Success Stories

Applying Research Findings to Instruction for Adult English Language Students. Cristine Smith, Kathryn Harris, and Stephen Reder. Washington, DC: Center for Adult English Language Acquisition, September 2005. This brief is written for the practitioners -- teachers, teacher trainers, curriculum writers, and program administrators -- who work with adult English language students in ESL classes or in mixed ABE classes (with native English speakers and English language learners). If educators are not experienced with using research findings to guide instruction, they need to know more about how research can be accessed, understood, evaluated, and used. This brief describes why research is important to instruction, defines scientifically based research and evidence-based instruction, explains what we know about how to help teachers use research, gives an example of teachers using research to improve their practice, and lists places where research-based resources can be accessed.

Applying Research in Reading Instruction for Adults: First Steps for Teachers. Susan McShane. Washington, DC: The Partnership for Reading, National Institute for Literacy, December 2005. This publication is intended to build adult literacy instructors’ knowledge of scientifically based reading research and provide basic guidance on how to apply that research in the classroom. The language and format are intended to be “teacher friendly,” using student and classroom illustrations and sample instructional activities to make research principles concrete for readers. The focus in applying the research is on modeling thinking, planning, and problem solving in the context of fictional adult education settings. Student and class profiles in these illustrations are based on actual assessment data from adult literacy research studies. Clearinghouse Library mails out free copies to Texas educators only; resource is also available on NIFL Website: www.nifl.gov

Charting A Course: Responding to the Industry-Related Instructional Needs of the Limited English Proficient. Barbara Tondre-El Zorkani. Houston, TX: Texas LEARNS, August 2005; Revised February 2006. This summary report of findings was assembled in an effort to chart a course for Texas LEARNS’ response to Rider 82 (79th State Legislative Session). Adult Education’s response to the legislative mandate, labor market information, input from business and industry, and interagency dialogue focuses on that segment of the Texas worker population hardest to serve – the limited English proficient. It concludes with recommendations to Adult Education and its workforce partners for an interdependent response to the state’s needs for a workforce with access to a continuum of education and training opportunities. The report provides the foundation for development of curricular responses to Rider 82 in three industry clusters: healthcare, manufacturing, and sales and service. It is also the cornerstone for professional development opportunities being offered to Adult Educators throughout the state. Clearinghouse Library mails out free copies to Texas educators only; resource is also available on the Texas LEARNS/TCALL Website’s Workforce Partnerships page: www-tcall.tamu.edu/litresources/workres.htm

Evaluating Phonological Skills in Adult ESOL Learners: A Research Project Funded by TCALL, Texas A&M University. Robin Lovrien Schwarz. College Station, TX: Texas Center for the Advancement of Literacy & Learning, October 2006. To increase understanding of the role of phonological skills in the learning of adult learners of English, twenty-nine learners at five sites in Texas were evaluated using a screening tool adapted from commercially available tests of phonological processing skills. Results indicate that, as expected, learners with higher levels of literacy generally have stronger phonological skills in English than those with lower literacy, but low literacy does not in itself predict weak phonological awareness, the skill supporting literacy. Repeating sentences was the most prominent weakness across factors such as levels of literacy, time in the US, time studying English and language background. Theories are suggested for this finding. Clearinghouse Library mails out free copies to Texas educators only; resource is also available on the TCALL Research page: http://www-tcall.tamu.edu/researchlist.htm#ell

How Do You Teach Content in Adult Education? An Annotated Bibliography. Elizabeth M. Zachry and John P. Comings. Cambridge, MA: National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy, Ocober 2006. This occasional paper provides sources of research and professional wisdom that are useful to the design of evidence-based instruction. This annotated bibliography is divided into seven subsections that focus on reading, writing, math and numeracy, English as a second language, GED, adult learning theory, and technology. Each section presents adult education sources and then additional resources based on K–12 research, instruction, and professional development resources. Clearinghouse Library mails out free copies to Texas educators only; resource is also available on NCSALL Website: www.ncsall.net

The Relationship of the Component Skills of Reading to IALS Performance: Tipping Points and Five Classes of Adult Literacy Learners. John Strucker, Kentaro Yamamoto, and Irwin Kirsch. Cambridge, MA: National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy, March 2007. This study’s aim was to understand the relationship of the component skills of reading, such as word recognition, vocabulary, and spelling, to large-scale measures of literacy, which use real-world items such as advertisements, bus schedules, newspaper editorials, and product warranties to estimate the distribution of literacy skills across society. Clearinghouse Library mails out free copies to Texas educators only; resource is also available on NCSALL Website: www.ncsall.net

Research-based Adult Reading Instruction: Practitioner Research Training Guide. Cambridge, MA: National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy, July 2006. In this 31-hour practitioner research training, practitioners investigate a problem related to reading. With 7 to 14 other practitioners, they meet four times to: discuss the research on reading instruction for adults and what it means for reading instruction; plan for conducting research in their own classrooms on a reading problem or issue; and share their research findings and conclusions and the implications. This guide provides all the instructions and necessary materials (including reproducible readings for each session) to plan and facilitate a four-session practitioner research training. The sessions vary in length. Clearinghouse Library mails out free copies to Texas educators only; resource is also available on NCSALL Website: www.ncsall.net

Teaching Adults to Read. Mary E. Curtis and John R. Kruidenier. Washington, DC: The Partnership for Reading, National Institute for Literacy, Fall 2005. The emerging principles and trends explicated in “Research-Based Principles for Adult Basic Education Reading Instruction” (see separate Clearinghouse Library title) are here distilled into a short booklet. This booklet addresses each component of reading -- alphabetics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension -- from the teacher’s perspective, defining each term, highlighting its importance, describing how it is assessed, and exploring its implications for teachers.

