Literacy Links

Time Management

FREE Things to Send For...

"A great resource! Since my program doesn't provide training or materials, this was a real lifesaver as a way to get started and it also helped me to find activities that would spark my students interest. Thanks to you and Texas A&M for having such a great tool and helping to make this past semester an enjoyable experience! I'm just glad that a colleague told me about it!"

Ellen Brawley
Adult ESL Teacher
Round Rock Community School

Pro-Net Professional Development Resources

The free resources described in this section are publications of the "Building Professional Development Partnerships for Adult Educators Project" (Pro-Net) sponsored by the US Department of Education, Division of Adult Education and Literacy. Pro-Net seeks to promote ongoing professional development activities suitable for traditional adult education instruction, as well as basic skills instruction in other environments, by (a) broadening the base of professional development approaches; (b) enhancing individual choice of appropriate approaches; and (c) promoting instruction that is effective and accountable.

Texas educators ONLY may request free hard copies by mail from the Clearinghouse (800-441-READ). Many of these publications (though not all) can also be found online at: http://www.pro-net2000.org/.

Adult Educators' Guide to Designing Instructor Mentoring. Sherman, Renee, et al (April 2000). Instructor mentoring is the process by which a more experienced instructor or administrator nurtures the growth of one less experienced through counseling, coaching, and supporting reflective problem-solving. This guide includes sections on: the benefits of mentoring in adult basic education programs; how programs can develop, implement, and support mentoring; and appendices that include profiles of mentoring in ABE and ESL programs. (63 pages)

Evaluating Professional Development: A Framework for Adult Education. Kutner, Mark, et al (May 1997). A suggested framework and specific practical strategies and procedures for evaluating the impact of professional development activities in adult education. (50 pages)

Instructor Competencies and Performance Indicators for the Improvement of Adult Education Programs. Sherman, Rene, et al (February 1999). Provides instructors, administrators, and professional development coordinators with a practical set of competencies and performance indicators that can be utilized for improving the quality and effectiveness of adult education as it is practiced in the field. Competencies were developed using basic assumptions on how adults learn best, and also reflect the SCANS Competencies and Equipped for the Future framework. Instructor competencies are organized around three broad themes: keeping current in content area and instructional strategies; communicating and collaborating with colleagues and learners to facilitate learning; and working positively and nonjudgmentally with diverse populations. Each competency has a set of performance indicators and "evidence examples" that demonstrate the specific competency put into practice. (89 pages)

Instructor Competencies Assessment Instrument. Sherman, Renee, et al (March 2002). This assessment instrument is a companion resource designed to help programs verify and validate competencies for adult education instructors. The instrument can be used for needs assessment, planning and evaluating professional development, hiring, retention and dismissal, program evaluation, facilitating communication and systematic change. (129 pages)

Management Competencies and Sample Indicators for the Improvement of Adult Education Programs. Sherman, Renee, et al (April 2001). This resource identifies a set of recognized skills and knowledge areas possessed by effective program administrators. The purposes of this publication are to enable adult education administrators to think reflectively about their programs, to identify areas of strengths and areas for improvement for themselves and for their programs, and to plan and implement strategies that enhance the overall quality of their program. Professional development is included among those strategies. (25 pages)

Management Competencies Assessment Instrument. Sherman, Renee, et al (March 2002). This assessment instrument is a companion resource designed to help managers verify and validate their competencies. The instrument has many uses including: needs assessment, planning and evaluating professional development, a hiring tool, documentation for retention and dismissal, program evaluation, facilitating communication among staff, and for determining the need for systematic change. (83 pages)

Professional Development Coordinator Competencies and Sample Indicators for the Improvement of Adult Education Programs. Sherman, Renee, et al (April 2002). This resource identifies a set of recognized skills and knowledge areas possessed by effective professional development coordinators in adult education programs. It also provides a brief overview of the professional development competencies, including the development process, the overall organization of the competencies, and suggested uses. (24 pages)

Professional Development Resource Guide for Adult Educators. Sherman, Renee and Kutner, Mark (1998). This guide is designed to be used primarily by professional development coordinators or specialists, but will also benefit state and local administrators involved with professional development, as well as individual instructors. The Resource Guide provides a rationale for professional development (PD) in adult education and discusses four primary approaches: workshop/presentation, observation/feedback, inquiry/research, and product/program development. (183 pages)

