Literacy Links

Technology Integration

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"I highly recommend the Clearinghouse because for the last four years, I have found great resources for not only myself as an administrator but for my staff. I believe that is one of the reasons our program has been a quality program—because of the availability of these resources."

Cynthia Bebon
Program Manager
McAllen ISD Mi Familia Even Start

Integrating Technology Into Instruction of Adults

Designing Multimedia Learning Systems for Adult Learners: Basic Skills with a Workforce Emphasis. Sabatini, John (March 2001). Philadelphia, PA: National Center on Adult Literacy. Working Paper reviews and analyzes results of a formative evaluation of the LiteracyLink Workplace Essential Skills (WES) learning system conducted in fall of 1998. Five design issues are discussed and interpreted: (a) redundancy versus reinforcement across media; (b) readability; (c) responses to the video, workbook, and online materials as stand alone products; (d) pedagogical assumptions underlying the writing and media design; and (e) effectiveness of the teacher's guide.

Technology Competencies: Meeting the Challenge. Kansas Board of Regents Adult Education Division (2004). Topeka Kansas: Kansas Board of Regents. As computers become more and more prevalent, technology competencies are becoming a standard in adult basic education. The Kansas Board of Regents - Adult Education Division has developed this resource to meet the challenge.The notebook includes technology competencies aligned with level descriptors from the National Reporting System (NRS), detailed lesson plans with work-sheets for each competency, and a method for verifying competency mastery. Manual is available from TCALL on free CD-ROM.

Technology in Today's ABE Classroom: A Look at the Technology Practices and Preferences of Adult Basic Education Teachers. Carter, Jeff and Titzel, Judy (2003). Boston, MA: World Education. Report presents the results of World Education's technology survey of the northeastern U.S. conducted during the winter of 2003. The goal of the survey was to examine how technology is being used today by Adult Basic Education teachers in their everyday practice, what teachers want to use it for, and what kinds of supports and professional development are perceived to be valuable in achieving these goals. Also available online in pdf format at http://www.worlded.org/ - scroll down page to find title.

Under Construction: Building Web Sites as a Project-Based Learning Activity for ABE/ESOL Classes: Tips for Teachers. Carter, Jeff and Quann, Steve (2003). Boston, MA: World Education. The authors report on lessons learned from teachers and students about developing a Web publishing project in an adult education setting. The guide provides adult literacy and ESOL staff developers and teachers with simple, user-friendly pointers and refers them to other books and tutorials on the technical aspects of Web page design. Even experienced "techies" might pick up some tips on how to apply their knowledge to a classroom project. Hard copies are available free to Texas programs ONLY, but guide is also available online in pdf format at: http://tech.worlded.org/.

Correctional Education

Current Issues in Correctional Education: A Discussion & Compilation.Spangenberg, Gail (February 2004). New York, NY: Council for Advancement of Adult Literacy.
Paper is based primarily on interviews and subsequent consultations with 15 national and state leaders in correctional education. Its purpose is to help focus attention on the need for more and better correctional education in America and to open the door to a fresh consideration of policy development, the need for increased and better-directed funding, and more effective advocacy for correctional literacy and adult education services.

Breaking Barriers/Rompiendo Barreras. Pouliot, Regina, et al (1999). Syracuse, NY: Hudson River Center for Program Development, Inc. Tool for Spanish-speaking persons who are incarcerated was created by students of an ESL class offered by the Syracuse City School District and the Onondaga County Sheriff's Department. Book contains phrases commonly used in facilities of incarceration and the Spanish translation of those phrases.

Making the Transition: An Instructional Guide for Incarcerated Youth Education. Hudson River Center for Program Development (1995). Albany, NY: New York State Education Department. Guide provides information about incarcerated youth, the transition program in New York State, legal rights, inmate needs, and program staff needs. Over 150 pages of the guide is devoted to a series of sample lessons and handouts, many of which have been provided by corrections educators. Hard copies are available free to Texas programs ONLY, but guide is also available online in pdf format at: http://www.hudrivctr.org/product.htm.

Transition Programs: Bridging the Gap. Hudson River Center for Program Development, Inc. (1998). Albany, NY: University of the State of New York. New York's state education department administers education programs for youth age 16-20 incarcerated in county and municipal correctional facilities. This document was developed to share the collective wisdom and experience of education professionals who have successfully guided the transition of hundreds of incarcerated youth and adults back to the community. Key elements of providing instruction, promoting job readiness, and creating a supportive network are discussed, as well as the characteristics of effective transition coordinators.

Professional Development

Adult Learning Theory: A Primer. Baumgartner, Lisa M., Lee, Ming-Yeh, Birden, Susan, and Flowers, Doris (2003). Columbus, OH: Center on Education and Training for Employment. The purpose of this monograph is to serve as a primer for practitioners on the foundational theories of adult learning. It begins with an explanation two lenses through which learning theory is viewed: behaviorism and constructivism. Next, Baumgartner defines andragogy and delineates Knowles's five assumptions about adult learners. In the six chapters that follow, Lee critiques Knowles through the eyes of foreign-born adult learners. Baumgartner then presents several perspectives on transformative learning theory and another chapter discussing self-directed learning. Birden's chapter analyzes and explains differences between critical and postmodern theory. Flowers' chapter examines race and its intersection with class and gender as it applies to learning theory and African Americans' learning processes. FREE hard copies are available in Texas ONLY.

