From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue May  2 08:51:05 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 2 May 2006 08:51:05 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 1]  test message
Message-ID: <2EB817B3-4574-49C8-A6E9-3D2B34596944@comcast.net>

This is a test message.

David Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net





From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu May 18 14:10:34 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 14:10:34 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 2] ARCS discussion to begin soon: E-mail your
	Questions
Message-ID: <972FC1D2-2B15-4939-B4CF-891D032E4559@comcast.net>

Special Topics List Colleagues,

On May 23rd we will begin the discussion on the Adult Reading  
Components Study (ARCS).  Please send your questions about the study,  
about how the ARCS was done, how it is or can be used, about the ARCS  
Web page, or other ARCS-related questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

The questions will be posted beginning on May 23rd.

You will find a 30-minute video panel discussion with ARCS  
researchers Rosalind Davidson and John Strucker, and practitioners  
Kay Vaccaro and Jane Meyer at

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/20040204/webcast02-04.html

This video panel introduction is also available on DVD from the  
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy [ http:// 
www.ncsall.net/?id=24 ] or from the National Institute for Literacy.  
(Send a request for the Adult Readiing Components Study (ARCS) Panel  
(free) DVD to: info at nifl.gov  Be sure to include your mailing  
address.)

Other ARCS introductory materials include:

1. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS) [PDF document]
by John Strucker and Rosalind Davidson
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27   (ninth item down)

2. How the ARCS Was Done
http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/op_arcs.pdf

3. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS)
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27#arcs

I look forward to seeing your questions.

David Rosen
djrosen1 at comcast.net





From djrosen at comcast.net  Mon May 22 15:30:46 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 15:30:46 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 3]  Welcome to the Special Topics List
Message-ID: <A371A502-C484-4EEB-9C78-5F0F8E14A0E9@comcast.net>

Dear Colleague,

You have subscribed to the Special Topics Discussion List sponsored  
by the National Institute for Literacy.  Our first topic is the Adult  
Reading Components Study (ARCS). Our guests are Dr. John Strucker and  
Dr. Rosalind Davidson, the researchers on this study.  The discussion  
will begin tomorrow, Tuesday May 23rd.

A good discussion depends on your active participation.  I hope you  
will read some of the background articles, and/or look at the video  
panel discussion, and that you will then post questions for our  
guests.  To post a question, e-mail it to:

SpecialTopics at nifl.gov

If for some reason you have a question you would like me to ask on  
your behalf, or if you need technical assistance, my e-mail is below.

Here are some resources that might be a good introduction to this topic:

1. You will find a 30-minute video panel discussion with ARCS  
researchers Rosalind Davidson and John Strucker, and practitioners  
Kay Vaccaro and Jane Meyer at

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/20040204/webcast02-04.html

This video panel introduction is also available on DVD from the  
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy [ http:// 
www.ncsall.net/?id=24 ] or from the National Institute for Literacy.  
(Send a request for the Adult Readiing Components Study (ARCS) Panel  
(free) DVD to: info at nifl.gov  Be sure to include your mailing  
address.)

Other ARCS introductory materials which might be a good introduction  
include:

2. "What Silent Reading Tests Alone Can't Tell You", the precursor to  
the website that will be discussed.
http://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=456

3. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS) [PDF document]
by John Strucker and Rosalind Davidson
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27   (ninth item down)

4. How the ARCS Was Done
http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/op_arcs.pdf

5. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS)
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27#arcs


I look forward to seeing your questions and to having you participate  
in the discussion.

All the best,

David Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue May 23 05:01:44 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 05:01:44 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 4]  The ARCS discussion begins
Message-ID: <5E164787-9F3C-42FF-AB2D-00FB5C645AF3@comcast.net>

Special Topics List Colleagues,

Let's begin the discussion with some introductions.

My name is David Rosen. I am the moderator of this new Special Topics  
list sponsored by the National Institute for Literacy.  I have worked  
in adult literacy education as a teacher, program administrator,  
staff development center director, researcher, and now as an  
independent consultant.  I founded and moderated the National  
Literacy Advocacy electronic list and was for ten years its  
moderator.  It's great to be back in the saddle again!

This discussion list is a little different from the other National  
Institute discussion forums in that it will open for each topic and  
then close down for awhile until the next topic begins.  So there  
will be a flurry of messages for the next few days and then, between  
discussions, no messages for awhile.  If you are only interested in  
this topic you can unsubscribe after the discussion.  Or you can wait  
to see what the next topic is before deciding. There will be one  
topic every four-five weeks, from now through September.

Our first topic, as you know, is the Adult Reading Components Study.   
I asked our guests, researchers John Strucker and Rosalind Davidson,  
to write a little bit about themselves, and here's what John sent:

	"Ros and I are both reading teachers by trade - Ros with decades of  
experience from K through adult, and I with 11 years teaching adult  
reading and ESL at a community-based ABE program.  For the last 10  
years while doing research at NCSALL, we have also been the co- 
directors of the Harvard Adult Reading Lab, which has helped us to  
stay in direct touch with adult learners and practitioners-in-training.

	The Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS) is very much a product of  
our obsessive focus on teaching.  We gave 676 ABE learners in seven  
states the same diagnostic reading tests that we use in our reading  
lab.  And, we gave similar tests to 279 ESOL learners, including  
tests of Spanish literacy to Spanish speakers.

  	We then did a computer cluster analysis of the 955 learners'  
individual reading profiles to identify <instructionally meaningful>  
profiles, 10 for ABE and 6 for Spanish-speaking ESOL.  Note our  
emphasis on <instructionally meaningful>.  All of these assessments  
are practical tests that teachers can actually use to figure out  
students' strengths and needs in reading - with the sole purpose of  
planning effective, efficient instruction.

	We hope that our ARCS profiles will help teachers to better  
understand the diverse instructional needs of the adult learners they  
meet and to use that understanding to improve the quality of  
instruction.  To that end, Ros designed an interactive website <  
http://www.nifl.gov/readingprofiles/ > that shows practitioners how  
to create and interpret reading profiles. Practitioners can enter a  
learner's reading test scores into the site, and it will calculate  
which of the ARCS-derived profiles best fits that student.  There are  
even some instructional suggestions for each profile.

	So if you think you'd like to talk about reading and reading  
instruction with a couple of incorrigible old-school reading wonks,  
you should enjoy this week's discussion.  We are certainly looking  
forward to talking to you!"

Welcome John and Ros.  We look forward to hearing your responses to a  
wide range of questions.  Everyone: questions -- and follow-ups --  
can be sent in any time between now and Tuesday, May 30th.  The  
discussion will continue until Wednesday, May 31st.


David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net






From EMReddy at aol.com  Sun May 21 14:20:09 2006
From: EMReddy at aol.com (EMReddy at aol.com)
Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 14:20:09 EDT
Subject: [SpecialTopics 5]  questions for ARCS discussion
Message-ID: <366.4d66ae9.31a20959@aol.com>

Hello John and Ros.  I'm looking forward to this discussion.   Here are some 
questions I am interested in hearing about:
 
1. Given your findings about the varied reading profiles of adult learners  
and given the reality of classrom structures in ABE, where it is rare to be 
able  to set up separate classes for students whose profiles are similar, what 
would  you suggest for classroom management strategies that meet students' 
needs?   Have you observed ABE classrooms where reading instruction was done  
effectively?  
 
2. What policy recommendations would you make to improve the practices and  
outcomes of reading instruction?
 
3. Specifically for second language learners, how important or useful is it  
to explicitly assess and teach an understanding of English morphology?  How  
much does an understanding of English morphology influence their comprehension  
of text?  I am curious about this because of my personal experience reading  
in languages in which my vocabulary is limited.  I find that an  understanding 
of the structure of the language helps me to derive at least a  basic meaning 
from the text even when I do not understand many of the  words.  
 
Mina Reddy
SABES/World Education
Boston
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From IraY at lacnyc.org  Mon May 22 11:31:47 2006
From: IraY at lacnyc.org (Ira Yankwitt)
Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 11:31:47 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 6]  ARCS Question
Message-ID: <6E8BC13A30982C44BCD32B38FB8F5AB814608A@lac-exch.lacnyc.local>

Hi David,

Here's my question about the ARCS:

Is there a tension between the skills-based interventions supported by
the ARCS and an approach to reading instruction that emphasizes using
authentic materials or developing curriculum around particular content?
If not, can our guests give examples of how to do both simultaneously?
Thanks.  

Ira Yankwitt, Director
Professional Development/
NYC Regional Adult Education Network
Literacy Assistance Center
32 Broadway, 10th Floor
NY, NY 10004
212-803-3356


From kappelt at coe.tamu.edu  Mon May 22 17:37:59 2006
From: kappelt at coe.tamu.edu (Ken Appelt)
Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 16:37:59 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 7]  Matching readers to text difficulty
Message-ID: <200605222138.k4MLcT9Z054067@smtp-relay.tamu.edu>

I have seen an increase in materials that recommend readers be matched to
the difficulty of the text they are reading based on their reading
comprehension.  The idea is that we adjust the reading level of the material
so that students read materials challenging enough to improve their reading
skills and vocabulary, but not so difficult to cause frustration.  At first
glance, this seems reasonable.  I saw this first in Accelerated Reader
materials a decade ago and now in materials from Lexile.

 

However, the ARCS shows that a general reading comprehension score by itself
does not give a clear picture of a reader's skills; we must look at the
components to determine what areas of study will help the reader improve.

 

How useful do you feel matching students and texts is?  Can it be helpful in
some situations and not in others?  Is it too restrictive as to what
students are allowed to read?  What are we to make of the "readability"
measures?

 

 

Ken Appelt

 

Professional Development Specialist

Texas Center for the Advancement of Literacy and Learning

Texas A&M University

800-441-READ  (7323)

FAX  (979) 845-0952

website: www-tcall.tamu.edu

kappelt at coe.tamu.edu

 

"Illiteracy and innumeracy are a greater threat to humanity than terrorism."

 -- Amaratya Sen,  2003 Nobel prize-winning economist.

 

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From jn at cloudworld.co.uk  Wed May  3 11:19:16 2006
From: jn at cloudworld.co.uk (John Nissen)
Date: Wed, 03 May 2006 15:19:16 -0000
Subject: [SpecialTopics 8] ARCS Mini-course - "whole word" approach
	deprecated
Message-ID: <002801c66ec4$efe00840$0202a8c0@Tomschoice>

Hello all,

I have just subscribed to this new list, and could only see a single message so far - a test message.  To get the ball rolling, I had a look at the ARCS mini-course, to see how it squared up with experience in the UK.

I am concerned by advocacy for teaching whole word recognition on the "Sight words" page:
http://www.nifl.gov/readingprofiles/MC_Sight_Words.htm
But in this same page there is this telling passage:

[quote]
Because most adult poor readers have difficulty with letter-sound skills, they tend to use a whole word recognition approach much more than do children who are reading at the same level.RR Whole word recognition only works if the words are mastered sight words. The result of continued reliance on whole word "recognition" instead of phonetic skills when decoding unfamiliar words is guessing and misreading. 
[end quote]

I agree with that deduction.  Moreover I claim that teaching letter-sound skills to adults, as for children, means no effort need  be spent on whole word recognition!  The teaching of whole word recognition as an approach was in the now deprecated Searchlights model of the UK National Literacy Strategy.  It leads indeed to much guesswork and error.  It has no doubt contributed to the failure of 20% children to learn to read.  On the other hand, experience with teaching synthetic phonics shows that rapid recognition of whole words arises naturally from rapid decoding which gradually increases automaticity.  The use of multiple modalities should be applied to the phonics instruction that gives the rapid decoding ability, rather than to whole word recognition as ARCS proposes.  

Synthetic phonics, with multimodal techniques, was used in the Clackmannanshire study, where all 300 children were taught to read successfully in a few months, and by the end of Primary School their average reading age was over three years ahead of their chronological reading age.  This result has caused the government to change tack on literacy, and advocate the introduction of synthetic phonics "first and fast" in all primary schools.

Cheers from Chiswick,

John

John Nissen
Cloudworld Ltd - http://www.cloudworld.co.uk
http://www.cloudworld.co.uk/teaching-synthetic-phonics.htm
Tel: +44 208 742 3170  Fax: +44 208 742 0202
Email: info at cloudworld.co.uk


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From ylerew at aol.com  Mon May 22 22:17:50 2006
From: ylerew at aol.com (ylerew at aol.com)
Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 22:17:50 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 9]  ARCS questions
Message-ID: <8C84C2639D031E3-1584-26F@FWM-R05.sysops.aol.com>

Here are a couple of initial questions about ARCS:

1.  Was the age of the adult students a factor?  Were older or younger 
adults more commonly found in any cluster of reading skill?  What 
implications might there be for practitioners working with older adults 
versus younger adults?

2.  There was mention made that teachers perceived the Spanish literacy 
skills of their students (native Spanish speakers) to be lower than 
their actual skill level in Spanish.  Why do you think this disconnect 
between perception and reality exists?  How could ESOL practice be 
improved to capitalize on the native language reading skills?

Thanks
Yvonne Lerew


From lterrill at cal.org  Mon May 22 15:01:57 2006
From: lterrill at cal.org (Lynda Terrill)
Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 15:01:57 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 10]  Patterns of Word Recognition Errors
Message-ID: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8F0145486C@MAIL.cal.local>

Hi, David, Rosalind, and John, 

I read Rosalind and John's  NCSALL Research Brief "Patterns of Word
Recognition Errors Among Adult Basic Education Native and Nonnative
Speakers of English"  (available on the NCSALL Web site).  Because I
have taught reading to both native and nonnative speakers, I have a
sense of the differences in the errors, but I wonder if you could give
some comparative examples of the word recognition errors for each group?


Thanks,


Lynda Terrill
lterrill at cal.org 
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From Holly.Dilatush-Guthrie at ccs.k12.va.us  Mon May 22 15:53:55 2006
From: Holly.Dilatush-Guthrie at ccs.k12.va.us (Holly Dilatush-Guthrie)
Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 15:53:55 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 11] Re: Thoughts, questions
Message-ID: <s471dea8.093@mail.ccs.k12.va.us>

(from "What Silent Reading Tests Alone Can?t Tell You")?In urban and suburban areas, small programs might consider merging to create larger, more versatile centers.?  

I?d like to suggest that we broaden this thought -- Implications ? Distance Learning supplements?   There are so many well-developed practice and lessons and support sites for student and teacher use.   

I envision (and would love to try my hands at) a DL position where my task was to meet f2f at least once, and then to ?meet? (virtually or physically ? via virtual office hours, telephone, recorded exchanges, snail mail even, etc.) once a month with all learners in our program.  

At first meeting, step 1 of a plan as recommended by the classroom teacher and/or assessor would be discussed with a learner, and an assignment (collaboratively with the student) a goal for completion of computer-based activity/lesson/responses/reports/assignments ? with tutorials, language lab assistance, discussed ? 
possibly enrollment in a several step curriculum/program, perhaps as simple as one link to a quiz that the student will use over and over until confidence is gained, and then a new further outreach challenge site assigned?  with documented individual goals ? short and longterm, addressed.    

with all students enrolled in a learning center Moodle site ? (http://www.Moodle.org for info ? Moodle is a wonderful CMS course management system, free ? designed by educators for educators), with peer to peer buddy systems incorporated ? with spaces for small subgroups (reading comprehension, vocabulary, spelling, phonics, etc.) and encourage each student to participate in at least one, but as many as they wish, of these groups.  

I?m short of time today, but would love to expound on these ideas ? I see real potential in Moodles ? to engage, to teach technology skills, to teach communication skills, to support, to involve an ever-expanded network of support systems, to encourage global awareness and connections ? much more! 

So, a question, is there research to support (or conversely, to dissuade) more melding of adult ESL and GED classes?  I?ve taught both, and had ESL learners in GED classes ? with mixed successes, and certainly concur with the FOB article (What Silent Reading Tests Alone Can?t Tell You) findings ? that there are ?very mixed, uneven patterns of strengths and needs.?    It?s been interesting to me to observe the disconnect teachers feel (between GED and ESL), whereas the more I taught both, the more parallels and similarities I noted.   So many resources billed as ?GED/ABE? or ?ESL? that are not frequently shared, could, in my humble opinion, enhance collaborative efforts, enhance teacher awareness, enhance student success, enhance cross-cultural competencies.   

Targeted intervention helps, but adult education is so much more.    

Comments?  Am I way off topic here?   I think reading instruction, as with all instruction, will see more and more distance learning (DL) connections in the future.  



"No matter what our attempts to inform, it is our ability to inspire that will turn the tides."
Holly Dilatush
ESL distance learning, Dialogue Cafe, Volunteer coordinator
Charlottesville City Schools Adult Learning Center
1000 Preston Ave., Suite D
Charlottesville  VA  22903
(434) 245.2815 office
(434) 960.7177 cell/mobile
http://theHsmile.org  ['home' to several Moodle CMS (course management systems/virtual classrooms)]
http://www.Charlottesville-ESL.org 
"Live with intention. Share inside~out smiles, inspire hope, seek awe and nurture in nature."


From bgiven at gmu.edu  Mon May 22 17:48:24 2006
From: bgiven at gmu.edu (bgiven at gmu.edu)
Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 17:48:24 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 12]  question
Message-ID: <f6de82568b345.4471f968@gmu.edu>

This may be a bit premature, but I'd like to know more about the specific assessment tools used for ARCS and what the training was for teachers who administered them. Or did a trained psychometrician conduct the assessments? Thanks, barb given




From wrmuth at vcu.edu  Tue May 23 00:55:32 2006
From: wrmuth at vcu.edu (William R Muth/FS/VCU)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 00:55:32 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 13]  Grouping Students
In-Reply-To: <A371A502-C484-4EEB-9C78-5F0F8E14A0E9@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <OFB7248DBC.3FC51384-ON85257177.001AA423-85257177.001B0EE5@vcu.edu>

Greetings John & Ros,
Congratulations for providing the field with an interesting and useful 
framework for improving our understanding of reading, reading instruction, 
and literacy learning. Because the ARCS work synthesizes so much ? 
phonology, vocabulary, reading rate, comprehension, assessment, learner 
?types,? reading patterns, classroom management, instructional grouping, 
etc. ? it is hard to know where to begin the conversation! My questions 
relate to the implications of ARCS for grouping students in the classroom, 
assuming that some adult literacy classrooms/programs will be organized 
according to reading component profiles: 
(1)     The role of reading rate/fluency. The ARCS profiles are most 
easily recognized as patterns primarily shaped by two broad component 
areas: print and meaning. So why bother measuring reading rate? Would it 
make a difference in the way teachers grouped their students if some were 
slower readers than others? Will it be difficult for slower readers to 
keep up with faster ones, even if their reading profiles (print versus 
meaning component skills and levels) otherwise look the same? 
(2)     Permanent versus fluid groupings. Do you think adult literacy 
learners will be characterized by one profile ?type? that more or less 
permanently defines their learning; or, on the other extreme, do you think 
these profiles will be dynamic and shift frequently as learners progress 
through the program?
(3)     Staff development and classroom management. An ARCS-organized 
program may require some practitioners to organize their learners in new 
ways, such as in small groups. Are you finding this to be so as you work 
to implement ARCS-based instruction? As we plan to implement reading 
components strategies, how much attention should be given to classroom 
management?
Thank you, John & Ros, for your help. Sorry to hit you with so many 
questions; please feel free to answer only those you think are most 
appropriate for this forum. And keep up the great work!
Bill Muth 
William R. Muth, PhD
Assistant Professor, Reading Education and Adult Literacy
Virginia Commonwealth University
(804) 828-8768
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From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue May 23 05:45:54 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 05:45:54 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 14]  Flurry of Questions about the ARCS
Message-ID: <361B701F-F8B4-468A-8EF8-912FDBD66168@comcast.net>

ARCS discussion participants,

Thanks to all who have posted these great questions.  Our guests,  
John Strucker and Rosalind Davidson, will be looking them over and  
responding as they can over the next several days, perhaps grouping  
similar questions.  Please post your questions -- and follow-up  
questions -- through Tuesday, May 30th.


David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From gprice at famlit.org  Tue May 23 10:09:55 2006
From: gprice at famlit.org (Gail Price)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 10:09:55 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 15]  ARCS question
Message-ID: <30C5061E-8038-4C69-B14D-0A2740C0B181@famlit.org>

As an adult education instructor in both a lab setting and a  
homogeneous (based on TABE scores) classroom setting, I am concerned  
with the application of the ARCS recommendations in these settings,  
so my questions may seem a little more specific than others that have  
been posted thus far.

After doing initial assessments and using those figures in the "Match  
a Profile" section, the profile could indicate that a student needs  
more instruction in phonemic awareness and/or phonological awareness.  
You recommend using the Test of Auditory Analysis Skills (TAAS) and  
the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test-Revised to do further evaluation in  
these areas.

If, for whatever reason (cost, training, personnel), instructors do  
not have accessibility to these assessments, but want to move ahead  
with their instruction, what materials or what instructional  
strategies  do you recommend they use to build students' phonemic  
awareness and phonological awareness skills?



Some instructors may feel they do not have time to administer each of  
the assessments needed to provide scores for the "Match a Profile,"  
but think they can use one or two to assess their students' needs. Do  
you subscribe to the "a little is better than none" idea? Which  
assessment(s) do you think would prove most advantageous, beyond the  
silent reading comprehension, to the greatest number of students?? 
Word Recognition, Spelling, Word Meaning or Oral Reading Rate?




Gail J. Price
Multimedia Specialist
National Center for Family Literacy
325 West Main Street, Suite 300
Louisville, KY 40205

Phone: 502 584-1133, ext. 112
Fax: 502 584-0172


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From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 23 14:49:49 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 14:49:49 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 16] Re: questions for ARCS discussion
In-Reply-To: <366.4d66ae9.31a20959@aol.com>
References: <366.4d66ae9.31a20959@aol.com>
Message-ID: <932D5019D006DBB78A24DEA5@nichols303>

Hi Mina,
	I'll respond to your questions in the text below.

--On Sunday, May 21, 2006 2:20 PM -0400 EMReddy at aol.com wrote:

>
> Hello John and Ros.  I'm looking forward to this discussion.  Here are
> some questions I am interested in hearing about:
>
> 1. Given your findings about the varied reading profiles of adult
> learners and given the reality of classrom structures in ABE, where it is
> rare to be able to set up separate classes for students whose profiles
> are similar, what would you suggest for classroom management strategies
> that meet students' needs?

This question comes up a lot!  The ARCS showed that this variation of 
reader profiles you refer to is especially great among GE 4-8 adult 
intermediates. First, however, before going any further, I want to stress 
that we have to do everything we can to discourage the "one-room 
schoolhouse approach" to adult ed that forces learners with a range of 
diverse profiles into one generic class. Only large, comprehensive adult 
education centers can offer the range of classes needed to accommodate the 
diverse range of reader profiles.  In urban and suburban areas where 
students are fairly concentrated, there's no good reason to have a bunch of 
small centers, each offering a few multi-level classes at each site. 
Whatever it takes to change this (e.g., putting our classes at 
centrally-located community college campuses, merging smaller centers into 
larger ones, or having one small center concentrate on GED, while another 
offers only intermediate levels, and yet another only beginners' classes) - 
we have to find a way to offer the range of classes people need and 
deserve.  In urban areas, my feeling is that the only ESOL beginners who 
are new immigrants really need a small center right in their neighborhood. 
These folks definitely need a place that's not only geographically close 
but also has lots of people working at it who share their home language and 
culture.  Everybody else - ABE, intermediate and above ESOL, and GED - 
would be better served by bigger learning centers that could offer 
economies of scale.  They would also afford our learners other amenities 
that adults at community colleges regularly get - like modern 
media/computer labs with professional tech support, student lounge areas, 
student book stores and libraries, adequate parking, onsite child care, 
etc.

As you note, however, multi-level classes unfortunately remain the norm in 
many places in the US.  In these classes, the best we can hope for is: 1) 
the teacher is trained to recognize the different learner profiles and to 
know about their different needs; 2) the teacher has a range of appropriate 
materials readily at her disposal; 3) the teacher has enough prep time to 
plan four or more lessons per class, and 4) the teacher has help - in the 
form of trained volunteers or paid instructional aides - who can work with 
small groups of students to give them lessons and activities that will help 
them to learn efficiently.

Again, I want to emphasize that multi-level classes are a poor, second-best 
alternative, one that should not be tolerated much less encouraged anywhere 
except in rural areas.

Have you observed ABE classrooms where
> reading instruction was done effectively?

Heck yes!  We have a very talented group of teachers in our field, and they 
do fantastic work under the circumstances.  In my experience, ABE and ESOL 
teachers also respond extremely well to in-service training, possibly 
better than K-12 teachers in general.  Most of our teachers have the skill 
set they need, or they could quickly acquire it.  But as it is set up now 
the system doesn't get the most from our teachers' talent.

>
> 2. What policy recommendations would you make to improve the practices
> and outcomes of reading instruction?

Bigger, better-equipped centers (as discussed above)and a permanent, 
well-compensated practitioner workforce.  If you have those two things, 
then teacher training will pay off even more than it does currently, 
because practitioners will be able to stay in the field long enough to make 
full use of the training and improve upon it based on their experience and 
sharing of knowledge.
>
> 3. Specifically for second language learners, how important or useful is
> it to explicitly assess and teach an understanding of English morphology?
> How much does an understanding of English morphology influence their
> comprehension of text?  I am curious about this because of my personal
> experience reading in languages in which my vocabulary is limited.  I
> find that an understanding of the structure of the language helps me to
> derive at least a basic meaning from the text even when I do not
> understand many of the words.

Mina, I think you are right about this last point, but I don't know of much 
ESOL research that focuses on this.  NCSALL's Steve Reder would be a good 
person to ask about this.  However, I think ELL research has looked at this 
from time to time, and that research supports your position.  As an aside, 
in general, I think those of us in ABE/ESOL can probably learn a lot by 
looking more at ELL research.
>
> Mina Reddy
> SABES/World Education
> Boston



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 23 15:14:29 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 15:14:29 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 17] Re: ARCS Question
In-Reply-To: <6E8BC13A30982C44BCD32B38FB8F5AB814608A@lac-exch.lacnyc.local>
References: <6E8BC13A30982C44BCD32B38FB8F5AB814608A@lac-exch.lacnyc.local>
Message-ID: <CE7B5266BEF7AAA5895FC5C9@nichols303>

Hey Ira,

Great question!  I really don't see a necessary contradiction between 
focusing on skills in isolation (e.g., word recognition, oral reading, 
vocabulary, etc.) and using authentic materials in context, especially for 
oral reading, vocabulary, and comprehension.   The trick in using any 
materials (authentic or otherwise) is to make sure that they are at the 
appropriate level of challenge for the learners - not too easy and not too 
difficult.  At a minimum, this means doing readability checks on the texts 
to verify their levels.

In addition, I think many of the skills activities are inherently 
"unauthentic" (I.e., How could there be an "authentic" word list of vowel 
digraphs, or signal words?).  Nevertheless (< - check out the signal word!) 
teachers should feel free to introduce and work on skills in isolation - as 
long as learners have ample opportunities to try out and take chances with 
those skills in real text.  As my former NCSALL colleague Vickie Purcell 
Gates used to explain: Teaching reading is like teaching swimming - part of 
the class should be spent at the "side of the pool" working on kicking, 
strikes, and breathing in isolation. But it all has to be integrated in the 
"middle of the pool" when students put together kicking, strokes, and 
breathing to actually swim.  My mentor Jeanne Chall always insisted that 
for most struggling readers (like our students) the skills need to be 
taught directly and in isolation.  But she also insisted that our students 
will never really master the skills unless they also have the opportunity 
to integrate them into the real activity of reading for meaning.

As a final observation, I would say that finding materials that students 
regard as authentic is important, but that alone can never trump two 
fundamental pedagogical principles: 1) focusing on the right components of 
reading for a given profile and 2) using material that's at the right level 
of challenge within each component.  Side of the pool/middle of the pool - 
we can and should do both.

--On Monday, May 22, 2006 11:31 AM -0400 Ira Yankwitt <IraY at lacnyc.org> 
wrote:

> Hi David,
>
> Here's my question about the ARCS:
>
> Is there a tension between the skills-based interventions supported by
> the ARCS and an approach to reading instruction that emphasizes using
> authentic materials or developing curriculum around particular content?
> If not, can our guests give examples of how to do both simultaneously?
> Thanks.
>
> Ira Yankwitt, Director
> Professional Development/
> NYC Regional Adult Education Network
> Literacy Assistance Center
> 32 Broadway, 10th Floor
> NY, NY 10004
> 212-803-3356
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 23 15:17:17 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 15:17:17 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 18] Re: Patterns of Word Recognition Errors
In-Reply-To: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8F0145486C@MAIL.cal.local>
References: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8F0145486C@MAIL.cal.local>
Message-ID: <5DA8C20E27549ABED6358533@nichols303>

Hi Lynda,
	At least in the hard copy version, Ros and I gave examples of readers' 
errors - possibly in the appendix.  If the version you have doesn't have 
these example, call or email us and we'll send you a photocopy.
Best,
John

--On Monday, May 22, 2006 3:01 PM -0400 Lynda Terrill <lterrill at cal.org> 
wrote:

>
> Hi, David, Rosalind, and John,
>
> I read Rosalind and John's  NCSALL Research Brief "Patterns of Word
> Recognition Errors Among Adult Basic Education Native and Nonnative
> Speakers of English"  (available on the NCSALL Web site).  Because I have
> taught reading to both native and nonnative speakers, I have a sense of
> the differences in the errors, but I wonder if you could give some
> comparative examples of the word recognition errors for each group?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Lynda Terrill
> lterrill at cal.org



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 23 15:25:45 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 15:25:45 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 19] Re: Matching readers to text difficulty
In-Reply-To: <200605222138.k4MLcT9Z054067@smtp-relay.tamu.edu>
References: <200605222138.k4MLcT9Z054067@smtp-relay.tamu.edu>
Message-ID: <EE3333F9B72E9ED2A39623DE@nichols303>

Hi Ken,

As you allude to, Ros and I would argue that you should match the level of 
challenge of the materials for <each separate component>, not just silent 
comprehension.  So for example, someone who has realtive strength in 
vocabulary but also has a severe word recognition problem like "Richard", 
whom I wrote about some years ago <http://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=456> 
would need GE 7-8 in vocabulary instruction, but perhaps GE 3-4 for oral 
reading and word recognition.

As an aside, in our Adult Reading Lab, Ros and I have not found Lexiles as 
useful or accurate at estimating text difficulty as more traditional 
readability formulae such as the Fry or Dale-Chall.  I'd be interested in 
other people's experience with this.

--On Monday, May 22, 2006 4:37 PM -0500 Ken Appelt <kappelt at coe.tamu.edu> 
wrote:

>
>
> I have seen an increase in materials that recommend readers be matched to
> the difficulty of the text they are reading based on their reading
> comprehension.  The idea is that we adjust the reading level of the
> material so that students read materials challenging enough to improve
> their reading skills and vocabulary, but not so difficult to cause
> frustration.  At first glance, this seems reasonable.  I saw this first
> in Accelerated Reader materials a decade ago and now in materials from
> Lexile.
>
>
>
> However, the ARCS shows that a general reading comprehension score by
> itself does not give a clear picture of a reader's skills; we must look
> at the components to determine what areas of study will help the reader
> improve.
>
>
>
> How useful do you feel matching students and texts is?  Can it be helpful
> in some situations and not in others?  Is it too restrictive as to what
> students are allowed to read?  What are we to make of the "readability"
> measures?
>
>
>
>
>
> Ken Appelt
>
>
>
> Professional Development Specialist
>
> Texas Center for the Advancement of Literacy and Learning
>
> Texas A&M University
>
> 800-441-READ  (7323)
>
> FAX  (979) 845-0952
>
> website: www-tcall.tamu.edu
>
> kappelt at coe.tamu.edu
>
>
>
> "Illiteracy and innumeracy are a greater threat to humanity than
> terrorism."
>  -- Amaratya Sen,  2003 Nobel prize-winning economist.
>
>



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From korber at centerforliteracy.org  Tue May 23 11:32:03 2006
From: korber at centerforliteracy.org (Stephanie Korber)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 11:32:03 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 20] Re: Flurry of Questions about the ARCS
Message-ID: <D019C4C36F8E4147884307CE3A72DF1C338C98@cflexchange.centerforliteracy.org>

What a great discussion topic!  The ARCS project has been one of a few factors that have caused some programs in our organization to revisit diagnostic assessment as a tool for providing quality instruction.  However, I have found some challenges that I would like to hear opinions on.  Given the resources in the field of adult education, the bottom line of some of these challenges is dollars.
 
1. Not all adult ed programs are staffed with teachers (or volunteer tutors) who are comfortable with teaching beginning reading skills that relate to phonemic awareness, phonics and fluency instruction.   In the K-12 world of education, this level of remediation is done by reading specialists, folks who have spent years being educated in the field of reading and on the implementation of appropriate assessments and strategies for such remediation.  In my opinion, this should have a huge impact on the planning and delivery of professional development.
2. Grouping students homogenously (by skill level), so that you can best match teacher strengths with students' areas of weakness, is not always an option when you have to fill classes to meet your numbers goal for students served.
3.  Resources (time, human, financial) for providing one-on-one assessment is quite limited, if it exists at all.  Not all classes have access to computers for individualized assessment.
 
Without a doubt, I see the value in the project!  I believe targeted instruction of skills, particularly for students with low reading levels, is imperative.  Our organization works with E3 (Employment, Education, Empowerment) Centers which are youth centers for disconnected out-of-school youth (particularly those returning from placement centers).  We also contract with the Philadelphia Workforce Development Corporation to provide literacy services to people participating in the Maximizing Participation Project.  The adults in this project are working to overcome multiple barriers to coming off of welfare.  In both of these projects, we built in the use of the Woodcock Johnson Diagnostic Battery of Reading.  At the E3 Centers we were afforded the luxury of staffing the low level literacy class with reading specialists and in the MPP class we were not.  This meant a lot of time and resources went into training the staff at the MPP site on assessment and interpretation of results, and then the use of appropriate instructional strategies based on those results.
 
I would love to see this type of assessment used with our volunteer tutoring programs and in community classes where students are TABEing below the the 6th grade level.  However, for all of the reasons above, the implementation of such a plan is quite challenging.
 
Stephanie Korber
Program Manager - Learning Differences and Youth Initiatives
Center for Literacy
Philadelphia, PA   

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Tue 5/23/2006 5:45 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 14] Flurry of Questions about the ARCS



ARCS discussion participants,

Thanks to all who have posted these great questions.  Our guests, 
John Strucker and Rosalind Davidson, will be looking them over and 
responding as they can over the next several days, perhaps grouping 
similar questions.  Please post your questions -- and follow-up 
questions -- through Tuesday, May 30th.


David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


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From kvaccaro at hcde-texas.org  Tue May 23 13:11:05 2006
From: kvaccaro at hcde-texas.org (Kay Vaccaro)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 12:11:05 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 21] Re: ARCS question
Message-ID: <E43278D67408F248838A1BDB7543060502D4C2CA@EV-SERVER.hcdemain.hcde.loc>

Gail,
John and Ros may disagree with me, but when an adult student comes to
you and cannot read, a little is better than nothing.  By taking the
lowest reading profile and trying some of the recommended instructional
options, the student may make gains and lead you to other areas in need
of remediation.  The adult students with whom I have used that
philosophy have made some gains on silent reading (TABE) scores, but
their self esteem has definitely improved and motivation to try more
challenging materials has emerged.  However, it does require
concentrated selection of reading material on the teacher's part.
 
V. Kay Vaccaro
Program Coordinator
Adult Education Division
Harris County Department of Education
713-692-6216
FAX 713-695-1976
 
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Gail Price
Sent: Tuesday, May 23, 2006 9:10 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 15] ARCS question
 
As an adult education instructor in both a lab setting and a homogeneous
(based on TABE scores) classroom setting, I am concerned with the
application of the ARCS recommendations in these settings, so my
questions may seem a little more specific than others that have been
posted thus far.
 
After doing initial assessments and using those figures in the "Match a
Profile" section, the profile could indicate that a student needs more
instruction in phonemic awareness and/or phonological awareness. You
recommend using the Test of Auditory Analysis Skills (TAAS) and the
Woodcock Reading Mastery Test-Revised to do further evaluation in these
areas.
 
If, for whatever reason (cost, training, personnel), instructors do not
have accessibility to these assessments, but want to move ahead with
their instruction, what materials or what instructional strategies  do
you recommend they use to build students' phonemic awareness and
phonological awareness skills?
 
 
 
Some instructors may feel they do not have time to administer each of
the assessments needed to provide scores for the "Match a Profile," but
think they can use one or two to assess their students' needs. Do you
subscribe to the "a little is better than none" idea? Which
assessment(s) do you think would prove most advantageous, beyond the
silent reading comprehension, to the greatest number of students--Word
Recognition, Spelling, Word Meaning or Oral Reading Rate?  
 
 
 
 
Gail J. Price
Multimedia Specialist
National Center for Family Literacy
325 West Main Street, Suite 300
Louisville, KY 40205
 
Phone: 502 584-1133, ext. 112
Fax: 502 584-0172



 
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From mgsantos at sfsu.edu  Tue May 23 14:15:18 2006
From: mgsantos at sfsu.edu (Maricel G. Santos)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 11:15:18 -0700
Subject: [SpecialTopics 22]    ARCS questions
In-Reply-To: <8C84C2639D031E3-1584-26F@FWM-R05.sysops.aol.com>
References: <8C84C2639D031E3-1584-26F@FWM-R05.sysops.aol.com>
Message-ID: <1148408118.44735136e3191@webmail.sfsu.edu>

Dear John and Ros and members of the NIFL special-topics listserve --

Greetings from San Francisco...

I use John and Ros' articles on the ARCS in my graduate ESL teacher training
classes at San Francisco State University.  My students are grateful for the
practical utility and the instructional value of the ARCS assessments.  They
bring their knowledge via practicum courses to ESL teachers in the field, who
are hungry for this kind of guidance about adult reading development.  However,
I find that my students often want to know what an ARCS-infused curriculum looks
like in practice.  This is something I know less about... for example, what
would an ESL curriculum that blended ARCS assessments with project-based or
content-based learning (e.g., health literacy or vocational job training) look
like?  I'm interested in hearing John and Ros' thoughts on curricular
possibilities, as well as from other adult educators who have made use of the
ARCS system in their curriculum.  And would it be possible to share these
curricula on line?

Thanks again, John and Ros.  Looking forward to reading everyone's postings.

Maricel Santos

Asst. Professor
English Department/ MA TESOL Program
San Francisco State University
1600 Holloway Ave
San Francisco, CA 94132
415-338-7445 (work)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 23 15:40:25 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 15:40:25 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 23] Re: ARCS questions
In-Reply-To: <8C84C2639D031E3-1584-26F@FWM-R05.sysops.aol.com>
References: <8C84C2639D031E3-1584-26F@FWM-R05.sysops.aol.com>
Message-ID: <8B474CCA00FAA48D34D4E57A@nichols303>

Yvonne,
I'll let Ros handle your first question about age.  I take a stab at your 
second question below.

--On Monday, May 22, 2006 10:17 PM -0400 ylerew at aol.com wrote:

> Here are a couple of initial questions about ARCS:
>
> 1.  Was the age of the adult students a factor?  Were older or younger
> adults more commonly found in any cluster of reading skill?  What
> implications might there be for practitioners working with older adults
> versus younger adults?
>
> 2.  There was mention made that teachers perceived the Spanish literacy
> skills of their students (native Spanish speakers) to be lower than
> their actual skill level in Spanish.  Why do you think this disconnect
> between perception and reality exists?

I think it's pretty straightforward - most of the time we never test 
students' literacy abilities in their native languages, even though 
research tell us that for adults, native language literacy is very 
important for second language acquisition.  For Spanish, NL literacy is 
easy to assess using the Woodcock-Munoz, among other tests.  For other 
languages it's much harder.  My Harvard colleague Catherine Snow once 
suggested that the USDOE should assemble a bunch of computer-administered 
tests in the various languages spoken by most US ESOL students.  If the 
computer administered and scored the tests, we would know how well a person 
reads, say Mandarin, without ever knowing a word of that language.

The whole point of this is that if someone has relatively high literacy in 
their native language, they might learn English more efficiently if it were 
taught more like English as a Foreign Language (EFL) - making use the 
students's pre-existing literacy and incipient English reading as tools for 
second language learning.  Instead we tend to start everybody off with 
survival-emphasis-oral.aural skills only ESOL. But this probably only 
necessary as a dominant mode of instruction for folks with low native 
language literacy.   This topic ought to set off a hornet's nest!!


How could ESOL practice be
> improved to capitalize on the native language reading skills?
>
> Thanks
> Yvonne Lerew
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 23 15:45:45 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 15:45:45 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 24] Re: Patterns of Word Recognition Errors
In-Reply-To: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8F013FBF86@MAIL.cal.local>
References: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8F013FBF86@MAIL.cal.local>
Message-ID: <ACE750C3CA8FE59D379197BB@nichols303>

Hi Lynda,

Since you're at CAL, you might already have <Scientific Studies in Reading 
V. 6, #3> 2002, pp 298-315 in your library.  If not, write back, and we'll 
send you a photocopy.

