PUBLICATIONS and OTHER RESOURCES

The following materials were prepared for the National Commission on Adult Literacy. Most may be reproduced and quoted with attribution. Here, they are in the form of downloadable PDF files (click each title below) and optimized for printing. Except where noted, bound full-color versions may be purchased directly from the Council for Advancement of Adult Literacy ($25 plus postage, contact bheitner@caalusa.org for ordering instructions.) Note that some of these documents are large and more accessible via high-speed connection.

11. THE FISCAL CONSEQUENCES OF ADULT EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT (66 pages) was prepared for the Commission’s fourth meeting on December 4th by a team of researchers from the Center for Labor Market Studies of Northeastern University, under the leadership of Commissioner Andrew Sum, who directs the Center. The report studies the earnings of adults according to their level of education achievement in terms of the impact those earnings have on the fiscal affairs of the states and the lives of individuals. Appendix E of the report gives estimates of annual net fiscal contributions of adults by education attainment level for the 13 largest states. The report findings have major implications for the purposes and conduct of the nation’s adult education and literacy enterprise at all levels of service. The report should also be of high interest to state and federal polilcymakers and planners, as well as the business community.

10. CHALLENGES IN ASSESSING FOR POSTSECONDARY READINESS (26 pages) was prepared for the fourth meeting of the Commission on December 4, 2007. This Policy Brief was written by Daryl F. Mellard and Gretchen Anderson of the Division of Adult Studies, Center for Research on Learning, University of Kansas. It examines the major assessments in use today to measure adult learning gains and determine student placements – e.g., BEST, CASAS, TABE, COMPASS, ASSET, and ACCUPLACER – in terms of their uses and how they well they align with postsecondary education entry requirements. Special attention is given to the GED. The authors identify several problems and challenges as well as recommendations to resolve them.

9. POLICIES TO PROMOTE ADULT EDUCATION AND POSTSECONDARY ALIGNMENT (28 pages) was prepared for the 3rd meeting of the National Commission on Adult Literacy on August 20, 2007. As introduced by its author, senior policy analyst Julie Strawn of the Center for Law and Social Policy, the publication focuses on "helping adults with lower skills and/or limited English proficiency earn postsecondary credentials that open doors to family-supporting jobs." It examines obstacles to moving toward this goal -- with major attention to lack of alignment between federal and state adult education efforts, job training services, and postsecondary education policies. It also draws attention to the financial, personal, and family challenges that prevent adults from seeking and completing programs. Numerous policy and action recommendations are given for Commission consideration.

8. FAMILY LITERACY IN ADULT EDUCATION: The Federal and State Support Role was prepared for the August 20 meeting of the National Commission by Tony Peyton of the National Center for Family Literacy. This brief special perspectives paper (15 pp.) contains an Executive Summary and four major sections: (1) Making the Case: Why Provide Family Literacy Services; (2) Federal Support for Family Literacy; (3) Examples of State Family Literacy Initiatives; and (4) Issues & Recommendations. Among the five recommendations made by the author is that serious national and state attention should be given to the collection of comparable data about family literacy services, program types, funding, legislative provisions, and enrollments across the states, as well as research to fully demonstrate program outcomes.

7. WORKPLACE EDUCATION: TWENTY STATE PERSPECTIVES was prepared for the Commission's third meeting on August 20, 2007. This Policy Brief by education consultant James Parker (formerly of the U.S. Department of Education) describes various aspects of current workplace education programs in 20 states: AR, CA, CT, FL, GA, IN, KY, LA, MA, MN, MS, NY, NC, OH, PA, SC, TX, VA, WV, and WI. It examines how the programs are funded; the level of effort in each case for the past two years; connections, partnerships, and/or strategic plans implemented by workplace education programs; how states measure outcomes or determine success; the nature of workplace education outcomes achieved; challenges or barriers faced by the states; what the states consider to be the key elements of success in their workplace education efforts, and what future policy options the states would like to consider. One section of the paper presents seven policy options from the author's perspective. In an appendix to the study, state profiles are given for the 20 states examined. [September 4, 2007, 22 pages]

