This book is a systematic exploration of literacy programs for adults with developmental disabilities. The following are among the topics discussed: issues in adult literacy (multicultural issues, combining literacy instruction with transition, and assessment of adult literacy); the developmental basis for adult literacy education (postformal cognition, the Birren hypothesis, and educational implications); diagnosing adult literacy (test biases reduction, background information, error analysis, assessment of functional reading, and portfolio assessment); literacy instruction for adults with developmental disabilities (six approaches; personality, cognitive traits, and group traits); computer-assisted literacy programs; skills-based programs; whole language programs; psychoeducational programs; programs that use children's materials; functional reading programs; multicultural issues (cultural diversity, linguistic diversity, and literacy activities for multicultural learners); literacy and transition; and literacy programs for persons with severe developmental disabilities (academic versus nonacademic learning; rebus programs; alternative pictorial literacy programs; programs emphasizing global features of printed materials, patterned literacy, and print in the environment; labeling programs; and augmentative and alternative communication). Included throughout the chapters on instructional approaches are criticisms of the approach, responses to the criticisms, model activities, complementary assessment strategies, and auxiliary resources. Appended are materials for a functional reading inventory and illustrations for cued reading inventories. Contains 527 references. (MN)