Best,
John

--On Tuesday, May 23, 2006 3:39 PM -0400 Lynda Terrill <lterrill at cal.org> 
wrote:

>
>
> Hi, John,
> The research brief I downloaded at
> http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/brief_strucker.pdf is
> a two-pager that summarizes the findings about the errors related to the
> native and nonnative speakers, but I don't see an appendix.  If there is
> a link to other information, please send, or I would appreciate  a
> photocopy.
>
> Thanks so much.
>
> Lynda Terrill
> Technical Assistance and Web Coordinator
> Center for Adult English Language Acquisition
> Center for Applied Linguistics
> 4646 40th St, NW
> Washington, DC 20016
> lterrill at cal.org
> 202-362-0700
>
>
>
> __________________________________________________
> From: struckjo at gse.harvard.edu on behalf of john strucker
> Sent: Tue 5/23/2006 3:17 PM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov; Lynda Terrill; specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> Subject: Re: [SpecialTopics 10] Patterns of Word Recognition Errors
>
>
>
> Hi Lynda,
>         At least in the hard copy version, Ros and I gave examples of
> readers'
> errors - possibly in the appendix.  If the version you have doesn't have
> these example, call or email us and we'll send you a photocopy.
> Best,
> John
>
> --On Monday, May 22, 2006 3:01 PM -0400 Lynda Terrill <lterrill at cal.org>
> wrote:
>
>>
>> Hi, David, Rosalind, and John,
>>
>> I read Rosalind and John's  NCSALL Research Brief "Patterns of Word
>> Recognition Errors Among Adult Basic Education Native and Nonnative
>> Speakers of English"  (available on the NCSALL Web site).  Because I have
>> taught reading to both native and nonnative speakers, I have a sense of
>> the differences in the errors, but I wonder if you could give some
>> comparative examples of the word recognition errors for each group?
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Lynda Terrill
>> lterrill at cal.org
>
>
>
> John Strucker, EdD
> Nichols House 303
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge, MA 02138
>
> 617 495 4745
> 617 495 4811 (fax)



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From lterrill at cal.org  Tue May 23 15:39:32 2006
From: lterrill at cal.org (Lynda Terrill)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 15:39:32 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 25] Re: Patterns of Word Recognition Errors
Message-ID: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8F013FBF86@MAIL.cal.local>

Hi, John,
The research brief I downloaded at  http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/brief_strucker.pdf is a two-pager that summarizes the findings about the errors related to the native and nonnative speakers, but I don't see an appendix.  If there is a link to other information, please send, or I would appreciate  a photocopy.
 
Thanks so much.
 
Lynda Terrill
Technical Assistance and Web Coordinator
Center for Adult English Language Acquisition
Center for Applied Linguistics
4646 40th St, NW
Washington, DC 20016
lterrill at cal.org
202-362-0700
 

________________________________

From: struckjo at gse.harvard.edu on behalf of john strucker
Sent: Tue 5/23/2006 3:17 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov; Lynda Terrill; specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
Subject: Re: [SpecialTopics 10] Patterns of Word Recognition Errors



Hi Lynda,
        At least in the hard copy version, Ros and I gave examples of readers'
errors - possibly in the appendix.  If the version you have doesn't have
these example, call or email us and we'll send you a photocopy.
Best,
John

--On Monday, May 22, 2006 3:01 PM -0400 Lynda Terrill <lterrill at cal.org>
wrote:

>
> Hi, David, Rosalind, and John,
>
> I read Rosalind and John's  NCSALL Research Brief "Patterns of Word
> Recognition Errors Among Adult Basic Education Native and Nonnative
> Speakers of English"  (available on the NCSALL Web site).  Because I have
> taught reading to both native and nonnative speakers, I have a sense of
> the differences in the errors, but I wonder if you could give some
> comparative examples of the word recognition errors for each group?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Lynda Terrill
> lterrill at cal.org



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


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From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue May 23 16:22:45 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 16:22:45 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 26] Welcome to those who have just joined the ARCS
	discussion
Message-ID: <EBAB5727-A1A8-4444-BA82-BD23A7C18BAF@comcast.net>

Dear colleague,

If you have just joined the ARCS discussion and would like to "catch  
up", of if you want to be sure if your message has been posted, all  
the posted messages are archived at http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/ 
specialtopics/2006/date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From agopalakrishnan at yahoo.com  Tue May 23 19:20:46 2006
From: agopalakrishnan at yahoo.com (Ajit Gopalakrishnan)
Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 16:20:46 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [SpecialTopics 27]  ARCS Questions
Message-ID: <20060523232046.57858.qmail@web30714.mail.mud.yahoo.com>

Thanks David for arranging this conversation. Thanks
also to the researchers for their willingness to
engage in this forum and for taking the time to answer
our questions.

In order to better understand the ARCS results and
their implications, I would like to learn what it
means for an adult learner to be assigned a grade
equivalent (GE) score for the reading components. For
example, does a 4th grade equivalent score in
alphabetics imply that the adult has mastered the
alphabetics skills generally expected of 4th graders
as outlined in several K-12 state content standards OR
does the grade equivalent score imply that the adult
learner's skills in alphabetics are similar to that of
?other? 4th graders who may or may not be performing
at the expected standards?

Has any follow up research been conducted with the
students who participated in the creation of these
profiles to document their future successes/challenges
e.g. achievement of high school diploma/GED,
postsecondary education, or in employment situation?

Thank you.

Ajit Gopalakrishnan
agopalakrishnan at yahoo.com


__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com 


From bgiven at gmu.edu  Wed May 24 08:02:31 2006
From: bgiven at gmu.edu (bgiven at gmu.edu)
Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 08:02:31 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 27] Re: Patterns of Word Recognition Errors
In-Reply-To: <ACE750C3CA8FE59D379197BB@nichols303>
References: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8F013FBF86@MAIL.cal.local>
	<ACE750C3CA8FE59D379197BB@nichols303>
Message-ID: <f580b74c9072f.44741317@gmu.edu>

Is it permissible to put the appendix online for others of us who would like it? barb given

Barbara K. Given, Ph.D.
Director, Adolescent and Adult Learning Research Center
Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study, and
Director, Center for Honoring Individual Learning Diversity, an International Learning Styles Center 
George Mason University
Fairfax, VA 22030-4444
Fax: 703-993-4325
Ph:  703-993-4406


----- Original Message -----
From: john strucker <john_strucker at harvard.edu>
Date: Tuesday, May 23, 2006 3:45 pm
Subject: [SpecialTopics 24] Re: Patterns of Word Recognition Errors

> Hi Lynda,
> 
> Since you're at CAL, you might already have <Scientific Studies in 
> Reading 
> V. 6, #3> 2002, pp 298-315 in your library.  If not, write back, 
> and we'll 
> send you a photocopy.
> 
> Best,
> John
> 
> --On Tuesday, May 23, 2006 3:39 PM -0400 Lynda Terrill 
> <lterrill at cal.org> 
> wrote:
> 
> >
> >
> > Hi, John,
> > The research brief I downloaded at
> > 
> http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/brief_strucker.pdf is
> > a two-pager that summarizes the findings about the errors 
> related to the
> > native and nonnative speakers, but I don't see an appendix.  If 
> there is
> > a link to other information, please send, or I would appreciate  a
> > photocopy.
> >
> > Thanks so much.
> >
> > Lynda Terrill
> > Technical Assistance and Web Coordinator
> > Center for Adult English Language Acquisition
> > Center for Applied Linguistics
> > 4646 40th St, NW
> > Washington, DC 20016
> > lterrill at cal.org
> > 202-362-0700
> >
> >
> >
> > __________________________________________________
> > From: struckjo at gse.harvard.edu on behalf of john strucker
> > Sent: Tue 5/23/2006 3:17 PM
> > To: specialtopics at nifl.gov; Lynda Terrill; specialtopics-
> bounces at nifl.gov> Subject: Re: [SpecialTopics 10] Patterns of Word 
> Recognition Errors
> >
> >
> >
> > Hi Lynda,
> >         At least in the hard copy version, Ros and I gave 
> examples of
> > readers'
> > errors - possibly in the appendix.  If the version you have 
> doesn't have
> > these example, call or email us and we'll send you a photocopy.
> > Best,
> > John
> >
> > --On Monday, May 22, 2006 3:01 PM -0400 Lynda Terrill 
> <lterrill at cal.org>> wrote:
> >
> >>
> >> Hi, David, Rosalind, and John,
> >>
> >> I read Rosalind and John's  NCSALL Research Brief "Patterns of Word
> >> Recognition Errors Among Adult Basic Education Native and Nonnative
> >> Speakers of English"  (available on the NCSALL Web site).  
> Because I have
> >> taught reading to both native and nonnative speakers, I have a 
> sense of
> >> the differences in the errors, but I wonder if you could give some
> >> comparative examples of the word recognition errors for each group?
> >>
> >> Thanks,
> >>
> >> Lynda Terrill
> >> lterrill at cal.org
> >
> >
> >
> > John Strucker, EdD
> > Nichols House 303
> > Harvard Graduate School of Education
> > 7 Appian Way
> > Cambridge, MA 02138
> >
> > 617 495 4745
> > 617 495 4811 (fax)
> 
> 
> 
> John Strucker, EdD
> Nichols House 303
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge, MA 02138
> 
> 617 495 4745
> 617 495 4811 (fax)
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Wed May 24 12:03:24 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 12:03:24 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 28] Re: Flurry of Questions about the ARCS
In-Reply-To: <D019C4C36F8E4147884307CE3A72DF1C338C98@cflexchange.centerforliteracy.org>
References: <D019C4C36F8E4147884307CE3A72DF1C338C98@cflexchange.centerforlit
	eracy.org>
Message-ID: <3E03045148F9FA67011CD38D@nichols303>

Hi Stephanie,
	I'll respond to your questions in the text of your note below.  But as a 
preface, let me say a little about the "philosophical premises" of the 
ARCS.  Ros and I believe very strongly in learner-centered instruction in 
reading.  It has to start with diagnostic assessments to find out which 
components are relatively strong and which are not so strong - and what are 
the optimal levels at which to begin instruction in each component. With 
struggling readers - whether children or adults - there's no other 
responsible way to go. That was true when Jeanne Chall and Florence Roswell 
pioneered this approach back in the 1930s and 1940s at their lab at CCNY, 
and it remains true today.
	While you are right that the "barrier is dollars", that doesn't mean that 
we should be shy about advocating for the approach of diagnostic teaching, 
whether we're talking to fellow practitioners, local program 
administrators, or policy makers at the state and national level.  I'm so 
obsessive about this that I'd almost be willing to argue that every 
additional penny that comes into the field should be spent on this area 
above all others. Otherwise, we end up wasting our own talents, wasting the 
precious time of the learners, and wasting what little money the taxpayers 
give us.  In my opinion, as more and more states move toward ABE/ESOL 
certification, 70% of the required courses and competencies should be in 
how one diagnoses adult readers' strengths and needs and what techniques to 
use in in teaching to those strengths and needs.  What limited funds there 
are should be almost exclusively in those areas.  The math experts would 
probably give a similar response if we asked them about training for ABE 
math.

--On Tuesday, May 23, 2006 11:32 AM -0400 Stephanie Korber 
<korber at centerforliteracy.org> wrote:

> What a great discussion topic!  The ARCS project has been one of a few
> factors that have caused some programs in our organization to revisit
> diagnostic assessment as a tool for providing quality instruction.
> However, I have found some challenges that I would like to hear opinions
> on.  Given the resources in the field of adult education, the bottom line
> of some of these challenges is dollars.
> 1. Not all adult ed programs are staffed with teachers (or volunteer
> tutors) who are comfortable with teaching beginning reading skills that
> relate to phonemic awareness, phonics and fluency instruction.   In the
> K-12 world of education, this level of remediation is done by reading
> specialists, folks who have spent years being educated in the field of
> reading and on the implementation of appropriate assessments and
> strategies for such remediation.  In my opinion, this should have a huge
> impact on the planning and delivery of professional development.

In my experience both as a practitioner and educator of teachers, ABE/ESOL 
teachers are very quick at picking up how to teach reading.  In my opinion, 
phonics and fluency instruction are actually easier for teachers to learn 
to teach well (and therefore  potentially cheaper to learn) than some 
aspects of vocabulary, comprehension, and writing.

In an ideal world, the main burden of our adult learners' reading 
instruction would never be borne by volunteers.  Volunteers can be very 
effective <supplementing> professional teaching - but only if they are 
working in direct support of professionals who have the time to train and 
supervise them properly.

Yes, in K-12 struggling readers who are just like our students only younger 
are taught by folks with master's degrees in reading and or special ed. 
Again, to work effectively with adult struggling readers, all of us in the 
field would have master's level training in reading with substantial 
cross-training in ESOL, given that many of today's ABE students are former 
ESOL students.

2.
> Grouping students homogenously (by skill level), so that you can best
> match teacher strengths with students' areas of weakness, is not always
> an option when you have to fill classes to meet your numbers goal for
> students served. 3.  Resources (time, human, financial) for providing
> one-on-one assessment is quite limited, if it exists at all.  Not all
> classes have access to computers for individualized assessment.
> Without a doubt, I see the value in the project!  I believe targeted
> instruction of skills, particularly for students with low reading levels,
> is imperative.  Our organization works with E3 (Employment, Education,
> Empowerment) Centers which are youth centers for disconnected
> out-of-school youth (particularly those returning from placement
> centers).  We also contract with the Philadelphia Workforce Development
> Corporation to provide literacy services to people participating in the
> Maximizing Participation Project.  The adults in this project are working
> to overcome multiple barriers to coming off of welfare.  In both of these
> projects, we built in the use of the Woodcock Johnson Diagnostic Battery
> of Reading.  At the E3 Centers we were afforded the luxury of staffing
> the low level literacy class with reading specialists and in the MPP
> class we were not.  This meant a lot of time and resources went into
> training the staff at the MPP site on assessment and interpretation of
> results, and then the use of appropriate instructional strategies based
> on those results.
> I would love to see this type of assessment used with our volunteer
> tutoring programs and in community classes where students are TABEing
> below the the 6th grade level.  However, for all of the reasons above,
> the implementation of such a plan is quite challenging.

As far as you point goes about centers not being able to offer range of 
classes to meet the needs of the various adult profiles Ros and I 
identified in the ARCS, I discussed that in my response to Mina yesterday. 
In brief - we should be moving away from small one-room-schoolhouse 
centers in favor of centers that are large enough to offer the minimal 
range of classes our learners need. The only exception - rural areas.  And, 
in rural areas, well-designed individualized distance learning with 
interactive technology may prove to be better than small sparsely attended 
physical centers.

The W-J is a great battery of reading and language tests, but it's more 
expensive compared to others, requires a bit more training to administer, 
and has a bunch of subtests that I've always felt were primarily designed 
to aid K-12 special ed teachers' decision making.   We get a lot of mileage 
out of the DAR (which will soon come out with a FormB) in our adult reading 
lab, but if you already have people trained in the W-J, that's a fantastic 
test.
>

 Stephanie Korber
> Program Manager - Learning Differences and Youth Initiatives
> Center for Literacy
> Philadelphia, PA
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
> Sent: Tue 5/23/2006 5:45 AM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 14] Flurry of Questions about the ARCS
>
>
>
> ARCS discussion participants,
>
> Thanks to all who have posted these great questions.  Our guests,
> John Strucker and Rosalind Davidson, will be looking them over and
> responding as they can over the next several days, perhaps grouping
> similar questions.  Please post your questions -- and follow-up
> questions -- through Tuesday, May 30th.
>
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
>



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Wed May 24 15:44:37 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 15:44:37 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 29] Re: Grouping Students
In-Reply-To: <OFB7248DBC.3FC51384-ON85257177.001AA423-85257177.001B0EE5@vcu.edu>
References: <OFB7248DBC.3FC51384-ON85257177.001AA423-85257177.001B0EE5@vcu.e
	du>
Message-ID: <6FCC985D150B5E06C9B5A1D6@nichols303>

Hi Bill,
Nice to hear from you!  But you're busted as an expert!  For those who 
don't know Bill, I'd like to point out that he is a very accomplished 
reading researcher in his own right who actually did a an excellent version 
of the ARCS with inmates in the Federal Corrections system.  Bill, I'll 
respond to your questions within your text below.

--On Tuesday, May 23, 2006 12:55 AM -0400 "William R Muth/FS/VCU" 
<wrmuth at vcu.edu> wrote:

>
> Greetings John & Ros,
> Congratulations for providing the field with an interesting and useful
> framework for improving our understanding of reading, reading
> instruction, and literacy learning. Because the ARCS work synthesizes so
> much -- phonology, vocabulary, reading rate, comprehension, assessment,
> learner "types," reading patterns, classroom management, instructional
> grouping, etc. -- it is hard to know where to begin the conversation! My
> questions relate to the implications of ARCS for grouping students in the
> classroom, assuming that some adult literacy classrooms/programs will be
> organized according to reading component profiles:
> (1)        The role of reading rate/fluency. The ARCS profiles are most
> easily recognized as patterns primarily shaped by two broad component
> areas: print and meaning. So why bother measuring reading rate? Would it
> make a difference in the way teachers grouped their students if some were
> slower readers than others? Will it be difficult for slower readers to
> keep up with faster ones, even if their reading profiles (print versus
> meaning component skills and levels) otherwise look the same?

Two of our ARCS profile clusters (see attachments) - Cluster 6 at the 
Intermediate Level and Cluster 10 at the Beginner Level  - were actually 
distinguished from other nearly identical neighboring clusters by having 
very slow reading rates and unusual difficulty with rapid automatized 
naming (RAN).  Based on clinical experience, Ros and I have found that 
people with this rate difficulty profile still have difficulty improving 
their reading rate even after they've patched up their word recognition 
ability.  They respond much more slowly to fluency instruction than other 
folks at the same level.  There may not be enough of these learners with 
severe rate problems at one time to justify creating a whole class solely 
for them, but teachers need to know about them because they respond more 
slowly to instruction - and it's not because they're lazy or inattentive. 
They appear to need more practice and exposure not just to phonics 
principles but also to syllable types and new vocabulary words.

The general area fluency instruction in the classroom doesn't seem to 
present a big problem for teachers.  Yes, people will read at different 
rates even within a profile type, but the same techniques of round robin 
oral reading, repeated reading, and choral reading seem to work with them. 
As long as somewhat faster readers are patient and supportive when 
listening to a slower readers during round robin reading, it usually goes 
pretty well.  And, even the people who have the most trouble increasing 
their rate can still improve their comprehension by improving their 
smoothness and expression (prosody) in oral reading.



> (2)        Permanent versus fluid groupings. Do you think adult literacy
> learners will be characterized by one profile "type" that more or less
> permanently defines their learning; or, on the other extreme, do you
> think these profiles will be dynamic and shift frequently as learners
> progress through the program?

This is an important point that Jeanne Chall also wondered about when I 
first showed her some adult profiles way back in 1995.  Would profiles 
change as people improved?  We just don't know.  We really need a 
longitudinal study to explore that.  We do know from the work of Maggie 
Bruck and others that people who are dyslexic are capable of improving 
their comprehension to quite a high level if
they get the right instruction; but even when this happens, they they 
continue to have severe difficulty at the phoneme (letter-sound) and word 
level, and they continue to have very poor spelling.  At the other extreme, 
an ESOL learner with initially weak English vocabulary is likely to improve 
in that (and with that to improve in comprehension as well) until her or 
his abilities approach those of native speakers.
> (3)        Staff development and classroom management. An ARCS-organized
> program may require some practitioners to organize their learners in new
> ways, such as in small groups. Are you finding this to be so as you work
> to implement ARCS-based instruction? As we plan to implement reading
> components strategies, how much attention should be given to classroom
> management?

I covered those points in my response to Mina yesterday. Briefly, if a 
teacher is forced to teach a multi-level, multi-profile class, she needs to 
have accurate diagnostic information on the various learner profiles 
present; she has to know what to do with each profile; she needs a range of 
materials in each component; she needs prep time to plan three, four, or 
five separate lessons for the one class; and finally, she needs a 
well-trained volunteer or professional instructional aide to help her carry 
out the several distinct lessons within the one class period.


> Thank you, John & Ros, for your help. Sorry to hit you with so many
> questions; please feel free to answer only those you think are most
> appropriate for this forum. And keep up the great work!
> Bill Muth
> William R. Muth, PhD
> Assistant Professor, Reading Education and Adult Literacy
> Virginia Commonwealth University
> (804) 828-8768



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)
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From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Wed May 24 16:03:24 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 16:03:24 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 30] Re: ARCS questions
In-Reply-To: <1148408118.44735136e3191@webmail.sfsu.edu>
References: <8C84C2639D031E3-1584-26F@FWM-R05.sysops.aol.com>
	<1148408118.44735136e3191@webmail.sfsu.edu>
Message-ID: <D7D6350D91B282053648AA51@nichols303>

Hi Maricel,
	Another ringer!!!!  Like Bill Muth, Maricel is one of our most treasured 
former graduate students and a major-league researcher in second language 
acquisition!!!

	Ros and I probably wouldn't use the term "ARCS curriculum."  Any 
curriculum that is based in knowledge of students' strengths and needs in 
the various components of reading would be qualify as an "ARCS curriculum." 
One example that we've started to try out in a longitudinal study of ABE 
intermediates is an adult adaptation of Mary Beth Curtis's Boys Town 
Reading Program.  So far the results are promising, but we have a ways to 
go.
	I would, however, suggest that there could indeed be such a thing as an 
ARCS Curriculum for practitioners.  Ros's website is a good example of what 
that might look like.

	With regard to using the components approach in content areas, if an ABE 
or ESOL practitioner understood reading components and reading profiles, 
then she could use them to create a content curriculum that used, say, 
health words for word recognition and vocabulary.  The trick would be 
figuring out the right level of instructional challenge for materials taken 
from an occupational field, or alternatively creating new materials based 
on that field that are at the appropriate level.  Maricel, I think you're 
just the person to do this!

--On Tuesday, May 23, 2006 11:15 AM -0700 "Maricel G. Santos" 
<mgsantos at sfsu.edu> wrote:

> Dear John and Ros and members of the NIFL special-topics listserve --
>
> Greetings from San Francisco...
>
> I use John and Ros' articles on the ARCS in my graduate ESL teacher
> training classes at San Francisco State University.  My students are
> grateful for the practical utility and the instructional value of the
> ARCS assessments.  They bring their knowledge via practicum courses to
> ESL teachers in the field, who are hungry for this kind of guidance about
> adult reading development.  However, I find that my students often want
> to know what an ARCS-infused curriculum looks like in practice.  This is
> something I know less about... for example, what would an ESL curriculum
> that blended ARCS assessments with project-based or content-based
> learning (e.g., health literacy or vocational job training) look like?
> I'm interested in hearing John and Ros' thoughts on curricular
> possibilities, as well as from other adult educators who have made use of
> the ARCS system in their curriculum.  And would it be possible to share
> these curricula on line?
>
> Thanks again, John and Ros.  Looking forward to reading everyone's
> postings.
>
> Maricel Santos
>
> Asst. Professor
> English Department/ MA TESOL Program
> San Francisco State University
> 1600 Holloway Ave
> San Francisco, CA 94132
> 415-338-7445 (work)
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From jw at weallcanread.com  Wed May 24 13:38:13 2006
From: jw at weallcanread.com (Jim Williams)
Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 13:38:13 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 31] Re: Flurry of Questions about the ARCS
Message-ID: <889B247F-DFC0-4ED6-A8B1-7F1B24939D99@weallcanread.com>

Thank you for this valuable discussion.  I would like to comment on  
an E-mail posted earlier from Stephanie Korber.  Specifically she  
referred to the fact that it is most difficult to implement certain  
aspects of reading instruction when faced with  a limited budget  
along with a staff of teachers and volunteers who are often not  
trained nor comfortable teaching phonemic awareness, phonics and  
fluency instruction. I have struggled for years with this issue. I am  
a former English teacher and remedial reading teacher at an inner- 
city high school in Atlanta, Georgia. For years I also operated a  
reading clinic during after-school hours. Older students and adults  
with basic reading skill deficiencies often require huge amounts of  
time to master basic skills. Meeting once or twice a week with a  
tutor is a very long, arduous, and uncertain path in terms of the  
student ever becoming an independent reader.

Teachers in the upper grades and adult literacy instructors usually  
do not have a background in teaching phonemic awareness, phonics and  
fluency instruction. Reading specialists do, but there are few of  
them available in many programs. So many teachers/tutors avoid an  
area they don't feel comfortable addressing, and instead of focusing  
on basic skill instruction instead focus upon teaching comprehension  
strategies instead.  But the research is clear that in fact if these  
struggling students are ever to become independent readers, then they  
require mastery in the basic skills mentioned above. As the ARCS  
study indicates, adults reading below the GED level seem to freeze at  
somewhere in the middle school years which tends to be the very point  
schools quit focusing upon learning to read and instead focus upon  
reading to learn.  Adults who continue to struggle as readers need  
intensive, systematic, and direct instruction. And yet because of the  
time involved to provide this intensive remediation, and the lack of  
training teachers and volunteers receive, often this critical area is  
neglected.

Fortunately the solution is available now with technology. Print and  
audio lessons which teach phonemic awareness, phonics, and fluency  
for adults can be found online. Students are able to work  
independently at a computer or in conjunction with a teacher/tutor. A  
computer-based method of delivery, when offered at  a price that is  
within an organization's budget, enables virtually any organization  
to teach effectively critical reading skills to students while at the  
same time providing a method whereby staff can receive training as well.

Without direct access to online learning or perhaps a video-based  
format of instruction, the kind of intensive training which is  
required to train staff and to teach basic reading skills to students  
is simply outside the economic reach of many organizations,  
particularly adult literacy organizations who rely heavily upon  
volunteer tutors.  I can think of no other effective and sustainable  
solution to this issue than a computer-based model of delivering  
instruction.

Jim Williams
Email address: jw at weallcanread.com
Web address:  www.weallcanread.com


From cnaamh at rcn.com  Wed May 24 21:05:43 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 21:05:43 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 32]  ESOL diagnostic testing
Message-ID: <001001c67f97$83c8ec10$bad8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>

Hi John and Ros,

I find the discussions most interesting.  Thank you!

I teach adult ESOL.  Previously, I worked as a special education teacher and as a reading teacher (children).  Several of our learners are non-readers or struggling readers.  I'm currently teaching a beginning level ESOL group and an ESOL/literacy class.  We formed the Lit class based on needs of the students: high level speakers, non- or low-reading level, no or very low -level in writing.  What diagnostic tests would you suggest for this population in order to find strenghts and instructional needs?  Wouldn't tests normed on a population of native speakers be somewhat inaccurate for ESOL learners?  Depending on the native language, I can see that in certain cases some tests might work fairly well.  But what of others with different alphabets and different ways? Chinese learners do not sound out words.  Russians do not actually spell words, etc.

Thanks again.

Nicole B. Graves
Teacher/ESOL Program Coordinator
The Center for New Americans
Amherst, Greenfield, Northampton, MA
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From norenehp at bresnan.net  Wed May 24 23:11:48 2006
From: norenehp at bresnan.net (NOREN  PETERSON)
Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 21:11:48 -0600
Subject: [SpecialTopics 33]  grouping and resources
In-Reply-To: <EBAB5727-A1A8-4444-BA82-BD23A7C18BAF@comcast.net>
References: <EBAB5727-A1A8-4444-BA82-BD23A7C18BAF@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <web-7708406@be-2.cluster1.bresnan.net>

Thanks for recognizing the difficulty rural states have in grouping students. 
 As Ros can tell you, this is something that we in Montana experience first 
hand.

Resource question:
There are times when it is difficult to "convince" others that some adults 
need to be taught phonemic awareness, etc.  Besides referring individuals to 
the ARCS website, do you have any other recommendation for a basic resource 
that is easily understood?  Thanks!  NP =)

Norene Peterson
Adult Education Center
Billings, MT


From kvaccaro at hcde-texas.org  Thu May 25 10:28:17 2006
From: kvaccaro at hcde-texas.org (Kay Vaccaro)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 09:28:17 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 34] Re: grouping and resources
Message-ID: <E43278D67408F248838A1BDB7543060502D4C2DB@EV-SERVER.hcdemain.hcde.loc>

Norene,
I think I may have found a resource for you.  I am looking at new
software published by MindPlay entitled My Reading Coach that may meet
the reading needs of the low literacy student, particularly in phonemic
awareness.  It was recommended to me by a reading specialist in K-12, so
I am looking at its applicability to the adult learner.  The website is
www.mindplay.com 

If anyone else has used it or knows about its value to the adult learner
I would appreciate knowing.  I received my copy of the manual and CD
yesterday, so I will check it how and let you know what I discover.


V. Kay Vaccaro
Program Coordinator
Adult Education Division
Harris County Department of Education
713-692-6216
FAX 713-695-1976


-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of NOREN PETERSON
Sent: Wednesday, May 24, 2006 10:12 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 33] grouping and resources

Thanks for recognizing the difficulty rural states have in grouping
students. 
 As Ros can tell you, this is something that we in Montana experience
first 
hand.

Resource question:
There are times when it is difficult to "convince" others that some
adults 
need to be taught phonemic awareness, etc.  Besides referring
individuals to 
the ARCS website, do you have any other recommendation for a basic
resource 
that is easily understood?  Thanks!  NP =)

Norene Peterson
Adult Education Center
Billings, MT
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From jgreiner at proliteracy.org  Thu May 25 12:12:59 2006
From: jgreiner at proliteracy.org (jgreiner)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 12:12:59 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 35]  ARCS and PD
Message-ID: <221E918332E818488687199E5CBD74CE041CB338@keats.proliteracy.org>

Hello John and Ros, 

I'd like to hear more ideas about how professional development could be
designed and implemented to support the use of ARCS in instruction. Some of
the questions and comments so far have touched on the complexities involved:
Norene Peterson wrote, "It is difficult to 'convince' others that some
adults need to be taught phonemic awareness, etc."
Stephanie Korber also wrote about adult educators' readiness and comfort
with beginning reading skills, and that "this should have a huge impact on
the planning and delivery of professional development."
And Bill Muth notes how staff development is needed in order to organize
learners in new ways.

John, you also wrote that, "If you have [well-equipped centers and
well-compensated practitioners] then teacher training will pay off even more
than it does currently, because practitioners will be able to stay in the
field long enough to make full use of the training and improve upon it based
on their experience and sharing of knowledge."

The need for professional development is not limited to what teachers need
to know in order provide effective instruction. It seems that professional
development needs to also hit the level of program management as well so
that alternatives to the "one-size-fits-all' classroom can be implemented. 

What recommendations specific to professional development do you (or other
discussion participants) have that would support instruction based on
diagnostic assessments?  What components would it have? What form would it
take?

Thanks to all -  
Jane

Jane Greiner
Training Coordinator ProLiteracy America
ProLiteracy Worldwide
1320 Jamesville Avenue
Syracuse, NY 13210
(315) 422-9121 Ext. 283
Fax (315) 422-6369
jgreiner at proliteracy.org
www.proliteracy.org



From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu May 25 12:49:28 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 12:49:28 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 36] Re: ARCS and PD
In-Reply-To: <221E918332E818488687199E5CBD74CE041CB338@keats.proliteracy.org>
References: <221E918332E818488687199E5CBD74CE041CB338@keats.proliteracy.org>
Message-ID: <C2FDE0E1-6CF9-489F-A941-A1DC16DB9927@comcast.net>

Hello Marie,

Jane Meyer, a coordinator of an adult education program in Canton,  
Ohio has joined this discussion. Jane was one of the panelists in the  
video that you may have seen as you prepared for this discussion

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/20040204/archive/sec4-r.html

She has used a study circle model for professional development  
focused on the ARCS.  Jane, could you tell us about that here in some  
detail?  Then I hope others may have some questions for you about  
this as a professional development model for the ARCS.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net

On May 25, 2006, at 12:12 PM, jgreiner wrote:

> Hello John and Ros,
>
> I'd like to hear more ideas about how professional development  
> could be
> designed and implemented to support the use of ARCS in instruction.  
> Some of
> the questions and comments so far have touched on the complexities  
> involved:
> Norene Peterson wrote, "It is difficult to 'convince' others that some
> adults need to be taught phonemic awareness, etc."
> Stephanie Korber also wrote about adult educators' readiness and  
> comfort
> with beginning reading skills, and that "this should have a huge  
> impact on
> the planning and delivery of professional development."
> And Bill Muth notes how staff development is needed in order to  
> organize
> learners in new ways.
>
> John, you also wrote that, "If you have [well-equipped centers and
> well-compensated practitioners] then teacher training will pay off  
> even more
> than it does currently, because practitioners will be able to stay  
> in the
> field long enough to make full use of the training and improve upon  
> it based
> on their experience and sharing of knowledge."
>
> The need for professional development is not limited to what  
> teachers need
> to know in order provide effective instruction. It seems that  
> professional
> development needs to also hit the level of program management as  
> well so
> that alternatives to the "one-size-fits-all' classroom can be  
> implemented.
>
> What recommendations specific to professional development do you  
> (or other
> discussion participants) have that would support instruction based on
> diagnostic assessments?  What components would it have? What form  
> would it
> take?
>
> Thanks to all -
> Jane
>
> Jane Greiner
> Training Coordinator ProLiteracy America
> ProLiteracy Worldwide
> 1320 Jamesville Avenue
> Syracuse, NY 13210
> (315) 422-9121 Ext. 283
> Fax (315) 422-6369
> jgreiner at proliteracy.org
> www.proliteracy.org
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to  
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

David Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net





From meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org  Thu May 25 14:06:20 2006
From: meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org (Jane Meyer)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 14:06:20 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 37] professional development using the ARCS website
Message-ID: <4475F21C.4040103@ccsdistrict.org>

David suggested that I tell a bit about how we used the ARCS website for 
professional development in our ABE program in Canton, Ohio.  First I 
explored the website myself and then, at a staff meeting, I told the 
teachers about the site highlighting some  features that I thought might 
be of particular interest to them.  I offered to pay them if they wanted 
to explore the website for a professional development activity.  I set a 
meeting date about a month away for those who had explored the website 
to discuss what they had found and how it could be useful to them as 
well as ask any questions.  The teachers loved using the website for 
professional development because it was so convenient and the format 
worked great for us because I had staff with various levels of knowledge 
about reading.  The website allowed those who needed basic information 
to get it without holding those back who had more knowledge and were 
ready to go deeper.  It has been a while, but I remember the discussion 
about the site being quite rich. 
Jane Meyer
Canton City Schools
Canton, Ohio
meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org


From davidsro at gse.harvard.edu  Thu May 25 14:58:42 2006
From: davidsro at gse.harvard.edu (rosalind davidson)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 14:58:42 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 38] Re: ARCS questions
Message-ID: <990E6B814EBEE7C27D4A0A60@Nic2-2>

Hello Yvonne,

Although we did not use age to form the clusters,we see three age groups 
among the 10 clusters: Clusters 1 and 2 with an average age of 27.5; 
clusters 3-8, 30 to 34 years; clusters 9-10, 37 -41 years.
	
The younger learners in GED Clusters, 1 and 2 have made the decision to 
finish their education fairly soon after leaving high-school, so we can say 
that they are returning to school, not starting anew.  They come to adult 
ed with 10th or 11th grade educations, with some good reading skills, ready 
to 'finish up'. Their individual diagnostic profiles will pinpoint areas 
that need shoring up along with test taking skills. Vocabulary instruction, 
always a must for any group, should include words from the academic 
vocabulary list since many learners in these clusters will go on to post 
secondary vocational schools or community colleges. Download the list from: 
www.vuw.ac.nz/lals/research/ awl/download/awlfrequent.pdf

Many more of those in the middle clusters reported having had trouble 
learning to read from the beginning in the primary grades. their 
phonological abilities of distinguishing, isolating and blending sounds 
should be assessed. Teachers can use the assessment on the ARCS website to 
find those phonics elements that learners need to master.

Another age related factor is the amount of help learners received in K-12. 
The older learners in all clusters may not have had the advantage of 
Chapter One, special classes, or tutoring and remain at primary or low 
intermediate reading levels. Some of the 25 to 40 year olds who have 
phonological deficits may be curriculum casualties of embedded rather than 
systematic phonics programs that would have helped ameliorate their basic 
sound discrimination problems.

Also related to age and lack of supplementary reading services (or 
ineffective interventions) are the poor reading tactics that older learners 
use in order to read well enough to lead their adult lives.  It requires 
reeducation and repeated success with new skills that help undo  poor 
readers' unproductive word recognition and comprehension strategies.

The clusters are composed of learners with similar strengths and needs, age 
doesn't indicate the particular reading difficulty in any cluster, rather 
it is an indicator of the amount of reeducation that might be required to 
get them 'unstuck' and redirected.

Ros



--On Tuesday, May 23, 2006 3:40 PM -0400 john strucker 
<john_strucker at harvard.edu> wrote:

> Yvonne,
> I'll let Ros handle your first question about age.  I take a stab at your
> second question below.
>
> --On Monday, May 22, 2006 10:17 PM -0400 ylerew at aol.com wrote:
>
>> Here are a couple of initial questions about ARCS:
>>
>> 1.  Was the age of the adult students a factor?  Were older or younger
>> adults more commonly found in any cluster of reading skill?  What
>> implications might there be for practitioners working with older adults
>> versus younger adults?
>>
>> 2.  There was mention made that teachers perceived the Spanish literacy
>> skills of their students (native Spanish speakers) to be lower than
>> their actual skill level in Spanish.  Why do you think this disconnect
>> between perception and reality exists?
>
> I think it's pretty straightforward - most of the time we never test
> students' literacy abilities in their native languages, even though
> research tell us that for adults, native language literacy is very
> important for second language acquisition.  For Spanish, NL literacy is
> easy to assess using the Woodcock-Munoz, among other tests.  For other
> languages it's much harder.  My Harvard colleague Catherine Snow once
> suggested that the USDOE should assemble a bunch of computer-administered
> tests in the various languages spoken by most US ESOL students.  If the
> computer administered and scored the tests, we would know how well a
> person  reads, say Mandarin, without ever knowing a word of that language.
>
> The whole point of this is that if someone has relatively high literacy
> in  their native language, they might learn English more efficiently if
> it were  taught more like English as a Foreign Language (EFL) - making
> use the  students's pre-existing literacy and incipient English reading
> as tools for  second language learning.  Instead we tend to start
> everybody off with  survival-emphasis-oral.aural skills only ESOL. But
> this probably only  necessary as a dominant mode of instruction for folks
> with low native  language literacy.   This topic ought to set off a
> hornet's nest!!
>
>
> How could ESOL practice be
>> improved to capitalize on the native language reading skills?
>>
>> Thanks
>> Yvonne Lerew
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
>
>
> John Strucker, EdD
> Nichols House 303
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge, MA 02138
>
> 617 495 4745
> 617 495 4811 (fax)
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics




From davidsro at gse.harvard.edu  Thu May 25 16:19:38 2006
From: davidsro at gse.harvard.edu (rosalind davidson)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 16:19:38 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 39] Re: grouping and resources
In-Reply-To: <web-7708406@be-2.cluster1.bresnan.net>
References: <EBAB5727-A1A8-4444-BA82-BD23A7C18BAF@comcast.net>
	<web-7708406@be-2.cluster1.bresnan.net>
Message-ID: <BF81F15772FC453B36B5B3A6@Nic2-2>

Hi Norene,
You mean after all your fine work on curriculum and reading workshops, you 
still have doubters? How about a mini-workshop on mastering the decoding of 
difficult scientific or other specialized vocabulary so doubters can see 
what skills they need in order to decode unfamiliar as well as long 
familiar words. Would they then understand the value of teaching learners 
to isolate sounds, blend and syllabicate - strengthen reading skills at the 
word level?   Worth a try?
Love that Montana - All the best,
Ros


--On Wednesday, May 24, 2006 9:11 PM -0600 NOREN  PETERSON 
<norenehp at bresnan.net> wrote:

> Thanks for recognizing the difficulty rural states have in grouping
> students.   As Ros can tell you, this is something that we in Montana
> experience first  hand.
>
> Resource question:
> There are times when it is difficult to "convince" others that some
> adults  need to be taught phonemic awareness, etc.  Besides referring
> individuals to  the ARCS website, do you have any other recommendation
> for a basic resource  that is easily understood?  Thanks!  NP =)
>
> Norene Peterson
> Adult Education Center
> Billings, MT
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics




From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu May 25 17:17:21 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 17:17:21 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 40]  ARCS questions from Tom sticht
References: <1148585478.4476060643f09@webmail.znet.net>
Message-ID: <DBAF537E-7201-4C60-9D1C-AA415D086CD1@comcast.net>

From: tsticht at znet.com
Date: May 25, 2006 3:31:18 PM EDT
To: djrosen at comcast.net
Subject: ARCS questions

David: Please post the following message for John Strucker. Thanks,  
Tom Sticht
John: In 1999-2000 I conducted workshops on listening and reading  
processes
of adults. One of the things that came from a survey of some 247
participants was that most thought alphabetics (phonemics; phonics) was
"very important" to their classroom teaching or tutoring. Yet, 38-79
percent (depending on the site)  said they had never received  
training in
teaching or tutoring phonemic awareness and 31-59 percent said they  
had no
training in teaching phonics.

In preparing the workshop, I searched for research indicating that a  
focus
on alphabetics (code emphasis in Jeanne?s terms) with adults with low
literacy produced better learning outcomes than some other, perhaps  
meaning
(whole language) emphasis. But I could find no  such research.

So I looked at historical approaches to teaching adults to read. Cora  
Wilson
Stewart in 1910 and beyond did not like the alphabetics approach and  
clearly
stated that adults should be taught using the "word? approach.  
Reports of
her work indicate that hundreds of thousands of adults learned to read
following her "whole language" approach. But in World War I, J. Duncan
Spaeth took a strong phonics approach to teaching reading to  
soldiers. Then
in World War II, Paul Witty took a strong "word", "whole language"  
approach,
and indeed teachers in Special Training Units got demerits if they
emphasized phonics too much. It is reported that over a quarter million
soldiers learned to read using this meaning emphasis approach.

This type of variable historical data, and the lack of any solid  
research
that I could find on the relative effectiveness with adults of the  
code or
meaning emphases left me to have to report in my workshops that I did  
not
know of any good data to help make decisions about the use of these two
approaches. I knew that Jeanne favored the code approach in her clinical
work but her reported gains did not seem to be much better, if at all
better, than what other adult literacy programs reported.

