Adult training is critically important: 70 per cent of the 2020 workforce will be adults who have already completed their compulsory education. Yet one in three UK employers currently undertakes no training at all. In the West Midlands the figure is 44 per cent--one million workers. There is a global challenge. Out of 30 countries in the…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the learning of basic reading literacy skills in a contextualized, educational career technical training program, specifically the School to Work Program. The study explores whether adult literacy rates can change through students' participation in a contextualized, educational…

"Functional health literacy," a component of health literacy, refers to the ability to read and interpret medical information. The Short Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults (S-TOFHLA) measures the ability to read and interpret medical information. The purpose of this pilot study was to assess and compare levels of maternal functional…

The need for adequate functional English literacy and numeracy instruction for the herdsmen in Osun State in Nigeria arose as a result of the persistent clashes between the herdsmen and their neighbours. In all, 48 participants (22 adults and 26 children and youths) took part in the International Reading Association assisted functional literacy…

This keynote address will discuss the findings and implications stemming from a study of what literacy means for a group of 12 teachers and teacher educators. It will also discuss the factors that have caused the ongoing evolution of these ideas about literacy. Relying on the idea of a "permeable literacy continuum," which uses five…

In this article, the author discusses action literacy, and suggests that identifying literacy as political, ideological, and connected to power structures and abuses of power is not enough for a proponent of active literacy and critical pedagogy. Action literacy is a literacy of positionality that highlights the importance of movement and flux. It…

This paper uses Cambodia as a case study to problematise the notion of choice in the spread of English. I explore specific historical contexts which were central to the construction of the demand for English and English language teaching (ELT) in Cambodia. The actions of a range of external agencies resulted in the close discursive articulation of…

Rajapalyam village is located in the Tuticorin district along the biodiversity rich Gulf of Mannar coast in southeastern India. The people of this village are economically backward and most of the men are engaged in fishing. The fisherwomen of this village are less literate than the men, or illiterate. Adult education has been introduced to the…

When, in the 1970s, industrialised countries, confident of their citizens' universal literacy, discovered that significant proportion of their adult population had difficulties in dealing with the rapid changes they were going through, a new term to explain this phenomenon was coined: functional literacy, or its negative, functional illiteracy.…

This article examines the educational leadership of the first African American female principal in Richmond, Virginia: Mrs. Ethel Thompson Overby. It seeks to ascertain, through a historical framework utilizing critical race theory, how this particular educational and instructional leader conceptualized academic achievement given the context of…

The role of functional literacy, linked to employment, leads to a narrow view of rural learners' need both economically and socially. The drive for individuals to take responsibility for their own learning and development is, indeed, a good thing. However, the burden of guilt felt by those who are unable, or unwilling, to achieve the standards set…

Adult English language learners who lack print literacy or experience with formal education encounter a unique set of challenges in their lives and their efforts to learn English. Educators and policymakers are similarly challenged by how best to help these adults acquire English literacy. This paper reviews a variety of research, including that…

This paper examines strategies of developing functional literate citizens in Western Nigeria because it is believed that the problems of unemployment in the area are caused by the non-functional literacy programmes that have been on for long. The aim of the study is to promote the teaching of functional literacy to adults and those who are out of…

The challenge of peace building in Nigeria is increasing as communities continue to show adversary tendencies. This is happening even after many third party conflict transformation efforts have been expended to resolve and set a conducive climate for stakeholders to sustain peace. Some peace building assessment projects have indicated that the…

Literacy has been a priority for the leaders of India since before Independence. Since the independence of the country in 1947, eradication of illiteracy has been a major concern of the national Government. The nation's constitution includes specific articles and amendments to guarantee the advancement of education. During the country's first Five…