Professional Development Resource Supplement: Improving Instruction, Organization, and Learner Outcomes through Professional Development. Sherman, Renee, et al (June 2000). The original Resource Guide provided a rationale for professional development (PD) in adult education and discussed four primary approaches: workshop/presentation, observation/feedback, inquiry/research, and product/program development. This Supplement includes additional resources for adult educators. Information is based on literature and practices in the field of PD, adult education, needs assessment, and collaboration. Materials are intended to stimulate discussion and ideas among state and local adult education administrators, PD coordinators, and instructors about various elements within a PD system. It does not tell state administrators or program directors what they should or should not do, but helps them think about ways in which they could improve the delivery of PD services. (62 pages)

SCANS-Related, Project-Based Instruction in Adult Education: A Professional Development Packet. Tibbetts, John, et al (February 2000). Objectives of Session 1 include integrating SCANS-related content, collaborative activities, and project-based instruction into a lesson plan. Session 2 objectives include incorporating effective assessment throughout a SCANS-related project. Session 1 of this workshop series is a full day. Facilitators may choose to make the first session two three-hour session. Session 2 is three and one-half hours. (108 pages)

Workplace Readiness Guide. Crocker, Judith, et al (May 2002). Guide is to be used as a first step for local ABE programs considering a workplace education program. The guide evaluates program readiness in terms of instructor qualification and program management/administrative characteristics needed for program success. SCANS (Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills) Competencies and skills defined by the EFF (Equipped for the Future) standards are discussed as they apply to workplace education program development. (27 pages)

Recent ERIC/ACVE Documents Publications of ERIC Clearinghouse
on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education

Blending Face-to-Face and Distance Learning Methods in Adult and Career-Technical Education. Wonacott, Michael E. (2002). Both face-to-face and distance learning methods are used today in adult education and career and technical education (CTE), and both methods have their individual strengths and limitations. With the increase in the use of information and communications technology (ICT) for distance learning, adult and CTE programs use a blend of both methods in order to maximize the advantages and minimize the disadvantages of each. This ERIC Practice Application Brief reviews the literature on combining traditional classroom instruction with distance learning via ICT and offers suggestions on how the two methods can be effectively blended in adult and CTE programs.

The Impact of Work-Based Learning on Students. Wonacott, Michael E. (2002). Recent educational approaches that have career and technical education (CTE) components, such as Tech Prep, career academies, and High Schools That Work, have striven to integrate work experience with traditional academics; similarly, school-to-work (STW) by definition is composed of school-based learning, work-based learning (WBL), and bridging activities. How have these approaches affected their student participants both academically and personally? This ERIC Digest brings together research on the effects of approaches involving WBL on students' educational outcomes, attitudes, and short-and long-term employment prospects.

Journal Writing as an Adult Learning Tool. Kerka, Sandra (2002). A journal is a tool for processing the raw material of experience in order to integrate it with existing knowledge and create new meaning, and can be used in many ways to foster reflection and adult learning. This ERIC Practice Application Brief reviews the research and practice literature and describes issues and methods involved in incorporating journal writing in adult education.

Narrative and Stories in Adult Teaching and Learning. Rossiter, Marsha (2002). Narrative and stories in education have been the focus of increasing attention in recent years. The idea of narrative is fertile ground for adult educators who know intuitively the value of stories in teaching and learning. Narrative is deeply appealing and richly satisfying to the human soul, with an allure that transcends cultures, centuries, ideologies, and academic disciplines. In connection with adult education, narrative can be understood as an orientation that carries with it implications for both method and content. This ERIC Digest presents a brief overview of a narrative orientation to teaching and learning and then explores how stories and autobiographical writing promote learning.

Qualitative Research in Adult, Career, and Career-Technical Education. Imel, Susan, Kerka, Sandra, and Wonacott, Michael E. (2002). This issue of the ERIC Practitioner File gives an introduction to qualitative research. It discusses issues in what have been called the "paradigm wars" and ways to assess the quality of qualitative research, provides suggestions for choosing and using qualitative techniques, and describes a variety of approaches and how they are being used in adult, career, and career-technical education. A glossary, annotated bibliography, and list of resources useful for qualitative research are provided.

Trauma and Adult Learning. Kerka, Sandra (2002). Adult learning can often be challenging, and traumatic events add extreme challenges to the learning process. Much adult education literature focuses on the traumas of women who experience domestic violence or of refugees who come to literacy classes, yet adult learners in all settings and at all levels may have experienced traumatic events that have an impact on learning. This ERIC Digest focuses on the individual response to trauma, its effects on learning, and ways in which adult educators can respond.

"All the material is very useful and your service is exceptional!"
Maria Tijerina
Even Start Coordinator Even Start - Houston ISD Piney Point Elementary