So my question now is do you know of any research with the ARCS  
comparing it
to other approaches to teaching reading that could be pointed to to  
convince
teachers and administrators in adult literacy education that the ARCS
approach is the road to take today and the time, money, and effort  
needed
to invest in professional development on the ARCS would be worth it in
improved student learning?

Thanks,

Tom Sticht





From jn at cloudworld.co.uk  Thu May 25 17:19:09 2006
From: jn at cloudworld.co.uk (John Nissen)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 22:19:09 +0100
Subject: [SpecialTopics 41] ARCS Mini-course - teaching of basic reading
	skills
References: <889B247F-DFC0-4ED6-A8B1-7F1B24939D99@weallcanread.com>
Message-ID: <165401c68040$dcd50c90$0202a8c0@Tomschoice>


Hello John and everybody,

I would like to discuss the "mini-course" part of ARCS, following the discussion about teaching basic reading skills which came under the subject heading: "flurry of questions about the ARCS".

There was an issue of how easy it was to teach these basic reading skills, in a question raised by Stephanie Korber and answered by John (see below).  This was followed by a comment from Jim Williams about the availability of programs to help in the learning of basic skills (see below that).   But I have been looking at the mini-course on the ARCS site.

I am concerned by advocacy for teaching whole word recognition on the "Sight words" page:
http://www.nifl.gov/readingprofiles/MC_Sight_Words.htm
But in this same page there is this telling passage:

[quote]
Because most adult poor readers have difficulty with letter-sound skills, they tend to use a whole word recognition approach much more than do children who are reading at the same level.  Whole word recognition only works if the words are mastered sight words. The result of continued reliance on whole word "recognition" instead of phonetic skills when decoding unfamiliar words is guessing and misreading. 
[end quote]

I agree with that deduction.  Moreover I claim that teaching letter-sound skills to adults, as for children, means no effort need  be spent on whole word recognition!  The teaching of whole word recognition as an approach was in the now deprecated Searchlights model of the UK National Literacy Strategy.  It leads indeed to much guesswork and error.  It has no doubt contributed to the failure of 20% children to learn to read.  On the other hand, experience with teaching synthetic phonics shows that rapid recognition of whole words arises naturally from rapid decoding which gradually increases automaticity.  The use of multiple modalities should be applied to the phonics instruction that gives the rapid decoding ability, rather than to whole word recognition as ARCS proposes.  

Synthetic phonics, with multimodal techniques, was used in the Clackmannanshire study, where all 300 children were taught to read successfully in a few months, and by the end of Primary School their average reading age was over three years ahead of their chronological reading age.  This result has caused the government to change tack on literacy, and advocate the introduction of synthetic phonics "first and fast" in all primary schools.

So, John and colleagues, I think you could go further with the mini-course, and show an even simpler and more effective way to teach the basic reading skills.  You could at least take a systematic phonics approach, but I would strongly recommend more specifically the synthetic phonics method.

BTW, the synthetic phonics approach is applicable to TESOL - i.e. teaching students who do not have English as their native language.  Thus by choice of suitable reading material, one might be able to "kill two birds with one stone", and teach a class with mixed categories of student, addressing one of the major issues being raised in this "flurry of questions".

Cheers from Chiswick,

John

John Nissen
Cloudworld Ltd - http://www.cloudworld.co.uk
maker of the assistive reader, WordAloud.
Try WordAloud with synthetic phonics:
http://www.cloudworld.co.uk/teaching-synthetic-phonics.htm
Tel: +44 208 742 3170  Fax: +44 208 742 0202
Email: info at cloudworld.co.uk

---------------------

--On Tuesday, May 23, 2006 11:32 AM -0400 Stephanie Korber 
<korber at centerforliteracy.org> wrote:

> What a great discussion topic!  The ARCS project has been one of a few
> factors that have caused some programs in our organization to revisit
> diagnostic assessment as a tool for providing quality instruction.
> However, I have found some challenges that I would like to hear opinions
> on.  Given the resources in the field of adult education, the bottom line
> of some of these challenges is dollars.
> 1. Not all adult ed programs are staffed with teachers (or volunteer
> tutors) who are comfortable with teaching beginning reading skills that
> relate to phonemic awareness, phonics and fluency instruction.   In the
> K-12 world of education, this level of remediation is done by reading
> specialists, folks who have spent years being educated in the field of
> reading and on the implementation of appropriate assessments and
> strategies for such remediation.  In my opinion, this should have a huge
> impact on the planning and delivery of professional development.

In my experience both as a practitioner and educator of teachers, ABE/ESOL 
teachers are very quick at picking up how to teach reading.  In my opinion, 
phonics and fluency instruction are actually easier for teachers to learn 
to teach well (and therefore  potentially cheaper to learn) than some 
aspects of vocabulary, comprehension, and writing.

In an ideal world, the main burden of our adult learners' reading 
instruction would never be borne by volunteers.  Volunteers can be very 
effective <supplementing> professional teaching - but only if they are 
working in direct support of professionals who have the time to train and 
supervise them properly.

Yes, in K-12 struggling readers who are just like our students only younger 
are taught by folks with master's degrees in reading and or special ed. 
Again, to work effectively with adult struggling readers, all of us in the 
field would have master's level training in reading with substantial 
cross-training in ESOL, given that many of today's ABE students are former 
ESOL students.

-----------

This was followed by a comment about using technology from Jim Williams, 

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jim Williams" <jw at weallcanread.com>
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Sent: Wednesday, May 24, 2006 6:38 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 31] Re: Flurry of Questions about the ARCS


> Thank you for this valuable discussion.  I would like to comment on  
> an E-mail posted earlier from Stephanie Korber.  Specifically she  
> referred to the fact that it is most difficult to implement certain  
> aspects of reading instruction when faced with  a limited budget  
> along with a staff of teachers and volunteers who are often not  
> trained nor comfortable teaching phonemic awareness, phonics and  
> fluency instruction. I have struggled for years with this issue. I am  
> a former English teacher and remedial reading teacher at an inner- 
> city high school in Atlanta, Georgia. For years I also operated a  
> reading clinic during after-school hours. Older students and adults  
> with basic reading skill deficiencies often require huge amounts of  
> time to master basic skills. Meeting once or twice a week with a  
> tutor is a very long, arduous, and uncertain path in terms of the  
> student ever becoming an independent reader.
> 
> Teachers in the upper grades and adult literacy instructors usually  
> do not have a background in teaching phonemic awareness, phonics and  
> fluency instruction. Reading specialists do, but there are few of  
> them available in many programs. So many teachers/tutors avoid an  
> area they don't feel comfortable addressing, and instead of focusing  
> on basic skill instruction instead focus upon teaching comprehension  
> strategies instead.  But the research is clear that in fact if these  
> struggling students are ever to become independent readers, then they  
> require mastery in the basic skills mentioned above. As the ARCS  
> study indicates, adults reading below the GED level seem to freeze at  
> somewhere in the middle school years which tends to be the very point  
> schools quit focusing upon learning to read and instead focus upon  
> reading to learn.  Adults who continue to struggle as readers need  
> intensive, systematic, and direct instruction. And yet because of the  
> time involved to provide this intensive remediation, and the lack of  
> training teachers and volunteers receive, often this critical area is  
> neglected.
> 
> Fortunately the solution is available now with technology. Print and  
> audio lessons which teach phonemic awareness, phonics, and fluency  
> for adults can be found online. Students are able to work  
> independently at a computer or in conjunction with a teacher/tutor. A  
> computer-based method of delivery, when offered at  a price that is  
> within an organization's budget, enables virtually any organization  
> to teach effectively critical reading skills to students while at the  
> same time providing a method whereby staff can receive training as well.
> 
> Without direct access to online learning or perhaps a video-based  
> format of instruction, the kind of intensive training which is  
> required to train staff and to teach basic reading skills to students  
> is simply outside the economic reach of many organizations,  
> particularly adult literacy organizations who rely heavily upon  
> volunteer tutors.  I can think of no other effective and sustainable  
> solution to this issue than a computer-based model of delivering  
> instruction.
> 
> Jim Williams
> Email address: jw at weallcanread.com
> Web address:  www.weallcanread.com

------------

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From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu May 25 17:29:39 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 17:29:39 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 42] Re: professional development using the ARCS
	website
In-Reply-To: <4475F21C.4040103@ccsdistrict.org>
References: <4475F21C.4040103@ccsdistrict.org>
Message-ID: <D5854FFD-9B43-4683-B5F1-9F50E09BE1BF@comcast.net>

Thanks, Jane.  I wonder if anyone else in this discussion has used  
the ARCS Web site and/or a study circle model using the ARCS Web site  
or other ARCS materials.  If so, please tell us about your experience.

Also, if anyone has questions for Jane or Ros about the use of the  
ARCS Web site, please ask them now.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net

On May 25, 2006, at 2:06 PM, Jane Meyer wrote:

> David suggested that I tell a bit about how we used the ARCS  
> website for
> professional development in our ABE program in Canton, Ohio.  First I
> explored the website myself and then, at a staff meeting, I told the
> teachers about the site highlighting some  features that I thought  
> might
> be of particular interest to them.  I offered to pay them if they  
> wanted
> to explore the website for a professional development activity.  I  
> set a
> meeting date about a month away for those who had explored the website
> to discuss what they had found and how it could be useful to them as
> well as ask any questions.  The teachers loved using the website for
> professional development because it was so convenient and the format
> worked great for us because I had staff with various levels of  
> knowledge
> about reading.  The website allowed those who needed basic information
> to get it without holding those back who had more knowledge and were
> ready to go deeper.  It has been a while, but I remember the  
> discussion
> about the site being quite rich.
> Jane Meyer
> Canton City Schools
> Canton, Ohio
> meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to  
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

David Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net





From wrmuth at vcu.edu  Thu May 25 20:21:48 2006
From: wrmuth at vcu.edu (William R Muth/FS/VCU)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 20:21:48 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 43] Re: professional development using the
	ARCS	website
In-Reply-To: <D5854FFD-9B43-4683-B5F1-9F50E09BE1BF@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <OF49FAD1A5.365CD10B-ON85257179.00833973-8525717A.0001FF74@vcu.edu>

We designed a "front end" module to introduce Federal Bureau of Prisons 
(FBOP) teachers to the ARCS website/course. The module was taught in real 
time through CENTRA (a distance training platform), and we provided 
participants (from around the country) with FBOP training credit. The 
module presented some reading theory (e.g., Marilyn Adams' 4 Processors 
Model), and tied this to ARCS terminology (e.g., print skills, meaning 
skills). We cited John Strucker's 'Why Silent Reading Comprehension Scores 
Are Not Enough" article, and provided examples of clusters I found in my 
ARCS dissertation study of literacy learners in federal prisons. The 
session ended with an overview of Ros' on-line course. The training took 
about 90 minutes, and I think we conducted four sessions, reaching about 
80 teachers in all. After this, teachers were encouraged to take the 
on-line course. We credited teachers with course completions when they (a) 
conducted ARCS tests on a student, (b) submitted scores to the website, 
and (c) printed out the profile/results. Since I have retired from the 
FBOP, I do not have staff completion data, but I do know that we (opps, 
'they') are now incorporating ARCS training in our face-to-face training 
for all new teachers entering the Bureau. 
Bill


William R. Muth, PhD
Assistant Professor, Reading Education and Adult Literacy
Virginia Commonwealth University
(804) 828-8768




David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
05/25/2006 05:29 PM
Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov


To
specialtopics at nifl.gov
cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 42] Re: professional development using the ARCS  website






Thanks, Jane.  I wonder if anyone else in this discussion has used 
the ARCS Web site and/or a study circle model using the ARCS Web site 
or other ARCS materials.  If so, please tell us about your experience.

Also, if anyone has questions for Jane or Ros about the use of the 
ARCS Web site, please ask them now.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net

On May 25, 2006, at 2:06 PM, Jane Meyer wrote:

> David suggested that I tell a bit about how we used the ARCS 
> website for
> professional development in our ABE program in Canton, Ohio.  First I
> explored the website myself and then, at a staff meeting, I told the
> teachers about the site highlighting some  features that I thought 
> might
> be of particular interest to them.  I offered to pay them if they 
> wanted
> to explore the website for a professional development activity.  I 
> set a
> meeting date about a month away for those who had explored the website
> to discuss what they had found and how it could be useful to them as
> well as ask any questions.  The teachers loved using the website for
> professional development because it was so convenient and the format
> worked great for us because I had staff with various levels of 
> knowledge
> about reading.  The website allowed those who needed basic information
> to get it without holding those back who had more knowledge and were
> ready to go deeper.  It has been a while, but I remember the 
> discussion
> about the site being quite rich.
> Jane Meyer
> Canton City Schools
> Canton, Ohio
> meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

David Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

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From cnaamh at rcn.com  Thu May 25 20:23:08 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 20:23:08 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 44] Re: grouping and resources
References: <EBAB5727-A1A8-4444-BA82-BD23A7C18BAF@comcast.net><web-7708406@be-2.cluster1.bresnan.net>
	<BF81F15772FC453B36B5B3A6@Nic2-2>
Message-ID: <007301c6805b$b73faa60$7ed8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>

Great idea!

Nicole Graves
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "rosalind davidson" <davidsro at gse.harvard.edu>
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Sent: Thursday, May 25, 2006 4:19 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 39] Re: grouping and resources


> Hi Norene,
> You mean after all your fine work on curriculum and reading workshops, you
> still have doubters? How about a mini-workshop on mastering the decoding
of
> difficult scientific or other specialized vocabulary so doubters can see
> what skills they need in order to decode unfamiliar as well as long
> familiar words. Would they then understand the value of teaching learners
> to isolate sounds, blend and syllabicate - strengthen reading skills at
the
> word level?   Worth a try?
> Love that Montana - All the best,
> Ros
>
>
> --On Wednesday, May 24, 2006 9:11 PM -0600 NOREN  PETERSON
> <norenehp at bresnan.net> wrote:
>
> > Thanks for recognizing the difficulty rural states have in grouping
> > students.   As Ros can tell you, this is something that we in Montana
> > experience first  hand.
> >
> > Resource question:
> > There are times when it is difficult to "convince" others that some
> > adults  need to be taught phonemic awareness, etc.  Besides referring
> > individuals to  the ARCS website, do you have any other recommendation
> > for a basic resource  that is easily understood?  Thanks!  NP =)
> >
> > Norene Peterson
> > Adult Education Center
> > Billings, MT
> > -------------------------------
> > National Institute for Literacy
> > Special Topics mailing list
> > SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> > To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> > http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu May 25 20:37:43 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 20:37:43 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 45] Explicitly assessing and teaching an
	understanding of English morphology
Message-ID: <311200FD-2A01-49CB-B0A3-F834D1C89D56@comcast.net>

Mina Reddy  wrote:

"...Specifically for second language learners, how important or  
useful is it to explicitly assess and teach an understanding of  
English morphology? How much does an understanding of English  
morphology influence their comprehension of text?  I am curious about  
this because of my personal experience reading in languages in which  
my vocabulary is limited.  I find that an understanding of the  
structure of the language helps me to derive at least a basic meaning  
from the text even when I do not understand many of the words."

John Strucker answered:

"Mina, I think you are right about this last point, but I don't know  
of much ESOL research that focuses on this.  NCSALL's Steve Reder  
would be a
good person to ask about this.  However, I think ELL research has  
looked at this from time to time, and that research supports your  
position.  As an
aside, in general, I think those of us in ABE/ESOL can probably learn  
a lot by looking more at ELL research."

I (David Rosen) asked Steve Reder to reply, and he turned to his  
colleagues at Portland State University's Department of Applied  
Linguistics, Kathy Harris and Lynn Santelmann. They asked that we  
post this reply:

"There isn't a lot of research directed at this specific question,  
but the research that exists points to a couple of conclusions.   
First, student acquisition of some kinds of morphemes (e.g. plural  
and 3rd person -s) can be promoted with instruction.  However,  
instruction of other forms (e.g. -ing) can promote overproduction.   
Also, other types of English morphology aren't easily acquired  
through instruction (e.g. articles such as the and a).  Generally,  
the order in which English morphology is learned isn't altered by  
instruction, but some aspects may be acquired more quickly through  
instruction.  Instruction may help students to "notice" new forms so  
that when the new forms become salient (through error correction or  
negotiation for example), learners have knowledge of the new form to  
apply."

Kathy Harris & Lynn Santelmann
Department of Applied Linguistics & the NCSALL Adult ESOL Lab School
Portland State University


David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From norenehp at bresnan.net  Thu May 25 23:32:10 2006
From: norenehp at bresnan.net (NOREN  PETERSON)
Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 21:32:10 -0600
Subject: [SpecialTopics 46] Re: grouping and resources
In-Reply-To: <BF81F15772FC453B36B5B3A6@Nic2-2>
References: <EBAB5727-A1A8-4444-BA82-BD23A7C18BAF@comcast.net>
	<web-7708406@be-2.cluster1.bresnan.net>
	<BF81F15772FC453B36B5B3A6@Nic2-2>
Message-ID: <web-3838661@be-3.cluster1.bresnan.net>

Thanks for the suggestion, Ros!  I bet "atherosclerosis" and many others might 
do the trick, right? =)  And we'd love to have you back any time!  NP =)


On Thu, 25 May 2006 16:19:38 -0400
  rosalind davidson <davidsro at gse.harvard.edu> wrote:
> Hi Norene,
> You mean after all your fine work on curriculum and reading workshops, you 
> still have doubters? How about a mini-workshop on mastering the decoding of 
> difficult scientific or other specialized vocabulary so doubters can see 
> what skills they need in order to decode unfamiliar as well as long 
> familiar words. Would they then understand the value of teaching learners 
> to isolate sounds, blend and syllabicate - strengthen reading skills at the 
> word level?   Worth a try?
> Love that Montana - All the best,
> Ros
> 
> 
> --On Wednesday, May 24, 2006 9:11 PM -0600 NOREN  PETERSON 
> <norenehp at bresnan.net> wrote:
> 
>> Thanks for recognizing the difficulty rural states have in grouping
>> students.   As Ros can tell you, this is something that we in Montana
>> experience first  hand.
>>
>> Resource question:
>> There are times when it is difficult to "convince" others that some
>> adults  need to be taught phonemic awareness, etc.  Besides referring
>> individuals to  the ARCS website, do you have any other recommendation
>> for a basic resource  that is easily understood?  Thanks!  NP =)
>>
>> Norene Peterson
>> Adult Education Center
>> Billings, MT
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> 
> 
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
>http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



From djrosen at comcast.net  Fri May 26 10:23:24 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 10:23:24 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 47]  Special Topics List Messages in Digest Format
Message-ID: <0C7C4667-B2DF-4D50-B0DB-D0882D82BA61@comcast.net>

Special Topics List Colleagues,

A colleague wrote "There are way too many conversations to follow,  
could they be organized in some way, maybe sent only once a day, or  
twice a week?"

If you would like to change your subscription to get messages in  
digest format (and for answers to other questions about this and  
other National Institute for Literacy-sponsored electronic discussion  
lists)  go to

http://www.nifl.gov/lincs/discussions/help/help_mailman.html#digest

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From jn at cloudworld.co.uk  Fri May 26 10:58:55 2006
From: jn at cloudworld.co.uk (John Nissen)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 15:58:55 +0100
Subject: [SpecialTopics 48] Re: Explicitly assessing and teaching
	anunderstanding of English morphology
References: <311200FD-2A01-49CB-B0A3-F834D1C89D56@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <16d201c680d4$e9532440$0202a8c0@Tomschoice>


Hello David and all,

We seem now to be getting into the area of understanding or comprehension.

One of the basic skills is segmentation of the speech stream into separate 
words.  This is a key skill in conversational English or other "joined up" 
speech.  (Even more key in French!)  Perhaps we should be doing more 
dictation to test student's ability not only to segment words into phonemes 
and spell out the words, but also to test their ability to decide on word 
boundaries within a stream of speech.  There can be some tricky things.  For 
example "I scream" is phonetically similar to "Ice Cream".

In doing this segmentation into words, the common "function" words, like 
"the" and "about", are very important to recognise.  But to make sense out 
of the stream, the morphology is very important as well.  So that an ending 
"ing" strongly suggests a verb, and the ending "ly" often indicates an 
adverb, just as a "the" strongly suggests a noun, etc.  Then the /d/ or /t/ 
at the end of a word often indicates the past tense of a verb, perhaps used 
as an adjective, as in a "marked paper".

In the reply from the linguists, we got some thoughts on the difficulty of 
_producing_ the correct morphology, e.g. use of definite and indefinite 
articles ('the' and 'a').  However I think the comprehension aspect deserves 
attention, especially for teaching literacy skills to adults with English as 
a second or other language (TESOL).

Cheers from Chiswick,

John

John Nissen
Cloudworld Ltd - http://www.cloudworld.co.uk
maker of the assistive reader, WordAloud.
Try WordAloud with synthetic phonics:
http://www.cloudworld.co.uk/teaching-synthetic-phonics.htm
Tel: +44 208 742 3170  Fax: +44 208 742 0202
Email: info at cloudworld.co.uk



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "David Rosen" <djrosen at comcast.net>
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Sent: Friday, May 26, 2006 1:37 AM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 45] Explicitly assessing and teaching 
anunderstanding of English morphology


> Mina Reddy  wrote:
>
> "...Specifically for second language learners, how important or
> useful is it to explicitly assess and teach an understanding of
> English morphology? How much does an understanding of English
> morphology influence their comprehension of text?  I am curious about
> this because of my personal experience reading in languages in which
> my vocabulary is limited.  I find that an understanding of the
> structure of the language helps me to derive at least a basic meaning
> from the text even when I do not understand many of the words."
>
> John Strucker answered:
>
> "Mina, I think you are right about this last point, but I don't know
> of much ESOL research that focuses on this.  NCSALL's Steve Reder
> would be a
> good person to ask about this.  However, I think ELL research has
> looked at this from time to time, and that research supports your
> position.  As an
> aside, in general, I think those of us in ABE/ESOL can probably learn
> a lot by looking more at ELL research."
>
> I (David Rosen) asked Steve Reder to reply, and he turned to his
> colleagues at Portland State University's Department of Applied
> Linguistics, Kathy Harris and Lynn Santelmann. They asked that we
> post this reply:
>
> "There isn't a lot of research directed at this specific question,
> but the research that exists points to a couple of conclusions.
> First, student acquisition of some kinds of morphemes (e.g. plural
> and 3rd person -s) can be promoted with instruction.  However,
> instruction of other forms (e.g. -ing) can promote overproduction.
> Also, other types of English morphology aren't easily acquired
> through instruction (e.g. articles such as the and a).  Generally,
> the order in which English morphology is learned isn't altered by
> instruction, but some aspects may be acquired more quickly through
> instruction.  Instruction may help students to "notice" new forms so
> that when the new forms become salient (through error correction or
> negotiation for example), learners have knowledge of the new form to
> apply."
>
> Kathy Harris & Lynn Santelmann
> Department of Applied Linguistics & the NCSALL Adult ESOL Lab School
> Portland State University
>
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> 



From djrosen at comcast.net  Fri May 26 11:46:32 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 11:46:32 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 49]  ARCS Discussion
Message-ID: <85F6F5CE-5C73-41B1-A0A7-D2D779598181@comcast.net>

Dear colleague,

I would like to invite those who have not yet asked a question, as  
well as those who already have, to post your questions or  
observations now.  Our discussion will end after next Tuesday, so now  
would be a good time to join in.

I would like to hear from everyone, but especially from teachers who  
have used the ARCS Web site  or who are thinking of using it.  What  
are your thoughts, questions, concerns? If you have used it, what  
have you found rewarding or challenging?

For those who haven't had time to dig in to this yet, we have a long  
weekend coming up, so perhaps it will give you time to do the  
background reading or watch the video and to then to take advantage  
this opportunity before the discussion ends on Wednesday.

And a more general question, since one of the purposes of the Special  
Topics list is to help practitioners benefit from research through  
discussion with researchers, what are your thoughts about how we can  
do that better, that is, better meet your needs as a teacher who  
wants to know more about research?

All the best,

David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From jn at cloudworld.co.uk  Fri May 26 11:34:00 2006
From: jn at cloudworld.co.uk (John Nissen)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 16:34:00 +0100
Subject: [SpecialTopics 50] Re: grouping and resources
References: <EBAB5727-A1A8-4444-BA82-BD23A7C18BAF@comcast.net><web-7708406@be-2.cluster1.bresnan.net><BF81F15772FC453B36B5B3A6@Nic2-2>
	<web-3838661@be-3.cluster1.bresnan.net>
Message-ID: <16e301c680d9$cfec5b70$0202a8c0@Tomschoice>

Hello Norene,

"Atherosclerosis"?  No spelling or pronunciation problem there!  But what 
about "dyslexics", especially for the eponymous individuals?  The /i/ and 
/ks/ are each encoded in two different ways within this one word.  And if 
you tried to decode and pronounce by analogy with "my exam" you'd get quite 
the wrong sound for the word...  /die/ /sligziks/.

This goes back to my mini-course problem (see SpecialTopics 41).. teaching 
people to try to recognise words as a whole is actually a bad thing, because 
it sets the brain along the wrong channels for being able to quickly decode 
new words.

And, yes, a mini-workshop specifically on decoding is a good idea, 
considering the importance of converting the doubters!

Cheers from Chiswick,

John

John Nissen
Cloudworld Ltd - http://www.cloudworld.co.uk
maker of the assistive reader, WordAloud.
Try WordAloud with synthetic phonics:
http://www.cloudworld.co.uk/teaching-synthetic-phonics.htm
Tel: +44 208 742 3170  Fax: +44 208 742 0202
Email: info at cloudworld.co.uk



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "NOREN PETERSON" <norenehp at bresnan.net>
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Sent: Friday, May 26, 2006 4:32 AM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 46] Re: grouping and resources


> Thanks for the suggestion, Ros!  I bet "atherosclerosis" and many others 
> might
> do the trick, right? =)  And we'd love to have you back any time!  NP =)
>
>
> On Thu, 25 May 2006 16:19:38 -0400
>  rosalind davidson <davidsro at gse.harvard.edu> wrote:
>> Hi Norene,
>> You mean after all your fine work on curriculum and reading workshops, 
>> you
>> still have doubters? How about a mini-workshop on mastering the decoding 
>> of
>> difficult scientific or other specialized vocabulary so doubters can see
>> what skills they need in order to decode unfamiliar as well as long
>> familiar words. Would they then understand the value of teaching learners
>> to isolate sounds, blend and syllabicate - strengthen reading skills at 
>> the
>> word level?   Worth a try?
>> Love that Montana - All the best,
>> Ros
>>
>>
>> --On Wednesday, May 24, 2006 9:11 PM -0600 NOREN  PETERSON
>> <norenehp at bresnan.net> wrote:
>>
>>> Thanks for recognizing the difficulty rural states have in grouping
>>> students.   As Ros can tell you, this is something that we in Montana
>>> experience first  hand.
>>>
>>> Resource question:
>>> There are times when it is difficult to "convince" others that some
>>> adults  need to be taught phonemic awareness, etc.  Besides referring
>>> individuals to  the ARCS website, do you have any other recommendation
>>> for a basic resource  that is easily understood?  Thanks!  NP =)
>>>
>>> Norene Peterson
>>> Adult Education Center
>>> Billings, MT



From jgreiner at proliteracy.org  Fri May 26 12:54:35 2006
From: jgreiner at proliteracy.org (jgreiner)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 12:54:35 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 51] Re: professional development using the ARCS
	we	bsite
Message-ID: <221E918332E818488687199E5CBD74CE041CB354@keats.proliteracy.org>

Thanks Bill. I'm wondering if your front end module approached the issue of
how learners are organized (either in the actual module, or in convesations
leading up to it).  
 
Does anyone else have ideas about how to involve program administrators in
these discussions. Jane, maybe this was part of your study circle?
 
Or is it more important to support widespread acceptance and use of the ARCS
among teachers first?
 
Thanks,
Jane
Jane Greiner 
Training Coordinator ProLiteracy America 
ProLiteracy Worldwide 
1320 Jamesville Avenue 
Syracuse, NY 13210 
(315) 422-9121 Ext. 283 
Fax (315) 422-6369 
jgreiner at proliteracy.org 
www.proliteracy.org 

-----Original Message-----
From: William R Muth/FS/VCU [mailto:wrmuth at vcu.edu]
Sent: Thursday, May 25, 2006 8:22 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 43] Re: professional development using the ARCS
website



We designed a "front end" module to introduce Federal Bureau of Prisons
(FBOP) teachers to the ARCS website/course. The module was taught in real
time through CENTRA (a distance training platform), and we provided
participants (from around the country) with FBOP training credit. The module
presented some reading theory (e.g., Marilyn Adams' 4 Processors Model), and
tied this to ARCS terminology (e.g., print skills, meaning skills). We cited
John Strucker's 'Why Silent Reading Comprehension Scores Are Not Enough"
article, and provided examples of clusters I found in my ARCS dissertation
study of literacy learners in federal prisons. The session ended with an
overview of Ros' on-line course. The training took about 90 minutes, and I
think we conducted four sessions, reaching about 80 teachers in all. After
this, teachers were encouraged to take the on-line course. We credited
teachers with course completions when they (a) conducted ARCS tests on a
student, (b) submitted scores to the website, and (c) printed out the
profile/results. Since I have retired from the FBOP, I do not have staff
completion data, but I do know that we (opps, 'they') are now incorporating
ARCS training in our face-to-face training for all new teachers entering the
Bureau.     
Bill 


William R. Muth, PhD
Assistant Professor, Reading Education and Adult Literacy
Virginia Commonwealth University
(804) 828-8768


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From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Fri May 26 12:13:11 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 12:13:11 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 52] Re: ARCS questions from Tom sticht
In-Reply-To: <DBAF537E-7201-4C60-9D1C-AA415D086CD1@comcast.net>
References: <1148585478.4476060643f09@webmail.znet.net>
	<DBAF537E-7201-4C60-9D1C-AA415D086CD1@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <09838E222E3F1F4F34F52758@nichols303>

Hi David and Tom,

	ARCS isn't really a teaching approach as such, except in the narrowest 
sense that it implies that you can't plan good instruction without having 
done diagnostic assessment in the components of reading.
	As far as Tom's question about alphabetics, at least half of the ARCS ABE 
clusters are made up of learners who could need instruction in print 
skills, ranging from beginners who need everything from phonemic awareness 
onward,  to many of the intermediates who need brush-up work in lower 
frequency phonics patterns (e.g., diphthongs), syllabication of long words, 
and fluency.
	Although as Tom points out the research on the effectiveness of teaching 
various print skills to adults is sparse, as Tom implies with his 
historical examples, nearly all successful adult literacy programs have 
done so for quite a long time.  Down at the clinical level of our reading 
lab, we simply tell our graduate student tutors, "Find out what print 
skills an adult learner already has and teach her/him the ones they haven't 
mastered."
	Some of the NICHD studies that are in the field now are taking a pretty 
close look at the effectiveness of teaching print skills - from phonemic 
awareness through phonics, word recognition, and fluency.  So pretty soon 
we may have evidence for something that teachers, clinicians, and adult 
learners themselves - as Tom documented - have known for a long time: we 
need to teach print skills to people who haven't mastered them.

	I don't want to convey the impression, however, that we already know 
everything we need to know about print skills.  Our adult learner 
population includes many people who are moderately-to-severely reading 
disabled.  They may never "master" some print skills - e.g., higher levels 
of phonemic awareness.  What we need to know more about is <how close to 
mastery> they have to get in order to move forward, read less laboriously, 
and comprehend what they read better.  The NICHD studies and others should 
shed some light on "how much mastery one needs" - and this info will be 
very important for practitioners. 	

--On Thursday, May 25, 2006 5:17 PM -0400 David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net> 
wrote:

> From: tsticht at znet.com
> Date: May 25, 2006 3:31:18 PM EDT
> To: djrosen at comcast.net
> Subject: ARCS questions
>
> David: Please post the following message for John Strucker. Thanks,
> Tom Sticht
> John: In 1999-2000 I conducted workshops on listening and reading
> processes
> of adults. One of the things that came from a survey of some 247
> participants was that most thought alphabetics (phonemics; phonics) was
> "very important" to their classroom teaching or tutoring. Yet, 38-79
> percent (depending on the site)  said they had never received
> training in
> teaching or tutoring phonemic awareness and 31-59 percent said they
> had no
> training in teaching phonics.
>
> In preparing the workshop, I searched for research indicating that a
> focus
> on alphabetics (code emphasis in Jeanne?s terms) with adults with low
> literacy produced better learning outcomes than some other, perhaps
> meaning
> (whole language) emphasis. But I could find no  such research.
>
> So I looked at historical approaches to teaching adults to read. Cora
> Wilson
> Stewart in 1910 and beyond did not like the alphabetics approach and
> clearly
> stated that adults should be taught using the "word? approach.
> Reports of
> her work indicate that hundreds of thousands of adults learned to read
> following her "whole language" approach. But in World War I, J. Duncan
> Spaeth took a strong phonics approach to teaching reading to
> soldiers. Then
> in World War II, Paul Witty took a strong "word", "whole language"
> approach,
> and indeed teachers in Special Training Units got demerits if they
> emphasized phonics too much. It is reported that over a quarter million
> soldiers learned to read using this meaning emphasis approach.
>
> This type of variable historical data, and the lack of any solid
> research
> that I could find on the relative effectiveness with adults of the
> code or
> meaning emphases left me to have to report in my workshops that I did
> not
> know of any good data to help make decisions about the use of these two
> approaches. I knew that Jeanne favored the code approach in her clinical
> work but her reported gains did not seem to be much better, if at all
> better, than what other adult literacy programs reported.
>
> So my question now is do you know of any research with the ARCS
> comparing it
> to other approaches to teaching reading that could be pointed to to
> convince
> teachers and administrators in adult literacy education that the ARCS
> approach is the road to take today and the time, money, and effort
> needed
> to invest in professional development on the ARCS would be worth it in
> improved student learning?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Tom Sticht
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Fri May 26 13:01:57 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 13:01:57 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 53] Re: Patterns of Word Recognition Errors
In-Reply-To: <f580b74c9072f.44741317@gmu.edu>
References: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8F013FBF86@MAIL.cal.local>
	<ACE750C3CA8FE59D379197BB@nichols303> <f580b74c9072f.44741317@gmu.edu>
Message-ID: <718293AED591B27FAFE3393B@nichols303>

Hi Barbara,
	I think it makes sense for people to read the whole paper, because I'm not 
sure how much sense the appendix makes by itself.  However, we don't have 
an electronic version of the paper.  Folks with access to university 
libraries such as yourself should be able get it right away in <Scientific 
Studies of Reading>, V. 6, N. 3 (2002), pps 299-315.
	For those who don't have access to university libraries, we'd be happy to 
snail mail hard copy versions to you if you send us your addresses.
Best,
John
--On Wednesday, May 24, 2006 8:02 AM -0400 bgiven at gmu.edu wrote:

> Is it permissible to put the appendix online for others of us who would
> like it? barb given
>
> Barbara K. Given, Ph.D.
> Director, Adolescent and Adult Learning Research Center
> Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study, and
> Director, Center for Honoring Individual Learning Diversity, an
> International Learning Styles Center  George Mason University
> Fairfax, VA 22030-4444
> Fax: 703-993-4325
> Ph:  703-993-4406
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: john strucker <john_strucker at harvard.edu>
> Date: Tuesday, May 23, 2006 3:45 pm
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 24] Re: Patterns of Word Recognition Errors
>
>> Hi Lynda,
>>
>> Since you're at CAL, you might already have <Scientific Studies in
>> Reading
>> V. 6, #3> 2002, pp 298-315 in your library.  If not, write back,
>> and we'll
>> send you a photocopy.
>>
>> Best,
>> John
>>
>> --On Tuesday, May 23, 2006 3:39 PM -0400 Lynda Terrill
>> <lterrill at cal.org>
>> wrote:
>>
>> >
>> >
>> > Hi, John,
>> > The research brief I downloaded at
>> >
>> http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/brief_strucker.pdf is
>> > a two-pager that summarizes the findings about the errors
>> related to the
>> > native and nonnative speakers, but I don't see an appendix.  If
>> there is
>> > a link to other information, please send, or I would appreciate  a
>> > photocopy.
>> >
>> > Thanks so much.
>> >
>> > Lynda Terrill
>> > Technical Assistance and Web Coordinator
>> > Center for Adult English Language Acquisition
>> > Center for Applied Linguistics
>> > 4646 40th St, NW
>> > Washington, DC 20016
>> > lterrill at cal.org
>> > 202-362-0700
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > __________________________________________________
>> > From: struckjo at gse.harvard.edu on behalf of john strucker
>> > Sent: Tue 5/23/2006 3:17 PM
>> > To: specialtopics at nifl.gov; Lynda Terrill; specialtopics-
>> bounces at nifl.gov> Subject: Re: [SpecialTopics 10] Patterns of Word
>> Recognition Errors
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Hi Lynda,
>> >         At least in the hard copy version, Ros and I gave
>> examples of
>> > readers'
>> > errors - possibly in the appendix.  If the version you have
>> doesn't have
>> > these example, call or email us and we'll send you a photocopy.
>> > Best,
>> > John
>> >
>> > --On Monday, May 22, 2006 3:01 PM -0400 Lynda Terrill
>> <lterrill at cal.org>> wrote:
>> >
>> >>
>> >> Hi, David, Rosalind, and John,
>> >>
>> >> I read Rosalind and John's  NCSALL Research Brief "Patterns of Word
>> >> Recognition Errors Among Adult Basic Education Native and Nonnative
>> >> Speakers of English"  (available on the NCSALL Web site).
>> Because I have
>> >> taught reading to both native and nonnative speakers, I have a
>> sense of
>> >> the differences in the errors, but I wonder if you could give some
>> >> comparative examples of the word recognition errors for each group?
>> >>
>> >> Thanks,
>> >>
>> >> Lynda Terrill
>> >> lterrill at cal.org
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > John Strucker, EdD
>> > Nichols House 303
>> > Harvard Graduate School of Education
>> > 7 Appian Way
>> > Cambridge, MA 02138
>> >
>> > 617 495 4745
>> > 617 495 4811 (fax)
>>
>>
>>
>> John Strucker, EdD
>> Nichols House 303
>> Harvard Graduate School of Education
>> 7 Appian Way
>> Cambridge, MA 02138
>>
>> 617 495 4745
>> 617 495 4811 (fax)
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Fri May 26 13:13:11 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 13:13:11 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 54] Re: Flurry of Questions about the ARCS
In-Reply-To: <889B247F-DFC0-4ED6-A8B1-7F1B24939D99@weallcanread.com>
References: <889B247F-DFC0-4ED6-A8B1-7F1B24939D99@weallcanread.com>
Message-ID: <3EF8B84416476026D26BE1B9@nichols303>

Hi Jim,
Not much to add except to commend you for your work with adults and 
adolescents and your point about computer-based print skills programs. 
There are a number of really good ones on the market now, including some 
that come with relatively low-cost teacher training.  A few of these are 
being tested in research programs now.  Of course, the most severely 
reading disabled adults require a human teacher or tutor in addition to 
such programs, but a well-designed computer phonics and word recognition 
programs could help to offset gaps in teacher training.

Again, great point.  Thanks for making it!

--On Wednesday, May 24, 2006 1:38 PM -0400 Jim Williams 
<jw at weallcanread.com> wrote:

> Thank you for this valuable discussion.  I would like to comment on
> an E-mail posted earlier from Stephanie Korber.  Specifically she
> referred to the fact that it is most difficult to implement certain
> aspects of reading instruction when faced with  a limited budget
> along with a staff of teachers and volunteers who are often not
> trained nor comfortable teaching phonemic awareness, phonics and
> fluency instruction. I have struggled for years with this issue. I am
> a former English teacher and remedial reading teacher at an inner-
> city high school in Atlanta, Georgia. For years I also operated a
> reading clinic during after-school hours. Older students and adults
> with basic reading skill deficiencies often require huge amounts of
> time to master basic skills. Meeting once or twice a week with a
> tutor is a very long, arduous, and uncertain path in terms of the
> student ever becoming an independent reader.
>
> Teachers in the upper grades and adult literacy instructors usually
> do not have a background in teaching phonemic awareness, phonics and
> fluency instruction. Reading specialists do, but there are few of
> them available in many programs. So many teachers/tutors avoid an
> area they don't feel comfortable addressing, and instead of focusing
> on basic skill instruction instead focus upon teaching comprehension
> strategies instead.  But the research is clear that in fact if these
> struggling students are ever to become independent readers, then they
> require mastery in the basic skills mentioned above. As the ARCS
> study indicates, adults reading below the GED level seem to freeze at
> somewhere in the middle school years which tends to be the very point
> schools quit focusing upon learning to read and instead focus upon
> reading to learn.  Adults who continue to struggle as readers need
> intensive, systematic, and direct instruction. And yet because of the
> time involved to provide this intensive remediation, and the lack of
> training teachers and volunteers receive, often this critical area is
> neglected.
>
> Fortunately the solution is available now with technology. Print and
> audio lessons which teach phonemic awareness, phonics, and fluency
> for adults can be found online. Students are able to work
> independently at a computer or in conjunction with a teacher/tutor. A
> computer-based method of delivery, when offered at  a price that is
> within an organization's budget, enables virtually any organization
> to teach effectively critical reading skills to students while at the
> same time providing a method whereby staff can receive training as well.
>
> Without direct access to online learning or perhaps a video-based
> format of instruction, the kind of intensive training which is
> required to train staff and to teach basic reading skills to students
> is simply outside the economic reach of many organizations,
> particularly adult literacy organizations who rely heavily upon
> volunteer tutors.  I can think of no other effective and sustainable
> solution to this issue than a computer-based model of delivering
> instruction.
>
> Jim Williams
> Email address: jw at weallcanread.com
> Web address:  www.weallcanread.com
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Fri May 26 13:23:49 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 13:23:49 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 55] Re: professional development using
 the	ARCS	website
In-Reply-To: <OF49FAD1A5.365CD10B-ON85257179.00833973-8525717A.0001FF74@vcu.edu>
References: <OF49FAD1A5.365CD10B-ON85257179.00833973-8525717A.0001FF74@vcu.e
	du>
Message-ID: <C58D8E2974840337BFE31967@nichols303>

Hey Bill,

Glad you mentioned your FBOP teacher training.  You were one of the first 
to use the ARCS findings as a basis for teacher training, way back in 2001. 
I'm glad to hear the Bureau is still using your training.

