence is a…

The UNESCO Courier's estimate of 700 million totally illiterate persons world wide and estimate of 10 million functionally illiterate persons in the United States are cited. Advantages to being literate are discussed which pertain to the welfare of the individual himself and society in general. The 16 trends in the development of literacy programs…

This document contains a synthesis of the debate on the significant developments since 1986 and on the future agenda for literacy education, held at a seminar attended by 40 participants from 21 countries. The synthesis summarizes workshops on models of literacy practice, national policies, development of partnerships, evaluation, and research,…

Workplace literacy is literacy training provided in the workplace, incorporating basic skills training with job-related instructional materials. Early research efforts to define the literacy requirements of jobs began with two military projects, Operational REALISTIC and Project 100,000, in the late 1960s. Subsequent studies have focused on the…

Although competency-based adult education (CBAE) has been practiced by teachers for centuries, the term was defined more fully and formal programs were developed around 1971. One of the prime forces in the growth of CBAE was the Adult Performance Level (APL) project at the University of Texas, a project that defined CBAE and produced suggested…

This booklet, which was produced as a follow-up to the Fifth International Conference on Adult Education, examines literacy in the world and its major regions. After a brief overview of the workshop from which the booklet emerged, the need to reconceptualize literacy as a tool for learning throughout life is emphasized. Discussed next are the…

A conference was held to discuss concerns in adult education for women, in India, where only 18 percent of the women, compared to 40 percent of the men, are literate. A major theme of the conference was motivation--how does one motivate women to attend literacy education? For what reasons should they become literate? Many women see no need or have…

The research on literacy and numeracy in vocational education and training (VET) in Australia and elsewhere was reviewed. The following topics were examined: (1) the basic skills, growth and heritage, and critical-cultural approaches to literacy; (2) policy regarding literacy and numeracy in VET; (3) changes in literacy practice in response to…

Anticipated demographic changes in the United States adult population in the decade between the National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS) of 1992 and the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL), which is scheduled for 2002, were reviewed. Next, the implications of those changes for the NALS and NAAL were analyzed. The analysis focused on births,…