What is literacy?
The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 defines literacy as “an individual’s ability to read, write, speak in English, compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job, in the family of the individual and in society.” This is a broader view of literacy than just an individual’s ability to read, the more traditional concept of literacy. As information and technology have increasingly shaped our society, the skills we need to function successfully have gone beyond reading, and literacy has come to include the skills listed in the current definition.
How is adult literacy measured?
The 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy surveyed 19,000 Americans ages 16 and older. Since adults use different kinds of printed and written materials in their daily lives, NAAL measures three types of literacy: prose, document, and quantitative
Prose Literacy is defined as follows.
Below Basic: no more than the most simple and concrete literacy skills
Basic: can perform simple and everyday literacy activities
Intermediate: can perform moderately challenging literacy activities
Proficient: can perform complex and challenging literacy activities
What are the national and local estimates of Prose Literacy?
Nationally (United States)
With an estimated population of 216 million (for persons 16 years and older), 14% or 30 million individuals perform below basic Prose Literacy in 2003. Fifty-five percent of adults with below basic Prose Literacy did not graduate from high school, compared to 15 percent of adults in the general population.
Locally (Bucks County)
With an estimated population of 477,041 (for persons 16 years and older), 9% or 43,000 individuals perform below basic Prose Literacy in 2003. This includes those who could not be tested due to language barriers.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, 1992 National Adult Literacy Survey.
Why is Literacy important?
In the United States, an estimated 30 million people over the age of 16 read no better than the average elementary school child. Worldwide, nearly 800 million adults are illiterate in their native languages; two-thirds of them are women. Yet the ability to read and write is the basis for all other education; literacy is necessary for an individual to understand information that is out of context, whether written or verbal. Literacy is essential if we are to eradicate poverty at home and abroad, improve infant mortality rates, address gender inequality, and create sustainable development. Without literacy skills—the abilities to read, to write, to do math, to solve problems, and to access and use technology—today’s adults will struggle to take part in the world around them and fail to reach their full potential as parents, community members, and employees.
Source: www.proliteracy.org
What makes a successful literacy program?
Vita staff takes seriously our mission to provide the highest quality programming for our students.
Our programming relies on several basic principals:
- Help each adult to identify his/her goals for literacy and life
- Create awareness of the academic needs in reading, writing and math for each student
- Make instruction relevant, useful and fun
- Provide opportunities for learning outside the classroom
Literacy Websites
The National Institute for Literacy (NIFL), a federal agency, provides leadership on literacy issues, including the improvement of reading instruction for children, youth, and adults.
http://www.nifl.gov/adult/adulteducator.html
LINCS is a service of the National Institute for Literacy, providing online information and communication networks for adult and family literacy practitioners. LINCS’ offerings include Discussion Lists, Regional Resource Centers, the Collections, and training opportunities.
http://www.nifl.gov/lincs/
Sponsored by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), U.S. Department of Education , the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL) is the nation’s most comprehensive measure of adult literacy.
http://nces.ed.gov/naal/
The National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) research publications, Focus on Basics, provides training and teaching resources, and other materials for educational programs that serve adults with limited literacy and English language skills, and those without a high school diploma, as well as increased the research base on adult learning and literacy.
http://www.ncsall.net
ProLiteracy champions the power of literacy to improve the lives of adults and their families, communities, and societies. The U.S. programs division of ProLiteracy Worldwide is the largest adult literacy organization in the United States, with more than 1,200 member groups nationwide. ProLiteracy is dedicated to providing the highest quality information, training, and technical assistance to advance the work of the adult literacy field.
http://www.proliteracy.org