Best,
John

--On Thursday, May 25, 2006 8:21 PM -0400 "William R Muth/FS/VCU" 
<wrmuth at vcu.edu> wrote:

>
> We designed a "front end" module to introduce Federal Bureau of Prisons
> (FBOP) teachers to the ARCS website/course. The module was taught in real
> time through CENTRA (a distance training platform), and we provided
> participants (from around the country) with FBOP training credit. The
> module presented some reading theory (e.g., Marilyn Adams' 4 Processors
> Model), and tied this to ARCS terminology (e.g., print skills, meaning
> skills). We cited John Strucker's 'Why Silent Reading Comprehension
> Scores Are Not Enough" article, and provided examples of clusters I found
> in my ARCS dissertation study of literacy learners in federal prisons.
> The session ended with an overview of Ros' on-line course. The training
> took about 90 minutes, and I think we conducted four sessions, reaching
> about 80 teachers in all. After this, teachers were encouraged to take
> the on-line course. We credited teachers with course completions when
> they (a) conducted ARCS tests on a student, (b) submitted scores to the
> website, and (c) printed out the profile/results. Since I have retired
> from the FBOP, I do not have staff completion data, but I do know that we
> (opps, 'they') are now incorporating ARCS training in our face-to-face
> training for all new teachers entering the Bureau.
> Bill
>
>
> William R. Muth, PhD
> Assistant Professor, Reading Education and Adult Literacy
> Virginia Commonwealth University
> (804) 828-8768
>
>
>
> David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net>
> Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
>
> 05/25/2006 05:29 PM
>
> Please respond to
> specialtopics at nifl.gov
>
>
> To specialtopics at nifl.gov
>
> cc
>
> Subject [SpecialTopics 42] Re: professional development using the ARCS
> website
>
>
>
>
>
> Thanks, Jane.  I wonder if anyone else in this discussion has used
> the ARCS Web site and/or a study circle model using the ARCS Web site
> or other ARCS materials.  If so, please tell us about your experience.
>
> Also, if anyone has questions for Jane or Ros about the use of the
> ARCS Web site, please ask them now.
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
> On May 25, 2006, at 2:06 PM, Jane Meyer wrote:
>
>> David suggested that I tell a bit about how we used the ARCS
>> website for
>> professional development in our ABE program in Canton, Ohio.  First I
>> explored the website myself and then, at a staff meeting, I told the
>> teachers about the site highlighting some  features that I thought
>> might
>> be of particular interest to them.  I offered to pay them if they
>> wanted
>> to explore the website for a professional development activity.  I
>> set a
>> meeting date about a month away for those who had explored the website
>> to discuss what they had found and how it could be useful to them as
>> well as ask any questions.  The teachers loved using the website for
>> professional development because it was so convenient and the format
>> worked great for us because I had staff with various levels of
>> knowledge
>> about reading.  The website allowed those who needed basic information
>> to get it without holding those back who had more knowledge and were
>> ready to go deeper.  It has been a while, but I remember the
>> discussion
>> about the site being quite rich.
>> Jane Meyer
>> Canton City Schools
>> Canton, Ohio
>> meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> David Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From djrosen at comcast.net  Fri May 26 14:24:14 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 14:24:14 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 56] Two other online discussions of teaching reading
Message-ID: <367EE924-5DCA-4AEE-B084-45417F522E01@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

I would like to call your attention to two other online discussions  
of teaching reading to adults which may be of interest:

1)  On the Englsh Language discussion list  a discussion has begun  
today on teaching reading to adult English language learners.  To  
subscribe and join in, go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/englishlanguage

2) From June 12-16 on the Focus on Basics Discussion List Alisa  
Belzer will discuss her articles:

Influences on the Reading Practices of Adults in ABE
http://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=1108

      and

Learners on Learning to Read
http://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=1110

To subscribe and join in, go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/focusonbasics


David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From SMonti at ccbcmd.edu  Fri May 26 14:25:47 2006
From: SMonti at ccbcmd.edu (Monti, Suzi)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 14:25:47 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 57] Re: ESOL diagnostic testing
Message-ID: <9D909391CB025945BDA19A90B940A0B6020EDA50@ccbc-de.ccbc.ccbcmd.edu>

Hi,
    I have been looking for an answer to the very solid ESOL-related questions raised by this post. Perhaps I have missed the response. I am especially interested in the question raised concerning whether the tests mentioned in the study were normed for a non-native speaking population (a validity/reliability issue). I am also interested in what impact lack of cultural reference/schema as well as other ESOL issues may have had on the results. Finally, of course there is the issue of a native/non-native speaker's natural approach/bent (whether they tend to be top-down or bottom-up in thinking) and what impact that may have on his/her approach to reading.
Suzi Monti 

TESOL Instructor - Maryland Bible College and Seminary, International Institute of Linguistics

ESOL Curriculum Developer, Instructional Specialist, and Intake Asssessment Specialist - Community College of Baltimore County, Center for Adult and Family Literacy 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Nicole Graves
Sent: Wednesday May 24, 2006 9:06 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 32] ESOL diagnostic testing



Hi John and Ros,
 
I find the discussions most interesting.  Thank you!
 
I teach adult ESOL.  Previously, I worked as a special education teacher and as a reading teacher (children).  Several of our learners are non-readers or struggling readers.  I'm currently teaching a beginning level ESOL group and an ESOL/literacy class.  We formed the Lit class based on needs of the students: high level speakers, non- or low-reading level, no or very low -level in writing.  What diagnostic tests would you suggest for this population in order to find strenghts and instructional needs?  Wouldn't tests normed on a population of native speakers be somewhat inaccurate for ESOL learners?  Depending on the native language, I can see that in certain cases some tests might work fairly well.  But what of others with different alphabets and different ways? Chinese learners do not sound out words.  Russians do not actually spell words, etc.
 
Thanks again.
 
Nicole B. Graves
Teacher/ESOL Program Coordinator
The Center for New Americans
Amherst, Greenfield, Northampton, MA

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From Sharon.T.Miller at nhmccd.edu  Fri May 26 15:02:31 2006
From: Sharon.T.Miller at nhmccd.edu (Miller, Sharon T (Cy-Fair))
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 14:02:31 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 58] Re: ARCS Discussion
References: <85F6F5CE-5C73-41B1-A0A7-D2D779598181@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <51C018635065444FA9BC4B3AD52668010B43A6DF@DIS-MAIL.nhmccd.net>

David,
     I am enjoying this discussion very much.  Once we have identified our low level readers, we would like to have some online resources to use for remediation in addition to working with one on one literacy tutors.  If we can identify a large enough population, we will create one or more classes.  Can you recommend materials that can be used for remediation?
Sharon Miller
Professor of Transitional English
Cy-Fair College

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Fri 5/26/2006 10:46 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 49] ARCS Discussion



Dear colleague,

I would like to invite those who have not yet asked a question, as 
well as those who already have, to post your questions or 
observations now.  Our discussion will end after next Tuesday, so now 
would be a good time to join in.

I would like to hear from everyone, but especially from teachers who 
have used the ARCS Web site  or who are thinking of using it.  What 
are your thoughts, questions, concerns? If you have used it, what 
have you found rewarding or challenging?

For those who haven't had time to dig in to this yet, we have a long 
weekend coming up, so perhaps it will give you time to do the 
background reading or watch the video and to then to take advantage 
this opportunity before the discussion ends on Wednesday.

And a more general question, since one of the purposes of the Special 
Topics list is to help practitioners benefit from research through 
discussion with researchers, what are your thoughts about how we can 
do that better, that is, better meet your needs as a teacher who 
wants to know more about research?

All the best,

David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


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From atrawick at charter.net  Fri May 26 15:10:20 2006
From: atrawick at charter.net (Amy Trawick)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 15:10:20 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 59]  ARCS questions-Comprehension
References: <1148585478.4476060643f09@webmail.znet.net><DBAF537E-7201-4C60-9D1C-AA415D086CD1@comcast.net>
	<09838E222E3F1F4F34F52758@nichols303>
Message-ID: <00ce01c680f8$08b76800$0301a8c0@AMY>

Thank you, John and Ros for the wonderful resource of the ARCS website and 
for this opportunity to ask questions.  My questions have mainly to do with 
comprehension, and the quotes in my message come from the silent reading 
comprehension page of the mini-course.

1)  On the website, you say, "There are other subskills of reading 
comprehension that require knowledge of the structure of language (compound 
and complex sentences, paragraphs, stories and informational text), and the 
ability to interact with text (metacognition) by assuming some 
responsibility for understanding the author's message. Many ABE learners 
have to learn "how" to comprehend. Teachers address these issues through 
instruction in reading comprehension strategies."  Yet, I notice that you 
did not include assessments that measure *use of comprehension strategies* 
in the battery of assessments.  Could you please talk a little bit about 
your reasons for this?  In other words, were there logistical concerns or 
research-based/theoretical concerns--or both?

2) This statement appears on the website: "Explicit instruction in 
comprehension strategies should begin when a learner has acquired sufficient 
word recognition mastery, usually no sooner than low intermediate level, GE 
3. Beginning readers are focused on word analysis and recognition within 
simple text that does not require strategies for understanding."  Whereas I 
agree for the most part with this statement, I think that, since we are 
working with adults, there might be a caveat here.  As adults, these readers 
often need to address real-life reading tasks (reading labels, filling out 
simple forms, paying bills) that, if they use some simple comprehension 
strategies (attending to text formatting/structure, scanning for key words, 
thinking about what they know), they can accomplish simple but important 
reading purposes with texts that are written above their reading level.  I'm 
thinking here, for example, of reading to understand a utility bill.  A 
utility bill can be difficult to read from beginning to end, but if you just 
want to know how much you owe and when it's due, a low-level reader can read 
for that purpose--if they know some basic comprehension strategies and are 
able to integrate this with their alphabetics and vocabulary knowledge.  Do 
you have any philosophical problem with incorporating comprehension 
strategies of this type into a curriculum for beginning readers, as long as 
due attention is also paid to building the underlying skills in alphabetics, 
fluency, and vocabulary?

Thank you!

Amy 


From davidsro at gse.harvard.edu  Fri May 26 17:54:34 2006
From: davidsro at gse.harvard.edu (rosalind davidson)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 17:54:34 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 59] Re: ARCS Mini-course - "whole word"
 approach	deprecated
Message-ID: <99FD263367E57AB1F96AB103@Nic2-2>

Hello John,
	You are right in pointing out the need to teach systematic decoding as the 
basic approach to figuring out unfamiliar words.  But, yes, John and I do 
teach our graduate students to assess their learners' immediate recognition 
of the most frequent words and, if necessary, teach those basic sight words 
to those who are reading below fifth grade level.  These are really not 
contradictory methods if we know that the one (whole word recognition)is 
just a 'temporary fix' that enables adults to get going in reading text and 
the other (systematic phonics)is a 'permanent fix' - one they can count on- 
to help them read at higher levels. The emphasis of word recognition 
instruction is always on systematic phonics.  Harris and Sipay define our 
understanding of sight words --"Sight vocabulary includes all the words we 
recognize immediately.  The words may have been learned originally through 
whole word,phonics, or any other instructional approach",  "How to Increase 
Reading Ability", New York:Longman

	You cite the success of 300 normally achieving children using 
Hepplewhite's synthetic phonics that teaches the sounds of all possible 
combination of letters beginning with the smallest units and progressing to 
longer words and sentences.  I wonder how applicable this method is to 
adult readers many of whom have not progressed normally through the stages 
of reading. They do have some skills, but their abilities are uneven.  This 
is why John and I have emphasized the need for diagnostic testing through 
our ARCS study, because with assessment teachers can determine which 
elements of phonics, vocabulary, comprehension strategies are most in need 
of strengthening.  There are significant differences in teaching adults and 
children. Time to devote to improving their reading in the classroom (or 
online) is just one.

Here's to systematic phonics instruction!

Ros



--On Wednesday, May 03, 2006 4:19 PM +0100 John Nissen 
<jn at cloudworld.co.uk> wrote:

>
> Hello all,
>
> I have just subscribed to this new list, and could only see a single
> message so far - a test message.  To get the ball rolling, I had a look
> at the ARCS mini-course, to see how it squared up with experience in the
> UK.
>
> I am concerned by advocacy for teaching whole word recognition on the
> "Sight words" page:
> http://www.nifl.gov/readingprofiles/MC_Sight_Words.htm
> But in this same page there is this telling passage:
>
> [quote]
> Because most adult poor readers have difficulty with letter-sound skills,
> they tend to use a whole word recognition approach much more than do
> children who are reading at the same level.RR Whole word recognition only
> works if the words are mastered sight words. The result of continued
> reliance on whole word "recognition" instead of phonetic skills when
> decoding unfamiliar words is guessing and misreading.
> [end quote]
>
> I agree with that deduction.  Moreover I claim that teaching letter-sound
> skills to adults, as for children, means no effort need  be spent on
> whole word recognition!  The teaching of whole word recognition as an
> approach was in the now deprecated Searchlights model of the UK National
> Literacy Strategy.  It leads indeed to much guesswork and error.  It has
> no doubt contributed to the failure of 20% children to learn to read.  On
> the other hand, experience with teaching synthetic phonics shows that
> rapid recognition of whole words arises naturally from rapid decoding
> which gradually increases automaticity.  The use of multiple modalities
> should be applied to the phonics instruction that gives the rapid
> decoding ability, rather than to whole word recognition as ARCS proposes.
>
>
> Synthetic phonics, with multimodal techniques, was used in the
> Clackmannanshire study, where all 300 children were taught to read
> successfully in a few months, and by the end of Primary School their
> average reading age was over three years ahead of their chronological
> reading age.  This result has caused the government to change tack on
> literacy, and advocate the introduction of synthetic phonics "first and
> fast" in all primary schools.
>
> Cheers from Chiswick,
>
> John
>
> John Nissen
> Cloudworld Ltd - http://www.cloudworld.co.uk
> http://www.cloudworld.co.uk/teaching-synthetic-phonics.htm
> Tel: +44 208 742 3170  Fax: +44 208 742 0202
> Email: info at cloudworld.co.uk
>
>
>




From wrmuth at vcu.edu  Fri May 26 18:35:34 2006
From: wrmuth at vcu.edu (William R Muth/FS/VCU)
Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 18:35:34 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 60] Re: professional development using the
	ARCS	we	bsite
In-Reply-To: <221E918332E818488687199E5CBD74CE041CB354@keats.proliteracy.org>
Message-ID: <OF25B36FDF.B2B9785E-ON8525717A.007A4661-8525717A.007C1B40@vcu.edu>

Hi Jane - 
We did discuss ways that teachers could organize and group learners based 
on ARCS profiles, and why seemingly homogeneous groups (based on ABLE or 
TABE comprehension scores) were likely to be anything but homogeneous. But 
we also worked on policy to redefine the way we defined literacy levels 
and criteria based on component scores. It's the old circus tent analogy: 
many poles have to go up at the same time - staff development, policy, 
information management system, curricula...and, oh yeah, budget...:) 
You're right -- buy in from the administration is essential. 
Best regards,  Bill
 
William R. Muth, PhD
Assistant Professor, Reading Education and Adult Literacy
Virginia Commonwealth University
(804) 828-8768




jgreiner <jgreiner at proliteracy.org> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
05/26/2006 12:54 PM
Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov


To
"'specialtopics at nifl.gov'" <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 51] Re: professional development using the ARCS  we bsite






Thanks Bill. I'm wondering if your front end module approached the issue 
of how learners are organized (either in the actual module, or in 
convesations leading up to it). 
 
Does anyone else have ideas about how to involve program administrators in 
these discussions. Jane, maybe this was part of your study circle?
 
Or is it more important to support widespread acceptance and use of the 
ARCS among teachers first?
 
Thanks,
Jane
Jane Greiner 
Training Coordinator ProLiteracy America 
ProLiteracy Worldwide 
1320 Jamesville Avenue 
Syracuse, NY 13210 
(315) 422-9121 Ext. 283 
Fax (315) 422-6369 
jgreiner at proliteracy.org 
www.proliteracy.org 
-----Original Message-----
From: William R Muth/FS/VCU [mailto:wrmuth at vcu.edu]
Sent: Thursday, May 25, 2006 8:22 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 43] Re: professional development using the ARCS 
website


We designed a "front end" module to introduce Federal Bureau of Prisons 
(FBOP) teachers to the ARCS website/course. The module was taught in real 
time through CENTRA (a distance training platform), and we provided 
participants (from around the country) with FBOP training credit. The 
module presented some reading theory (e.g., Marilyn Adams' 4 Processors 
Model), and tied this to ARCS terminology (e.g., print skills, meaning 
skills). We cited John Strucker's 'Why Silent Reading Comprehension Scores 
Are Not Enough" article, and provided examples of clusters I found in my 
ARCS dissertation study of literacy learners in federal prisons. The 
session ended with an overview of Ros' on-line course. The training took 
about 90 minutes, and I think we conducted four sessions, reaching about 
80 teachers in all. After this, teachers were encouraged to take the 
on-line course. We credited teachers with course completions when they (a) 
conducted ARCS tests on a student, (b) submitted scores to the website, 
and (c) printed out the profile/results. Since I have retired from the 
FBOP, I do not have staff completion data, but I do know that we (opps, 
'they') are now incorporating ARCS training in our face-to-face training 
for all new teachers entering the Bureau.     
Bill 


William R. Muth, PhD
Assistant Professor, Reading Education and Adult Literacy
Virginia Commonwealth University
(804) 828-8768-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
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From sreid at workbase.org.nz  Sat May 27 18:17:32 2006
From: sreid at workbase.org.nz (Susan Reid)
Date: Sun, 28 May 2006 10:17:32 +1200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 61] Re: ARCS questions-Comprehension
Message-ID: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E23BF3E@secure.workbase.org.nz>

Thank you for a very interesting discussion 
Just a comment to support what Amy is saying about comprehension strategies 
In New Zealand our teaching of reading has been influenced by Freebody and Liuke's four reader roles ( lately collapsed into 3 ) code breaker, meaning maker or participant, text user and text analyst - the roles are not linear - see
http://www.alea.edu.au/freebody.htm
http://www.alea.edu.au/docs/ludwig.pdf
http://www.alea.edu.au/freebody.htm
Certainly in the work I have done with lower level readers a number are already at some level of the text analyst stage even though they may not have the full range of codebreakling skills 
I presume that what you refer to on the website  is explicit teaching of a range of comprehension strategies 
 
At Workbase one of my colleagues Trisha Hanifin  who I know  is  following this discussion led the development of a course on How to teach reading to adults. Trisha and another colleague Ginnie Denny deliver this course three times a year to a range of adult literacy tutors. As a result of feedback about what tutors want to learn about now  Trisha is currently working on a one day workshop on Comprehension Strategies to provide more depth to those covered in the Reading Course
 
Regards 
Susan Reid 
Manager, Professional Development 
Workbase NZ Centre for Workforce Literacy Development 
www.workbase.org.nz
also see New Zealand Literacy Portal 
www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz
 

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of Amy Trawick
Sent: Sat 27/05/2006 7:10 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 59] ARCS questions-Comprehension



Thank you, John and Ros for the wonderful resource of the ARCS website and
for this opportunity to ask questions.  My questions have mainly to do with
comprehension, and the quotes in my message come from the silent reading
comprehension page of the mini-course.

1)  On the website, you say, "There are other subskills of reading
comprehension that require knowledge of the structure of language (compound
and complex sentences, paragraphs, stories and informational text), and the
ability to interact with text (metacognition) by assuming some
responsibility for understanding the author's message. Many ABE learners
have to learn "how" to comprehend. Teachers address these issues through
instruction in reading comprehension strategies."  Yet, I notice that you
did not include assessments that measure *use of comprehension strategies*
in the battery of assessments.  Could you please talk a little bit about
your reasons for this?  In other words, were there logistical concerns or
research-based/theoretical concerns--or both?

2) This statement appears on the website: "Explicit instruction in
comprehension strategies should begin when a learner has acquired sufficient
word recognition mastery, usually no sooner than low intermediate level, GE
3. Beginning readers are focused on word analysis and recognition within
simple text that does not require strategies for understanding."  Whereas I
agree for the most part with this statement, I think that, since we are
working with adults, there might be a caveat here.  As adults, these readers
often need to address real-life reading tasks (reading labels, filling out
simple forms, paying bills) that, if they use some simple comprehension
strategies (attending to text formatting/structure, scanning for key words,
thinking about what they know), they can accomplish simple but important
reading purposes with texts that are written above their reading level.  I'm
thinking here, for example, of reading to understand a utility bill.  A
utility bill can be difficult to read from beginning to end, but if you just
want to know how much you owe and when it's due, a low-level reader can read
for that purpose--if they know some basic comprehension strategies and are
able to integrate this with their alphabetics and vocabulary knowledge.  Do
you have any philosophical problem with incorporating comprehension
strategies of this type into a curriculum for beginning readers, as long as
due attention is also paid to building the underlying skills in alphabetics,
fluency, and vocabulary?

Thank you!

Amy
-------------------------------
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Special Topics mailing list
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To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


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From mathewssb at earthlink.net  Sun May 28 11:38:58 2006
From: mathewssb at earthlink.net (Sarae Mathews)
Date: Sun, 28 May 2006 10:38:58 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 62]  Oral reading rate tests
Message-ID: <F7DB4270-8BDF-45F2-96CC-F34832F55A15@earthlink.net>

I'm enjoying this dialogue very much. Next week, I start as a new ABE  
instructor at a community college in north Florida. I would like to  
use the interactive profile on the website. Between results from  
students' TABE and the sample QARI word recognition test and WMT on  
the website, I'll have all the requisite components except an oral  
reading rate test. Does anyone have a set of graded passages they can  
share electronically? Thanks, it would sure help.

Sunny Mathews, Ed.D.
FCCJ-South
Jacksonville, FL 


From phanifin at workbase.org.nz  Sun May 28 18:26:17 2006
From: phanifin at workbase.org.nz (Trisha Hanifin)
Date: Mon, 29 May 2006 10:26:17 +1200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 63] Re: ARCS questions-Comprehension
Message-ID: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E0AA812@secure.workbase.org.nz>

Further to Susan's comments and other comments about teaching
comprehension: there's an old saying I'm aware of about adult literacy
learners (not sure where it came from originally but it might be from
Jane Mace) that an adult beginning reader is not (necessarily) a
beginning thinker. 

 

Freebody and Luke's roles acknowledge this as do other perspectives on
the importance of developing and using critical thinking and critical
reading skills and strategies with adults even when code-breaking skills
might be weak.  This is not to suggest that working at word level with
learners isn't crucial but I can't see that it's useful for an adult
learner to wait until they can decode entirely independently before they
use and extend their range of comprehension strategies. 

 

I'm also interested in whether people think there are overlaps - in
terms of teaching comprehension strategies to adults- between listening
comprehension and reading comprehension?

 

Enjoying the discussion very much. Thank-you.

 

Trisha Hanifin

 

Professional Development Coordinator

Workbase NZ Centre for Workforce Literacy Development

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Susan Reid
Sent: Sunday, 28 May 2006 10:18 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov; specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 61] Re: ARCS questions-Comprehension

 

Thank you for a very interesting discussion 

Just a comment to support what Amy is saying about comprehension
strategies 

In New Zealand our teaching of reading has been influenced by Freebody
and Liuke's four reader roles ( lately collapsed into 3 ) code breaker,
meaning maker or participant, text user and text analyst - the roles are
not linear - see

http://www.alea.edu.au/freebody.htm

http://www.alea.edu.au/docs/ludwig.pdf

http://www.alea.edu.au/freebody.htm

Certainly in the work I have done with lower level readers a number are
already at some level of the text analyst stage even though they may not
have the full range of codebreakling skills 

I presume that what you refer to on the website  is explicit teaching of
a range of comprehension strategies 

 

At Workbase one of my colleagues Trisha Hanifin  who I know  is
following this discussion led the development of a course on How to
teach reading to adults. Trisha and another colleague Ginnie Denny
deliver this course three times a year to a range of adult literacy
tutors. As a result of feedback about what tutors want to learn about
now  Trisha is currently working on a one day workshop on Comprehension
Strategies to provide more depth to those covered in the Reading Course

 

Regards 

Susan Reid 

Manager, Professional Development 

Workbase NZ Centre for Workforce Literacy Development 

www.workbase.org.nz

also see New Zealand Literacy Portal 

www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz

 

 

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of Amy Trawick
Sent: Sat 27/05/2006 7:10 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 59] ARCS questions-Comprehension

Thank you, John and Ros for the wonderful resource of the ARCS website
and
for this opportunity to ask questions.  My questions have mainly to do
with
comprehension, and the quotes in my message come from the silent reading
comprehension page of the mini-course.

1)  On the website, you say, "There are other subskills of reading
comprehension that require knowledge of the structure of language
(compound
and complex sentences, paragraphs, stories and informational text), and
the
ability to interact with text (metacognition) by assuming some
responsibility for understanding the author's message. Many ABE learners
have to learn "how" to comprehend. Teachers address these issues through
instruction in reading comprehension strategies."  Yet, I notice that
you
did not include assessments that measure *use of comprehension
strategies*
in the battery of assessments.  Could you please talk a little bit about
your reasons for this?  In other words, were there logistical concerns
or
research-based/theoretical concerns--or both?

2) This statement appears on the website: "Explicit instruction in
comprehension strategies should begin when a learner has acquired
sufficient
word recognition mastery, usually no sooner than low intermediate level,
GE
3. Beginning readers are focused on word analysis and recognition within
simple text that does not require strategies for understanding."
Whereas I
agree for the most part with this statement, I think that, since we are
working with adults, there might be a caveat here.  As adults, these
readers
often need to address real-life reading tasks (reading labels, filling
out
simple forms, paying bills) that, if they use some simple comprehension
strategies (attending to text formatting/structure, scanning for key
words,
thinking about what they know), they can accomplish simple but important
reading purposes with texts that are written above their reading level.
I'm
thinking here, for example, of reading to understand a utility bill.  A
utility bill can be difficult to read from beginning to end, but if you
just
want to know how much you owe and when it's due, a low-level reader can
read
for that purpose--if they know some basic comprehension strategies and
are
able to integrate this with their alphabetics and vocabulary knowledge.
Do
you have any philosophical problem with incorporating comprehension
strategies of this type into a curriculum for beginning readers, as long
as
due attention is also paid to building the underlying skills in
alphabetics,
fluency, and vocabulary?

Thank you!

Amy
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
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From djrosen at comcast.net  Mon May 29 13:46:54 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Mon, 29 May 2006 13:46:54 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 64] ARCS questions: Listening and Reading
	Comprehension
Message-ID: <20AE9B68-FB18-49D9-8596-DF5A77FD2515@comcast.net>

From: 	  tsticht at znet.com
Subject: 	ARCS questions: Listening and Reading Comprehension
Date: 	May 29, 2006 12:12:44 PM EDT

David:  Please post this information for Trisha Hanifin who asked about
relationships among listening and reading comprehension. The  
following book
has extensive information on these relationships and can be  
downloaded for
free at the addresses given.

Thanks, Tom Sticht

Auding and reading: A developmental model - Tom Sticht - 1974 (US)
  	Although this book was written in 1974 it is still seen as the most
significant contribution made on reading and listening. It is the first
book applying modern cognitive science to literacy development with
children and adults.
  	Author: Tom Sticht, Lawrence Beck, Robert Hauke, Glenn Kleiman and  
James
James
  	Organisation: NALD
  	Organisation Web Address: http://www.nald.ca
  	Website Address: http://www.nald.ca/fulltext/sticht/aar/aar.pdf
  	Download address: http://www.nald.ca/fulltext/sticht/aar/aar.pdf







From phanifin at workbase.org.nz  Mon May 29 17:16:33 2006
From: phanifin at workbase.org.nz (Trisha Hanifin)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 09:16:33 +1200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 65] Re: ARCS questions: Listening and
	ReadingComprehension
Message-ID: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E0AA816@secure.workbase.org.nz>

Thank-you very much Tom. Much appreciated.

Trisha Hanifin

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Tuesday, 30 May 2006 5:47 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 64] ARCS questions: Listening and
ReadingComprehension

From: 	  tsticht at znet.com
Subject: 	ARCS questions: Listening and Reading Comprehension
Date: 	May 29, 2006 12:12:44 PM EDT

David:  Please post this information for Trisha Hanifin who asked about
relationships among listening and reading comprehension. The  
following book
has extensive information on these relationships and can be  
downloaded for
free at the addresses given.

Thanks, Tom Sticht

Auding and reading: A developmental model - Tom Sticht - 1974 (US)
  	Although this book was written in 1974 it is still seen as the
most
significant contribution made on reading and listening. It is the first
book applying modern cognitive science to literacy development with
children and adults.
  	Author: Tom Sticht, Lawrence Beck, Robert Hauke, Glenn Kleiman
and  
James
James
  	Organisation: NALD
  	Organisation Web Address: http://www.nald.ca
  	Website Address: http://www.nald.ca/fulltext/sticht/aar/aar.pdf
  	Download address: http://www.nald.ca/fulltext/sticht/aar/aar.pdf





-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue May 30 08:51:26 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 08:51:26 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 66]  Questions for ARCS Participants
Message-ID: <BBA28A5C-0E8C-45F7-9D29-FCD7F3BBE3D3@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

Tomorrow, Wednesday, May 31st, will be the last day to post questions  
for John and Ros about the ARCS.  The questions, comments and  
suggested resources so far have been great. I hope there are more.

I have two questions for participants:

1. Which preparation materials for this discussion did you find  
especially useful?  Would you recommend any of these to your  
colleagues? If so, which ones? (see below for a list of materials.)

2. Would you like to have the whole discussion archived (on the  
National institute for Adult Literacy LINCS web site or on the Adult  
Literacy Education Wiki -- or both)?

You could reply to the list --  specialtopics at nifl.gov --  or by e- 
mail to me at djrosen at comcast.net

Here's a list of the introductory materials:

1. 30-minute video panel discussion with ARCS researchers Rosalind  
Davidson and John Strucker, and practitioners Kay Vaccaro and Jane  
Meyer at

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/20040204/webcast02-04.html

This video panel introduction is also available on DVD from the  
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy [ http:// 
www.ncsall.net/?id=24 ] or from the National Institute for Literacy.  
(Send a request for the Adult Readiing Components Study (ARCS) Panel  
(free) DVD to: info at nifl.gov  Be sure to include your mailing  
address.)

2. "What Silent Reading Tests Alone Can't Tell You", the precursor to  
the website that will be discussed.
http://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=456

3. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS) [PDF document] by John  
Strucker and Rosalind Davidson
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27   (ninth item down)

4. How the ARCS Was Done
http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/op_arcs.pdf

5. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS)
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27#arcs


David J. Rosen
Special Topics discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From scarlisle at midco.net  Tue May 30 09:15:24 2006
From: scarlisle at midco.net (Sue Carlisle)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 08:15:24 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 67] Re: Questions for ARCS Participants
In-Reply-To: <BBA28A5C-0E8C-45F7-9D29-FCD7F3BBE3D3@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <000d01c683eb$1cfaceb0$190ac90a@EXPLORIT2>

It would be most helpful if you could archive the discussion on National
institute for Adult Literacy LINCS web site. Thank you.

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Tuesday, May 30, 2006 7:51 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 66] Questions for ARCS Participants

Colleagues,

Tomorrow, Wednesday, May 31st, will be the last day to post questions  
for John and Ros about the ARCS.  The questions, comments and  
suggested resources so far have been great. I hope there are more.

I have two questions for participants:

1. Which preparation materials for this discussion did you find  
especially useful?  Would you recommend any of these to your  
colleagues? If so, which ones? (see below for a list of materials.)

2. Would you like to have the whole discussion archived (on the  
National institute for Adult Literacy LINCS web site or on the Adult  
Literacy Education Wiki -- or both)?

You could reply to the list --  specialtopics at nifl.gov --  or by e- 
mail to me at djrosen at comcast.net

Here's a list of the introductory materials:

1. 30-minute video panel discussion with ARCS researchers Rosalind  
Davidson and John Strucker, and practitioners Kay Vaccaro and Jane  
Meyer at

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/20040204/webcast02-04.html

This video panel introduction is also available on DVD from the  
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy [ http:// 
www.ncsall.net/?id=24 ] or from the National Institute for Literacy.  
(Send a request for the Adult Readiing Components Study (ARCS) Panel  
(free) DVD to: info at nifl.gov  Be sure to include your mailing  
address.)

2. "What Silent Reading Tests Alone Can't Tell You", the precursor to  
the website that will be discussed.
http://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=456

3. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS) [PDF document] by John  
Strucker and Rosalind Davidson
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27   (ninth item down)

4. How the ARCS Was Done
http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/op_arcs.pdf

5. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS)
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27#arcs


David J. Rosen
Special Topics discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
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From tamill2 at uky.edu  Tue May 30 09:07:23 2006
From: tamill2 at uky.edu (Toni-Ann Mills)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 09:07:23 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 68] Re: Questions for ARCS Participants
In-Reply-To: <BBA28A5C-0E8C-45F7-9D29-FCD7F3BBE3D3@comcast.net>
References: <BBA28A5C-0E8C-45F7-9D29-FCD7F3BBE3D3@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <6.0.1.1.2.20060530090444.01c1ae50@pop.uky.edu>

This has been a very informative discussion with wonderful questions posed 
and in-depth answers provided.  Please archive the material on both 
sites.  This would be a great extended reading when using ARCS as part of 
professional development.
Toni-Ann

At 08:51 AM 5/30/2006, you wrote:
>Colleagues,
>
>Tomorrow, Wednesday, May 31st, will be the last day to post questions
>for John and Ros about the ARCS.  The questions, comments and
>suggested resources so far have been great. I hope there are more.
>
>I have two questions for participants:
>
>1. Which preparation materials for this discussion did you find
>especially useful?  Would you recommend any of these to your
>colleagues? If so, which ones? (see below for a list of materials.)
>
>2. Would you like to have the whole discussion archived (on the
>National institute for Adult Literacy LINCS web site or on the Adult
>Literacy Education Wiki -- or both)?
>
>You could reply to the list --  specialtopics at nifl.gov --  or by e-
>mail to me at djrosen at comcast.net
>
>Here's a list of the introductory materials:
>
>1. 30-minute video panel discussion with ARCS researchers Rosalind
>Davidson and John Strucker, and practitioners Kay Vaccaro and Jane
>Meyer at
>
>http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/20040204/webcast02-04.html
>
>This video panel introduction is also available on DVD from the
>National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy [ http://
>www.ncsall.net/?id=24 ] or from the National Institute for Literacy.
>(Send a request for the Adult Readiing Components Study (ARCS) Panel
>(free) DVD to: info at nifl.gov  Be sure to include your mailing
>address.)
>
>2. "What Silent Reading Tests Alone Can't Tell You", the precursor to
>the website that will be discussed.
>http://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=456
>
>3. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS) [PDF document] by John
>Strucker and Rosalind Davidson
>http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27   (ninth item down)
>
>4. How the ARCS Was Done
>http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/op_arcs.pdf
>
>5. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS)
>http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27#arcs
>
>
>David J. Rosen
>Special Topics discussion List Moderator
>djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
>-------------------------------
>National Institute for Literacy
>Special Topics mailing list
>SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
>http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



From davidsro at gse.harvard.edu  Tue May 30 10:16:32 2006
From: davidsro at gse.harvard.edu (rosalind davidson)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 10:16:32 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 69] Re: question
In-Reply-To: <f6de82568b345.4471f968@gmu.edu>
References: <f6de82568b345.4471f968@gmu.edu>
Message-ID: <76940682518E918434AAA16F@[192.168.1.103]>

Hi Barb,
You can find a list on the ARCS website of the specific tests we gave for 
the ARCS study.  http://www.nifl.gov/readingprofiles

John and I trained teachers to give the assessments at each of the 21 sites 
but, for privacy reasons, none of the examiners was assigned to test where 
they also taught.

You can read all about how we gave the ARCS in "How the ARCS Was Done" 
which can be downloaded as a pdf file from http://www.ncsall.net. Just type 
in the title on the search button on the home page.

Let us know if the above documents do not answer your specific questions.

Best,
Ros

--On Monday, May 22, 2006 5:48 PM -0400 bgiven at gmu.edu wrote:

> This may be a bit premature, but I'd like to know more about the specific
> assessment tools used for ARCS and what the training was for teachers who
> administered them. Or did a trained psychometrician conduct the
> assessments? Thanks, barb given
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics




From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue May 30 11:36:14 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 11:36:14 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 70] Re: ARCS question
Message-ID: <219A28DD-9EAE-4565-8509-43C2BFF640A5@comcast.net>

Posted for Rosalind Davidson by David J. Rosen:

From: rosalind davidson <davidsro at gse.harvard.edu>
Date: May 30, 2006 10:59:48 AM EDT
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: Re: [SpecialTopics 15]  ARCS question

Hi Gail,

I'm going to interface responses to your questions in upper case -

--On Tuesday, May 23, 2006 10:09 AM -0400 Gail Price  
<gprice at famlit.org> wrote:

> As an adult education instructor in both a lab setting and a  
> homogeneous
> (based on TABE scores) classroom setting, I am concerned with the
> application of the ARCS recommendations in these settings, so my
> questions may seem a little more specific than others that have been
> posted thus far.
>
> After doing initial assessments and using those figures in the  
> "Match a
> Profile" section, the profile could indicate that a student needs more
> instruction in phonemic awareness and/or phonological awareness. You
> recommend using the Test of Auditory Analysis Skills (TAAS) and the
> Woodcock Reading Mastery Test-Revised to do further evaluation in  
> these
> areas.
>

YOU CAN DOWNLOAD SYLVIA GREENE'S INFORMAL WORD ANALYSIS INVENTORY  
FROM THE ARCS WEBSITE. IT'S FREE AND WILL GIVE SIMILAR INFORMATION AS  
THE WOODCOCK.

> If, for whatever reason (cost, training, personnel), instructors do  
> not
> have accessibility to these assessments, but want to move ahead with
> their instruction, what materials or what instructional strategies  do
> you recommend they use to build students' phonemic awareness and
> phonological awareness skills?

YOU CAN VIEW THE DOCUMENT, "APPLYING RESEARCH IN READING INSTRUCTION  
FOR ADULTS", BY SUSAN MCSHANE AT:
www.nifl.gov/partnershipforreading/publications/html/mcshane/

OR GET A COPY OF THE BOOK FROM SUSAN

EVEN THOUGH MANY LEARNERS HAVE PHONOLOGICAL DIFFICULTIES AND ARE NOT  
FACILE IN ISOLATING SOUNDS (THE TASKS OF PHONEMIC PROCESSING), THE  
CONSCENSUS IN THE FIELD IS TO MOVE QUICKLY TO PHONICS BY ATTACHING  
THE SOUNDS TO THE LETTERS AND WORDS THEY REPRESENT.  IN JOHN'S AND MY  
ADULT READING LAB, WE ENCOURAGE THE TEACHERS TO SPEND JUST A COUPLE  
OF MINUTES AT THE BEGINNING OF EACH LESSON WORKING ORALLY,  
CONCENTRATING ON SOUNDS, E.G., RHYMES, LISTING NAMES OR WORDS THAT  
BEGIN, OR END WITH A PARTICULAR SOUND,  - ANY KIND OF GAME THAT GETS  
THE LEARNERS TUNED-IN TO THINKING ABOUT THE SOUNDS OF THE LANGUAGE  
BEFORE THEY DEAL WITH WRITTEN FORMS IN THE REMAINDER OF THE SESSION.

> Some instructors may feel they do not have time to administer each  
> of the
> assessments needed to provide scores for the "Match a Profile," but  
> think
> they can use one or two to assess their students' needs. Do you  
> subscribe
> to the "a little is better than none" idea? Which assessment(s) do you
> think would prove most advantageous, beyond the silent reading
> comprehension, to the greatest number of students??Word Recognition,
> Spelling, Word Meaning or Oral Reading Rate?

IF YOU ARE ONLY GOING TO ASSESS TWO SUB-SKILLS, TEST ISOLATED WORD  
RECOGNITION AND WORD MEANING.  THAT'S THE BARE BONES OF READING  
ABILITY. HOWEVER, TAKING TIME TO DO THE FULL MODEST ASSESSMENT ON  
"MATCH A PROFILE" WILL SAVE TIME IN PLANNING INDIVIDUAL OR CLASS  
INSTRUCTION.  ALTHOUGH HAVING A TEACHER ASSESS HER OWN STUDENTS IS  
BEST, VOLUNTEERS CAN ALSO ADMINISTER THESE TESTS - IF VOLUNTEERS  
RECORD RESPONSES, TEACHERS CAN EVALUATE A LEARNER'S PERFORMANCE  
OUTSIDE OF CLASS TIME.  OR, VOLUNTEERS CAN BE TRAINED IN A MORNING TO  
ADMINISTER AND SCORE THESE FEW ASSESSMENTS.

THANKS FOR WRITING - I HOPE MY REPONSE HAS BEEN HELPFUL

ROS D.