Verizon Life Span Literacy Matrix: Relevant Outcomes, Measures and Research-based Practices and Strategies. Laura Westberg, Susan McShane, and Lisa Smith. Louisville, KY: National Center for Family Literacy, October 2006. Developed in collaboration among the National Center for Family Literacy, ProLiteracy Worldwide, the National Coalition for Literacy, the Verizon Foundation, the American Library Association, and Georgetown University, this matrix identifies relevant literacy outcomes, appropriate instruments for measuring the outcomes, and effective research-based practices that allow programs and individuals to increase the development of literacy at all stages of life. This tool is intended to minimize confusion for providers over what works in literacy instruction, and to guide funders in ascertaining what programs are worth funding. Clearinghouse Library mails out free copies to Texas educators only; resource is also available on the Verizon’s Thinkfinity Website (formerly Verizon Literacy Network): www.thinkfinity.org

The four reports described below are also available
on the NAAL Website: http://nces.ed.gov/naal/

A First Look at the Literacy of America’s Adults in the 21st Century. Mark Kutner, Elizabeth Greenberg, and Justin Baer. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics, December 2005. This is the first in a series of reports on the 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL), which measures the English literacy of America’s adults (people age 16 and older living in households and prisons). NAAL builds on the previous national assessment of literacy completed in 1992. This report presents key results of the NAAL, including changes in adult literacy since 1992 and performance by gender, race/ethnicity, age, language spoken before starting school, educational attainment, and employment status.

The Health Literacy of America’s Adults: Results from the 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy. Mark Kutner, Elizabeth Greenberg, Ying Jin, and Christine Paulsen. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics, September 2006. This report is the first release of the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL) health literacy results, based on assessment tasks designed specifically to measure the health literacy of adults living in the United States. Clearinghouse Library mails out free copies of this report to Texas educators only.

Key Concepts and Features of the 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy. Sheida White and Sally Dillow. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics, December 2005. This companion piece to the report, A First Look at the Literacy of America’s Adults in the 21st Century, describes the assessment’s key features and data types. It reviews key elements carried over from the 1992 assessment, including a “functional” view of adult literacy and three distinct literacy areas (prose, document, and quantitative). It also introduces critical new aspects of the 2003 assessment, including new performance levels that are used to report results and new components that provide expanded data about the least-literate adults and the role of basic skills in adult literacy performance.

Literacy in Everyday Life: Results from the 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy. Mark Kutner, et al. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics, April 2007. The 2003 NAAL assessed the English literacy skills of a nationally representative sample of more than 19,000 U.S. adults (age 16 and older) residing in households and prisons. This report presents findings and examines changes in literacy levels for the total adult population of the U.S., as well as for adults with different demographic characteristics (gender, race, age, and ethnicity). Clearinghouse Library mails out free copies to Texas educators only.

Bilingual Infant/Toddler Environments: Supporting Language and Learning In Our Youngest Children. Robert A. Stechuk, M. Susan Burns, and Sharon E. Yandianharon. Washington, DC: Academy for Educational Development, June 2006. Guide is written for staff in Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) programs. The authors attempt to navigate the research on first and second language acquisition and development on infants and toddlers, consistent with the Head Start definition of “infants” (children younger than 36 months).

Family Health and Literacy: A Guide to Easy-to-Read Health Education Materials and Web Sites for Families. Julie McKinney and Sabrina Kurtz-Rossi. Boston, MA: World Education and National Institute for Literacy, 2006. This guide for adult literacy practitioners and health educators lists resources to teach health to families with lower literacy skills. Guide also discusses how to integrate health and literacy education, how to get started and engage adult learners, and how to build connections between literacy programs and local health services. Clearinghouse Library mails out free copies to Texas educators only; guide is also available on the World Education Website:
http://www.worlded.org/

The Importance of Investing in Early Literacy. Linda Katz. Philadelphia, PA: Children’s Literacy Initiative, 2000. Katz states, “Despite higher unemployment still in the United States, many good job slots go unfilled, especially in urban areas. Our high school graduates do not qualify for many entry level positions, or for further training and education. Given this peculiar dynamic, we have both the need and the opportunity to bring historically underemployed people into the job market. Our success really depends, however, on the quality of education those new workers have received.” Katz discusses the importance of investing in the potential of young children in these at-risk urban areas to ensure that, by third grade, they are “reading to learn.”