This handbook presents a wide range of research on adults who have low literacy skills. It looks at the cognitive, affective, and motivational factors underlying adult literacy; adult literacy in different countries; and the educational approaches being taken to help improve adults' literacy skills. It includes not only adults enrolled in adult…

Research in a rural area of northern Cameroon where most adults describe themselves as illiterate reveals a complex picture in which three languages are used in different ways and in different domains of life. The profile of the literacy practices associated with these languages is correspondingly complex. This paper argues that it is important…

This paper challenges constructions of the "gendered illiterate Indian villager" as a homogenous group of people who are empowered through acquiring literacy. I strive to displace homogeneous representations of gendered "illiterate" subjects through ethnographic accounts of diverse people's realities in different villages in…

Illiteracy among the formal working force has largely been eliminated: illiterate laborers are generally self-employed farm and home workers. Discusses the relationship between the work environment and the literacy environment as well as new directions for literacy research. (JOW)

This paper reviews results of a questionnaire distributed to literacy workers in rural Alberta (Canada) to ascertain their views on rural literacy. The questionnaire was designed to identify: (1) distinctive features of the issue of adult illiteracy in rural areas; (2) the strengths of literacy efforts in rural Alberta; (3) the weaknesses of…

According to U.S. Census data, in rural Pennsylvania, 37% of adults did not complete higher school, and 21% did not go beyond 8th grade. As a consequence of present demographic and literacy trends, the proportion of the workforce with low levels of basic skills is growing. At the same time, a changing labor market is creating new jobs that demand…

The articles in this issue are mainly concerned with how to reach the poorest and most disadvantaged sections of the population and how best to help once contact has been made. "Nijera Kori in Retrospect: In Search of an Organization of the Rural Poor" (Mohiuddin Ahmad) provides extracts from an evaluation of this grassroots,…

The provision of reading materials through a simple rural library service in Rhodesia was considered to be useful in helping to create a literate environment. The primary purpose of this study was to determine whether or not a rural library did, in fact, accomplish this end. The secondary purpose was to determine the profile characteristics of…

As the first year of the Sixteenth National People's Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), as well as the first year for the new government, the year 2003 witnessed new events and new expectations in Chinese society. The universalization of compulsory education and the elimination of adult illiteracy made new advancements. Secondary…

Computerized analysis of 1980 Census data documented educational deficiencies in 85 Central Appalachian counties of Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. Dropout rates among youth ages 16-19 were found to be higher in Central Appalachian counties than in non-Central Appalachian counties, the poorest counties had the highest dropout…

A descriptive study identified and assessed programmatic characteristics of rural literacy services in northern Pennsylvania and factors affecting participation of adult literacy students in those services. The study focused on service delivery aspects of programming and incentives/motivations as well as on barriers affecting participation.…

The main objective of the seventh regional workshop was to provide training experience to participants from Unesco member states in the development of instructional neo-literate materials and the expansion of participation in literacy activities to the needs of the rural people, particularly women. The final report begins with an account of the…

This report examines rural practice in adult literacy programs and estimates the extent and nature of rural illiteracy. Surveys were sent to 3,287 rural literacy programs; more than 700 program directors responded for a return rate of 22 percent. In addition, 150 program directors and key state literacy contacts were interviewed by telephone.…

This reader on literacy provides a clear account of the major perspectives on literacy and adult education through 20 papers divided into three categories. An introduction provides an overview of the content of the papers. Part 1, "Issues," contains seven papers: "Literacy: Access to Power" (Dijkstra); "Development and the…

The present research was a field experiment exploring the relationship of literacy to certain modernization variables. Data were collected in five rural communities in Minas Gerais, Brazil, in July 1966. The communities were matched as closely as possible on population, literacy rate, distance to an urban center, community institutional…