From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 30 11:34:28 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 11:34:28 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 71] Re: ESOL diagnostic testing
In-Reply-To: <9D909391CB025945BDA19A90B940A0B6020EDA50@ccbc-de.ccbc.ccbcmd.edu>
References: <9D909391CB025945BDA19A90B940A0B6020EDA50@ccbc-de.ccbc.ccbcmd.ed u>
Message-ID: <02D825AE7FFE591793EB2ADD@nichols303>

Hi Suzi,
	All students in ESOL classes, all non-native speakers of English in ABE 
classes, and all native speakers in ABE and ASE classes were assessed with 
the same battery of tests of English reading components. All of the English 
reading tests were designed to be used with adults and/or children, but not 
none were specifically normed on ESOL adults.  But that was OK with Ros and 
me, because we primarily wanted to know about their various reading 
profiles in English reading.  (As aside, my intuition tells me that it 
would be very difficult to norm an English reading test on all varieties of 
ESOL adults in such a way that would be useful to practitioners or even 
researchers.  That is, given the diversity of ESOL students' native 
languages and native language literacy skills - not to mention cultural 
attitudes surrounding literacy, life experiences, etc. - it might make more 
sense to develop norms within specific language groups, so you'd be only be 
comparing Spanish speakers to Spanish speakers, Haitian Creole to Haitian 
Creole, etc. I'd be interested in other peoples' thoughts on this.)
	Back to the ARCS, all native speakers of Spanish, whether they were in ABE 
or ESOL classes, were also tested with the Woodcock-Munoz battery, which 
has been extensively normed on Spanish speakers from young children through 
adults.
	As for your question about "cultural references/schema", I'm not sure 
exactly what you mean by that.  Maybe you could say more.  But remember, 
all we were doing with ARCS was testing people in reading - how they were 
reading English (and or Spanish as discussed above) at the moment we showed 
up at their program.  This was not a longitudinal study with pre and post 
measures where a number of other factors - including cultural factors - 
would indeed be expected to play a role in students' outcomes.  In our 
extensive background questionnaire we did ask people about their childhood 
educational experience, literacy in native language as well as English, 
reading habits, parents' levels of education, reasons for attending adult 
education, health, family status, etc.  We did this primarily to be able to 
talk about the wide diversity in the US ESOL population. And, wow, did we 
find diversity!

--On Friday, May 26, 2006 2:25 PM -0400 "Monti, Suzi" <SMonti at ccbcmd.edu> 
wrote:

>
> Hi,
>     I have been looking for an answer to the very solid ESOL-related
> questions raised by this post. Perhaps I have missed the response. I am
> especially interested in the question raised concerning whether the tests
> mentioned in the study were normed for a non-native speaking population
> (a validity/reliability issue). I am also interested in what impact lack
> of cultural reference/schema as well as other ESOL issues may have had on
> the results. Finally, of course there is the issue of a native/non-native
> speaker's natural approach/bent (whether they tend to be top-down or
> bottom-up in thinking) and what impact that may have on his/her approach
> to reading.
>
> Suzi Monti
>
> TESOL Instructor - Maryland Bible College and Seminary, International
> Institute of Linguistics
>
> ESOL Curriculum Developer, Instructional Specialist, and Intake
> Asssessment Specialist - Community College of Baltimore County, Center
> for Adult and Family Literacy
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Nicole Graves
> Sent: Wednesday May 24, 2006 9:06 PM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 32] ESOL diagnostic testing
>
>
>
> Hi John and Ros,
>
> I find the discussions most interesting.  Thank you!
>
> I teach adult ESOL.  Previously, I worked as a special education teacher
> and as a reading teacher (children).  Several of our learners are
> non-readers or struggling readers.  I'm currently teaching a beginning
> level ESOL group and an ESOL/literacy class.  We formed the Lit class
> based on needs of the students: high level speakers, non- or low-reading
> level, no or very low -level in writing.  What diagnostic tests would you
> suggest for this population in order to find strenghts and instructional
> needs?  Wouldn't tests normed on a population of native speakers be
> somewhat inaccurate for ESOL learners?  Depending on the native language,
> I can see that in certain cases some tests might work fairly well.  But
> what of others with different alphabets and different ways? Chinese
> learners do not sound out words.  Russians do not actually spell words,
> etc.
>
> Thanks again.
>
> Nicole B. Graves
> Teacher/ESOL Program Coordinator
> The Center for New Americans
> Amherst, Greenfield, Northampton, MA
>



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 30 11:40:14 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 11:40:14 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 72] Re: ARCS questions-Comprehension
In-Reply-To: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E23BF3E@secure.workbase.org.nz>
References: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E23BF3E@secure.workbase.org.nz>
Message-ID: <F3D8DBFAE58F8C17498C717F@nichols303>

Thank you, Susan, for your input.  I look forward to hearing more about 
your work in NZ.  The "reader roles" appear similar to Chall's Stages of 
Reading Development.
Best,
John

--On Sunday, May 28, 2006 10:17 AM +1200 Susan Reid <sreid at workbase.org.nz> 
wrote:

>
>
> Thank you for a very interesting discussion
> Just a comment to support what Amy is saying about comprehension
> strategies
> In New Zealand our teaching of reading has been influenced by Freebody
> and Liuke's four reader roles ( lately collapsed into 3 ) code breaker,
> meaning maker or participant, text user and text analyst - the roles are
> not linear - see
> http://www.alea.edu.au/freebody.htm
> http://www.alea.edu.au/docs/ludwig.pdf
> http://www.alea.edu.au/freebody.htm
> Certainly in the work I have done with lower level readers a number are
> already at some level of the text analyst stage even though they may not
> have the full range of codebreakling skills
> I presume that what you refer to on the website  is explicit teaching of
> a range of comprehension strategies
>
> At Workbase one of my colleagues Trisha Hanifin  who I know  is
> following this discussion led the development of a course on How to teach
> reading to adults. Trisha and another colleague Ginnie Denny deliver this
> course three times a year to a range of adult literacy tutors. As a
> result of feedback about what tutors want to learn about now  Trisha is
> currently working on a one day workshop on Comprehension Strategies to
> provide more depth to those covered in the Reading Course
>
> Regards
> Susan Reid
> Manager, Professional Development
> Workbase NZ Centre for Workforce Literacy Development
> www.workbase.org.nz
> also see New Zealand Literacy Portal
> www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz
>
>
>
> __________________________________________________
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of Amy Trawick
> Sent: Sat 27/05/2006 7:10 a.m.
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 59] ARCS questions-Comprehension
>
>
>
> Thank you, John and Ros for the wonderful resource of the ARCS website and
> for this opportunity to ask questions.  My questions have mainly to do
> with
> comprehension, and the quotes in my message come from the silent reading
> comprehension page of the mini-course.
>
> 1)  On the website, you say, "There are other subskills of reading
> comprehension that require knowledge of the structure of language
> (compound
> and complex sentences, paragraphs, stories and informational text), and
> the
> ability to interact with text (metacognition) by assuming some
> responsibility for understanding the author's message. Many ABE learners
> have to learn "how" to comprehend. Teachers address these issues through
> instruction in reading comprehension strategies."  Yet, I notice that you
> did not include assessments that measure *use of comprehension strategies*
> in the battery of assessments.  Could you please talk a little bit about
> your reasons for this?  In other words, were there logistical concerns or
> research-based/theoretical concerns--or both?
>
> 2) This statement appears on the website: "Explicit instruction in
> comprehension strategies should begin when a learner has acquired
> sufficient
> word recognition mastery, usually no sooner than low intermediate level,
> GE
> 3. Beginning readers are focused on word analysis and recognition within
> simple text that does not require strategies for understanding."  Whereas
> I
> agree for the most part with this statement, I think that, since we are
> working with adults, there might be a caveat here.  As adults, these
> readers
> often need to address real-life reading tasks (reading labels, filling out
> simple forms, paying bills) that, if they use some simple comprehension
> strategies (attending to text formatting/structure, scanning for key
> words,
> thinking about what they know), they can accomplish simple but important
> reading purposes with texts that are written above their reading level.
> I'm
> thinking here, for example, of reading to understand a utility bill.  A
> utility bill can be difficult to read from beginning to end, but if you
> just
> want to know how much you owe and when it's due, a low-level reader can
> read
> for that purpose--if they know some basic comprehension strategies and are
> able to integrate this with their alphabetics and vocabulary knowledge.
> Do
> you have any philosophical problem with incorporating comprehension
> strategies of this type into a curriculum for beginning readers, as long
> as
> due attention is also paid to building the underlying skills in
> alphabetics,
> fluency, and vocabulary?
>
> Thank you!
>
> Amy
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From miriam at cal.org  Tue May 30 11:23:22 2006
From: miriam at cal.org (Miriam Burt)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 11:23:22 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 73] Re: Explicitly assessing and teaching
	anunderstanding of English morphology
Message-ID: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8FF6A391@MAIL.cal.local>


I think Mina Reddy's question is very interesting and important for
those teaching adult English language learners. My teaching experience -
and that of others -  seems to indicate that an understanding of English
morphology should be taught to adult English language learners - even if
there isn't experimental research with this population to back that us.
Nation (2005, p. 592) discusses teaching word parts - suffixes,
prefixes, inflections for tenses -- as a "strategy [that] deserves
teaching time because of the large number of words it can be applied
to." And an experimental study of college level students (Qian, 1999) -
who had a vocabulary level of 3,000 words in English (more words than
many adult English language learners) suggested that teaching word parts
might help these students increase their English vocabulary and also
could be a strategy to improve their reading comprehension. But that was
all I could find.   So I asked Dr. Julie Mathews, research associate for
CAELA, to look at research on ELLs - whether K-12, adult or higher ed.
She found some research on younger ELLs, that I think is worthwhile
considering.  

Here's Julies  response:

"Here's what I've come up with after a pretty exhaustive search of the
academic databases.

I agree with Kathy Harris and Lynn Santelmann when they say that there
isn't a lot of research (if any) specifically addressing the question of
whether explicit teaching of morphology may affect text comprehension in
second language learners. I also agree with their broad overview of
research on English morpheme/morphology acquisition-some forms seem to
be acquired faster with instruction, others not. But to answer Mina
Reddy's question, I think that both her own experiences and the results
of two fairly recent studies are enough to say that some explicit
instruction in English morphology would not hurt, and might very well
contribute to ELLs' text comprehension. 

The studies I have in mind are Carlo, August, McLaughlin, Snow et al
(2004) and Tremblay & Morris (2002). In the first study, the researchers
found that 5th graders' academic vocabulary (and ultimately their
reading comprehension) could be enhanced by teaching the meanings of
academically useful words together with strategies for using, among
other things, morphological information about the words. The second
study, working with similarly aged students, found that weekly
interventions (over a 15-week period) in which students' attention was
drawn to particular morphological language points through a cloze test
(with the teacher first reading the text-repeating sentences on
request-and students trying to fill in the blanks, then discussing in
small groups to agree on the correct answers), resulted in dramatic
improvement in students' use of those forms. Tremblay & Morris point out
that it seems to be the case that students with appropriate linguistic
ability (not complete beginners) and cognitive levels (not very young
learners), can benefit from such explicit instruction. 

M.S. Carlo, D. August, B. McLaughlin, C.E. Snow, et al. (2004). Closing
the gap: Addressing the vocabulary needs of English language learners in
bilingual and mainstream classrooms. Reading Research Quarterly, 39(2),
188-215.

Tremblay, M., Morris, L. (2002). The impact of attending to unstressed
words on the acquisition of written grammatical morphology by French
speaking ESL students. The Canadian Modern Language Review. 58(3)
364-385."

Nation, I. M. P. (2005). Teaching and learning vocabulary. In E. Hinkel
(Ed.), Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning
(pp. 581-595). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Qian, D. D. (1999). Assessing the roles of depth and breadth of
vocabulary knowledge in reading comprehension. The Canadian Modern
Language Journal, 56, 262-305. 
Miriam
*****
Miriam Burt
Center for Applied Linguistics
4646 40th Street NW
Washington, DC 20016
(202) 362-0700
(202) 363-7204 (fax)
miriam at cal.org 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Thursday, May 25, 2006 8:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 45] Explicitly assessing and teaching
anunderstanding of English morphology

Mina Reddy  wrote:

"...Specifically for second language learners, how important or useful
is it to explicitly assess and teach an understanding of English
morphology? How much does an understanding of English morphology
influence their comprehension of text?  I am curious about this because
of my personal experience reading in languages in which my vocabulary is
limited.  I find that an understanding of the structure of the language
helps me to derive at least a basic meaning from the text even when I do
not understand many of the words."

John Strucker answered:

"Mina, I think you are right about this last point, but I don't know of
much ESOL research that focuses on this.  NCSALL's Steve Reder would be
a good person to ask about this.  However, I think ELL research has
looked at this from time to time, and that research supports your
position.  As an aside, in general, I think those of us in ABE/ESOL can
probably learn a lot by looking more at ELL research."

I (David Rosen) asked Steve Reder to reply, and he turned to his
colleagues at Portland State University's Department of Applied
Linguistics, Kathy Harris and Lynn Santelmann. They asked that we post
this reply:

"There isn't a lot of research directed at this specific question,  
but the research that exists points to a couple of conclusions.   
First, student acquisition of some kinds of morphemes (e.g. plural and
3rd person -s) can be promoted with instruction.  However,  
instruction of other forms (e.g. -ing) can promote overproduction.   
Also, other types of English morphology aren't easily acquired through
instruction (e.g. articles such as the and a).  Generally, the order in
which English morphology is learned isn't altered by instruction, but
some aspects may be acquired more quickly through instruction.
Instruction may help students to "notice" new forms so that when the new
forms become salient (through error correction or negotiation for
example), learners have knowledge of the new form to apply."

Kathy Harris & Lynn Santelmann
Department of Applied Linguistics & the NCSALL Adult ESOL Lab School
Portland State University


David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
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From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 30 12:03:26 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 12:03:26 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 74] Re: ARCS questions-Comprehension
In-Reply-To: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E0AA812@secure.workbase.org.nz>
References: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E0AA812@secure.workbase.org.nz>
Message-ID: <5FE6E8F767FC6BE04CE93D49@nichols303>

Trisha, I have a comment below the second paragraph of your message.

--On Monday, May 29, 2006 10:26 AM +1200 Trisha Hanifin 
<phanifin at workbase.org.nz> wrote:

>
>
> Further to Susan's comments and other comments about teaching
> comprehension: there's an old saying I'm aware of about adult literacy
> learners (not sure where it came from originally but it might be from
> Jane Mace) that an adult beginning reader is not (necessarily) a
> beginning thinker.
>
>
>
> Freebody and Luke's roles acknowledge this as do other perspectives on
> the importance of developing and using critical thinking and critical
> reading skills and strategies with adults even when code-breaking skills
> might be weak.  This is not to suggest that working at word level with
> learners isn't crucial but I can't see that it's useful for an adult
> learner to wait until they can decode entirely independently before they
> use and extend their range of comprehension strategies.

	I agree that critical thinking is important for adult beginners.  In 
addition to working on this through oral discussion, at the Harvard Adult 
Lab we like to have them read poetry.  Short poems by Langston Hughes, 
William Carlos Williams, or Lucille Clifton, for just a few examples, do 
not impose much of decoding burden, but they certainly call for critical 
thinking and discussion.  Poetry can also help to make the adult beginner 
feel less "infantilized" and helpless in the face of print.  Poetry puts 
the teacher and the adult student on a somewhat more equal footing - just 
two adults talking about layers of meaning, discussion of mood, etc.  Often 
there aren't "right" answers.
	In addition, poetry also lends itself to re-reading  as part of the 
interpretive process, so it can provide an meaningful context for adult 
beginners to work on their reading fluency.
	For all this, we also remind our graduate students that critical thinking 
(or comprehension in general) doesn't trump the need to teach the code to 
beginners - and the best way to do that is directly, systematically, and 
sequentially - with plenty of interaction and feedback.

>
>
> I'm also interested in whether people think there are overlaps -- in
> terms of teaching comprehension strategies to adults-- between listening
> comprehension and reading comprehension?
>
>
>
> Enjoying the discussion very much. Thank-you.
>
>
>
> Trisha Hanifin
>
>
>
> Professional Development Coordinator
>
> Workbase NZ Centre for Workforce Literacy Development
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Susan Reid
> Sent: Sunday, 28 May 2006 10:18 a.m.
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov; specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 61] Re: ARCS questions-Comprehension
>
>
>
>
> Thank you for a very interesting discussion
>
> Just a comment to support what Amy is saying about comprehension
> strategies
>
> In New Zealand our teaching of reading has been influenced by Freebody
> and Liuke's four reader roles ( lately collapsed into 3 ) code breaker,
> meaning maker or participant, text user and text analyst - the roles are
> not linear - see
>
> http://www.alea.edu.au/freebody.htm
>
> http://www.alea.edu.au/docs/ludwig.pdf
>
> http://www.alea.edu.au/freebody.htm
>
> Certainly in the work I have done with lower level readers a number are
> already at some level of the text analyst stage even though they may not
> have the full range of codebreakling skills
>
> I presume that what you refer to on the website  is explicit teaching of
> a range of comprehension strategies
>
>
>
> At Workbase one of my colleagues Trisha Hanifin  who I know  is
> following this discussion led the development of a course on How to teach
> reading to adults. Trisha and another colleague Ginnie Denny deliver this
> course three times a year to a range of adult literacy tutors. As a
> result of feedback about what tutors want to learn about now  Trisha is
> currently working on a one day workshop on Comprehension Strategies to
> provide more depth to those covered in the Reading Course
>
>
>
> Regards
>
> Susan Reid
>
> Manager, Professional Development
>
> Workbase NZ Centre for Workforce Literacy Development
>
> www.workbase.org.nz
>
> also see New Zealand Literacy Portal
>
> www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz
>
>
>
>
>
> __________________________________________________
>
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of Amy Trawick
> Sent: Sat 27/05/2006 7:10 a.m.
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 59] ARCS questions-Comprehension
>
> Thank you, John and Ros for the wonderful resource of the ARCS website and
> for this opportunity to ask questions.  My questions have mainly to do
> with
> comprehension, and the quotes in my message come from the silent reading
> comprehension page of the mini-course.
>
> 1)  On the website, you say, "There are other subskills of reading
> comprehension that require knowledge of the structure of language
> (compound
> and complex sentences, paragraphs, stories and informational text), and
> the
> ability to interact with text (metacognition) by assuming some
> responsibility for understanding the author's message. Many ABE learners
> have to learn "how" to comprehend. Teachers address these issues through
> instruction in reading comprehension strategies."  Yet, I notice that you
> did not include assessments that measure *use of comprehension strategies*
> in the battery of assessments.  Could you please talk a little bit about
> your reasons for this?  In other words, were there logistical concerns or
> research-based/theoretical concerns--or both?
>
> 2) This statement appears on the website: "Explicit instruction in
> comprehension strategies should begin when a learner has acquired
> sufficient
> word recognition mastery, usually no sooner than low intermediate level,
> GE
> 3. Beginning readers are focused on word analysis and recognition within
> simple text that does not require strategies for understanding."  Whereas
> I
> agree for the most part with this statement, I think that, since we are
> working with adults, there might be a caveat here.  As adults, these
> readers
> often need to address real-life reading tasks (reading labels, filling out
> simple forms, paying bills) that, if they use some simple comprehension
> strategies (attending to text formatting/structure, scanning for key
> words,
> thinking about what they know), they can accomplish simple but important
> reading purposes with texts that are written above their reading level.
> I'm
> thinking here, for example, of reading to understand a utility bill.  A
> utility bill can be difficult to read from beginning to end, but if you
> just
> want to know how much you owe and when it's due, a low-level reader can
> read
> for that purpose--if they know some basic comprehension strategies and are
> able to integrate this with their alphabetics and vocabulary knowledge.
> Do
> you have any philosophical problem with incorporating comprehension
> strategies of this type into a curriculum for beginning readers, as long
> as
> due attention is also paid to building the underlying skills in
> alphabetics,
> fluency, and vocabulary?
>
> Thank you!
>
> Amy
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 30 12:08:57 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 12:08:57 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 75] Re: Oral reading rate tests
In-Reply-To: <F7DB4270-8BDF-45F2-96CC-F34832F55A15@earthlink.net>
References: <F7DB4270-8BDF-45F2-96CC-F34832F55A15@earthlink.net>
Message-ID: <6A6DD34C68F45B083C55F3DD@nichols303>

Hi Sarae,
Ros will probably have a more detailed response to your question about 
graded oral reading passages.  But here's my 2-cents' worth.  Most of the 
independent reading inventories (some of which are available on the web) 
have graded passages that accurate enough for this purpose.  You could also 
use short selections from a graded adult series like <Challenger>.
Best,
John

--On Sunday, May 28, 2006 10:38 AM -0500 Sarae Mathews 
<mathewssb at earthlink.net> wrote:

> I'm enjoying this dialogue very much. Next week, I start as a new ABE
> instructor at a community college in north Florida. I would like to
> use the interactive profile on the website. Between results from
> students' TABE and the sample QARI word recognition test and WMT on
> the website, I'll have all the requisite components except an oral
> reading rate test. Does anyone have a set of graded passages they can
> share electronically? Thanks, it would sure help.
>
> Sunny Mathews, Ed.D.
> FCCJ-South
> Jacksonville, FL
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 30 12:11:49 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 12:11:49 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 76] Re: Explicitly assessing and
 teaching	anunderstanding of English morphology
In-Reply-To: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8FF6A391@MAIL.cal.local>
References: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8FF6A391@MAIL.cal.local>
Message-ID: <FF416D30386180A505A29C44@nichols303>

Hi Miriam,
Thank you and the ESOL experts for wading in on this!  A very interesting 
thread.  And, a special thanks to your colleague Julie Matthews!
Best,
John

--On Tuesday, May 30, 2006 11:23 AM -0400 Miriam Burt <miriam at cal.org> 
wrote:

>
>
> I think Mina Reddy's question is very interesting and important for those
> teaching adult English language learners. My teaching experience - and
> that of others -  seems to indicate that an understanding of English
> morphology should be taught to adult English language learners - even if
> there isn't experimental research with this population to back that us.
> Nation (2005, p. 592) discusses teaching word parts - suffixes, prefixes,
> inflections for tenses -- as a "strategy [that] deserves teaching time
> because of the large number of words it can be applied to." And an
> experimental study of college level students (Qian, 1999) - who had a
> vocabulary level of 3,000 words in English (more words than many adult
> English language learners) suggested that teaching word parts might help
> these students increase their English vocabulary and also could be a
> strategy to improve their reading comprehension. But that was all I could
> find.   So I asked Dr. Julie Mathews, research associate for CAELA, to
> look at research on ELLs - whether K-12, adult or higher ed. She found
> some research on younger ELLs, that I think is worthwhile considering.
>
> Here's Julies  response:
>
> "Here's what I've come up with after a pretty exhaustive search of the
> academic databases.
>
> I agree with Kathy Harris and Lynn Santelmann when they say that there
> isn't a lot of research (if any) specifically addressing the question of
> whether explicit teaching of morphology may affect text comprehension in
> second language learners. I also agree with their broad overview of
> research on English morpheme/morphology acquisition--some forms seem to
> be acquired faster with instruction, others not. But to answer Mina
> Reddy's question, I think that both her own experiences and the results
> of two fairly recent studies are enough to say that some explicit
> instruction in English morphology would not hurt, and might very well
> contribute to ELLs' text comprehension.
>
> The studies I have in mind are Carlo, August, McLaughlin, Snow et al
> (2004) and Tremblay & Morris (2002). In the first study, the researchers
> found that 5th graders' academic vocabulary (and ultimately their reading
> comprehension) could be enhanced by teaching the meanings of academically
> useful words together with strategies for using, among other things,
> morphological information about the words. The second study, working with
> similarly aged students, found that weekly interventions (over a 15-week
> period) in which students' attention was drawn to particular
> morphological language points through a cloze test (with the teacher
> first reading the text--repeating sentences on request--and students
> trying to fill in the blanks, then discussing in small groups to agree on
> the correct answers), resulted in dramatic improvement in students' use
> of those forms. Tremblay & Morris point out that it seems to be the case
> that students with appropriate linguistic ability (not complete
> beginners) and cognitive levels (not very young learners), can benefit
> from such explicit instruction.
>
> M.S. Carlo, D. August, B. McLaughlin, C.E. Snow, et al. (2004). Closing
> the gap: Addressing the vocabulary needs of English language learners in
> bilingual and mainstream classrooms. Reading Research Quarterly, 39(2),
> 188-215.
>
> Tremblay, M., Morris, L. (2002). The impact of attending to unstressed
> words on the acquisition of written grammatical morphology by French
> speaking ESL students. The Canadian Modern Language Review. 58(3)
> 364-385."
>
> Nation, I. M. P. (2005). Teaching and learning vocabulary. In E. Hinkel
> (Ed.), Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning (pp.
> 581--595). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
>
> Qian, D. D. (1999). Assessing the roles of depth and breadth of
> vocabulary knowledge in reading comprehension. The Canadian Modern
> Language Journal, 56, 262--305.
>
> Miriam
> *****
> Miriam Burt
> Center for Applied Linguistics
> 4646 40th Street NW
> Washington, DC 20016
> (202) 362-0700
> (202) 363-7204 (fax)
> miriam at cal.org
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
> Sent: Thursday, May 25, 2006 8:38 PM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 45] Explicitly assessing and teaching
> anunderstanding of English morphology
>
> Mina Reddy  wrote:
>
> "...Specifically for second language learners, how important or useful is
> it to explicitly assess and teach an understanding of English morphology?
> How much does an understanding of English morphology influence their
> comprehension of text?  I am curious about this because of my personal
> experience reading in languages in which my vocabulary is limited.  I
> find that an understanding of the structure of the language helps me to
> derive at least a basic meaning from the text even when I do not
> understand many of the words."
>
> John Strucker answered:
>
> "Mina, I think you are right about this last point, but I don't know of
> much ESOL research that focuses on this.  NCSALL's Steve Reder would be a
> good person to ask about this.  However, I think ELL research has looked
> at this from time to time, and that research supports your position.  As
> an aside, in general, I think those of us in ABE/ESOL can probably learn
> a lot by looking more at ELL research."
>
> I (David Rosen) asked Steve Reder to reply, and he turned to his
> colleagues at Portland State University's Department of Applied
> Linguistics, Kathy Harris and Lynn Santelmann. They asked that we post
> this reply:
>
> "There isn't a lot of research directed at this specific question,
> but the research that exists points to a couple of conclusions.
> First, student acquisition of some kinds of morphemes (e.g. plural and
> 3rd person -s) can be promoted with instruction.  However,
>
> instruction of other forms (e.g. -ing) can promote overproduction.
> Also, other types of English morphology aren't easily acquired through
> instruction (e.g. articles such as the and a).  Generally, the order in
> which English morphology is learned isn't altered by instruction, but
> some aspects may be acquired more quickly through instruction.
> Instruction may help students to "notice" new forms so that when the new
> forms become salient (through error correction or negotiation for
> example), learners have knowledge of the new form to apply."
>
> Kathy Harris & Lynn Santelmann
> Department of Applied Linguistics & the NCSALL Adult ESOL Lab School
> Portland State University
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From SMonti at ccbcmd.edu  Tue May 30 14:34:19 2006
From: SMonti at ccbcmd.edu (Monti, Suzi)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 14:34:19 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 77] Re: ESOL diagnostic testing
Message-ID: <9D909391CB025945BDA19A90B940A0B6020EDA57@ccbc-de.ccbc.ccbcmd.edu>

John,
	Thanks for your reply. The reason the question of validity/reliability is raised when using tests not designed for an ESOL population is one is never really sure the test is testing what it is intended to test. When standardized tests are specifically designed for ESOL (meaning a multi-lingual and multi-cultural audience) additional thought is given to the text with respect to things like what schema a reader must bring to the text as well as the linguistic demands of the texts. A lack of familiarity with typical western style test format and item type is a consideration. In addition, simple things like phrasal verbs that would not usually impede understanding in a native speaker cause great problems a majority of ESOL learners. Different discourse patterns are also a consideration in interpreting text. Unless a test is designed with ESOL learners in mind the results are questionable.   
	In ESOL we also recognize that language and culture are intertwined. ESOL learners are learning/using the language without having been brought up in the culture and having had access to the norms of use(such as appropriacy, denotation/connotation, etc.) or the shared common knowledge needed to interpret many texts. An author writes knowing what background knowledge the intended reader has in place to draw upon in interpreting the text and therefore does not elaborate or feel the need to make explicit what are considered the "givens" (things that everybody knows). When writing text for ESOL in general, and for testing in particular, care has to be given that the text is not testing the lack of the shared common knowledge rather than what it is intended to test. For example, something as simple as a practice of keeping dogs/cats as house pets or even giving pets a name is common knowledge here but is not a practice in many countries. Barbie may be referring to a doll not an actual person.  
	The final question I had related to learning styles of all individuals. What impact would some learner's natural bent toward being a top-down or bottom-up processor/thinker have on the attention he/she gives to the various components of reading? And what impact would an approach at variance with a learner's style have on his/her learning? For example a global thinker who is always looking for the big picture and meaning being put in a phonics program that uses bits and pieces without context. 
Suzi Monti

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of john strucker
Sent: Tuesday May 30, 2006 11:34 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 71] Re: ESOL diagnostic testing


Hi Suzi,
	All students in ESOL classes, all non-native speakers of English in ABE 
classes, and all native speakers in ABE and ASE classes were assessed with 
the same battery of tests of English reading components. All of the English 
reading tests were designed to be used with adults and/or children, but not 
none were specifically normed on ESOL adults.  But that was OK with Ros and 
me, because we primarily wanted to know about their various reading 
profiles in English reading.  (As aside, my intuition tells me that it 
would be very difficult to norm an English reading test on all varieties of 
ESOL adults in such a way that would be useful to practitioners or even 
researchers.  That is, given the diversity of ESOL students' native 
languages and native language literacy skills - not to mention cultural 
attitudes surrounding literacy, life experiences, etc. - it might make more 
sense to develop norms within specific language groups, so you'd be only be 
comparing Spanish speakers to Spanish speakers, Haitian Creole to Haitian 
Creole, etc. I'd be interested in other peoples' thoughts on this.)
	Back to the ARCS, all native speakers of Spanish, whether they were in ABE 
or ESOL classes, were also tested with the Woodcock-Munoz battery, which 
has been extensively normed on Spanish speakers from young children through 
adults.
	As for your question about "cultural references/schema", I'm not sure 
exactly what you mean by that.  Maybe you could say more.  But remember, 
all we were doing with ARCS was testing people in reading - how they were 
reading English (and or Spanish as discussed above) at the moment we showed 
up at their program.  This was not a longitudinal study with pre and post 
measures where a number of other factors - including cultural factors - 
would indeed be expected to play a role in students' outcomes.  In our 
extensive background questionnaire we did ask people about their childhood 
educational experience, literacy in native language as well as English, 
reading habits, parents' levels of education, reasons for attending adult 
education, health, family status, etc.  We did this primarily to be able to 
talk about the wide diversity in the US ESOL population. And, wow, did we 
find diversity!

--On Friday, May 26, 2006 2:25 PM -0400 "Monti, Suzi" <SMonti at ccbcmd.edu> 
wrote:

>
> Hi,
>     I have been looking for an answer to the very solid ESOL-related
> questions raised by this post. Perhaps I have missed the response. I am
> especially interested in the question raised concerning whether the tests
> mentioned in the study were normed for a non-native speaking population
> (a validity/reliability issue). I am also interested in what impact lack
> of cultural reference/schema as well as other ESOL issues may have had on
> the results. Finally, of course there is the issue of a native/non-native
> speaker's natural approach/bent (whether they tend to be top-down or
> bottom-up in thinking) and what impact that may have on his/her approach
> to reading.
>
> Suzi Monti
>
> TESOL Instructor - Maryland Bible College and Seminary, International
> Institute of Linguistics
>
> ESOL Curriculum Developer, Instructional Specialist, and Intake
> Asssessment Specialist - Community College of Baltimore County, Center
> for Adult and Family Literacy
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Nicole Graves
> Sent: Wednesday May 24, 2006 9:06 PM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 32] ESOL diagnostic testing
>
>
>
> Hi John and Ros,
>
> I find the discussions most interesting.  Thank you!
>
> I teach adult ESOL.  Previously, I worked as a special education teacher
> and as a reading teacher (children).  Several of our learners are
> non-readers or struggling readers.  I'm currently teaching a beginning
> level ESOL group and an ESOL/literacy class.  We formed the Lit class
> based on needs of the students: high level speakers, non- or low-reading
> level, no or very low -level in writing.  What diagnostic tests would you
> suggest for this population in order to find strenghts and instructional
> needs?  Wouldn't tests normed on a population of native speakers be
> somewhat inaccurate for ESOL learners?  Depending on the native language,
> I can see that in certain cases some tests might work fairly well.  But
> what of others with different alphabets and different ways? Chinese
> learners do not sound out words.  Russians do not actually spell words,
> etc.
>
> Thanks again.
>
> Nicole B. Graves
> Teacher/ESOL Program Coordinator
> The Center for New Americans
> Amherst, Greenfield, Northampton, MA
>



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue May 30 15:45:13 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 15:45:13 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 78] Re: ESOL diagnostic testing
In-Reply-To: <9D909391CB025945BDA19A90B940A0B6020EDA57@ccbc-de.ccbc.ccbcmd.edu>
References: <9D909391CB025945BDA19A90B940A0B6020EDA57@ccbc-de.ccbc.ccbcmd.ed u>
Message-ID: <A70EC983753AAA52AF8D700B@nichols303>

Hi Suzi,
	I've entered my responses in your text below.

--On Tuesday, May 30, 2006 2:34 PM -0400 "Monti, Suzi" <SMonti at ccbcmd.edu> 
wrote:

> John,
> 	Thanks for your reply. The reason the question of validity/reliability
> is raised when using tests not designed for an ESOL population is one is
> never really sure the test is testing what it is intended to test. When
> standardized tests are specifically designed for ESOL (meaning a
> multi-lingual and multi-cultural audience) additional thought is given to
> the text with respect to things like what schema a reader must bring to
> the text as well as the linguistic demands of the texts. A lack of
> familiarity with typical western style test format and item type is a
> consideration. In addition, simple things like phrasal verbs that would
> not usually impede understanding in a native speaker cause great problems
> a majority of ESOL learners. Different discourse patterns are also a
> consideration in interpreting text. Unless a test is designed with ESOL
> learners in mind the results are questionable.    	In ESOL we also
> recognize that language and culture are intertwined. ESOL learners are
> learning/using the language without having been brought up in the culture
> and having had access to the norms of use(such as appropriacy,
> denotation/connotation, etc.) or the shared common knowledge needed to
> interpret many texts. An author writes knowing what background knowledge
> the intended reader has in place to draw upon in interpreting the text
> and therefore does not elaborate or feel the need to make explicit what
> are considered the "givens" (things that everybody knows). When writing
> text for ESOL in general, and for testing in particular, care has to be
> given that the text is not testing the lack of the shared common
> knowledge rather than what it is intended to test. For example, something
> as simple as a practice of keeping dogs/cats as house pets or even giving
> pets a name is common knowledge here but is not a practice in many
> countries. Barbie may be referring to a doll not an ac  tual person.

My take on your paragraph above is that you have given lots of examples of 
why any ELL (or any of us for that matter when learning a foreign language) 
might not read that language as well as one reads one's native language.  I 
completely agree with all of the examples you've given. They add up to a 
list of things that might impeded the comprehension of any foreign language 
learner. But, again, remember that our goal in the ARCS was to come up with 
a a sense of how well people do on the various components of English 
reading.  The print components (word recognition, oral reading) were 
actually scored so that ESOL students' accent features were not marked as 
mistakes.  We were testing reading, not whether ESOL students speak like a 
TV broadcaster.  We certainly do not mean to imply that ABE and ESOL 
teachers should ignore any of the impediments to comprehension that you 
listed when they plan lessons or reflect on their students' difficulties. 
However, as far as comprehension tests go, to avoid some of those 
comprehension glitches you refer to, you'd have to create some pretty 
unnatural text, text that had been cleansed of any of these glitches.  But 
having done that, what would you have found out about their ability to use 
literacy in the real world?
> 	The final question I had related to learning styles of all individuals.
> What impact would some learner's natural bent toward being a top-down or
> bottom-up processor/thinker have on the attention he/she gives to the
> various components of reading? And what impact would an approach at
> variance with a learner's style have on his/her learning? For example a
> global thinker who is always looking for the big picture and meaning
> being put in a phonics program that uses bits and pieces without context.

With regard to learning styles, remember we weren't trying to <teach> them 
anything, just test them.   The research on learning styles and reading 
even among native speaking children is pretty inconclusive.  So far most of 
the evidence for kids in early reading (and there isn't much research on 
adults) favors direct, systematic, and sequential instruction in 
alphabetics and direct instruction in vocabulary.  Here's a question: if a 
bunch of us were to move to Poland, wouldn't 95% of us prefer to have 
someone teach us the Polish sound/symbol correspondences as quickly and 
directly as possible, rather than having to intuit them on our own from the 
context of Polish reading and Polish conversation?

Finally, no recognized phonics program that I know of uses "bits and 
pieces" of phonics.  All are sequential and systematic, based on optimal 
sequences for learning English sounds and symbols.  And, no phonics program 
that I know of recommends that there be no reading of connected text. 
Phonics knowledge won't stick unless people have the opportunity to use 
that knowledge to read actual text.

> Suzi Monti
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of john strucker
> Sent: Tuesday May 30, 2006 11:34 AM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 71] Re: ESOL diagnostic testing
>
>
> Hi Suzi,
> 	All students in ESOL classes, all non-native speakers of English in ABE
> classes, and all native speakers in ABE and ASE classes were assessed
> with  the same battery of tests of English reading components. All of the
> English  reading tests were designed to be used with adults and/or
> children, but not  none were specifically normed on ESOL adults.  But
> that was OK with Ros and  me, because we primarily wanted to know about
> their various reading  profiles in English reading.  (As aside, my
> intuition tells me that it  would be very difficult to norm an English
> reading test on all varieties of  ESOL adults in such a way that would be
> useful to practitioners or even  researchers.  That is, given the
> diversity of ESOL students' native  languages and native language
> literacy skills - not to mention cultural  attitudes surrounding
> literacy, life experiences, etc. - it might make more  sense to develop
> norms within specific language groups, so you'd be only be  comparing
> Spanish speakers to Spanish speakers, Haitian Creole to Haitian  Creole,
> etc. I'd be interested in other peoples' thoughts on this.) 	Back to the
> ARCS, all native speakers of Spanish, whether they were in ABE  or ESOL
> classes, were also tested with the Woodcock-Munoz battery, which  has
> been extensively normed on Spanish speakers from young children through
> adults.
> 	As for your question about "cultural references/schema", I'm not sure
> exactly what you mean by that.  Maybe you could say more.  But remember,
> all we were doing with ARCS was testing people in reading - how they were
> reading English (and or Spanish as discussed above) at the moment we
> showed  up at their program.  This was not a longitudinal study with pre
> and post  measures where a number of other factors - including cultural
> factors -  would indeed be expected to play a role in students' outcomes.
> In our  extensive background questionnaire we did ask people about their
> childhood  educational experience, literacy in native language as well as
> English,  reading habits, parents' levels of education, reasons for
> attending adult  education, health, family status, etc.  We did this
> primarily to be able to  talk about the wide diversity in the US ESOL
> population. And, wow, did we  find diversity!
>
> --On Friday, May 26, 2006 2:25 PM -0400 "Monti, Suzi" <SMonti at ccbcmd.edu>
> wrote:
>
>>
>> Hi,
>>     I have been looking for an answer to the very solid ESOL-related
>> questions raised by this post. Perhaps I have missed the response. I am
>> especially interested in the question raised concerning whether the tests
>> mentioned in the study were normed for a non-native speaking population
>> (a validity/reliability issue). I am also interested in what impact lack
>> of cultural reference/schema as well as other ESOL issues may have had on
>> the results. Finally, of course there is the issue of a native/non-native
>> speaker's natural approach/bent (whether they tend to be top-down or
>> bottom-up in thinking) and what impact that may have on his/her approach
>> to reading.
>>
>> Suzi Monti
>>
>> TESOL Instructor - Maryland Bible College and Seminary, International
>> Institute of Linguistics
>>
>> ESOL Curriculum Developer, Instructional Specialist, and Intake
>> Asssessment Specialist - Community College of Baltimore County, Center
>> for Adult and Family Literacy
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
>> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Nicole Graves
>> Sent: Wednesday May 24, 2006 9:06 PM
>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 32] ESOL diagnostic testing
>>
>>
>>
>> Hi John and Ros,
>>
>> I find the discussions most interesting.  Thank you!
>>
>> I teach adult ESOL.  Previously, I worked as a special education teacher
>> and as a reading teacher (children).  Several of our learners are
>> non-readers or struggling readers.  I'm currently teaching a beginning
>> level ESOL group and an ESOL/literacy class.  We formed the Lit class
>> based on needs of the students: high level speakers, non- or low-reading
>> level, no or very low -level in writing.  What diagnostic tests would you
>> suggest for this population in order to find strenghts and instructional
>> needs?  Wouldn't tests normed on a population of native speakers be
>> somewhat inaccurate for ESOL learners?  Depending on the native language,
>> I can see that in certain cases some tests might work fairly well.  But
>> what of others with different alphabets and different ways? Chinese
>> learners do not sound out words.  Russians do not actually spell words,
>> etc.
>>
>> Thanks again.
>>
>> Nicole B. Graves
>> Teacher/ESOL Program Coordinator
>> The Center for New Americans
>> Amherst, Greenfield, Northampton, MA
>>
>
>
>
> John Strucker, EdD
> Nichols House 303
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge, MA 02138
>
> 617 495 4745
> 617 495 4811 (fax)
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> -------------------------------
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> Special Topics mailing list
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> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From MF at ldaminnesota.org  Tue May 30 16:38:29 2006
From: MF at ldaminnesota.org (Marn Frank)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 15:38:29 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 79] Re: professional development using the
	ARCSwebsite
Message-ID: <535FCFA131E9E4458CD9E1CF0C339E322BE59D@ldasbs.LDALEARNING.local>

This is a belated reply to the request for professional development ideas using the ARCS website. I am in the process of developing a study circle/training called "Using Informal Reading Assessments" for Minnesota ABE. My co-presenter and I shared handouts and informal assessments downloaded and printed from the ARCS website. We wanted to give participants a hands-on experience with informal reading assessments they could begin using immediately. It was received well and seemed to be "convincing" that other assessments besides those just measuring silent reading comprehension were worth their time and effort. 