6. ADULT EDUCATION AND POSTSECONDARY SUCCESS was presented at the Commission's third meeting on August 20, 2007. This Policy Brief was prepared by researcher Stephen Reder of Portland State University and the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy. It examines GED holders in comparison to their counterparts who have received a high school diploma as well as those with no high school credential. The comparisons are made in terms of long-term postsecondary education outcomes. The author makes numerous recommendations for expanding and restructuring the adult education system, with the goal of college readiness and success in mind. [September 4, 2007 (rev. 10-8-07), 29 pp.]

5. TOUGH CHOICES OR TOUGH TIMES – A DVD talk to the Commission by Marc S. Tucker, President of the National Center for Education and the Economy. This talk summarizes highlights of the report of the New Commission on Skills of the American Workforce, for which Dr. Tucker was the Study Director. It calls for dramatic, even controversial changes in the structure and conduct of America’s K-12 and education system. The DVD is viewable only online with QuickTime and Flash on both MAC or PC platforms with high-speed connections. [July 2007, 17 minutes]

4. FORCES CHANGING OUR NATION'S FUTURE was presented at the
Commission’s second meeting on April 17, 2007. This document is by labor economist Andrew Sum of Northeastern University, a member of the Commission. Dr. Sum is Professor and Director, Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern. The resource is based on research findings from The Perfect Storm (Educational Testing Service, March 2007) – which Dr. Sum co-authored along with Irwin Kirsch and other ETS researchers. It also draws on a number of other studies. The publication includes an Author's Introduction and Executive Summary and 30 graphs and tables. It examines the comparative performance of U.S. adults and youth on international literacy assessments, the importance of literacy and numeracy proficiencies for labor market success, and the projected outlook for literacy proficiencies of U.S. adults. [June 18, 2007, 44 pages.]

3. DARE TO DREAM: A Collection of Papers from a Resource Group of 102 Education and Literacy Professionals was presented at the Commission's April 17th meeting in New York City. The papers in this collection were developed in response to questions posed in several thematic areas. They reflect the ideas, insights, cautions, and recommendations of a group of 102 education and literacy leaders, all indicated by name and affiliation. The broad challenge was to "think outside the box,” to imagine systemic changes that would be required to expand adult education and literacy service beyond the 3 million or so presently reached by publicly-funded programs to many times that number. [May 24, 2007]

2. MOUNTING PRESSURES FACING THE U.S. WORKFORCE AND THE INCREASING NEED FOR ADULT EDUCATION AND LITERACY was presented at the Commission's April 17th meeting. It was prepared by Dennis Jones (President) and Patrick Kelly (Senior Associate & Director, National Information Center), National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS). This 67-page document consists primarily of 50 color graphs reflecting current data from OECD, the U.S. Census Bureau, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the National Center for Education Statistics, the U.S. Bureau of Justice, the U.S. Department of Education, GED Testing Service, and NCHEMS. The data set includes information on international comparisons, demographic trends within the U.S., U.S. education achievement levels with particular attention to groups of low achievement, and other variables that NCHEMS believes calls for a dramatically expanded and more effective adult education and literacy enterprise in America. A short introduction and executive summary indicates the authors' main conclusions. [May 21, 2007]

1. Four Lay-of-the-Land Papers on The Federal Role in Adult Literacy was presented at the Commission's first meeting in Nashville, TN, on November 14, 2006. The papers were prepared by Lennox McLendon (Adult Education and Literacy Legislation and Its Effects on the Field), Garrett Murphy (Adult Education & Literacy in the United States: Need for Services, What the Current Delivery System Looks Like, and Federal Role in Adult Literacy), and James Parker (Introduction to the Main Strands of Federal Adult Literacy Programming). [December 18, 2006]