The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) conducted the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), a multi-domain adult skills assessment with an extensive background questionnaire, in 2012. PIAAC is a global effort to understand how individuals' education, workplace experiences, and other…

This study examined the efficacy of general education development (GED®) acquisition and GED® completers' perceptions of college readiness and social capital using a quantitative methodology. Also, the study used a descriptive, cross-sectional research design framed by the social capital theoretical perspective. The conceptual framework developed…

The Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) is a cyclical, large scale study of adult skills and life experience focusing on education and employment that was developed and organized by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). In the United States, the study was conducted in 2011-12 with a…

The Programme for International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) will establish technical standards and guidelines to ensure that the survey design and implementation processes of PIAAC yield high-quality and internationally comparable data. This document provides a revised version of the technical standards and guidelines originally…

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the impact of a word study literacy approach on the spelling ability and self-efficacy of adults in a county jail. Forty-four inmates participated in the word study intervention that provided them with hands-on learning. The word study intervention was conducted in four separate sessions (September,…

In order to determine the range and extent of adult reading in the United States, a Reading Activities Survey was conducted on interviews with 5,073 adults randomly chosen from 200 locations around the country. The survey was part of an effort to develop a test of adult literacy based on practical reading situations in which adults might find…

A study examined the degree to which former students of Pennsylvania adult basic education (ABE) programs are maintaining and using the literacy skills that they developed while participating in ABE programs. During the study, researchers examined former students enrolled in ABE programs in 1974, 1976, and 1978. After analyzing demographic data…

Factors were studied that influence attitudes of Asian English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) learners in order to better understand possible reasons why attitudes may change and ways they may be influenced. Special attention was given to cultural and education differences, difficulties relating to nonliterate adult learners, and strategies to assist…

Intended as a resource for test construction, this kit provides educators with sample test items, checklists, and questionnaires to assess literacy skills of adult students. Items are keyed to skills in the Adult Basic Literacy Curriculum and Resource Guide (APL Guide) and divided into these skill areas: interpersonal, listening, speaking,…

The Seattle-King County Private Industry Council developed and delivered a workplace literacy program in partnership with the following agencies: Employment Opportunities Center, Refugee Federation Services Center, and Center for Career Alternatives. The program provided significant workplace literacy skills to 325 actual enrollees (266 Asian, 15…

The National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS) was the first large-scale attempt to describe the reading of students enrolled in adult basic education (ABE) and English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) using a battery of individually administered reading and language tests.…

The reasons for nonparticipation in adult literacy and upgrading programs were examined in a national study during which interviewers in 12 Canadian provinces conducted in-person interviews with 44 adults who had never participated in a literacy or upgrading program. Most interviewees indicated that they had experienced transition points at which…

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.…

The New Horizons project was a workplace literacy partnership during which 454 employees (53%) of Georgetown Steel attended classes provided by Horry-Georgetown Technical College in Conway, South Carolina. Of the 454 participants, 294 were white, 159 were black, 71 were female, 383 were male, 133 had been with the company for 5 years or less, and…

A study investigated relationships between two instructional dimensions and change in the literacy practices of adult literacy students: degree of authenticity of activities and texts in class and degree of teacher/student collaboration. Data on class activities and texts and degree of student influence on them were triangulated from teacher…