This is our outline:

	1. Refer participants to the ARCS handout COMPONENTS? READING PROFILES? WHAT ARE THEY? 	2. Do a quick review of the components and other words or phrases that are used in the 	reading instruction world (alphabetics, decoding, word analysis, encoding, etc.) 
	3. Share word recognition and/or spelling assessments available from the ARCS website: 	Sylvia Greene's Informal Word Analysis Inventory and the Quick Adult Reading 	Inventory (QARI).
	4. Provide an opportunity for participants to pair up, administer, and score one of 	the above. 	We found from piloting this study circle that a "script" from a real 	assessment might work better because participants (ABE teachers) were struggling with 	mimicking adult reading difficulties.
	5. Share Read Naturally and pre-GED/GED passages for cold and hot fluency timings. 	Again, we found that an audio-tape of a real learner reading aloud would be a better 	simulated experience for measuring oral reading rate.
	6. Share the Word Meaning Test from the ARCS and provide an opportunity to administer 	one or two levels to determine a word meaning grade level.

I feel the ARCS has been a remarkable resource (as has this discussion list!) for my work in Minnesota ABE staff development. I use it extensively for the above and also in facilitating practitioner reading research (as developed by NCSALL). Thank You!

Margaret (Marn) Frank
LD Specialist
LDA of Minnesota

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Thursday, May 25, 2006 4:30 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 42] Re: professional development using the
ARCSwebsite [bcc]


Thanks, Jane.  I wonder if anyone else in this discussion has used  
the ARCS Web site and/or a study circle model using the ARCS Web site  
or other ARCS materials.  If so, please tell us about your experience.

Also, if anyone has questions for Jane or Ros about the use of the  
ARCS Web site, please ask them now.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net

On May 25, 2006, at 2:06 PM, Jane Meyer wrote:

> David suggested that I tell a bit about how we used the ARCS  
> website for
> professional development in our ABE program in Canton, Ohio.  First I
> explored the website myself and then, at a staff meeting, I told the
> teachers about the site highlighting some  features that I thought  
> might
> be of particular interest to them.  I offered to pay them if they  
> wanted
> to explore the website for a professional development activity.  I  
> set a
> meeting date about a month away for those who had explored the website
> to discuss what they had found and how it could be useful to them as
> well as ask any questions.  The teachers loved using the website for
> professional development because it was so convenient and the format
> worked great for us because I had staff with various levels of  
> knowledge
> about reading.  The website allowed those who needed basic information
> to get it without holding those back who had more knowledge and were
> ready to go deeper.  It has been a while, but I remember the  
> discussion
> about the site being quite rich.
> Jane Meyer
> Canton City Schools
> Canton, Ohio
> meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to  
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

David Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
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From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue May 30 17:19:06 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 17:19:06 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 80]  Welcome, recent subscribers
Message-ID: <A6FC933D-34FE-4F77-A14B-5351BEE53B13@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

A few people have recently subscribed to the special topics list.   
Welcome. The discussion about the Adult Reading Components Study  
began last Tuesday and will be ending this week.  Tomorrow,  
Wednesday, is the last day to post questions to our guests, Dr.  
Rosalind Davidson and Dr. John Strucker.  If you would like to "catch  
up" you can read all the messages posted so far at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From cnaamh at rcn.com  Tue May 30 20:50:55 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 20:50:55 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 81] Re: ESOL diagnostic testing
References: <9D909391CB025945BDA19A90B940A0B6020EDA50@ccbc-de.ccbc.ccbcmd.ed
	u> <02D825AE7FFE591793EB2ADD@nichols303>
Message-ID: <015501c6844f$b91fa720$3cd8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>

Thanks John and Ros.

Of course I understand the difficulty about norming tests for ESOL learners
given all the various differences.  However I still think that tests for
English speakers may contain cultural biases or items that students from
other cultures cannot "get".  I agree with Suzi that students come with a
variety of ideas about reading and learning that may be culturally-based.
For example, I have students who expect the teachers to have all the
answers.  Others focus on mechanics: when asked to read aloud, they can give
a good rendition with little comprehension, etc.
I think if I know ( by experience and by observation) that my Chinese
beginning readers, in general, do not have phonemic awareness, that's where
I should start.  I'm not convinced giving them the test will help me much
more and I'm afraid they will understand they failed the test.
As for my Russian students, they do not actually spell as we do.  So I need
to teach spelling directly.  I also have to know which letters of the
Cyrillic alphabet have a different sound for the same grapheme, both in
upper case and lower case.  I do not need to speak the language.  I need to
find out about areas of differences or difficulties.
And do on for the other components.
Your profiles may guide me but I'm still bothered: I would like to have some
kind of diagnostic test at hand.
Nicole B. Graves
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "john strucker" <john_strucker at harvard.edu>
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Sent: Tuesday, May 30, 2006 11:34 AM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 71] Re: ESOL diagnostic testing


> Hi Suzi,
> All students in ESOL classes, all non-native speakers of English in ABE
> classes, and all native speakers in ABE and ASE classes were assessed with
> the same battery of tests of English reading components. All of the
English
> reading tests were designed to be used with adults and/or children, but
not
> none were specifically normed on ESOL adults.  But that was OK with Ros
and
> me, because we primarily wanted to know about their various reading
> profiles in English reading.  (As aside, my intuition tells me that it
> would be very difficult to norm an English reading test on all varieties
of
> ESOL adults in such a way that would be useful to practitioners or even
> researchers.  That is, given the diversity of ESOL students' native
> languages and native language literacy skills - not to mention cultural
> attitudes surrounding literacy, life experiences, etc. - it might make
more
> sense to develop norms within specific language groups, so you'd be only
be
> comparing Spanish speakers to Spanish speakers, Haitian Creole to Haitian
> Creole, etc. I'd be interested in other peoples' thoughts on this.)
> Back to the ARCS, all native speakers of Spanish, whether they were in ABE
> or ESOL classes, were also tested with the Woodcock-Munoz battery, which
> has been extensively normed on Spanish speakers from young children
through
> adults.
> As for your question about "cultural references/schema", I'm not sure
> exactly what you mean by that.  Maybe you could say more.  But remember,
> all we were doing with ARCS was testing people in reading - how they were
> reading English (and or Spanish as discussed above) at the moment we
showed
> up at their program.  This was not a longitudinal study with pre and post
> measures where a number of other factors - including cultural factors -
> would indeed be expected to play a role in students' outcomes.  In our
> extensive background questionnaire we did ask people about their childhood
> educational experience, literacy in native language as well as English,
> reading habits, parents' levels of education, reasons for attending adult
> education, health, family status, etc.  We did this primarily to be able
to
> talk about the wide diversity in the US ESOL population. And, wow, did we
> find diversity!
>
> --On Friday, May 26, 2006 2:25 PM -0400 "Monti, Suzi" <SMonti at ccbcmd.edu>
> wrote:
>
> >
> > Hi,
> >     I have been looking for an answer to the very solid ESOL-related
> > questions raised by this post. Perhaps I have missed the response. I am
> > especially interested in the question raised concerning whether the
tests
> > mentioned in the study were normed for a non-native speaking population
> > (a validity/reliability issue). I am also interested in what impact lack
> > of cultural reference/schema as well as other ESOL issues may have had
on
> > the results. Finally, of course there is the issue of a
native/non-native
> > speaker's natural approach/bent (whether they tend to be top-down or
> > bottom-up in thinking) and what impact that may have on his/her approach
> > to reading.
> >
> > Suzi Monti
> >
> > TESOL Instructor - Maryland Bible College and Seminary, International
> > Institute of Linguistics
> >
> > ESOL Curriculum Developer, Instructional Specialist, and Intake
> > Asssessment Specialist - Community College of Baltimore County, Center
> > for Adult and Family Literacy
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> > [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Nicole Graves
> > Sent: Wednesday May 24, 2006 9:06 PM
> > To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> > Subject: [SpecialTopics 32] ESOL diagnostic testing
> >
> >
> >
> > Hi John and Ros,
> >
> > I find the discussions most interesting.  Thank you!
> >
> > I teach adult ESOL.  Previously, I worked as a special education teacher
> > and as a reading teacher (children).  Several of our learners are
> > non-readers or struggling readers.  I'm currently teaching a beginning
> > level ESOL group and an ESOL/literacy class.  We formed the Lit class
> > based on needs of the students: high level speakers, non- or low-reading
> > level, no or very low -level in writing.  What diagnostic tests would
you
> > suggest for this population in order to find strenghts and instructional
> > needs?  Wouldn't tests normed on a population of native speakers be
> > somewhat inaccurate for ESOL learners?  Depending on the native
language,
> > I can see that in certain cases some tests might work fairly well.  But
> > what of others with different alphabets and different ways? Chinese
> > learners do not sound out words.  Russians do not actually spell words,
> > etc.
> >
> > Thanks again.
> >
> > Nicole B. Graves
> > Teacher/ESOL Program Coordinator
> > The Center for New Americans
> > Amherst, Greenfield, Northampton, MA
> >
>
>
>
> John Strucker, EdD
> Nichols House 303
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge, MA 02138
>
> 617 495 4745
> 617 495 4811 (fax)
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From cnaamh at rcn.com  Tue May 30 20:54:35 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 20:54:35 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 82] Re: Explicitly assessing and
	teachinganunderstanding of English morphology
References: <7E0B624DDF68104F92C38648A4D93D8FF6A391@MAIL.cal.local>
Message-ID: <015601c6844f$baa9f0a0$3cd8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>

RE: [SpecialTopics 45] Explicitly assessing and teaching anunderstanding of English morphologyThanks Miriam and Julie.

Very helpful information.

Nicole B. Graves
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Miriam Burt 
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
  Sent: Tuesday, May 30, 2006 11:23 AM
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 73] Re: Explicitly assessing and teachinganunderstanding of English morphology




  I think Mina Reddy's question is very interesting and important for those teaching adult English language learners. My teaching experience - and that of others -  seems to indicate that an understanding of English morphology should be taught to adult English language learners - even if there isn't experimental research with this population to back that us. Nation (2005, p. 592) discusses teaching word parts - suffixes, prefixes, inflections for tenses -- as a "strategy [that] deserves teaching time because of the large number of words it can be applied to." And an experimental study of college level students (Qian, 1999) - who had a vocabulary level of 3,000 words in English (more words than many adult English language learners) suggested that teaching word parts might help these students increase their English vocabulary and also could be a strategy to improve their reading comprehension. But that was all I could find.   So I asked Dr. Julie Mathews, research associate for CAELA, to look at research on ELLs - whether K-12, adult or higher ed. She found some research on younger ELLs, that I think is worthwhile considering.  

  Here's Julies  response: 

  "Here's what I've come up with after a pretty exhaustive search of the academic databases. 

  I agree with Kathy Harris and Lynn Santelmann when they say that there isn't a lot of research (if any) specifically addressing the question of whether explicit teaching of morphology may affect text comprehension in second language learners. I also agree with their broad overview of research on English morpheme/morphology acquisition-some forms seem to be acquired faster with instruction, others not. But to answer Mina Reddy's question, I think that both her own experiences and the results of two fairly recent studies are enough to say that some explicit instruction in English morphology would not hurt, and might very well contribute to ELLs' text comprehension. 

  The studies I have in mind are Carlo, August, McLaughlin, Snow et al (2004) and Tremblay & Morris (2002). In the first study, the researchers found that 5th graders' academic vocabulary (and ultimately their reading comprehension) could be enhanced by teaching the meanings of academically useful words together with strategies for using, among other things, morphological information about the words. The second study, working with similarly aged students, found that weekly interventions (over a 15-week period) in which students' attention was drawn to particular morphological language points through a cloze test (with the teacher first reading the text-repeating sentences on request-and students trying to fill in the blanks, then discussing in small groups to agree on the correct answers), resulted in dramatic improvement in students' use of those forms. Tremblay & Morris point out that it seems to be the case that students with appropriate linguistic ability (not complete beginners) and cognitive levels (not very young learners), can benefit from such explicit instruction. 

  M.S. Carlo, D. August, B. McLaughlin, C.E. Snow, et al. (2004). Closing the gap: Addressing the vocabulary needs of English language learners in bilingual and mainstream classrooms. Reading Research Quarterly, 39(2), 188-215.

  Tremblay, M., Morris, L. (2002). The impact of attending to unstressed words on the acquisition of written grammatical morphology by French speaking ESL students. The Canadian Modern Language Review. 58(3) 364-385."

  Nation, I. M. P. (2005). Teaching and learning vocabulary. In E. Hinkel (Ed.), Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning (pp. 581-595). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

  Qian, D. D. (1999). Assessing the roles of depth and breadth of vocabulary knowledge in reading comprehension. The Canadian Modern Language Journal, 56, 262-305. 

  Miriam 
  ***** 
  Miriam Burt 
  Center for Applied Linguistics 
  4646 40th Street NW 
  Washington, DC 20016 
  (202) 362-0700 
  (202) 363-7204 (fax) 
  miriam at cal.org 

  -----Original Message----- 
  From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen 
  Sent: Thursday, May 25, 2006 8:38 PM 
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 45] Explicitly assessing and teaching anunderstanding of English morphology 

  Mina Reddy  wrote: 

  "...Specifically for second language learners, how important or useful is it to explicitly assess and teach an understanding of English morphology? How much does an understanding of English morphology influence their comprehension of text?  I am curious about this because of my personal experience reading in languages in which my vocabulary is limited.  I find that an understanding of the structure of the language helps me to derive at least a basic meaning from the text even when I do not understand many of the words."

  John Strucker answered: 

  "Mina, I think you are right about this last point, but I don't know of much ESOL research that focuses on this.  NCSALL's Steve Reder would be a good person to ask about this.  However, I think ELL research has looked at this from time to time, and that research supports your position.  As an aside, in general, I think those of us in ABE/ESOL can probably learn a lot by looking more at ELL research."

  I (David Rosen) asked Steve Reder to reply, and he turned to his colleagues at Portland State University's Department of Applied Linguistics, Kathy Harris and Lynn Santelmann. They asked that we post this reply:

  "There isn't a lot of research directed at this specific question,  
  but the research that exists points to a couple of conclusions.   
  First, student acquisition of some kinds of morphemes (e.g. plural and 3rd person -s) can be promoted with instruction.  However,  

  instruction of other forms (e.g. -ing) can promote overproduction.   
  Also, other types of English morphology aren't easily acquired through instruction (e.g. articles such as the and a).  Generally, the order in which English morphology is learned isn't altered by instruction, but some aspects may be acquired more quickly through instruction.  Instruction may help students to "notice" new forms so that when the new forms become salient (through error correction or negotiation for example), learners have knowledge of the new form to apply."

  Kathy Harris & Lynn Santelmann 
  Department of Applied Linguistics & the NCSALL Adult ESOL Lab School Portland State University 



  David J. Rosen 
  Special Topics List Moderator 
  djrosen at comcast.net 




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From ylerew at aol.com  Wed May 31 00:34:31 2006
From: ylerew at aol.com (ylerew at aol.com)
Date: Wed, 31 May 2006 00:34:31 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 82] Re: Questions for ARCS Participants
In-Reply-To: <BBA28A5C-0E8C-45F7-9D29-FCD7F3BBE3D3@comcast.net>
References: <BBA28A5C-0E8C-45F7-9D29-FCD7F3BBE3D3@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <8C85282A530A513-1014-E484@FWM-R05.sysops.aol.com>

David,
I have found this discussion to be very helpful,  Yes, Please do have 
the whole discussion archived.  My first choice would be on the LINCS 
site.
Many thanks!
Yvonne

-----Original Message-----
From: David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net>
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Sent: Tue, 30 May 2006 08:51:26 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 66]  Questions for ARCS Participants

   Colleagues,

Tomorrow, Wednesday, May 31st, will be the last day to post questions
for John and Ros about the ARCS.  The questions, comments and
suggested resources so far have been great. I hope there are more.

I have two questions for participants:

1. Which preparation materials for this discussion did you find
especially useful?  Would you recommend any of these to your
colleagues? If so, which ones? (see below for a list of materials.)

2. Would you like to have the whole discussion archived (on the
National institute for Adult Literacy LINCS web site or on the Adult
Literacy Education Wiki -- or both)?

You could reply to the list --  specialtopics at nifl.gov --  or by e-
mail to me at djrosen at comcast.net

Here's a list of the introductory materials:

1. 30-minute video panel discussion with ARCS researchers Rosalind
Davidson and John Strucker, and practitioners Kay Vaccaro and Jane
Meyer at

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/20040204/webcast02-04.html

This video panel introduction is also available on DVD from the
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy [ http://
www.ncsall.net/?id=24 ] or from the National Institute for Literacy.
(Send a request for the Adult Readiing Components Study (ARCS) Panel
(free) DVD to: info at nifl.gov  Be sure to include your mailing
address.)

2. "What Silent Reading Tests Alone Can't Tell You", the precursor to
the website that will be discussed.
http://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=456

3. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS) [PDF document] by John
Strucker and Rosalind Davidson
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27   (ninth item down)

4. How the ARCS Was Done
http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/op_arcs.pdf

5. Adult Reading Components Study (ARCS)
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=27#arcs


David J. Rosen
Special Topics discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

    


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Wed May 31 10:37:38 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Wed, 31 May 2006 10:37:38 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 83] Re: professional development using
 the	ARCSwebsite
In-Reply-To: <535FCFA131E9E4458CD9E1CF0C339E322BE59D@ldasbs.LDALEARNING.local>
References: <535FCFA131E9E4458CD9E1CF0C339E322BE59D@ldasbs.LDALEARNING.local >
Message-ID: <E8D521CA4F6AE82C1E051651@nichols303>

Dear Marn,
This looks great!  It's very gratifying to have colleagues take what we've 
started and create something new and useful out of it.
Best,
John

--On Tuesday, May 30, 2006 3:38 PM -0500 Marn Frank <MF at ldaminnesota.org> 
wrote:

> This is a belated reply to the request for professional development ideas
> using the ARCS website. I am in the process of developing a study
> circle/training called "Using Informal Reading Assessments" for Minnesota
> ABE. My co-presenter and I shared handouts and informal assessments
> downloaded and printed from the ARCS website. We wanted to give
> participants a hands-on experience with informal reading assessments they
> could begin using immediately. It was received well and seemed to be
> "convincing" that other assessments besides those just measuring silent
> reading comprehension were worth their time and effort.
>
> This is our outline:
>
> 	1. Refer participants to the ARCS handout COMPONENTS? READING PROFILES?
> WHAT ARE THEY? 	2. Do a quick review of the components and other words or
> phrases that are used in the 	reading instruction world (alphabetics,
> decoding, word analysis, encoding, etc.)  	3. Share word recognition
> and/or spelling assessments available from the ARCS website: 	Sylvia
> Greene's Informal Word Analysis Inventory and the Quick Adult Reading
> 	Inventory (QARI). 	4. Provide an opportunity for participants to pair
> up, administer, and score one of 	the above. 	We found from piloting this
> study circle that a "script" from a real 	assessment might work better
> because participants (ABE teachers) were struggling with 	mimicking adult
> reading difficulties. 	5. Share Read Naturally and pre-GED/GED passages
> for cold and hot fluency timings. 	Again, we found that an audio-tape of
> a real learner reading aloud would be a better 	simulated experience for
> measuring oral reading rate. 	6. Share the Word Meaning Test from the
> ARCS and provide an opportunity to administer 	one or two levels to
> determine a word meaning grade level.
>
> I feel the ARCS has been a remarkable resource (as has this discussion
> list!) for my work in Minnesota ABE staff development. I use it
> extensively for the above and also in facilitating practitioner reading
> research (as developed by NCSALL). Thank You!
>
> Margaret (Marn) Frank
> LD Specialist
> LDA of Minnesota
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen
> Sent: Thursday, May 25, 2006 4:30 PM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 42] Re: professional development using the
> ARCSwebsite [bcc]
>
>
> Thanks, Jane.  I wonder if anyone else in this discussion has used
> the ARCS Web site and/or a study circle model using the ARCS Web site
> or other ARCS materials.  If so, please tell us about your experience.
>
> Also, if anyone has questions for Jane or Ros about the use of the
> ARCS Web site, please ask them now.
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
> On May 25, 2006, at 2:06 PM, Jane Meyer wrote:
>
>> David suggested that I tell a bit about how we used the ARCS
>> website for
>> professional development in our ABE program in Canton, Ohio.  First I
>> explored the website myself and then, at a staff meeting, I told the
>> teachers about the site highlighting some  features that I thought
>> might
>> be of particular interest to them.  I offered to pay them if they
>> wanted
>> to explore the website for a professional development activity.  I
>> set a
>> meeting date about a month away for those who had explored the website
>> to discuss what they had found and how it could be useful to them as
>> well as ask any questions.  The teachers loved using the website for
>> professional development because it was so convenient and the format
>> worked great for us because I had staff with various levels of
>> knowledge
>> about reading.  The website allowed those who needed basic information
>> to get it without holding those back who had more knowledge and were
>> ready to go deeper.  It has been a while, but I remember the
>> discussion
>> about the site being quite rich.
>> Jane Meyer
>> Canton City Schools
>> Canton, Ohio
>> meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> David Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Wed May 31 11:13:21 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Wed, 31 May 2006 11:13:21 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 84] Re: ESOL diagnostic testing
In-Reply-To: <015501c6844f$b91fa720$3cd8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>
References: <9D909391CB025945BDA19A90B940A0B6020EDA50@ccbc-de.ccbc.ccbcmd.ed	
	u> <02D825AE7FFE591793EB2ADD@nichols303>
	<015501c6844f$b91fa720$3cd8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>
Message-ID: <2944999FC88387A0EF6B9312@nichols303>

Hi Nicole,
	All of the things you and Suzi have brought up are indeed important issues 
that teachers of ESOL students need to know in order to teach them better. 
However, as a former ESOL teacher, I didn't expect to get this kind of 
nuanced cultural information from tests.  It can only come from personal 
interviews (with translators if necessary), insights from bilingual members 
of a given community, and the hard-earned experience of other teachers. So 
my advice would be, take the time to do the interviews, gather the 
information, and learn from colleagues - but by all means don't neglect to 
take the time to give basic diagnostic tests of English reading, not to 
mention assessments of spoken language such as the Best+.
	The diagnostic information you have gleaned about your Chinese and Russian 
students seems very astute. But one shouldn't have to rely on experience 
alone, and out students shouldn't have to put up with teachers' learning 
curves any longer than necessary.  And, often the issue is not whether a 
person (singular!) has does not have phonemic awareness,  but <how much> 
they have or don't have. In my limited experience, for example, there is 
actually quite a bit of variation among ESOL Chinese speakers on the issue 
of phonemic awareness, depending on their early reading experience in 
Chinese,* their level of Chinese literacy, their previous encounters with 
alphabetic writing of English or other alphabetically written languages, 
and ultimately their innate phonological ability.
	Last point: one of the best predictors of how well an ESOL student will 
pick up English reading is their level of native language literacy.  That's 
easy for us to obtain for Spanish speakers (ie, Woodcock-Munoz), and we 
should do everything thing we can to to do, but for all other languages, we 
really need some quick, easy-to-administer testing.
	This has been a great thread.  Thanks to you and Suzi for getting it going.
Best,
John

* This quote from Marilyn Jager Adams (<Beginning to Read, 1990, p. 15, 
footnote) suggests some of the complexity of this experience for Chinese 
speakers: "...Chinese, which is at core both a logographic and syllabic 
system, sometimes uses alphabetic notations, sometimes represents a new 
word by chaining together indigenous symbols that sound like each of the 
word's syllables, and more generally relies heavily on a system of 
'phonetic radicals' for keying the sounds of graphic characters."


--On Tuesday, May 30, 2006 8:50 PM -0400 Nicole Graves <cnaamh at rcn.com> 
wrote:

> Thanks John and Ros.
>
> Of course I understand the difficulty about norming tests for ESOL
> learners given all the various differences.  However I still think that
> tests for English speakers may contain cultural biases or items that
> students from other cultures cannot "get".  I agree with Suzi that
> students come with a variety of ideas about reading and learning that may
> be culturally-based. For example, I have students who expect the teachers
> to have all the answers.  Others focus on mechanics: when asked to read
> aloud, they can give a good rendition with little comprehension, etc.
> I think if I know ( by experience and by observation) that my Chinese
> beginning readers, in general, do not have phonemic awareness, that's
> where I should start.  I'm not convinced giving them the test will help
> me much more and I'm afraid they will understand they failed the test.
> As for my Russian students, they do not actually spell as we do.  So I
> need to teach spelling directly.  I also have to know which letters of the
> Cyrillic alphabet have a different sound for the same grapheme, both in
> upper case and lower case.  I do not need to speak the language.  I need
> to find out about areas of differences or difficulties.
> And do on for the other components.
> Your profiles may guide me but I'm still bothered: I would like to have
> some kind of diagnostic test at hand.
> Nicole B. Graves
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "john strucker" <john_strucker at harvard.edu>
> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
> Sent: Tuesday, May 30, 2006 11:34 AM
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 71] Re: ESOL diagnostic testing
>
>
>> Hi Suzi,
>> All students in ESOL classes, all non-native speakers of English in ABE
>> classes, and all native speakers in ABE and ASE classes were assessed
>> with the same battery of tests of English reading components. All of the
> English
>> reading tests were designed to be used with adults and/or children, but
> not
>> none were specifically normed on ESOL adults.  But that was OK with Ros
> and
>> me, because we primarily wanted to know about their various reading
>> profiles in English reading.  (As aside, my intuition tells me that it
>> would be very difficult to norm an English reading test on all varieties
> of
>> ESOL adults in such a way that would be useful to practitioners or even
>> researchers.  That is, given the diversity of ESOL students' native
>> languages and native language literacy skills - not to mention cultural
>> attitudes surrounding literacy, life experiences, etc. - it might make
> more
>> sense to develop norms within specific language groups, so you'd be only
> be
>> comparing Spanish speakers to Spanish speakers, Haitian Creole to Haitian
>> Creole, etc. I'd be interested in other peoples' thoughts on this.)
>> Back to the ARCS, all native speakers of Spanish, whether they were in
>> ABE or ESOL classes, were also tested with the Woodcock-Munoz battery,
>> which has been extensively normed on Spanish speakers from young children
> through
>> adults.
>> As for your question about "cultural references/schema", I'm not sure
>> exactly what you mean by that.  Maybe you could say more.  But remember,
>> all we were doing with ARCS was testing people in reading - how they were
>> reading English (and or Spanish as discussed above) at the moment we
> showed
>> up at their program.  This was not a longitudinal study with pre and post
>> measures where a number of other factors - including cultural factors -
>> would indeed be expected to play a role in students' outcomes.  In our
>> extensive background questionnaire we did ask people about their
>> childhood educational experience, literacy in native language as well as
>> English, reading habits, parents' levels of education, reasons for
>> attending adult education, health, family status, etc.  We did this
>> primarily to be able
> to
>> talk about the wide diversity in the US ESOL population. And, wow, did we
>> find diversity!
>>
>> --On Friday, May 26, 2006 2:25 PM -0400 "Monti, Suzi" <SMonti at ccbcmd.edu>
>> wrote:
>>
>> >
>> > Hi,
>> >     I have been looking for an answer to the very solid ESOL-related
>> > questions raised by this post. Perhaps I have missed the response. I am
>> > especially interested in the question raised concerning whether the
> tests
>> > mentioned in the study were normed for a non-native speaking population
>> > (a validity/reliability issue). I am also interested in what impact
>> > lack of cultural reference/schema as well as other ESOL issues may
>> > have had
> on
>> > the results. Finally, of course there is the issue of a
> native/non-native
>> > speaker's natural approach/bent (whether they tend to be top-down or
>> > bottom-up in thinking) and what impact that may have on his/her
>> > approach to reading.
>> >
>> > Suzi Monti
>> >
>> > TESOL Instructor - Maryland Bible College and Seminary, International
>> > Institute of Linguistics
>> >
>> > ESOL Curriculum Developer, Instructional Specialist, and Intake
>> > Asssessment Specialist - Community College of Baltimore County, Center
>> > for Adult and Family Literacy
>> >
>> > -----Original Message-----
>> > From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
>> > [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Nicole Graves
>> > Sent: Wednesday May 24, 2006 9:06 PM
>> > To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> > Subject: [SpecialTopics 32] ESOL diagnostic testing
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Hi John and Ros,
>> >
>> > I find the discussions most interesting.  Thank you!
>> >
>> > I teach adult ESOL.  Previously, I worked as a special education
>> > teacher and as a reading teacher (children).  Several of our learners
>> > are non-readers or struggling readers.  I'm currently teaching a
>> > beginning level ESOL group and an ESOL/literacy class.  We formed the
>> > Lit class based on needs of the students: high level speakers, non- or
>> > low-reading level, no or very low -level in writing.  What diagnostic
>> > tests would
> you
>> > suggest for this population in order to find strenghts and
>> > instructional needs?  Wouldn't tests normed on a population of native
>> > speakers be somewhat inaccurate for ESOL learners?  Depending on the
>> > native
> language,
>> > I can see that in certain cases some tests might work fairly well.  But
>> > what of others with different alphabets and different ways? Chinese
>> > learners do not sound out words.  Russians do not actually spell words,
>> > etc.
>> >
>> > Thanks again.
>> >
>> > Nicole B. Graves
>> > Teacher/ESOL Program Coordinator
>> > The Center for New Americans
>> > Amherst, Greenfield, Northampton, MA
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>> John Strucker, EdD
>> Nichols House 303
>> Harvard Graduate School of Education
>> 7 Appian Way
>> Cambridge, MA 02138
>>
>> 617 495 4745
>> 617 495 4811 (fax)
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu Jun  1 10:25:11 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Thu, 1 Jun 2006 10:25:11 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 85]  ARCS Discussion coming to a close
Message-ID: <3643ABF6-E231-42F5-A5DE-05C5DB5F4DF0@comcast.net>

Dear Special Topics Discussion List Colleagues,

I want to thank you for joining and participating in this terrific  
discussion about the Adult Reading Components Study.  I especially  
want to thank John Strucker and Rosalind Davidson for their careful,  
informative, encouraging replies, and those of you who posted such  
thoughtful questions to them.  This is a great launch for the new  
special topics discussion list.

The discussion is now coming to a close.  It will be archived on both  
the National Institute for Literacy web pages and on the Adult  
Literacy Education Wiki.  I will post a message to this list sometime  
in the next few days with the web page addresses.

If you would like to comment on this discussion or make suggestions  
for improving the discussions we will have in the future you could  
send your thoughts to the special topics discussion list or e-mail  
them to me at djrosen at comcast.net

The list will be quiet for a few weeks until the next topic.  You can  
stay subscribed and wait to see what that topic will be, or you can  
unsubscribe by going to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/ 
specialtopics

All the best

David J. Rosen
Special Topics List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From djrosen at comcast.net  Sat Jun 10 12:53:15 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Sat, 10 Jun 2006 12:53:15 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 86] New Discussion on Special Topics List: Learner
	Persistence
Message-ID: <56B3185D-6C3C-46F6-9576-D02CCD1C2676@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

I am pleased to announce that on the Special Topics discussion list   
from July 10-18, Dr. John Comings, Director of the National Center  
for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL), will  be a  
guest to discuss and answer questions about research on student  
persistence in adult literacy education.  More information to come  
later in June.

If you want to let colleagues know now, however, please forward this  
e-mail to them with the information below on how to subscribe:

The National Institute for Literacy Special Topics electronic list is  
an intermittent discussion list.  The topics open and close  
throughout the year, so there are periods where there are no  
discussion or postings. You can subscribe to the e-list for a  
particular topic of interest, and then unsubscribe, or you can stay  
subscribed throughout the year.  To participate in this topic  
discussion, you can subscribe by going to:

http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/specialtopics

If you are subscribed but do not want to participate in this  
discussion, you can also unsubscribe using the above web address.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From djrosen at comcast.net  Wed Jul  5 16:33:07 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Wed, 5 Jul 2006 16:33:07 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 87]  Persistence Discussion
Message-ID: <E6E3DE20-CB34-4007-AC65-FF8F80441D49@comcast.net>

Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,

John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult  
Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the  
persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction,  
below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of the  
study. I hope you can read these before July 10th.  You are welcome  
to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now, but  
these will not be posted until July 10th.

i am looking forward to your joining in on this important discussion.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net
--------------

When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the  
proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed  
practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us design  
our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the survey. We  
asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they  
wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and GED  
programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and  
second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way,  
"Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the  
program.   How can I keep those students long enough that they can  
meet their educational goals?"

That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of persistence.  
The first two phases are complete.  The first phase surveyed the  
literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England states,  
and identified ways that programs were trying to support the  
persistence of their students. The report of that first phase can be  
found at:

<http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>

In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided with  
funds to implement interventions that might help improve persistence,  
and our study team observed the programs and interviewed their staff  
and students. We also followed a cohort of 180 students for 14  
months.  The report of that second phase can be found at:

<http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>

We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer  
has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would  
test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to  
existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of modes of  
learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other  
ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their learning,  
and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the third  
approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem, as well  
as it can be solved.

I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be interested  
in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence and how to  
expand opportunities for learning.

John Comings, NCSALL Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu








From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu Jul  6 11:09:46 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Thu, 6 Jul 2006 11:09:46 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 88]  Persistence Discussion Panel Video
Message-ID: <4FFEC93B-BDA6-417D-A57A-97B14A07B88D@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

In preparation for the upcoming special topics discussion on  
persistence with our guest, Dr. John Comings, you might wish to view  
a 30-minute video panel discussion with John and two practitioners,  
Kathy Endaya and Ernest Best.  You will find the video streamed at:

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html

You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser,  
or you could try this shorter version:

http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu

Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing  
the presentation.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net




From djrosen at comcast.net  Mon Jul 10 07:36:37 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 07:36:37 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 89] Re: Persistence Discussion
In-Reply-To: <E6E3DE20-CB34-4007-AC65-FF8F80441D49@comcast.net>
References: <E6E3DE20-CB34-4007-AC65-FF8F80441D49@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <73DE2DF9-AA2D-40A2-928A-3135FA803DAB@comcast.net>

Dear Colleagues,

Today we begin a discussion about the studies which Dr. John Comings  
and others at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and  
Literacy have done on persistence.  The discussion will continue  
through Tuesday next week, July 18th.

Please post your questions and comments to John beginning now.

In John's message below he describes two publications which may be of  
interest.  Each has a short executive summary.   There is also a 30- 
minute video panel discussion about the study, with John and two  
practitioners, streamed at:

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html

You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser,  
or you could try this shorter version:

http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu

Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing  
the presentation, and there are still some bugs to be worked out of  
the Mac streamed version.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net

On Jul 5, 2006, at 4:33 PM, David Rosen wrote:

> Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,
>
> John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult
> Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the
> persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction,
> below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of the
> study. I hope you can read these before July 10th.  You are welcome
> to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now, but
> these will not be posted until July 10th.
>
> i am looking forward to your joining in on this important discussion.
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
> --------------
>
> When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the
> proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed
> practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us design
> our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the survey. We
> asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they
> wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and GED
> programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and
> second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way,
> "Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the
> program.   How can I keep those students long enough that they can
> meet their educational goals?"
>
> That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of persistence.
> The first two phases are complete.  The first phase surveyed the
> literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England states,
> and identified ways that programs were trying to support the
> persistence of their students. The report of that first phase can be
> found at:
>
> <http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>
>
> In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided with
> funds to implement interventions that might help improve persistence,
> and our study team observed the programs and interviewed their staff
> and students. We also followed a cohort of 180 students for 14
> months.  The report of that second phase can be found at:
>
> <http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>
>
> We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer
> has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would
> test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to
> existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of modes of
> learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other
> ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their learning,
> and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the third
> approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem, as well
> as it can be solved.
>
> I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be interested
> in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence and how to
> expand opportunities for learning.
>
> John Comings, NCSALL Director
> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge MA 02138
> (617) 496-0516, voice
> (617) 495-4811, fax
> (617) 335-9839, mobile
> john_comings at harvard.edu
> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to  
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

David Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net





From marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com  Mon Jul 10 10:02:17 2006
From: marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com (Marie Cora)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 10:02:17 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 90] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <73DE2DF9-AA2D-40A2-928A-3135FA803DAB@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <007101c6a429$756d0050$0302a8c0@LITNOW>

Dear Colleagues,

Thanks so much to John Comings for being with us this week to discuss
Persistence.  I am very much looking forward to hearing what strategies
folks use out there to try and tackle this issue with their students.  

I actually have two questions for you (and list subscribers):  I am
interested in hearing you elaborate a bit on the impact of having the
student set his or her own goals, and how best to help them to do that.
It's quite easy to set a student's goal for her/him - but not so easy to
get a student to determine a goal for her/himself.  What are some of the
things that folks do around this issue?

Second, I heard you speak at a conference last fall in which you noted
that part of what could be helpful in persistence, is to acknowledge
that the student might not persist.  In other words, why not explore
with the student the reality that if they do "stop out", this doesn't
have to mean "quit".  I found this fascinating and at the same time,
completely logical.  This appears to be part of what you intend in your
third area of research based on what I've read.  

Thank you again for your time this week and for the discussion.

Marie Cora
NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com


-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 7:37 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 89] Re: Persistence Discussion

Dear Colleagues,

Today we begin a discussion about the studies which Dr. John Comings  
and others at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and  
Literacy have done on persistence.  The discussion will continue  
through Tuesday next week, July 18th.

Please post your questions and comments to John beginning now.

In John's message below he describes two publications which may be of  
interest.  Each has a short executive summary.   There is also a 30- 
minute video panel discussion about the study, with John and two  
practitioners, streamed at:

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html

You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser,  
or you could try this shorter version:

http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu

Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing  
the presentation, and there are still some bugs to be worked out of  
the Mac streamed version.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net

On Jul 5, 2006, at 4:33 PM, David Rosen wrote:

> Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,
>
> John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult
> Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the
> persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction,
> below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of the
> study. I hope you can read these before July 10th.  You are welcome
> to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now, but
> these will not be posted until July 10th.
>
> i am looking forward to your joining in on this important discussion.
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
> --------------
>
> When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the
> proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed
> practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us design
> our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the survey. We
> asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they
> wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and GED
> programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and
> second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way,
> "Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the
> program.   How can I keep those students long enough that they can
> meet their educational goals?"
>
> That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of persistence.
> The first two phases are complete.  The first phase surveyed the
> literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England states,
> and identified ways that programs were trying to support the
> persistence of their students. The report of that first phase can be
> found at:
>
> <http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>
>
> In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided with
> funds to implement interventions that might help improve persistence,
> and our study team observed the programs and interviewed their staff
> and students. We also followed a cohort of 180 students for 14
> months.  The report of that second phase can be found at:
>
> <http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>
>
> We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer
> has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would
> test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to
> existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of modes of
> learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other
> ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their learning,
> and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the third
> approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem, as well
> as it can be solved.
>
> I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be interested
> in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence and how to
> expand opportunities for learning.
>
> John Comings, NCSALL Director
> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge MA 02138
> (617) 496-0516, voice
> (617) 495-4811, fax
> (617) 335-9839, mobile
> john_comings at harvard.edu
> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to  
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

David Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



From bcarmel at rocketmail.com  Mon Jul 10 12:25:49 2006
From: bcarmel at rocketmail.com (Bruce Carmel)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 09:25:49 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [SpecialTopics 91]  Persistence Strategies
Message-ID: <20060710162549.75396.qmail@web37904.mail.mud.yahoo.com>

Dear John,
  I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
  1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment (There are many components of this.)
  2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of participation. 
   
  What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues, strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student persistence?
   
  From Bruce Carmel
  Turning Point
  Brooklyn, NY 
   

 		
---------------------------------
Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.
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From rrusso at hcde-texas.org  Mon Jul 10 12:42:58 2006
From: rrusso at hcde-texas.org (Renata Russo)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 11:42:58 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies
Message-ID: <E43278D67408F248838A1BDB754306050446AFF5@EV-SERVER.hcdemain.hcde.loc>

Hello Bruce,
 
Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our programs. 
 
Renata

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies


Dear John,
I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment (There are many components of this.)
2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of participation. 
 
What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues, strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student persistence?
 
>From Bruce Carmel
Turning Point
Brooklyn, NY 
 



  _____  

Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make  <http://us.rd.yahoo.com/mail_us/taglines/postman1/*http://us.rd.yahoo.com/evt=39663/*http://voice.yahoo.com> PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.

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From RMaurio at carrollcc.edu  Mon Jul 10 12:55:53 2006
From: RMaurio at carrollcc.edu (Maurio, Rebecca)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 12:55:53 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 93] Re: Persistence Strategies
Message-ID: <3F3CB09760922A47BA8FC7AC35B19999043D05E5@mail1.carrollcc.edu>

Great discussion and it's only early Monday!  I appreciate hearing ideas
and learning what has worked in other settings - this topic is so
critical to our work!

