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RESEARCH REVIEW:
Recommendations for Literacy's "Next Generation"
The National Center on Adult Literacy (NCAL) says illiteracy has become
"a chronic feature of the American educational landscape, but the
prognosis for making major gains toward a fully literate America is a
good one." The biggest problem involved in getting from here to there,
NCAL officials say in a new "white paper," is mustering the national
will to make the effort.
America's literacy problem is chronic, NCAL says, for two principal
reasons: 1) too many of its poor children fail to become literate in
school, and 2) non-English-speaking immigrants continue to arrive by the
thousands every day.
In the white paper, NCAL officials summarize recent
research in the field and offer a series of recommendations for strengthening and
improving the nation's literacy efforts.
MAJOR RECOMMENDATIONS
Literacy Instruction and
Measurement
"Diagnostic and remediation models for adult literacy instruction need to be
explored, with a shift of resources to incorporate more extensive diagnostic
testing in most if not all literacy and basic skills programs. This would mean
less standardized testing of the current variety and more emphasis on
individualized needs. Further, some programs should be redesigned to emphasize a
restricted number of skills at one time, with intensive instruction provided.
Within the subject areas taught, an appropriate balance between functional context
learning and basic skills practice is needed. Also, individual change in
performance needs to be measured by both standardized basic skills tests that have
been normed on adults and by applied tasks that are representative of everyday
literacy challenges. Finally, program evaluation should be redesigned to give
separate measures for at least three different types of learners: those found
through diagnostic testing to have special needs, those for whom diagnostic tests
predict normal progress, and those who are not working toward academic
certification."
Workforce Literacy and Competitiveness
"First, the amount of service needs to be increased, with reallocation of resources
to foster and reward consortia of businesses, unions, educators and private groups
that develop new cooperative ways to provide service to underserved populations.
Second, there needs to be increased diversity in delivery systems, so that small-
to medium-sized businesses have as much relative opportunity to engage in worker
education as do large corporations. Third, the overall quality of training
programs needs attention, such as linking literacy program goals and outcomes to
quality-assurance guidelines, which are now standard in businesses competing in the
global economy. Finally, it is becoming increasingly clear that effective designs
should provide incentives for literacy development that are both direct and readily
perceived by the learners, as well as by the providers. This could be achieved by
allocating a percentage of employment benefits to be available for basic skills and
other training or by working through tax incentives to employers."
Family Literacy
"If the future of adult literacy depends significantly on the motivation of
individuals to learn, then the growth and promise of family literacy is
considerable. Family literacy programs can offer a fuller range of incentives than
most other adult education programs simply because they intersect with more aspects
of individuals' lives, especially in the crucial area of child care and welfare.
It would seem that we are at the beginning of what will likely be a decade of
experimentation, similar to the early days of Head Start. Of particular importance
will be the development of specialized training methodologies for family literacy
instructors. Finally, at the level of policy, family literacy programs need better
coordination within the broader network of family support services."
Professionalization and Standards
"We believe that there is a major need to develop structures that enable
administrators, teachers, and tutors to make professional staff training and
development an ongoing process within programs and to link staff development more
closely with program improvement and evaluation. At the same time, staff training
and development should be embedded in the routines and cultures of practitioners'
particular workplaces so that teachers and administrators have ample opportunities
to investigate their own concerns and to invent local solutions. Increasing the
proportion of full-time instructors is an essential element of enhanced
professional development. The importance of minority professionals cannot be
underestimated; one of the great limitations in literacy work is that the majority
of those most in need of adult basic education services are people of color, while
the majority of professional staff of such programs are not. This gap must be
closed."
Technology
"Technology is clearly one of the most promising areas in adult literacy; indeed,
we are tempted to say the most promising area. The opportunities for technology
seem well matched with the problems in the field: dispersed and diverse
populations of adult learners; limited and thinly distributed expertise in learning
diagnosis; a need to connect learners and instructors interactively in an
asynchronous manner that takes advantage of learners' needs for independence along
with their unavailability for formal classroom instruction. Government funding
should be targeted specifically for technology purchase and accompanying staff
development."
Conclusion
"While awareness of adult literacy as a social issue has undoubtedly increased
since 1980, and enrollment in programs has increased as well, our research analysis
suggests that efforts to date to improve adult literacy have not brought the
dramatic gains that have been hoped for by policymakers, the literacy community or
the public.
More funding would help, of course. But more funding is not the only
answer. Resources need to be better targeted to improving the quality of
education offered in terms of effectiveness, efficiency, professionalization,
and innovation. Briefly put, effectiveness means far better customer service,
programs tailored to address diverse needs and user-friendly courseware.
Efficiency means improved and better funded organization of services, not programs
that live hand-to-mouth on donations and intermittent government resources.
Professionalization means that adult literacy workers need to be part of, and be
accepted by, the professional education community. Innovation means that the stodgy
old field of adult literacy needs to open up to the same marketplace of new ideas
that is buffeting the formal school system, especially concerning the use
of new technology."
(Reprinted with permission from Literacy Programs newsletter)
 
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