Does Adult Educator Professional Development Make a Difference? ERIC Myths and Realities No. 28. Kerka, Sandra (2003). Washington, DC: ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education. In today's evidence-based environment, adult education stakeholders want to know that investment in professional development is worthwhile. However, it is difficult to "prove": "An evidence-based connection between professional development of almost any kind and learner outcomes is tenuous at best, and elusive in practice" (Belzer and St. Clair 2003, p. 17). This publication examines research reports and other literature to address misconceptions about professional development (PD) in adult education in terms of models, methods, and impact.

Evaluating Professional Development Resources: Selection and Development Criteria. Sherman, Renee, et al (August 2003). Washington, DC: Building Professional Development Partnerships for Adult Educators Project: PRO-NET 2000. Publication introduces and describes criteria which provide a framework for programs to assess the viability, quality, and appropriateness of professional development resources and to guide in the development of new resources. Strategies to thoroughly evaluate these resources are divided into four primary categories: appropriateness of general content, appropriateness of design and delivery, quality of research base, and ease of adoption/adaptation.

How Teachers Change: A Study of Professional Development in Adult Education: Report Summary. Smith, Christine, Hofer, Judy, Gillespie, Marilyn, Solomon, Marla, and Rowe, Karen (November 2003). Cambridge, MA: National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy. The NCSALL Professional Development Study investigated how adult education teachers changed after participating in one of three different models of professional development (multisession workshop, mentor teacher group, or practitioner research group), all on the same topic of learner persistence. The study also investigated the most important individual, professional development, program, and system factors that influenced the type and amount of teacher change. Conducted primarily to help professional development decision-makers plan and deliver effective professional development, the study identifies factors that influence how teachers change as a result of professional development. Free hard copies are available in Texas ONLY, but report summary (and the full 197-page complete report) are available online in pdf format at http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report25.pdf

Program Development

As Long As It Takes: Responding to the Challenges of Adult Student Persistence in Library Literacy Programs. Comings, Cuban, Bos, Porter, and Doolittle (April 2003). New York, NY: Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation. Research has shown that meaningful improvements in adult literacy require more than the annual average of about 70 hours that adult learners spend in organized literacy instruction. Low student persistence is therefore a critical issue. The Wallace–Reader's Digest Funds launched the Literacy in Libraries Across America (LILAA) initiative in 1996. Of the fifteen participa-ting libraries, five are the focus of the LILAA persistence study, which is being conducted by the Manpower DR Corp. and NCSALL. This interim report examines the period, starting in 2000, during which the programs developed plans to improve student persistence and began to implement service enhancements. Hard copies are avai-lable free to Texas programs ONLY, but guide is also available online in pdf format at: http://www.mdrc.org/Reports2003/lilaa/lilaa_overview.htm.

Education for Homeless Adults: Strategies for Implementation. Rischbieter, Robin Granger (1995). Albany, NY: New York State Education Department. Three-volume resource addresses the specific needs and challenges of providing education to homeless people. The guide features recruitment and retention tips, family literacy strategies, resources, how to evaluate program outcomes, and over 70 sample lessons with corresponding handouts, making it useful to educators of other disadvantaged populations as well. Hard copies are available free to Texas programs ONLY, but guide is also available online in pdf format at: http://www.hudrivctr.org/product.htm.

Marketing Your Adult Literacy Program: A "How To" Manual. Smith, Barbara E. and Peavey, Kay S. (1996). Glenmont, NY: Hudson River Center for Program Development.
The 1996 revision, of this manual is still used in New York state to present principles and practices which result in the recruitment of additional adult learners and which ensure they stay long enough to accomplish their goals. The original 1987 "how-to" manual was developed to provide content to participants in the New York - You Can Read marketing training.

Research & Trends in Adult Literacy

Establishing an Evidence-based Adult Education System. Comings, John P., et al (September 2003). Cambridge, MA: National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy. "To benefit from the support of public and private sectors and to insure that all students receive effective services, the adult education system must identify program models that have empirical evidence to support claims of effectiveness." - from Introduction. Developed by John Comings and a Working Group consisting of Hal Beder, Stephen Reder, Beth Bingman and Cristine Smith, this paper proposes a way to establish an evidence-based adult education system and calls for support to implement such a system effectively.

The Language of Opportunity: Expanding Employment Prospects for Adults with Limited English Skills. Wrigley, Richer, Martinson, Kubo, and Strawn (August 2003). Washington, DC: Center for Law and Social Policy. Report describes the demographics and economic circumstances of low-income adults with limited English proficiency (LEP) as well as the language and job training services available to them. Authors summarize lessons from scientific evaluation research on employment programs for low-skilled adults and provide recommendations for policy and practice that would help LEP adults gain access to higher-paying jobs. Appendix includes profiles of several programs including the Motivation, Education and Training (MET) program at El Paso Community College, which retrains predominantly Latino farm workers for work in construction trades. Hard copies are available free to Texas programs ONLY, but guide is also available online in pdf format at: http://www.clasp.org/DMS/Documents/1062102188.74/LEP_report.pdf.