 

Renata's comments lead me to ask - how can we help our funders and other
stakeholders to understand the realities our students and our programs
face?  While we all need to be held to certain accountability measures,
there will be many students who can benefit from even what most would
consider irregular attendance - and I believe that's a good thing.  How
can we demonstrate other benefits - perhaps without the number of hours
of attendance or without the score on a standardized post-test?

 

I also wonder - what activities and strategies are programs employing to
keep learners connected to their programs even when they cannot attend
regularly? 

 

Thanks!
Becki 

 

Becki Maurio

ESOL Coordinator / Project Developer

Carroll Community College

Westminster, Maryland

 

 

  _____  

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Renata Russo
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:43 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies

 

Hello Bruce,

 

Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found helpful
when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the second
strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as teachers and
administrators understand our learners' barriers to participate.
However, accountability has become a major barrier for some programs in
recent years. The performance-based approach and funding measured by
contact hours can have a major impact in our programs. 

 

Renata

	-----Original Message-----
	From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
	Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
	To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
	Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies

	Dear John,

	I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student
persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have
known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain
difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I
worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on
persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main
strategies I have found helpful:

	1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment
(There are many components of this.)

	2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend
classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.
This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of
instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of
participation. 

	 

	What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues,
strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student
persistence?

	 

	From Bruce Carmel

	Turning Point

	Brooklyn, NY 

	 

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From cbower at necc.mass.edu  Mon Jul 10 13:03:00 2006
From: cbower at necc.mass.edu (Bower, Carol)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 13:03:00 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 94] Re: Persistence Strategies
In-Reply-To: <E43278D67408F248838A1BDB754306050446AFF5@EV-SERVER.hcdemain.hcde.loc>
Message-ID: <1F64CFEE8902A248A8BE9EA760C0CE6480C938@LAWEX01.necc.mass.edu>

Hello John and all,

 

Renata's comment echos a concern I heard raised repeatedly in a NCSALL Persistence Study Circle which I recently co-facilitated with one of my SABES colleagues.  In Massachusetts, where programs are being asked to be accountable for retention by reporting on attendance and average attended hours, programs willing to embrace the concepts and effective practices associated with the NCSALL definition of persistence are caught in a bit of a bind.  They want to support the on-going learning of their students, and can see that many do persist, although not necessarily in the same program or in an uninterrupted fashion.

 

What advice would you have for programs that are attempting to reconcile these different approaches?   

 

Carol Bower

Director, NE SABES

System for Adult Basic Education Support

Northern Essex Community College

45 Franklin Street

Lawrence, MA 01840

 

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Renata Russo
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:43 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies

 

Hello Bruce,

 

Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our programs. 

 

Renata

	-----Original Message-----
	From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
	Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
	To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
	Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies

	Dear John,

	I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:

	1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment (There are many components of this.)

	2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of participation. 

	 

	What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues, strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student persistence?

	 

	From Bruce Carmel

	Turning Point

	Brooklyn, NY 

	 

	
________________________________


	Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls <http://us.rd.yahoo.com/mail_us/taglines/postman1/*http:/us.rd.yahoo.com/evt=39663/*http:/voice.yahoo.com>  to the US (and 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.

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From lmhowardliteracy at hotmail.com  Mon Jul 10 13:08:21 2006
From: lmhowardliteracy at hotmail.com (Lynn Howard)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 10:08:21 -0700
Subject: [SpecialTopics 95] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <007101c6a429$756d0050$0302a8c0@LITNOW>
Message-ID: <BAY113-F141A277FF2F1DD3B575AACD46B0@phx.gbl>

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From bcarmel at rocketmail.com  Mon Jul 10 13:15:05 2006
From: bcarmel at rocketmail.com (Bruce Carmel)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 10:15:05 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [SpecialTopics 96] Re: Persistence Strategies
In-Reply-To: <E43278D67408F248838A1BDB754306050446AFF5@EV-SERVER.hcdemain.hcde.loc>
Message-ID: <20060710171505.97074.qmail@web37913.mail.mud.yahoo.com>

Dear Renata (and list)
  It is indeed sad that many programs who serve those most in need stand to lose funding. This just happened in New York State, where part of our WIA proposals scores were based on "report cards."  So programs who serve students who make lots of progress quickly and programs who are good at massaging their data were at an advantage. Programs who chose to serve people in great need yet who were often unable to persist and/or did not show much progress on a standardized test were at a great disadvantage, and many did not receive funding. 
  Bruce Carmel
   
   
   
   
  
Renata Russo <rrusso at hcde-texas.org> wrote:
      Hello Bruce,
   
  Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our programs. 
   
  Renata
    -----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies


  Dear John,
  I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
  1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment (There are many components of this.)
  2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of participation. 
   
  What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues, strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student persistence?
   
  From Bruce Carmel
  Turning Point
  Brooklyn, NY 
   
    
---------------------------------
  Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

 		
---------------------------------
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From WMaxwell at cde.ca.gov  Mon Jul 10 13:26:06 2006
From: WMaxwell at cde.ca.gov (Wendi Maxwell)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 10:26:06 -0700
Subject: [SpecialTopics 97]   Funding strategies to support persistence
In-Reply-To: <1F64CFEE8902A248A8BE9EA760C0CE6480C938@LAWEX01.necc.mass.edu>
References: <E43278D67408F248838A1BDB754306050446AFF5@EV-SERVER.hcdemain.hcde.loc>
	<1F64CFEE8902A248A8BE9EA760C0CE6480C938@LAWEX01.necc.mass.edu>
Message-ID: <44B22B3E0200001C000062BC@mail.cde.ca.gov>

I'd like to address the policy conundrum that Carol referred to (below.) How can we develop policies (and funding procedures) that support learner persistence, but still allow for accountability of public funds?
 
The performance-based accountability system we developed in California pays for student learning outcomes, rather than hours of attendance. From the point of view of public policy, I think this is a good compromise because it allows for a measurable return-on-investment of public monies. We've rapidly run out of federal money to support the learning gains of the state's students however, so it's not a strategy that can continue indefinitely. Also, it does not account very well for students who move in and out of the system, or those who start attending at the end of a fiscal year and only show learning gains in the new fiscal year, sometimes with limited hours of attendance showing up on their "new" fiscal year record.  
 
It seems to me there's two ways to determine how public policy should address persistence. One is to start from the ideal - what would be the ideal ways to support learner persistence, given what we know from research and effective practice? The other way is to start from the political reality - what can we actually "sell" or justify to legislators and auditors, given the restrictions they face on use of public funds? The ideal path is to find a balance between the two, and that balance will, and should, change as we learn more about "what works."
 
I'd love to hear some discussion from practitioners (and other policy folks like me), on what would be the best ways to provide fiscal support for activities that support learner persistence.
 
Wendi Maxwell
Education Programs Consultant
Adult Education Office
California Department of Education
 
 
 
>>> "Bower, Carol" <cbower at necc.mass.edu> 07/10/06 10:03 AM >>>

Hello John and all, Renata?s comment echos a concern I heard raised repeatedly in a NCSALL Persistence Study Circle which I recently co-facilitated with one of my SABES colleagues.  In Massachusetts, where programs are being asked to be accountable for retention by reporting on attendance and average attended hours, programs willing to embrace the concepts and effective practices associated with the NCSALL definition of persistence are caught in a bit of a bind.  They want to support the on-going learning of their students, and can see that many do persist, although not necessarily in the same program or in an uninterrupted fashion. What advice would you have for programs that are attempting to reconcile these different approaches?    Carol BowerDirector, NE SABESSystem for Adult Basic Education SupportNorthern Essex Community College45 Franklin StreetLawrence, MA 01840
 
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Renata Russo
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:43 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies
 Hello Bruce,
 
Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our programs. 
 
Renata
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence StrategiesDear John,
I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment (There are many components of this.)
2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of participation. 
 
What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues, strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student persistence?
 
>From Bruce Carmel
Turning Point
Brooklyn, NY 
 

Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.


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From meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org  Mon Jul 10 13:33:35 2006
From: meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org (Jane Meyer)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 13:33:35 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 98] Re: Persistence Strategies
In-Reply-To: <E43278D67408F248838A1BDB754306050446AFF5@EV-SERVER.hcdemain.hcde.loc>
References: <E43278D67408F248838A1BDB754306050446AFF5@EV-SERVER.hcdemain.hcde.loc>
Message-ID: <44B28F6F.3040504@ccsdistrict.org>



Renata Russo wrote:

> "We as teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers 
> to participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for 
> some programs in recent years."
>  
> I agree Renata, but I think the trick is to find ways that learners 
> can continue to study when they need to "stop out" and make it easy 
> for them to get back in when they can.  Some ideas we have tried are 
> giving every student a full GED or pre GED workbook and the calculator 
> they will use on the GED test so they have something to work on at 
> home if they can't get in to class.  We also show the GED on TV on our 
> school district's TV station 3 times every weekday so students can 
> watch lesson on TV.  It seems what makes this work better is starting 
> the practices when the student is involved in class, then they are 
> more likely to continue on their own at home.  For example we use the 
> workbook we give out in class from time to time in class so students 
> know how to use it and how it can be helpful to them. Phoning students 
> who have stopped coming also works well.  The teacher can make 
> suggestions on what to work on at home and also make it clear that the 
> door is open for returning.  We called students who had dropped out to 
> ask why and to invite them back.  Many wanted to return, but either 
> weren't sure how or weren't sure they would be welcome.  Now while 
> still emphasizing the importance of good attendance, we talk about 
> what to do when you need to stop out.  It makes sense to spend time 
> and money on students who are already enrolled (and counting in your 
> statistics) rather than focusing solely on recruiting new students. 

Jane Meyer
ABLE Coordinator
Canton City Schools
Canton, Ohio
meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org


From wookey.4 at osu.edu  Mon Jul 10 13:33:40 2006
From: wookey.4 at osu.edu (Barbara Wookey)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 13:33:40 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 99] Re: Persistence Strategies
References: <E43278D67408F248838A1BDB754306050446AFF5@EV-SERVER.hcdemain.hcde.loc>
Message-ID: <008d01c6a446$fc33ff90$0c00a8c0@delawarefddoqz>

I agree with the accountability and importance of number of hours a student attends being a major focus of adult basic education programs.  It's a necessary component for funding.  

However, there are ways to keep students coming back by making them feel that they are an essential part of the class, that they will be missed by the group when they are not there. I find that by doing a lot of group work and encouraging them to work together helps them get to know each other.  I teach in an ESL adult class and I stress that they are all in the same boat.   I also think providing a course outline at the beginning of the school year, having continuity in lessons, putting the lesson plan on the board, etc. helps students see a pattern and a structure. We are also becoming more "academic" because this is what the students want.  

We are constantly looking for more ideas to attract and keep students, knowing that their lives do interfere with their attendance.  This year Ohio has started an adult ESL distance learning class and we are one of the pilot programs.  This becomes another option for students.

I'm glad to be a part of this discussion.
Barbara Wookey
wookey.4 at osu.edu

 
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
  Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:42 PM
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies


  Hello Bruce,

  Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our programs. 

  Renata
    -----Original Message-----
    From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
    Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
    To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
    Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies


    Dear John,
    I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
    1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment (There are many components of this.)
    2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of participation. 

    What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues, strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student persistence?

    From Bruce Carmel
    Turning Point
    Brooklyn, NY 



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From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Mon Jul 10 16:01:10 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 16:01:10 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 100] Re: Fwd:  Re: Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <4DDF8159-E0B2-4563-A310-324BFA9B53AF@comcast.net>
References: <007101c6a429$756d0050$0302a8c0@LITNOW>
	<4DDF8159-E0B2-4563-A310-324BFA9B53AF@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <28CD1855DD52048F3DCA6982@nic106>

Sorry I'm late responding but I just got into the office after a morning of 
conference calls and family business.

Let me start by saying that the last 8 years of research has given NCSALL 
some insights into what might work to increase persistence, but we don't 
yet have proof that the changes in program services that these insights 
suggest lead to increased persistence.  However, I feel we have some of the 
best available advice. That advice suggests two broad approaches, one is to 
add supports to persistence in our existing programs and the other suggests 
adding those supports to programs that are designed to fit with the 
existing patterns of participation.  The first approach is incremental and 
less expensive. That second requires changes in policy, funding, 
accountability, and service delivery.

Now to Marie Cora's two questions:

1.  Goals:  The quantitative aspect of our research showed a correlation 
between students who were able to state a specific goal for attending (they 
persisted longer) and those who stated a vague goal or no goal at all (they 
persisted less).  So we explored the goals of students and found that they 
usually expressed both an instrumental goal ("I want to get my GED, so I 
can get a better job" for example) and a transformational goal (I want to 
be the kind of person who has a high school education," for example). Many 
programs ask students at intake to state their goals, which is probably 
helpful. But, it might be helpful to weave the goal setting process into 
instruction as well. In this way, students can have some time to think 
about what they want and why they want it. Learner-produced reading 
materials, which many programs produce, at least in small quantities, might 
be useful in this process, but informal dialogue and writing about goals 
might work just as well. Any activities that help students articulate their 
instrumental and transformational goals, and revisit them as part of 
instruction, probably adds this support to persistence.

2.  Stopout: In our interviews, students who had dropped out told us that 
their program would not allow them to return after they stopped attending, 
but the staff in their programs said this was not true and we observed 
students returning and being welcomed back into the program. The 
misconception started at intake and orientation, when staff emphasized good 
attendance. Our longitudinal study is identifying a pattern of 
participation in learning that is made up of episodes of participation in 
programs and episodes of self-study.  Our research suggests that a support 
to persistence would making sure that new students know that they can 
stopout and also know how to reenter. However, we might do better to change 
the form of participation to one that links episodes of program 
participation and self study.


> Begin forwarded message:
>
>> From: "Marie Cora" <marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com>
>> Date: July 10, 2006 10:02:17 AM EDT
>> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 90] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
>> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>
>> Dear Colleagues,
>>
>> Thanks so much to John Comings for being with us this week to discuss
>> Persistence.  I am very much looking forward to hearing what
>> strategies
>> folks use out there to try and tackle this issue with their students.
>>
>> I actually have two questions for you (and list subscribers):  I am
>> interested in hearing you elaborate a bit on the impact of having the
>> student set his or her own goals, and how best to help them to do
>> that.
>> It's quite easy to set a student's goal for her/him - but not so
>> easy to
>> get a student to determine a goal for her/himself.  What are some
>> of the
>> things that folks do around this issue?
>>
>> Second, I heard you speak at a conference last fall in which you noted
>> that part of what could be helpful in persistence, is to acknowledge
>> that the student might not persist.  In other words, why not explore
>> with the student the reality that if they do "stop out", this doesn't
>> have to mean "quit".  I found this fascinating and at the same time,
>> completely logical.  This appears to be part of what you intend in
>> your
>> third area of research based on what I've read.
>>
>> Thank you again for your time this week and for the discussion.
>>
>> Marie Cora
>> NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
>> marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
>> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
>> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 7:37 AM
>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 89] Re: Persistence Discussion
>>
>> Dear Colleagues,
>>
>> Today we begin a discussion about the studies which Dr. John Comings
>> and others at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and
>> Literacy have done on persistence.  The discussion will continue
>> through Tuesday next week, July 18th.
>>
>> Please post your questions and comments to John beginning now.
>>
>> In John's message below he describes two publications which may be of
>> interest.  Each has a short executive summary.   There is also a 30-
>> minute video panel discussion about the study, with John and two
>> practitioners, streamed at:
>>
>> http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html
>>
>> You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser,
>> or you could try this shorter version:
>>
>> http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu
>>
>> Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing
>> the presentation, and there are still some bugs to be worked out of
>> the Mac streamed version.
>>
>> David J. Rosen
>> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
>> djrosen at comcast.net
>>
>> On Jul 5, 2006, at 4:33 PM, David Rosen wrote:
>>
>>> Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,
>>>
>>> John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult
>>> Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the
>>> persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction,
>>> below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of the
>>> study. I hope you can read these before July 10th.  You are welcome
>>> to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now, but
>>> these will not be posted until July 10th.
>>>
>>> i am looking forward to your joining in on this important discussion.
>>>
>>> David J. Rosen
>>> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
>>> djrosen at comcast.net
>>> --------------
>>>
>>> When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the
>>> proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed
>>> practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us design
>>> our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the survey. We
>>> asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they
>>> wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and GED
>>> programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and
>>> second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way,
>>> "Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the
>>> program.   How can I keep those students long enough that they can
>>> meet their educational goals?"
>>>
>>> That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of persistence.
>>> The first two phases are complete.  The first phase surveyed the
>>> literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England states,
>>> and identified ways that programs were trying to support the
>>> persistence of their students. The report of that first phase can be
>>> found at:
>>>
>>> <http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>
>>>
>>> In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided with
>>> funds to implement interventions that might help improve persistence,
>>> and our study team observed the programs and interviewed their staff
>>> and students. We also followed a cohort of 180 students for 14
>>> months.  The report of that second phase can be found at:
>>>
>>> <http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>
>>>
>>> We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer
>>> has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would
>>> test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to
>>> existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of modes of
>>> learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other
>>> ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their learning,
>>> and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the third
>>> approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem, as well
>>> as it can be solved.
>>>
>>> I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be interested
>>> in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence and how to
>>> expand opportunities for learning.
>>>
>>> John Comings, NCSALL Director
>>> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
>>> Harvard Graduate School of Education
>>> 7 Appian Way
>>> Cambridge MA 02138
>>> (617) 496-0516, voice
>>> (617) 495-4811, fax
>>> (617) 335-9839, mobile
>>> john_comings at harvard.edu
>>> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> -------------------------------
>>> National Institute for Literacy
>>> Special Topics mailing list
>>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>
>> David Rosen
>> djrosen at comcast.net
>>
>>
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> David Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Mon Jul 10 16:29:01 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 16:29:01 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 101] Re: Fwd:  Re: Persistence Strategies
In-Reply-To: <2A96F1FD-33FE-4795-8CF3-3EEE453C0CD2@comcast.net>
References: <3F3CB09760922A47BA8FC7AC35B19999043D05E5@mail1.carrollcc.edu>
	<2A96F1FD-33FE-4795-8CF3-3EEE453C0CD2@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <DC2FBA10BFB3F4F7FF2B1290@nic106>

Well, I think we could demonstrate positive impact in students who have 
irregular attendance, but they would probably need some minimum intensity 
and duration to succeed. In England, programs are held accountable by their 
students taking standardized tests, but they are curriculum tests, more 
like the GED, except that there are five levels of tests and there are 
several versions of each test. So every class is helping its students 
prepare to pass a specific test, not make a gain on a pre-test and 
post-test. This gets a bit away from persistence, but I do think an 
approach to program participation that employed episodes of classroom 
learning with self-study would fit better with level  tests than with 
pre-/post-test approach to accountability. Also, the policy allows for some 
students to decide not to take the tests.

> Begin forwarded message:
>
>> From: "Maurio, Rebecca" <RMaurio at carrollcc.edu>
>> Date: July 10, 2006 12:55:53 PM EDT
>> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 93] Re: Persistence Strategies
>> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>
>> Great discussion and it's only early Monday!  I appreciate hearing
>> ideas and learning what has worked in other settings ? this topic
>> is so critical to our work!
>>
>>
>>
>> Renata's comments lead me to ask ? how can we help our funders and
>> other stakeholders to understand the realities our students and our
>> programs face?  While we all need to be held to certain
>> accountability measures, there will be many students who can
>> benefit from even what most would consider irregular attendance ?
>> and I believe that's a good thing.  How can we demonstrate other
>> benefits - perhaps without the number of hours of attendance or
>> without the score on a standardized post-test?
>>
>>
>>
>> I also wonder - what activities and strategies are programs
>> employing to keep learners connected to their programs even when
>> they cannot attend regularly?
>>
>>
>>
>> Thanks!
>> Becki
>>
>>
>>
>> Becki Maurio
>>
>> ESOL Coordinator / Project Developer
>>
>> Carroll Community College
>>
>> Westminster, Maryland
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-
>> bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Renata Russo
>> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:43 PM
>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies
>>
>>
>>
>> Hello Bruce,
>>
>>
>>
>> Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found
>> helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the
>> second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as
>> teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to
>> participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for
>> some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and
>> funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our
>> programs.
>>
>>
>>
>> Renata
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-
>> bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
>> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies
>>
>> Dear John,
>>
>> I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student
>> persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I
>> have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes
>> educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I
>> learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds
>> project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy
>> students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
>>
>> 1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment
>> (There are many components of this.)
>>
>> 2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend
>> classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their
>> needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and
>> duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular,
>> sporadic model of participation.
>>
>>
>>
>> What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues,
>> strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with
>> student persistence?
>>
>>
>>
>> From Bruce Carmel
>>
>> Turning Point
>>
>> Brooklyn, NY
>>
>>
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> David Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Mon Jul 10 16:32:56 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 16:32:56 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 102] Re: Fwd:  Re: Persistence Strategies
In-Reply-To: <274B2D35-5EF9-433C-B68A-3BC45F4AC8FD@comcast.net>
References: <1F64CFEE8902A248A8BE9EA760C0CE6480C938@LAWEX01.necc.mass.edu>
	<274B2D35-5EF9-433C-B68A-3BC45F4AC8FD@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <01DCF341E5FE1BA5FC295C72@nic106>

There is only so much a program can do within existing policies. The 
policies aren't bad, they are just based on assumptions that are true for 
some but not all students. We need to convince policy makers to broaden 
their definition of participation.


> Begin forwarded message:
>
>> From: "Bower, Carol" <cbower at necc.mass.edu>
>> Date: July 10, 2006 1:03:00 PM EDT
>> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 94] Re: Persistence Strategies
>> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>
>> Hello John and all,
>>
>>
>>
>> Renata's comment echos a concern I heard raised repeatedly in a
>> NCSALL Persistence Study Circle which I recently co-facilitated
>> with one of my SABES colleagues.  In Massachusetts, where programs
>> are being asked to be accountable for retention by reporting on
>> attendance and average attended hours, programs willing to embrace
>> the concepts and effective practices associated with the NCSALL
>> definition of persistence are caught in a bit of a bind.  They want
>> to support the on-going learning of their students, and can see
>> that many do persist, although not necessarily in the same program
>> or in an uninterrupted fashion.
>>
>>
>>
>> What advice would you have for programs that are attempting to
>> reconcile these different approaches?
>>
>>
>>
>> Carol Bower
>>
>> Director, NE SABES
>>
>> System for Adult Basic Education Support
>>
>> Northern Essex Community College
>>
>> 45 Franklin Street
>>
>> Lawrence, MA 01840
>>
>>
>>
>> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-
>> bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Renata Russo
>> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:43 PM
>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies
>>
>>
>>
>> Hello Bruce,
>>
>>
>>
>> Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found
>> helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the
>> second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as
>> teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to
>> participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for
>> some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and
>> funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our
>> programs.
>>
>>
>>
>> Renata
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-
>> bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
>> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies
>>
>> Dear John,
>>
>> I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student
>> persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I
>> have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes
>> educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I
>> learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds
>> project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy
>> students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
>>
>> 1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment
>> (There are many components of this.)
>>
>> 2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend
>> classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their
>> needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and
>> duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular,
>> sporadic model of participation.
>>
>>
>>
>> What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues,
>> strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with
>> student persistence?
>>
>>
>>
>> From Bruce Carmel
>>
>> Turning Point
>>
>> Brooklyn, NY
>>
>>
>>
>> Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and
>> 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> David Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Mon Jul 10 16:37:12 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 16:37:12 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 103] Re: Fwd:  Re: Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <0ED9FC40-F760-4C0F-84C0-A4BD147D57B9@comcast.net>
References: <BAY113-F141A277FF2F1DD3B575AACD46B0@phx.gbl>
	<0ED9FC40-F760-4C0F-84C0-A4BD147D57B9@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <9FBF2488DDF22170EAB3B3D1@nic106>

This sounds like a good approach. When we were just starting the 
persistence project, we talked with programs about what they did to support 
persistence and we heard lots of good ideas, some of which ended up in our 
report. We need a systematic way to share all this professional wisdom.
>
> Begin forwarded message:
>
>> From: "Lynn Howard" <lmhowardliteracy at hotmail.com>
>> Date: July 10, 2006 1:08:21 PM EDT
>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 95] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
>> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>
>> I am looking forward to this discussion because it is so relevant
>> to our mission...
>>
>> To answer question one:  We have a "Roles and Goals" form that we
>> fill out with our students when they register for services.  We ask
>> them specifically "Why are you here today?  What is your goal?"
>> When they reply to learn to read, write and speak English, we then
>> ask them "Why? What is it you hope to be able to do once you have
>> begun working on these skills?" We then take that information, fill
>> out the form and share that info with the student's  tutor and in
>> our database.  We then ask tutors to let us know quarterly what
>> goals have been met, what new goals have been set and what goals
>> are still in progress.
>>
>> To answer question two:  We let the students know from the
>> beginning that we are aware that life gets in the way of learning
>> sometiimes, and that taking a break to deal with life outside of
>> tutoring is okay...we will contact them again after X amount of
>> time (usually 4 weeks) to see how they are doing and if they are
>> ready to continue.  Our tutors sometimes break at the same time so
>> they can keep their student, and sometimes choose to continue on
>> with a different student.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Lynn M. Howard, CoordinatorWoodland Public Library Literacy
>> Service250 First StreetWoodland, CA  95695530-661-5987530-666-5408
>> FAXWPLLiteracyService at hotmail.com www.ci.woodland.ca.us/library/
>> literacypage.htm
>>
>> From: "Marie Cora" <marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com>
>> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 90] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
>> Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 10:02:17 -0400
>> > Dear Colleagues,
>> >
>> > Thanks so much to John Comings for being with us this week to discuss
>> > Persistence. I am very much looking forward to hearing what
>> strategies
>> > folks use out there to try and tackle this issue with their students.
>> >
>> > I actually have two questions for you (and list subscribers): I am
>> > interested in hearing you elaborate a bit on the impact of having the
>> > student set his or her own goals, and how best to help them to do
>> that.
>> > It's quite easy to set a student's goal for her/him - but not so
>> easy to
>> > get a student to determine a goal for her/himself. What are some
>> of the
>> > things that folks do around this issue?
>> >
>> > Second, I heard you speak at a conference last fall in which you
>> noted
>> > that part of what could be helpful in persistence, is to acknowledge
>> > that the student might not persist. In other words, why not explore
>> > with the student the reality that if they do "stop out", this doesn't
>> > have to mean "quit". I found this fascinating and at the same time,
>> > completely logical. This appears to be part of what you intend in
>> your
>> > third area of research based on what I've read.
>> >
>> > Thank you again for your time this week and for the discussion.
>> >
>> > Marie Cora
>> > NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
>> > marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
>> >
>> >
>> > -----Original Message-----
>> > From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
>> > [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
>> > Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 7:37 AM
>> > To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> > Subject: [SpecialTopics 89] Re: Persistence Discussion
>> >
>> > Dear Colleagues,
>> >
>> > Today we begin a discussion about the studies which Dr. John Comings
>> > and others at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and
>> > Literacy have done on persistence. The discussion will continue
>> > through Tuesday next week, July 18th.
>> >
>> > Please post your questions and comments to John beginning now.
>> >
>> > In John's message below he describes two publications which may be of
>> > interest. Each has a short executive summary. There is also a 30-
>> > minute video panel discussion about the study, with John and two
>> > practitioners, streamed at:
>> >
>> > http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html
>> >
>> > You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser,
>> > or you could try this shorter version:
>> >
>> > http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu
>> >
>> > Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing
>> > the presentation, and there are still some bugs to be worked out of
>> > the Mac streamed version.
>> >
>> > David J. Rosen
>> > Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
>> > djrosen at comcast.net
>> >
>> > On Jul 5, 2006, at 4:33 PM, David Rosen wrote:
>> >
>> > > Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,
>> > >
>> > > John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of
>> Adult
>> > > Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the
>> > > persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction,
>> > > below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of
>> the
>> > > study. I hope you can read these before July 10th. You are welcome
>> > > to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now,
>> but
>> > > these will not be posted until July 10th.
>> > >
>> > > i am looking forward to your joining in on this important
>> discussion.
>> > >
>> > > David J. Rosen
>> > > Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
>> > > djrosen at comcast.net
>> > > --------------
>> > >
>> > > When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the
>> > > proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed
>> > > practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us
>> design
>> > > our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the
>> survey. We
>> > > asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they
>> > > wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and
>> GED
>> > > programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and
>> > > second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way,
>> > > "Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the
>> > > program. How can I keep those students long enough that they can
>> > > meet their educational goals?"
>> > >
>> > > That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of
>> persistence.
>> > > The first two phases are complete. The first phase surveyed the
>> > > literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England
>> states,
>> > > and identified ways that programs were trying to support the
>> > > persistence of their students. The report of that first phase
>> can be
>> > > found at:
>> > >
>> > > <http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>
>> > >
>> > > In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided
>> with
>> > > funds to implement interventions that might help improve
>> persistence,
>> > > and our study team observed the programs and interviewed their
>> staff
>> > > and students. We also followed a cohort of 180 students for 14
>> > > months. The report of that second phase can be found at:
>> > >
>> > > <http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>
>> > >
>> > > We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer
>> > > has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would
>> > > test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to
>> > > existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of
>> modes of
>> > > learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other
>> > > ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their
>> learning,
>> > > and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the
>> third
>> > > approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem,
>> as well
>> > > as it can be solved.
>> > >
>> > > I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be
>> interested
>> > > in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence and
>> how to
>> > > expand opportunities for learning.
>> > >
>> > > John Comings, NCSALL Director
>> > > National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
>> > > Harvard Graduate School of Education
>> > > 7 Appian Way
>> > > Cambridge MA 02138
>> > > (617) 496-0516, voice
>> > > (617) 495-4811, fax
>> > > (617) 335-9839, mobile
>> > > john_comings at harvard.edu
>> > > http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>> > >
>> > >
>> > >
>> > >
>> > >
>> > >
>> > > -------------------------------
>> > > National Institute for Literacy
>> > > Special Topics mailing list
>> > > SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> > > To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> > > http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>> >
>> > David Rosen
>> > djrosen at comcast.net
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > -------------------------------
>> > National Institute for Literacy
>> > Special Topics mailing list
>> > SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> > To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> > http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>> >
>> > -------------------------------
>> > National Institute for Literacy
>> > Special Topics mailing list
>> > SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> > To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> David Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Mon Jul 10 16:54:28 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 16:54:28 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 104]  Persistence
Message-ID: <05A38EBB1AA42300B8534472@nic106>

The last few posts make me feel that the value of NCSALL's persistence 
study is the dialogue it started and the sharing of experience among 
practitioners. For those of you who have not seen the NCSALL study circle 
guide on persistence, you might take a look at the new revised version that 
is now available on the NCSALL Web site.  This version includes phase 2 of 
the research, which the first version did not.  The URL is 
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=896. The link is also on the home page.



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From djrosen at comcast.net  Mon Jul 10 17:25:58 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 17:25:58 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 105] Re: Persistence Strategies
References: <BBBBDA31812B7F0F27D50B49@nic106>
Message-ID: <7D28B964-2ABD-4B95-81BD-919BD088689C@comcast.net>



From: John Comings <comingjo at gse.harvard.edu>
Date: July 10, 2006 4:20:36 PM EDT

I think I spoke to this in the last posting, but let me elaborate.  
Someone once told me that in advertising there are two kinds of  
products. An example of the first is toothpaste. Apparently, the  
percentage of the population that is willing to brush their teeth is  
set. It isn't getting any bigger, and so toothpaste companies are not  
trying to sell people on the idea of brushing their teeth but,  
rather, trying to get people to change from one brand of toothpaste  
to another. An example of the second was the personal computer. In  
1980, very few people knew they wanted a personal computer. IBM and  
Apple had to sell the idea. People had to be convinced to buy a  
product they didn't know they needed.

We're at that stage. There is some interesting innovation in using  
computers and the Web for our field. Someone now needs to put it  
together and sell it to government policy makers.

John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu


>
>
>> Begin forwarded message:
>>
>>> From: "Renata Russo" <rrusso at hcde-texas.org>
>>> Date: July 10, 2006 12:42:58 PM EDT
>>> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
>>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies
>>> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>>
>>> Hello Bruce,
>>>
>>> Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found
>>> helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the
>>> second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as
>>> teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to
>>> participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for
>>> some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and
>>> funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our
>>> programs.
>>>
>>> Renata
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-
>>> bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
>>> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
>>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies
>>>
>>> Dear John,
>>> I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student
>>> persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I
>>> have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes
>>> educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I
>>> learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds
>>> project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy
>>> students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
>>> 1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment
>>> (There are many components of this.)
>>> 2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend
>>> classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their
>>> needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and
>>> duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular,
>>> sporadic model of participation.
>>>
>>> What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues,
>>> strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with
>>> student persistence?
>>>
>>> From Bruce Carmel
>>> Turning Point
>>> Brooklyn, NY
>>>
>>>
>>> Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and
>>> 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.
>>> -------------------------------
>>> National Institute for Literacy
>>> Special Topics mailing list
>>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>
>> David Rosen
>> djrosen at comcast.net
>>
>>
>>
>
>







From Khinson at future-gate.com  Mon Jul 10 19:58:05 2006
From: Khinson at future-gate.com (Katrina Hinson)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 01:58:05 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 105]   Re: Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <007101c6a429$756d0050$0302a8c0@LITNOW>
References: <73DE2DF9-AA2D-40A2-928A-3135FA803DAB@comcast.net>
	<007101c6a429$756d0050$0302a8c0@LITNOW>
Message-ID: <44B2B14B.121D.00A0.0@future-gate.com>

This is a great discussion so far. I've enjoyed reading all the email 
today and thinking about all the ideas shared so far, as well as the
questions/concerns presented. I thought I'd jump into this conversation
by answering the question Maria posed below.

Question 1: (Goal Setting) - When I get new students in my class - one
of things we do together is go over the LEIS profile sheet A) because I
have to and B) it's a good way to begin to ask my students questions
about what brought them to the program and what they hope to get out of
it. I loved Lynn Howard's idea of the "Roles and Goals" sheet.  I don't
necessarily have a sheet, but I make lots of notes that I keep in each
students folder and/or in my own lesson planning notebook. 
Periodically, I come back to a student's goals and discuss with them
their progress towards their goals. It's a way to find out if they've
changed or added new ones. I can update their records that way and I can
also talk about realistic goal setting during the initial process and
the follow up. Usually, I have one or two students who place very low
and think getting their GED is going to be "easy".  When we get to the
follow up goal setting discussion, they've realized that they have
material to learn and opt to change their goals but stair stepping them
so that they can see their own POSITIVE gains in smaller chunks rather
than focusing on the big picture.

Like many of the others,  I share the concerns that there is a conflict
between accountability measures and the real reasons a student stops
coming. I do think teachers need to be accountable but I think there has
to be a better way than what is currently being done to programs. It
seems to me, that rather than helping to improve programs,
accountability measures that are directly tied to funding may ultimately
see some programs disappear. What happens to our students when they have
no place to go? In rural areas with high unemployment, high drop out
rates etc; it's often difficult to meet performance measures based on
the progress of standardized tests for the very reasons that students do
"stop out" for whatever reason - those reasons are never taken into
account, program funding gets cut and classes are closed because there
is no teacher to teach.

Barbara Wookey replied in an email: ". . . .there are ways to keep
students coming back by making them feel that they are an essential part
of the class, that they will be missed by the group when they are not
there. . . ."  I'm not sure it's that easy though. The one thing that my
students have repeatedly told me is the reason they keep coming back is
because they know I care...at the same time I still get the same number
of phone calls from students who tell me they don't have transportation,
no way to pay for daycare, no computer access to even consider working
online, having the baby at home would interfere with study time etc. No
matter how much I care for my students, no matter the level of
comraderie established in my class, some things are simply out of a
teachers control.   Additionally, I'd love to provide a course outline
but I have open enrollment. I can get students the week before a session
ends. A course outline, in that regard, would not be very useful. Not
only that, in a multilevel classroom, I may have multiple subjects going
at the same time and again it would limit the type of structure I can
provide. (I'm open to ideas if anyone has them.)  It's funny - you said
your program is becoming more "academic" while ours is becoming more
"vocational." We've learned that many of our students don't have desires
to pursue a 4 year degree or even a 2 year degree. Most are after skills
and certifications that are going to make them employable in a very
tight job market or give them skills if they move to a different market.
We're in the middle of trying to find that balance between academic and
vocational so we can meet both needs. I there are so many things that
can impact a student's persistence and I'm wondering if the needs
actually vary from region to region - rural to urban etc.  A lot of
research is done in the Northeast or other major metropolitan areas but
realistically, how applicable and how sound is it when it comes to a
program that serves in different regions that may have different factors
that influence persistence rates?

Regards
Katrina Hinson



>>> "Marie Cora" <marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com> 7/10/2006 10:02 am
>>>
Dear Colleagues,

Thanks so much to John Comings for being with us this week to discuss
Persistence.  I am very much looking forward to hearing what
strategies
folks use out there to try and tackle this issue with their students. 


I actually have two questions for you (and list subscribers):  I am
interested in hearing you elaborate a bit on the impact of having the
student set his or her own goals, and how best to help them to do
that.
It's quite easy to set a student's goal for her/him - but not so easy
to
get a student to determine a goal for her/himself.  What are some of
the
things that folks do around this issue?

Second, I heard you speak at a conference last fall in which you noted
that part of what could be helpful in persistence, is to acknowledge
that the student might not persist.  In other words, why not explore
with the student the reality that if they do "stop out", this doesn't
have to mean "quit".  I found this fascinating and at the same time,
completely logical.  This appears to be part of what you intend in
your
third area of research based on what I've read.  

Thank you again for your time this week and for the discussion.

Marie Cora
NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com 


-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 7:37 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
Subject: [SpecialTopics 89] Re: Persistence Discussion

Dear Colleagues,

Today we begin a discussion about the studies which Dr. John Comings  
and others at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and 

Literacy have done on persistence.  The discussion will continue  
through Tuesday next week, July 18th.

Please post your questions and comments to John beginning now.

In John's message below he describes two publications which may be of 

interest.  Each has a short executive summary.   There is also a 30- 
minute video panel discussion about the study, with John and two  
practitioners, streamed at:

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html 

You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser,  
or you could try this shorter version:

http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu 

Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing  
the presentation, and there are still some bugs to be worked out of  
the Mac streamed version.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net 

On Jul 5, 2006, at 4:33 PM, David Rosen wrote:

> Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,
>
> John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult
> Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the
> persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction,
> below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of the
> study. I hope you can read these before July 10th.  You are welcome
> to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now, but
> these will not be posted until July 10th.
>
> i am looking forward to your joining in on this important
discussion.
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net 
> --------------
>
> When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the
> proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed
> practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us design
> our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the survey.
We
> asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they
> wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and GED
> programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and
> second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way,
> "Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the
> program.   How can I keep those students long enough that they can
> meet their educational goals?"
>
> That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of
persistence.
> The first two phases are complete.  The first phase surveyed the
> literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England states,
> and identified ways that programs were trying to support the
> persistence of their students. The report of that first phase can be
> found at:
>
> <http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>
>
> In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided with
> funds to implement interventions that might help improve
persistence,
> and our study team observed the programs and interviewed their staff
> and students. We also followed a cohort of 180 students for 14
> months.  The report of that second phase can be found at:
>
> <http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>
>
> We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer
> has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would
> test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to
> existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of modes of
> learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other
> ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their learning,
> and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the
third
> approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem, as
well
> as it can be solved.
>
> I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be
interested
> in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence and how to
> expand opportunities for learning.
>
> John Comings, NCSALL Director
> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge MA 02138
> (617) 496-0516, voice
> (617) 495-4811, fax
> (617) 335-9839, mobile
> john_comings at harvard.edu 
> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu 
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov 
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to  
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics 

David Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net 



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov 
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics 

-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov 
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
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From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Mon Jul 10 21:53:44 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 21:53:44 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 106] Re: Fwd: Posting for Persistence discussion
In-Reply-To: <B7B889B1-6D97-49DF-9FAD-12D370F312F7@comcast.net>
References: <8ED1421E7185F742B0485938@nic106>
	<B7B889B1-6D97-49DF-9FAD-12D370F312F7@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <9C5B8CE05F23305687E8C5F7@[192.168.1.102]>

High quality instruction in a supportive environment is a support to 
persistence. These should be qualities of every program.

The present definition of success works for some students but not others. I 
see no reason why we couldn't have several different
types of success. However, our programs are funded by agencies that want  a 
credible measure of success.

When NCSALL started ten years ago, many people asked me why didn't we have 
a research project on technology, and I said I couldn't think
of  a research question for technology. Now, I believe that technology 
could help solve this problem by expanding the way we measure success
but also by helping us track episodes of participation either in program or 
through self-study.

