In the early 1990s, UNESCO estimated that perhaps 97% of the world's 650 million disabled persons were unable to read or write, leading to significant efforts throughout the developing world to ensure that all children with disabilities attended school through "inclusive education" programmes. But what of the vast majority of persons with…

A collection of reports on literacy and literacy issues includes a variety of perspectives and descriptions of diverse programs and is divided into three sections. The first examines broad questions of literacy: "On the Study of Literacy" (David Bendor-Samuel); "Linguistics and Literacy" (Gloria Kindell); and "Literacy in…

Discusses aspects of literacy education: why it is needed; how it affects the individual, the family, the community, and society; ill effects and abuses of literacy; why literacy education is needed now; and the need for mass literacy campaigns. (CT)

This paper critically examines the goals, processes, resources, and effectiveness of Ethiopia's efforts to teach its people to read. Of the estimated 27 million people living in Ethiopia, only ten percent are literate. In recognition of this, and with the hypothesis that literacy skills are prerequisites for building a just and egalitarian…

Comprising a study of the application of linguistics to literacy, the 16 papers in this book were prepared by contributors from both developing and developed nations. The papers in the first section illustrate the relevance of certain developments in theoretical and applied linguistics, sociolinguistics, and psycholinguistics to literacy teaching.…

The nine papers in this document represent the final report of a workshop on research on literacy in developing countries. It is noted in the introduction by Kenneth King that research in literacy tends to be performed by persons who are also literacy activists and that the problem of motivation seems to be central to most literacy research. It is…

Worldwide, the absolute number of illiterate adults continues to grow. The following topics are discussed: those in need of literacy education; pre-literacy programs; the changing role of post-literacy efforts, i.e., efforts to help adults apply literacy skills; strategies for literacy campaigns; and illiteracy in industrialized countries. (RM)

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…

The aim of this conference was to stimulate joint action among organizations involved with adult education in east and central Africa, as well as publishers, journalists, librarians and book distributors; it focused on the problems of keeping people reading and improving their ability to read in any language. Opening addresses covered reading…

Literacy materials are either for illiterate people or for neoliterate people (those who have attained limited literacy but might easily relapse if they do not practice reading with appropriate materials). Thirty-five kinds of prototype materials for neoliterate persons have been developed by the Asian/Pacific Joint Production Programme of…

This bibliography contains references to research reports, program descriptions, and educational philosophy expositions concerned with the motivation of adult literacy students. The eighty-two entries are from around the world, and some are in French and Spanish. The literature covers a wide range of topics, including programs for volunteers,…

This bibliography contains references to studies and reports concerned with newly literate adults. The eighty-eight entries are from around the world, and a few are in French or Spanish. The literature covers a wide range of subjects relevant to rural and urban populations in developing and developed nations. Among the references are descriptions…

Reveals that literacy training in small, rural, and primitive communities can affect demonstrable changes in the feelings, attitudes, and well-being of its participants. Utilized interviews, discussions, and observations at two sites in Zambia to highlight the outcomes of literacy training. Discusses the program's weaknesses as well as strengths.…

This report describes a low-cost, adaptable methodology for assessment of basic learning competencies (BLCs) in diverse cultural contexts. Following the introduction, section 2 provides a policy framework and covers priority populations; policy and assessment needs; challenges for policy-driven assessments; and questions policymakers might have.…

Post-literacy is all the means and activities that allow persons who have recently become literate to make use of their skills and to increase and deepen the knowledge acquired. There are many kinds of literacy. What they all have in common is the merciless test of the durability of literacy's effect: After 1, 2, or 5 years, what will the…