Of great importance for international practitioners, students, researchers, and policy makers alike, this book brings together adult learning and anthropology and introduces a picture of the world of adult literacy today; explores relationships between the teaching and learning of literacy and numeracy, and literacy practices in daily life.

This book will help those who plan and develop literacy initiatives; using case studies from literacy programmes in many countries including Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mali, Nigeria, the Philippines and Uganda, it demonstrates the importance of literacy, its power to improve lives, and the role literacy plays in social and economic development.

A high level of literacy in both print and digital media is required for negotiating most aspects of 21st-century life, including supporting a family, education, health, civic participation, and competitiveness in the global economy. Yet, more than 90 million U.S. adults lack adequate literacy. Furthermore, only 38 percent of U.S. 12th graders are at or above proficient in reading. Improving Adult Literacy Instruction synthesizes the research on literacy and learning to improve literacy instruction in the United States and to recommend a more systemic approach to research, practice, and policy. The book focuses on individuals ages 16 and older who are not in K-12 education. It identifies factors that affect literacy development in adolescence and adulthood in general, and examines their implications for strengthening literacy instruction for this population. It also discusses technologies for learning that can assist with multiple aspects of teaching, assessment,and accommodations for learning. There is inadequate knowledge about effective instructional practices and a need for better assessment and ongoing monitoring of adult students' proficiencies, weaknesses, instructional environments, and progress, which might guide instructional planning. Improving Adult Literacy Instruction recommends a program of research and innovation to validate, identify the boundaries of, and extend current knowledge to improve instruction for adults and adolescents outside school. The book is a valuable resource for curriculum developers, federal agencies such as the Department of Education, administrators, educators, and funding agencies.

Sponsored by the American Association of Adult & Continuing Education"This monumental work is a testimony to the science of adult education and the skills of Wilson and Hayes. It is a veritable feast for nourishing our understanding of the current field of adult education. The editors and their well-chosen colleagues consistently question how we know and upon what grounds we act. They invite us to consider not only how we can design effective adult education, but also why we practice in a particular socio-economic context." --Jane Vella, author of Taking Learning to Task and Learning to Listen, Learning to Teach "This new handbook captures the exciting intellectual and professional development of our field in the last decade. It is an indispensable resource for faculty, students, and professionals." --Jack Mezirow, emeritus professor, Adult and Continuing Education, Teachers College, Columbia University For nearly seventy years, the handbooks of adult and continuing education have been definitive references on the best practices, programs, and institutions in the field. In this new edition, over sixty leading authorities share their diverse perspectives in a single volume--exploring a wealth of topics, including: learning from experience, adult learning for self-development, race and culture in adult learning, technology and distance learning, learning in the workplace, adult education for community action and development, and much more. Much more than a catalogue of theory and historical facts, this handbook strongly reflects the values of adult educators and instructors who are dedicated to promoting social and educational opportunity for learners and to sustaining fair and ethical practices.

Review of Adult Learning and Literacy: Connecting Research, Policy, and Practice, Volume 7, is the newest volume in a series of annual publications of the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) that address major issues, the latest research, and the best practices in the field of adult literacy and learning. Each Review opens with an overview of significant recent developments in the field of adult literacy followed by a set of chapters presenting in-depth reviews of research and best practices on topics of high interest to the field, and concludes with a Resources section. Chapter topics in Volume 7: *Persistence: Helping Adult Students Reach Their Goals *Achieving Adult Education Program Quality *Assistive Technology and Adult literacy *Individualized Group Instruction *Health Literacy *Research on Professional Development and Teacher Change *Opportunities, Transitions, and Risks: Perspectives on Adult Literacy and Numeracy Development in Australia *Adult Basic Education in South Africa *Annotated Bibliography on Workplace Education The Review of Adult Learning and Literacy serves as the journal of record for the field and is an essential resource for all stakeholders who need to know what research can reveal about how best to serve adult learners. The National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) is a federally funded research and development center focused solely on adult learning. NCSALL's efforts are dedicated to improving practice in educational programs that serve adults with limited literacy and English language skills, and those without a high school diploma. For more information on NCSALL, please visit http://www.ncsall.net/.

Co-published with Colleges and universities are increasingly becoming significant sites for adult education scholarship—in large part due to demographic shifts. With fewer U.S. high school graduates on the horizon, higher education institutions will need to attract “non-traditional” (i.e., older) adult learners to remain viable, both financially and politically. There is a need to develop a better corpus of scholarship on topics as diverse as, what learning theories are useful for understanding adult learning? How are higher education institutions changing in response to the surge of adult students? What academic programs are providing better learning and employment outcomes for adults in college? Adult education scholars can offer much to the policy debates taking place in higher education. A main premise of this handbook is that adult and continuing education should not simply respond to rapidly changing social, economic, technological, and political environments across the globe, but should lead the way in preparing adults to become informed, globally-connected, critical citizens who are knowledgeable, skilled, and open and adaptive to change and uncertainty.The Handbook of Adult and Continuing Education provides rich information on the contemporary issues and trends that are of concern to adult and continuing education, of the programs and resources available to adult learners, and of opportunities to challenge and critique the structures embedded in the field that perpetuate inequity and social injustice. Adult education is a discipline that foresees a better tomorrow, and The Handbook is designed to engage and inspire readers to assist the field to seek new paths in uncertain and complex times, ask questions, and to help the field flourish.The Handbook is divided into five sections. The first, Foundations situates the field by describing the developments, core debates, perspectives, and key principles that form the basis of the field.The second, Understanding Adult Learning, includes chapters on adult learning, adult development, motivation, access, participation, and support of adult learners, and mentoring.Teaching Practices and Administrative Leadership, the third section, offers chapters on organization and administration, program planning, assessment and evaluation, teaching perspectives, andragogy and pedagogy, public pedagogy, and digital technologies for teaching and learning.The fourth section is Formal and Informal Learning Contexts. Chapters cover adult basic, GED, and literacy education, English-as-a-Second Language Programs, family literacy, prison education, workforce development, military education, international development education, health professions education, continuing professional education, higher education, human resource development and workplace learning, union and labor education, religious and spiritual education, cultural institutions, environmental education, social and political movements, and peace and conflict education.The concluding Contemporary Issues section discusses decolonizing adult and continuing education, adult education and welfare, teaching social activism, lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer and straight allies, gender and its multiple forms, disability, older adults and intergenerational identities, race and ethnicity, working class, whiteness and privilege, and migrants and migrant education.The editors culminate with consideration of next steps for adult and continuing education and priorities for the future.

A Turning Point for Literacy covers the proceedings of the International Symposium for Literacy held in Persepolis, Iran from 3 to 8 of September 1975. This book mainly focuses on adult education for development and the spirit and declaration of Persepolis. This compilation is divided into four themes. The first theme is the “Balance and Teachings of Ten Years of Literacy Work, which presents documents on literacy presented by UNESCO Secretariat. The second theme focuses mainly on the functionalities of literacy. The last two themes cover changes in the living conditions and in the social structures as a requisite of literacy undertakings and the innovative role of literacy experiments and their integration into the global educational process. This publication will be invaluable to educators, academicians, and students interested in literacy.