The purpose of this publication is to present Iowa's adult literacy program approved projected benchmark percentage levels for Program Year 2006 (July 1, 2005-June 30, 2006). The passage of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) [Public Law 105-220] by the 105th Congress has ushered in a new era of collaboration, coordinator, cooperation and…

This document was produced by the authors based on their research for the report "Reframing Adult Literacy and Numeracy Outcomes: A Social Capital Perspective" [ED493887] and is an added resource for further information. The original report investigated whether adult literacy and numeracy courses produced social capital outcomes, which…

This study is about engagement in adult literacy education. Engagement is mental effort focused on learning. It is important to understand how and why adult learners engage in literacy instruction because engagement is a precondition to learning progress. Researchers who study engagement conceive of it in different ways. Some focus on engagement…

This study examines cross-national differences in returns to literacy skills and explores possible explanations for such differences. Data from the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS) are analyzed using multilevel models. Returns to literacy skills are higher in liberal market economies (LMEs) than in social market economies (SMEs).…

Nationally approved adult numeracy teacher training programmes were started in September 2002 following the introduction of subject specifications by the Department for Education and Skills and the Further National Training Organisation in England. These programmes delivered by higher education institutions and further education colleges were…

To serve adults with disabilities without a high school diploma, the federal government and states have funded adult education and literacy programs that provide services to accommodate the needs of those adults. In addition, the Tests of General Educational Development (GED Tests) provide adults with disabilities with testing accommodations to…

This publication contains a series of sessions developed and used by Newcastle City Council Family Learning Service and now published to share practice. The sessions were developed specifically to support "Skills for Life" tutors to deliver the adult literacy and numeracy curricula but can also be used by other practitioners. There are…

In this paper, the author would like to put forward a number of issues to think about and discuss. At the same time, she argues for a better articulated system that more closely matches the needs and goals of various subgroups of English language learners. Adult ESL programs serve diverse immigrant populations with different needs and goals. A…

A stratified random sample of 1,500 state legislators from 12 states was surveyed regarding their perceptions and knowledge of issues in reading instruction. The states were selected to provide a balanced mix of state sizes, state budget sizes, and geographic regions. Within states, legislators were selected to balance districts. Both mail surveys…

This newsletter reviews two books about family literacy in the United States. The first, "A Survey of Family Literacy in the United States" (edited by Lesley Mandel Morrow, Diane H. Tracey, and Caterina Marcone Maxwell), is a reference guide for educators and policymakers that includes the following: brief descriptions of programs for children and…

This bibliography is a listing of literacy learning materials (137 items), curricula documents (6 items), reference documents (19 items), and resource materials (16 items). All were developed in Manitoba (Canada). Ordering information and a list of abbreviations and acronyms are included. The bibliography was compiled for the National Literacy…

The issue of evaluation in adult literacy is addressed in this paper. It is assumed that evaluation is a necessary and vital function in an adult literacy program because it helps administrators understand their efforts, increases information available about a program's functioning, builds an image, and facilitates the discovery of information on…

This digest reports on findings from recent literacy surveys and interprets these findings in light of theoretical and definitional issues involved in estimating literacy; examines approaches commonly use to measure literacy and enumerates concerns about the limitations of these approaches in linguistically diverse contexts; and concludes with a…

In recognition of the needs of adults whose native languages are other than English or who possess minimal literacy skills in English, the National Commission on the Bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights gave a grant to the Literacy Volunteers of Washington County, Rhode Island for tutors to develop lessons on the Bill of…

This report discusses the place of numeracy in adult education, examines conceptions of what numeracy and numeracy provision might include, and explores links between literacy and numeracy provision. Section A takes a critical look at how much attention is being paid to mathematics education in adult education/adult literacy programs and addresses…