I don't think government policy makers are going to support the development 
of these new kinds of success. We need a foundation to
help us develop new approaches that employ technology to open up new ways 
to participate in learning and new ways to measure persistence and
achievement. Once these new approaches have been developed and tested, 
policy makers will accept them.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> Begin forwarded message:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> From: Bruce Carmel <bcarmel at rocketmail.com>
>>>>> Date: July 10, 2006 12:25:49 PM EDT
>>>>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>>>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 91]  Persistence Strategies
>>>>> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>>>>
>>>>> Dear John,
>>>>> I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student
>>>>> persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I
>>>>> have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes
>>>>> educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I
>>>>> learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds
>>>>> project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy
>>>>> students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
>>>>> 1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment
>>>>> (There are many components of this.)
>>>>> 2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend
>>>>> classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their
>>>>> needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and
>>>>> duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular,
>>>>> sporadic model of participation.
>>>>>
>>>>> What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues,
>>>>> strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with
>>>>> student persistence?
>>>>>
>>>>> From Bruce Carmel
>>>>> Turning Point
>>>>> Brooklyn, NY
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and
>>>>> 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.
>>>>> -------------------------------
>>>>> National Institute for Literacy
>>>>> Special Topics mailing list
>>>>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>>>>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>>>>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> David Rosen
>>>> djrosen at comcast.net
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> John Comings, Director
>>> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
>>> Harvard Graduate School of Education
>>> 7 Appian Way
>>> Cambridge MA 02138
>>> (617) 496-0516, voice
>>> (617) 495-4811, fax
>>> (617) 335-9839, mobile
>>> john_comings at harvard.edu
>>> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> David Rosen
>>> djrosen at comcast.net
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>> John Comings, Director
>> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
>> Harvard Graduate School of Education
>> 7 Appian Way
>> Cambridge MA 02138
>> (617) 496-0516, voice
>> (617) 495-4811, fax
>> (617) 335-9839, mobile
>> john_comings at harvard.edu
>> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>>
>
> David Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From cnaamh at rcn.com  Mon Jul 10 21:23:58 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 21:23:58 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 107] Re: Persistence Strategies
References: <20060710162549.75396.qmail@web37904.mail.mud.yahoo.com>
Message-ID: <011a01c6a490$3cb50520$dad8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>

I agree with you, Bruce.  High-quality instruction in a supportive environment is key and has many components.  We may have to re-define success for funders but for students feeling successful NOW is a key element of persistence.  We evaluate every activity and every class.  All students should leave every class with a feeling of success.  I try my best to have students leave, even the first class, with something they can use now.

Nicole B. Graves
South Deerfield, MA
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Bruce Carmel 
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
  Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:25 PM
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies


  Dear John,
  I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
  1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment (There are many components of this.)
  2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of participation. 

  What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues, strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student persistence?

  From Bruce Carmel
  Turning Point
  Brooklyn, NY 



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From cnaamh at rcn.com  Mon Jul 10 21:41:20 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 21:41:20 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 108] Re: Persistence Strategies
References: <E43278D67408F248838A1BDB754306050446AFF5@EV-SERVER.hcdemain.hcde.loc>
	<008d01c6a446$fc33ff90$0c00a8c0@delawarefddoqz>
Message-ID: <011b01c6a490$3defcf10$dad8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>

Well said, Barbara.  

Building community in the classroom is very important and the ideas you list support this development.  I also call students immediately when they miss class without letting me know or I ask a classmate to do so.  Sometimes having a conversation about the barriers helps to manage them.  For example, a student may say he missed class because he had to go to work early or he had a doctor's appointment.  By asking if the boss is aware of the student class schedule, I may discover that the student never mentioned that fact.  We can practice a potential conversation to, at least, reveal the fact.  By sharing that I ask that my appointments be made at a different time, I can help the student see that he or she is in fact a "customer".  Recently, a young pregnant woman started to miss class every Thursday to go to the doctor.  After our talk, she told me she could not change the day but she was able to change the time.  It allowed her to come for most of the class.  (I also tell them it does not always work.)  Our students do not have a lot of "flex" time, I am very much aware of that.  

Nicole B. Graves
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Barbara Wookey 
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
  Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 1:33 PM
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 99] Re: Persistence Strategies


  I agree with the accountability and importance of number of hours a student attends being a major focus of adult basic education programs.  It's a necessary component for funding.  

  However, there are ways to keep students coming back by making them feel that they are an essential part of the class, that they will be missed by the group when they are not there. I find that by doing a lot of group work and encouraging them to work together helps them get to know each other.  I teach in an ESL adult class and I stress that they are all in the same boat.   I also think providing a course outline at the beginning of the school year, having continuity in lessons, putting the lesson plan on the board, etc. helps students see a pattern and a structure. We are also becoming more "academic" because this is what the students want.  

  We are constantly looking for more ideas to attract and keep students, knowing that their lives do interfere with their attendance.  This year Ohio has started an adult ESL distance learning class and we are one of the pilot programs.  This becomes another option for students.

  I'm glad to be a part of this discussion.
  Barbara Wookey
  wookey.4 at osu.edu


    To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
    Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:42 PM
    Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies


    Hello Bruce,

    Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our programs. 

    Renata
      -----Original Message-----
      From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
      Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
      To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
      Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies


      Dear John,
      I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
      1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment (There are many components of this.)
      2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of participation. 

      What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues, strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student persistence?

      From Bruce Carmel
      Turning Point
      Brooklyn, NY 



--------------------------------------------------------------------------
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    Spam
    Not spam
    Forget previous vote



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From cnaamh at rcn.com  Mon Jul 10 22:13:12 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 22:13:12 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 109] Re: Fwd:  Re: Persistence Discussion questions
References: <007101c6a429$756d0050$0302a8c0@LITNOW><4DDF8159-E0B2-4563-A310-324BFA9B53AF@comcast.net>
	<28CD1855DD52048F3DCA6982@nic106>
Message-ID: <011d01c6a490$439238e0$dad8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>

Hello John,

I met you years ago at a NCSALL meeting.  I was a PDRN from Massachusetts.

I agree with your answer for number 1.  Goals must be part of instruction
and revisited frequently.  They can and do change over time.

Nicole B. Graves
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "John Comings" <comingjo at gse.harvard.edu>
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 4:01 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 100] Re: Fwd: Re: Persistence Discussion questions


> Sorry I'm late responding but I just got into the office after a morning
of
> conference calls and family business.
>
> Let me start by saying that the last 8 years of research has given NCSALL
> some insights into what might work to increase persistence, but we don't
> yet have proof that the changes in program services that these insights
> suggest lead to increased persistence.  However, I feel we have some of
the
> best available advice. That advice suggests two broad approaches, one is
to
> add supports to persistence in our existing programs and the other
suggests
> adding those supports to programs that are designed to fit with the
> existing patterns of participation.  The first approach is incremental and
> less expensive. That second requires changes in policy, funding,
> accountability, and service delivery.
>
> Now to Marie Cora's two questions:
>
> 1.  Goals:  The quantitative aspect of our research showed a correlation
> between students who were able to state a specific goal for attending
(they
> persisted longer) and those who stated a vague goal or no goal at all
(they
> persisted less).  So we explored the goals of students and found that they
> usually expressed both an instrumental goal ("I want to get my GED, so I
> can get a better job" for example) and a transformational goal (I want to
> be the kind of person who has a high school education," for example). Many
> programs ask students at intake to state their goals, which is probably
> helpful. But, it might be helpful to weave the goal setting process into
> instruction as well. In this way, students can have some time to think
> about what they want and why they want it. Learner-produced reading
> materials, which many programs produce, at least in small quantities,
might
> be useful in this process, but informal dialogue and writing about goals
> might work just as well. Any activities that help students articulate
their
> instrumental and transformational goals, and revisit them as part of
> instruction, probably adds this support to persistence.
>
> 2.  Stopout: In our interviews, students who had dropped out told us that
> their program would not allow them to return after they stopped attending,
> but the staff in their programs said this was not true and we observed
> students returning and being welcomed back into the program. The
> misconception started at intake and orientation, when staff emphasized
good
> attendance. Our longitudinal study is identifying a pattern of
> participation in learning that is made up of episodes of participation in
> programs and episodes of self-study.  Our research suggests that a support
> to persistence would making sure that new students know that they can
> stopout and also know how to reenter. However, we might do better to
change
> the form of participation to one that links episodes of program
> participation and self study.
>
>
> > Begin forwarded message:
> >
> >> From: "Marie Cora" <marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com>
> >> Date: July 10, 2006 10:02:17 AM EDT
> >> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
> >> Subject: [SpecialTopics 90] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
> >> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> >>
> >> Dear Colleagues,
> >>
> >> Thanks so much to John Comings for being with us this week to discuss
> >> Persistence.  I am very much looking forward to hearing what
> >> strategies
> >> folks use out there to try and tackle this issue with their students.
> >>
> >> I actually have two questions for you (and list subscribers):  I am
> >> interested in hearing you elaborate a bit on the impact of having the
> >> student set his or her own goals, and how best to help them to do
> >> that.
> >> It's quite easy to set a student's goal for her/him - but not so
> >> easy to
> >> get a student to determine a goal for her/himself.  What are some
> >> of the
> >> things that folks do around this issue?
> >>
> >> Second, I heard you speak at a conference last fall in which you noted
> >> that part of what could be helpful in persistence, is to acknowledge
> >> that the student might not persist.  In other words, why not explore
> >> with the student the reality that if they do "stop out", this doesn't
> >> have to mean "quit".  I found this fascinating and at the same time,
> >> completely logical.  This appears to be part of what you intend in
> >> your
> >> third area of research based on what I've read.
> >>
> >> Thank you again for your time this week and for the discussion.
> >>
> >> Marie Cora
> >> NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
> >> marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
> >>
> >>
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> >> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
> >> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 7:37 AM
> >> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> >> Subject: [SpecialTopics 89] Re: Persistence Discussion
> >>
> >> Dear Colleagues,
> >>
> >> Today we begin a discussion about the studies which Dr. John Comings
> >> and others at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and
> >> Literacy have done on persistence.  The discussion will continue
> >> through Tuesday next week, July 18th.
> >>
> >> Please post your questions and comments to John beginning now.
> >>
> >> In John's message below he describes two publications which may be of
> >> interest.  Each has a short executive summary.   There is also a 30-
> >> minute video panel discussion about the study, with John and two
> >> practitioners, streamed at:
> >>
> >> http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html
> >>
> >> You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser,
> >> or you could try this shorter version:
> >>
> >> http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu
> >>
> >> Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing
> >> the presentation, and there are still some bugs to be worked out of
> >> the Mac streamed version.
> >>
> >> David J. Rosen
> >> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
> >> djrosen at comcast.net
> >>
> >> On Jul 5, 2006, at 4:33 PM, David Rosen wrote:
> >>
> >>> Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,
> >>>
> >>> John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult
> >>> Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the
> >>> persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction,
> >>> below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of the
> >>> study. I hope you can read these before July 10th.  You are welcome
> >>> to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now, but
> >>> these will not be posted until July 10th.
> >>>
> >>> i am looking forward to your joining in on this important discussion.
> >>>
> >>> David J. Rosen
> >>> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
> >>> djrosen at comcast.net
> >>> --------------
> >>>
> >>> When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the
> >>> proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed
> >>> practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us design
> >>> our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the survey. We
> >>> asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they
> >>> wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and GED
> >>> programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and
> >>> second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way,
> >>> "Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the
> >>> program.   How can I keep those students long enough that they can
> >>> meet their educational goals?"
> >>>
> >>> That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of persistence.
> >>> The first two phases are complete.  The first phase surveyed the
> >>> literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England states,
> >>> and identified ways that programs were trying to support the
> >>> persistence of their students. The report of that first phase can be
> >>> found at:
> >>>
> >>> <http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>
> >>>
> >>> In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided with
> >>> funds to implement interventions that might help improve persistence,
> >>> and our study team observed the programs and interviewed their staff
> >>> and students. We also followed a cohort of 180 students for 14
> >>> months.  The report of that second phase can be found at:
> >>>
> >>> <http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>
> >>>
> >>> We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer
> >>> has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would
> >>> test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to
> >>> existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of modes of
> >>> learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other
> >>> ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their learning,
> >>> and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the third
> >>> approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem, as well
> >>> as it can be solved.
> >>>
> >>> I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be interested
> >>> in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence and how to
> >>> expand opportunities for learning.
> >>>
> >>> John Comings, NCSALL Director
> >>> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
> >>> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> >>> 7 Appian Way
> >>> Cambridge MA 02138
> >>> (617) 496-0516, voice
> >>> (617) 495-4811, fax
> >>> (617) 335-9839, mobile
> >>> john_comings at harvard.edu
> >>> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> -------------------------------
> >>> National Institute for Literacy
> >>> Special Topics mailing list
> >>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> >>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> >>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> >>
> >> David Rosen
> >> djrosen at comcast.net
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> -------------------------------
> >> National Institute for Literacy
> >> Special Topics mailing list
> >> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> >> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> >> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> >>
> >> -------------------------------
> >> National Institute for Literacy
> >> Special Topics mailing list
> >> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> >> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> >> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> >
> > David Rosen
> > djrosen at comcast.net
> >
> >
> >
>
>
>
> John Comings, Director
> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge MA 02138
> (617) 496-0516, voice
> (617) 495-4811, fax
> (617) 335-9839, mobile
> john_comings at harvard.edu
> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From cnaamh at rcn.com  Mon Jul 10 22:07:16 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 22:07:16 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 110] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
References: <007101c6a429$756d0050$0302a8c0@LITNOW>
Message-ID: <011c01c6a490$41c95fc0$dad8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>

Hi Marie,

Students who make the effort to contact a program generally have at least a
broad goal in mind.  It is not always very realistic.  It is important to
clarify the goal and to break it down  into more specific goals.  We ask
students about goals at intake.  This is not sufficient.  Goal-setting
activities at the beginning of every class must be seen and understood as
being  components of instruction.  These activities help students break down
a broad goal into more manageable steps.  These more specific steps can
become lesson objectives.  Students achieve the objectives and gain success.
The process is repeated by setting new mini-goals or steps.  Connecting
learners' goals with instruction, now, helps to increase motivation and
persistence.  Immediacy is also important.  The process we use in my program
is explained in Adventures and Assessment, Vol. 16.  Spring 2004.

Nicole B. Graves
The Center for New Americans

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Marie Cora" <marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com>
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 10:02 AM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 90] Re: Persistence Discussion questions


> Dear Colleagues,
>
> Thanks so much to John Comings for being with us this week to discuss
> Persistence.  I am very much looking forward to hearing what strategies
> folks use out there to try and tackle this issue with their students.
>
> I actually have two questions for you (and list subscribers):  I am
> interested in hearing you elaborate a bit on the impact of having the
> student set his or her own goals, and how best to help them to do that.
> It's quite easy to set a student's goal for her/him - but not so easy to
> get a student to determine a goal for her/himself.  What are some of the
> things that folks do around this issue?
>
> Second, I heard you speak at a conference last fall in which you noted
> that part of what could be helpful in persistence, is to acknowledge
> that the student might not persist.  In other words, why not explore
> with the student the reality that if they do "stop out", this doesn't
> have to mean "quit".  I found this fascinating and at the same time,
> completely logical.  This appears to be part of what you intend in your
> third area of research based on what I've read.
>
> Thank you again for your time this week and for the discussion.
>
> Marie Cora
> NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
> marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 7:37 AM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 89] Re: Persistence Discussion
>
> Dear Colleagues,
>
> Today we begin a discussion about the studies which Dr. John Comings
> and others at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and
> Literacy have done on persistence.  The discussion will continue
> through Tuesday next week, July 18th.
>
> Please post your questions and comments to John beginning now.
>
> In John's message below he describes two publications which may be of
> interest.  Each has a short executive summary.   There is also a 30-
> minute video panel discussion about the study, with John and two
> practitioners, streamed at:
>
> http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html
>
> You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser,
> or you could try this shorter version:
>
> http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu
>
> Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing
> the presentation, and there are still some bugs to be worked out of
> the Mac streamed version.
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
> On Jul 5, 2006, at 4:33 PM, David Rosen wrote:
>
> > Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,
> >
> > John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult
> > Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the
> > persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction,
> > below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of the
> > study. I hope you can read these before July 10th.  You are welcome
> > to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now, but
> > these will not be posted until July 10th.
> >
> > i am looking forward to your joining in on this important discussion.
> >
> > David J. Rosen
> > Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
> > djrosen at comcast.net
> > --------------
> >
> > When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the
> > proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed
> > practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us design
> > our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the survey. We
> > asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they
> > wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and GED
> > programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and
> > second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way,
> > "Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the
> > program.   How can I keep those students long enough that they can
> > meet their educational goals?"
> >
> > That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of persistence.
> > The first two phases are complete.  The first phase surveyed the
> > literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England states,
> > and identified ways that programs were trying to support the
> > persistence of their students. The report of that first phase can be
> > found at:
> >
> > <http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>
> >
> > In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided with
> > funds to implement interventions that might help improve persistence,
> > and our study team observed the programs and interviewed their staff
> > and students. We also followed a cohort of 180 students for 14
> > months.  The report of that second phase can be found at:
> >
> > <http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>
> >
> > We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer
> > has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would
> > test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to
> > existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of modes of
> > learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other
> > ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their learning,
> > and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the third
> > approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem, as well
> > as it can be solved.
> >
> > I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be interested
> > in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence and how to
> > expand opportunities for learning.
> >
> > John Comings, NCSALL Director
> > National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
> > Harvard Graduate School of Education
> > 7 Appian Way
> > Cambridge MA 02138
> > (617) 496-0516, voice
> > (617) 495-4811, fax
> > (617) 335-9839, mobile
> > john_comings at harvard.edu
> > http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > -------------------------------
> > National Institute for Literacy
> > Special Topics mailing list
> > SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> > To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> > http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> David Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From cnaamh at rcn.com  Mon Jul 10 22:15:17 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 22:15:17 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 111] Re: Fwd:  Re: Persistence Strategies
References: <1F64CFEE8902A248A8BE9EA760C0CE6480C938@LAWEX01.necc.mass.edu><274B2D35-5EF9-433C-B68A-3BC45F4AC8FD@comcast.net>
	<01DCF341E5FE1BA5FC295C72@nic106>
Message-ID: <011e01c6a490$46e55b80$dad8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>

How can we convince policy makers to broaden their definitions?

Nicole B. Graves
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "John Comings" <comingjo at gse.harvard.edu>
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 4:32 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 102] Re: Fwd: Re: Persistence Strategies


> There is only so much a program can do within existing policies. The
> policies aren't bad, they are just based on assumptions that are true for
> some but not all students. We need to convince policy makers to broaden
> their definition of participation.
>
>
> > Begin forwarded message:
> >
> >> From: "Bower, Carol" <cbower at necc.mass.edu>
> >> Date: July 10, 2006 1:03:00 PM EDT
> >> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
> >> Subject: [SpecialTopics 94] Re: Persistence Strategies
> >> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> >>
> >> Hello John and all,
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Renata's comment echos a concern I heard raised repeatedly in a
> >> NCSALL Persistence Study Circle which I recently co-facilitated
> >> with one of my SABES colleagues.  In Massachusetts, where programs
> >> are being asked to be accountable for retention by reporting on
> >> attendance and average attended hours, programs willing to embrace
> >> the concepts and effective practices associated with the NCSALL
> >> definition of persistence are caught in a bit of a bind.  They want
> >> to support the on-going learning of their students, and can see
> >> that many do persist, although not necessarily in the same program
> >> or in an uninterrupted fashion.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> What advice would you have for programs that are attempting to
> >> reconcile these different approaches?
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Carol Bower
> >>
> >> Director, NE SABES
> >>
> >> System for Adult Basic Education Support
> >>
> >> Northern Essex Community College
> >>
> >> 45 Franklin Street
> >>
> >> Lawrence, MA 01840
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-
> >> bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Renata Russo
> >> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:43 PM
> >> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> >> Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Hello Bruce,
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found
> >> helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the
> >> second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as
> >> teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to
> >> participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for
> >> some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and
> >> funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our
> >> programs.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Renata
> >>
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-
> >> bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
> >> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
> >> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> >> Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies
> >>
> >> Dear John,
> >>
> >> I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student
> >> persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I
> >> have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes
> >> educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I
> >> learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds
> >> project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy
> >> students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
> >>
> >> 1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment
> >> (There are many components of this.)
> >>
> >> 2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend
> >> classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their
> >> needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and
> >> duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular,
> >> sporadic model of participation.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues,
> >> strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with
> >> student persistence?
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> From Bruce Carmel
> >>
> >> Turning Point
> >>
> >> Brooklyn, NY
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and
> >> 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.
> >>
> >> -------------------------------
> >> National Institute for Literacy
> >> Special Topics mailing list
> >> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> >> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> >> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> >
> > David Rosen
> > djrosen at comcast.net
> >
> >
> >
>
>
>
> John Comings, Director
> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge MA 02138
> (617) 496-0516, voice
> (617) 495-4811, fax
> (617) 335-9839, mobile
> john_comings at harvard.edu
> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue Jul 11 06:40:28 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 06:40:28 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 112] New from NCSALL--Adult Student Persistence
	Study Circle Guide
References: <002901c6a477$4732c190$0202a8c0@your4105e587b6>
Message-ID: <62D79A5A-8CCC-4CE7-A8D8-56BCF7D67922@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

This newly revised resource is pertinent to our discussion about  
persistence.

David J. Rosen
pecial Stopics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net


Begin forwarded message:

> From: "Kaye Beall" <kabeall at comcast.net>
> Date: July 10, 2006 7:19:22 PM EDT
> Study Circle Guide: Adult Student Persistence
>
> Newly revised to include the second phase of the NCSALL research on  
> adult student persistence, this guide provides comprehensive  
> instructions for facilitating a 10?-hour study circle. It explores  
> what the research says about adult student persistence and ideas  
> for how to apply what is learned in classrooms and programs. The  
> guide is based on a review of the NCSALL research on adult student  
> persistence conducted by John Comings and others, summarized in an  
> article entitled ?Supporting the Persistence of Adult Basic  
> Education Students? and other studies on student motivation and  
> retention. It includes articles, resources, and action research  
> reports to help practitioners consider strategies for increasing  
> adult student persistence. This guide provides all the necessary  
> materials and clear instructions to plan and facilitate a three- 
> session study circle with an option for a fourth. Each session  
> lasts three-and-a-half hours.
>
> To download the study circle guide, visit NCSALL?s Web site: http:// 
> www.ncsall.net/?id=896
>
> ****************
>
> Kaye Beall
>
> Outreach Coordinator/NCSALL Dissemination Project
>
> World Education
>
> 4401 S. Madison St.
>
> Muncie, IN  47302
>
> Tel: 765-717-3942
>
> Fax: 208-694-8262
>
> kaye_beall at worlded.org
>
> http://www.ncsall.net
>



From hsnow at cougar.kean.edu  Tue Jul 11 08:05:57 2006
From: hsnow at cougar.kean.edu (Hugh D. Snow)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 07:05:57 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 113] Re: Persistence Strategies
Message-ID: <5ac5a277.a2775ac5@kean.edu>

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I agree with you, Bruce.  High-quality instruction in a supportive environment is key and has many components.  We may have to re-define success for funders but for students feeling successful NOW is a key element of persistence.  We evaluate every activity and every class.  All students should leave every class with a feeling of success.  I try my best to have students leave, even the first class, with something they can use now.

Nicole B. Graves
South Deerfield, MA
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Bruce Carmel 
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
  Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:25 PM
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies


  Dear John,
  I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
  1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment (There are many components of this.)
  2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of participation. 

  What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues, strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student persistence?

  From Bruce Carmel
  Turning Point
  Brooklyn, NY 



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From night-school at usa.net  Tue Jul 11 09:19:59 2006
From: night-school at usa.net (Terri DeVito)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 09:19:59 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 114]  Childcare and Transportation Barrier Removal
Message-ID: <843kgkNT84368S13.1152623999@uwdvg013.cms.usa.net>

My name is Terri Stone and I have been an ESOL/ABE Director of a smaller,
semi-rural program in Mass. for the past 9 years.  Two issues that continue to
arise for our students as well as for our more at-risk community members are
the issues of childcare and transportation.  We have opted from the very
beginning of our program to offer both on-site, free childcare and free
transportation from our community and one abutting community.  We hope to
expand this transportation option to two additional communitites in FY '07. 
These services are constantly used and our students report regularly that
without these services they would have never been able to accomplish their
goal of coming to class on a regular basis.  I know that these options are not
reasonable in some locations, but do believe that a broader acceptance in our
field of actually removing these barriers for students would greatly enhance
program access to students who otherwise could not attend classes as well as
provide an often closed pathway for students who truly need and want these
services.




From e.b.shupe at lycos.com  Tue Jul 11 10:07:16 2006
From: e.b.shupe at lycos.com (e s)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 09:07:16 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 115] Re: Fwd: Re: Persistence Strategies
Message-ID: <20060711140721.EA1953384B@ws7-3.us4.outblaze.com>

Hello Everyone,
Very interesting discussion with lots of insight into the multi-faceted topic of "persistence" of adult learners.  On the topic of domestic violence, I have used film to introduce the the topic of domestic violence.  In particular, The Joy Luck Club.  One of the overarching themes in this movie, is the way cultural norms keep women (and men) in rigified roles. Men sometimes act out these roles in abusive ways and women defer and find themselves powerless.  It does the allow learners the safety of distance in looking at this issue through the experiences of others in the film.  We spend time after the movie discussing the experiences of the characters in the film.  I use the blackboard to keep track of the discussion providing some structure to the discussion.  (problems/solutions)  It has always been a powerful way to introduce a topic that can leave everyone feeling uncomfortable.

-- 
_______________________________________________

Search for businesses by name, location, or phone number.  -Lycos Yellow Pages

http://r.lycos.com/r/yp_emailfooter/http://yellowpages.lycos.com/default.asp?SRC=lycos10



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Tue Jul 11 11:07:28 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 11:07:28 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 116] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <44B2B14B.121D.00A0.0@future-gate.com>
References: <73DE2DF9-AA2D-40A2-928A-3135FA803DAB@comcast.net>
	<007101c6a429$756d0050$0302a8c0@LITNOW>
	<44B2B14B.121D.00A0.0@future-gate.com>
Message-ID: <198C14D60B3735B07EB1E805@nic106>

Katrina's last question is one that is key to evaluating the usefulness of 
research. That is, was the research done in a context and with students 
similar to my program. Our field does not have sufficient research funding 
to replicate studies in the many contexts and with the many types of 
students we have. So, we must identify the characteristics of context and 
subjects that are most important. In our research, being older than 30, 
having teen or adult children, and being an immigrant predicted higher 
persistence, and so we might need persistence studies that looked 
separately at young and old, older children and younger children, and 
immigrant and native born students.

As far as persistence is concerned, what other context or personal factors 
do people think might be important? That is, that the impact of supports to 
persistence might be affected by these factors.


July 11, 2006 1:58 AM +0200 Katrina Hinson <Khinson at future-gate.com> wrote:

> This is a great discussion so far. I've enjoyed reading all the email
> today and thinking about all the ideas shared so far, as well as the
> questions/concerns presented. I thought I'd jump into this conversation
> by answering the question Maria posed below.
>
> Question 1: (Goal Setting) - When I get new students in my class - one
> of things we do together is go over the LEIS profile sheet A) because I
> have to and B) it's a good way to begin to ask my students questions
> about what brought them to the program and what they hope to get out of
> it. I loved Lynn Howard's idea of the "Roles and Goals" sheet.  I don't
> necessarily have a sheet, but I make lots of notes that I keep in each
> students folder and/or in my own lesson planning notebook.
> Periodically, I come back to a student's goals and discuss with them
> their progress towards their goals. It's a way to find out if they've
> changed or added new ones. I can update their records that way and I can
> also talk about realistic goal setting during the initial process and
> the follow up. Usually, I have one or two students who place very low
> and think getting their GED is going to be "easy".  When we get to the
> follow up goal setting discussion, they've realized that they have
> material to learn and opt to change their goals but stair stepping them
> so that they can see their own POSITIVE gains in smaller chunks rather
> than focusing on the big picture.
>
> Like many of the others,  I share the concerns that there is a conflict
> between accountability measures and the real reasons a student stops
> coming. I do think teachers need to be accountable but I think there has
> to be a better way than what is currently being done to programs. It
> seems to me, that rather than helping to improve programs,
> accountability measures that are directly tied to funding may ultimately
> see some programs disappear. What happens to our students when they have
> no place to go? In rural areas with high unemployment, high drop out
> rates etc; it's often difficult to meet performance measures based on
> the progress of standardized tests for the very reasons that students do
> "stop out" for whatever reason - those reasons are never taken into
> account, program funding gets cut and classes are closed because there
> is no teacher to teach.
>
> Barbara Wookey replied in an email: ". . . .there are ways to keep
> students coming back by making them feel that they are an essential part
> of the class, that they will be missed by the group when they are not
> there. . . ."  I'm not sure it's that easy though. The one thing that my
> students have repeatedly told me is the reason they keep coming back is
> because they know I care...at the same time I still get the same number
> of phone calls from students who tell me they don't have transportation,
> no way to pay for daycare, no computer access to even consider working
> online, having the baby at home would interfere with study time etc. No
> matter how much I care for my students, no matter the level of
> comraderie established in my class, some things are simply out of a
> teachers control.   Additionally, I'd love to provide a course outline
> but I have open enrollment. I can get students the week before a session
> ends. A course outline, in that regard, would not be very useful. Not
> only that, in a multilevel classroom, I may have multiple subjects going
> at the same time and again it would limit the type of structure I can
> provide. (I'm open to ideas if anyone has them.)  It's funny - you said
> your program is becoming more "academic" while ours is becoming more
> "vocational." We've learned that many of our students don't have desires
> to pursue a 4 year degree or even a 2 year degree. Most are after skills
> and certifications that are going to make them employable in a very
> tight job market or give them skills if they move to a different market.
> We're in the middle of trying to find that balance between academic and
> vocational so we can meet both needs. I there are so many things that
> can impact a student's persistence and I'm wondering if the needs
> actually vary from region to region - rural to urban etc.  A lot of
> research is done in the Northeast or other major metropolitan areas but
> realistically, how applicable and how sound is it when it comes to a
> program that serves in different regions that may have different factors
> that influence persistence rates?
>
> Regards
> Katrina Hinson
>
>
>
>>>> "Marie Cora" <marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com> 7/10/2006 10:02 am
>>>>
> Dear Colleagues,
>
> Thanks so much to John Comings for being with us this week to discuss
> Persistence.  I am very much looking forward to hearing what
> strategies
> folks use out there to try and tackle this issue with their students.
>
>
> I actually have two questions for you (and list subscribers):  I am
> interested in hearing you elaborate a bit on the impact of having the
> student set his or her own goals, and how best to help them to do
> that.
> It's quite easy to set a student's goal for her/him - but not so easy
> to
> get a student to determine a goal for her/himself.  What are some of
> the
> things that folks do around this issue?
>
> Second, I heard you speak at a conference last fall in which you noted
> that part of what could be helpful in persistence, is to acknowledge
> that the student might not persist.  In other words, why not explore
> with the student the reality that if they do "stop out", this doesn't
> have to mean "quit".  I found this fascinating and at the same time,
> completely logical.  This appears to be part of what you intend in
> your
> third area of research based on what I've read.
>
> Thank you again for your time this week and for the discussion.
>
> Marie Cora
> NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
> marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 7:37 AM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 89] Re: Persistence Discussion
>
> Dear Colleagues,
>
> Today we begin a discussion about the studies which Dr. John Comings
> and others at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and
>
> Literacy have done on persistence.  The discussion will continue
> through Tuesday next week, July 18th.
>
> Please post your questions and comments to John beginning now.
>
> In John's message below he describes two publications which may be of
>
> interest.  Each has a short executive summary.   There is also a 30-
> minute video panel discussion about the study, with John and two
> practitioners, streamed at:
>
> http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html
>
> You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser,
> or you could try this shorter version:
>
> http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu
>
> Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing
> the presentation, and there are still some bugs to be worked out of
> the Mac streamed version.
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
> On Jul 5, 2006, at 4:33 PM, David Rosen wrote:
>
>> Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,
>>
>> John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult
>> Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the
>> persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction,
>> below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of the
>> study. I hope you can read these before July 10th.  You are welcome
>> to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now, but
>> these will not be posted until July 10th.
>>
>> i am looking forward to your joining in on this important
> discussion.
>>
>> David J. Rosen
>> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
>> djrosen at comcast.net
>> --------------
>>
>> When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the
>> proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed
>> practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us design
>> our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the survey.
> We
>> asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they
>> wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and GED
>> programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and
>> second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way,
>> "Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the
>> program.   How can I keep those students long enough that they can
>> meet their educational goals?"
>>
>> That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of
> persistence.
>> The first two phases are complete.  The first phase surveyed the
>> literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England states,
>> and identified ways that programs were trying to support the
>> persistence of their students. The report of that first phase can be
>> found at:
>>
>> <http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>
>>
>> In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided with
>> funds to implement interventions that might help improve
> persistence,
>> and our study team observed the programs and interviewed their staff
>> and students. We also followed a cohort of 180 students for 14
>> months.  The report of that second phase can be found at:
>>
>> <http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>
>>
>> We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer
>> has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would
>> test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to
>> existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of modes of
>> learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other
>> ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their learning,
>> and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the
> third
>> approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem, as
> well
>> as it can be solved.
>>
>> I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be
> interested
>> in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence and how to
>> expand opportunities for learning.
>>
>> John Comings, NCSALL Director
>> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
>> Harvard Graduate School of Education
>> 7 Appian Way
>> Cambridge MA 02138
>> (617) 496-0516, voice
>> (617) 495-4811, fax
>> (617) 335-9839, mobile
>> john_comings at harvard.edu
>> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> David Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> -------------------------------
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> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Tue Jul 11 11:18:42 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 11:18:42 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 117] Re: Fwd:  Re: Persistence Strategies
In-Reply-To: <011e01c6a490$46e55b80$dad8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>
References: <1F64CFEE8902A248A8BE9EA760C0CE6480C938@LAWEX01.necc.mass.edu>
	<274B2D35-5EF9-433C-B68A-3BC45F4AC8FD@comcast.net>
	<01DCF341E5FE1BA5FC295C72@nic106>
	<011e01c6a490$46e55b80$dad8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>
Message-ID: <6F39E4B3D48942ADA2565FF4@nic106>

Our research came to conclusions that support Nicole's efforts. The adults 
we interviewed said that support from teachers and fellow students was an 
important support to persistence and the research on building self-efficacy 
shows that having success, particularly early on, is important to helping 
students believe that they can be successful in learning.

As I said in an earlier post, someone has to show that different approaches 
can work, either for all learners or for those who are not now being 
successful. We need someone to fund this type of action research, someone 
who would be willing to employ a rigorous approach to evaluating impact. I 
feel we now have enough research and enough good ideas to move forward with 
this. We just don't have the money.

--On Monday, July 10, 2006 10:15 PM -0400 Nicole Graves <cnaamh at rcn.com> 
wrote:

> How can we convince policy makers to broaden their definitions?
>
> Nicole B. Graves
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "John Comings" <comingjo at gse.harvard.edu>
> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 4:32 PM
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 102] Re: Fwd: Re: Persistence Strategies
>
>
>> There is only so much a program can do within existing policies. The
>> policies aren't bad, they are just based on assumptions that are true for
>> some but not all students. We need to convince policy makers to broaden
>> their definition of participation.
>>
>>
>> > Begin forwarded message:
>> >
>> >> From: "Bower, Carol" <cbower at necc.mass.edu>
>> >> Date: July 10, 2006 1:03:00 PM EDT
>> >> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
>> >> Subject: [SpecialTopics 94] Re: Persistence Strategies
>> >> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> >>
>> >> Hello John and all,
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> Renata's comment echos a concern I heard raised repeatedly in a
>> >> NCSALL Persistence Study Circle which I recently co-facilitated
>> >> with one of my SABES colleagues.  In Massachusetts, where programs
>> >> are being asked to be accountable for retention by reporting on
>> >> attendance and average attended hours, programs willing to embrace
>> >> the concepts and effective practices associated with the NCSALL
>> >> definition of persistence are caught in a bit of a bind.  They want
>> >> to support the on-going learning of their students, and can see
>> >> that many do persist, although not necessarily in the same program
>> >> or in an uninterrupted fashion.
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> What advice would you have for programs that are attempting to
>> >> reconcile these different approaches?
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> Carol Bower
>> >>
>> >> Director, NE SABES
>> >>
>> >> System for Adult Basic Education Support
>> >>
>> >> Northern Essex Community College
>> >>
>> >> 45 Franklin Street
>> >>
>> >> Lawrence, MA 01840
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-
>> >> bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Renata Russo
>> >> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:43 PM
>> >> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> >> Subject: [SpecialTopics 92] Re: Persistence Strategies
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> Hello Bruce,
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> Thank you for sharing the two strategies that you have found
>> >> helpful when dealing with persistence. A comment I have about the
>> >> second strategy relates to funding and accountability. We as
>> >> teachers and administrators understand our learners' barriers to
>> >> participate. However, accountability has become a major barrier for
>> >> some programs in recent years. The performance-based approach and
>> >> funding measured by contact hours can have a major impact in our
>> >> programs.
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> Renata
>> >>
>> >> -----Original Message-----
>> >> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-
>> >> bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Bruce Carmel
>> >> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 11:26 AM
>> >> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> >> Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies
>> >>
>> >> Dear John,
>> >>
>> >> I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student
>> >> persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I
>> >> have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes
>> >> educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I
>> >> learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds
>> >> project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy
>> >> students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
>> >>
>> >> 1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment
>> >> (There are many components of this.)
>> >>
>> >> 2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend
>> >> classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their
>> >> needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and
>> >> duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular,
>> >> sporadic model of participation.
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues,
>> >> strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with
>> >> student persistence?
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> From Bruce Carmel
>> >>
>> >> Turning Point
>> >>
>> >> Brooklyn, NY
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and
>> >> 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.
>> >>
>> >> -------------------------------
>> >> National Institute for Literacy
>> >> Special Topics mailing list
>> >> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> >> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> >> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>> >
>> > David Rosen
>> > djrosen at comcast.net
>> >
>> >
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>> John Comings, Director
>> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
>> Harvard Graduate School of Education
>> 7 Appian Way
>> Cambridge MA 02138
>> (617) 496-0516, voice
>> (617) 495-4811, fax
>> (617) 335-9839, mobile
>> john_comings at harvard.edu
>> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Tue Jul 11 11:37:43 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 11:37:43 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 118] Re: Fwd: Re: Persistence Strategies
In-Reply-To: <20060711140721.EA1953384B@ws7-3.us4.outblaze.com>
References: <20060711140721.EA1953384B@ws7-3.us4.outblaze.com>
Message-ID: <B1DABD7A4CB62924E67DB3AD@nic106>

In the first phase of our study, supportive partners, children, friends and 
coworkers were identified by students as the most important support to 
persistence. However, some students did mention people in their lives who 
were not supportive. In the second phase of the study, we looked into this. 
We found some passive aggressive behaviors. So, even in cases where 
domestic violence does not exist, partners, friends, (we even found a 
mother) can put up subtle but significant barriers to persistence.

--On Tuesday, July 11, 2006 9:07 AM -0500 e s <e.b.shupe at lycos.com> wrote:

> Hello Everyone,
> Very interesting discussion with lots of insight into the multi-faceted
> topic of "persistence" of adult learners.  On the topic of domestic
> violence, I have used film to introduce the the topic of domestic
> violence.  In particular, The Joy Luck Club.  One of the overarching
> themes in this movie, is the way cultural norms keep women (and men) in
> rigified roles. Men sometimes act out these roles in abusive ways and
> women defer and find themselves powerless.  It does the allow learners
> the safety of distance in looking at this issue through the experiences
> of others in the film.  We spend time after the movie discussing the
> experiences of the characters in the film.  I use the blackboard to keep
> track of the discussion providing some structure to the discussion.
> (problems/solutions)  It has always been a powerful way to introduce a
> topic that can leave everyone feeling uncomfortable.
>
> --
> _______________________________________________
>
> Search for businesses by name, location, or phone number.  -Lycos Yellow
> Pages
>
> http://r.lycos.com/r/yp_emailfooter/http://yellowpages.lycos.com/default.
> asp?SRC=lycos10
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From MWPotts2001 at aol.com  Tue Jul 11 14:10:52 2006
From: MWPotts2001 at aol.com (MWPotts2001 at aol.com)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 14:10:52 EDT
Subject: [SpecialTopics 119] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
Message-ID: <53f.32565bd.31e543ac@aol.com>

 
In a message dated 7/11/2006 11:23:12 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
comingjo at gse.harvard.edu writes:

As far  as persistence is concerned, what other context or personal factors 
do  people think might be important? That is, that the impact of supports to  
persistence might be affected by these  factors.



John and All,
 
You have hit here on my question: What is the difference between program  
supports to persistence and the nature of student persistence? I see them as two  
different things, and most of the posts have been dealt with supports.  If  
we can identify the nature of persistence, we might be able to recruit to the  
point.  This may not be a popular stance, but given the drop out rate and  
even the stop out rate, perhaps we should give it a try.
 
Meta Potts
FOCUS on Literacy
Glen Allen, Virginia
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From khinson at future-gate.com  Tue Jul 11 14:21:16 2006
From: khinson at future-gate.com (Katrina Hinson)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 20:21:16 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 120] Re: Childcare and Transportation Barrier	Removal
Message-ID: <44B4083C020000A000002D52@fgwiel01a.wie.de.future-gate.com>

I think this is very good. I'd like to know more about how you actually
implemented this option. Is it worked into your budget or did you seek
grants to help fund the transportation /childcare or do parents help in
any way?

Regards
Katrina Hinson

>>> "Terri DeVito" <night-school at usa.net> 07/11/06 6:19 AM >>>
My name is Terri Stone and I have been an ESOL/ABE Director of a
smaller,
semi-rural program in Mass. for the past 9 years.  Two issues that
continue to
arise for our students as well as for our more at-risk community members
are
the issues of childcare and transportation.  We have opted from the very
beginning of our program to offer both on-site, free childcare and free
transportation from our community and one abutting community.  We hope
to
expand this transportation option to two additional communitites in FY
'07. 
These services are constantly used and our students report regularly
that
without these services they would have never been able to accomplish
their
goal of coming to class on a regular basis.  I know that these options
are not
reasonable in some locations, but do believe that a broader acceptance
in our
field of actually removing these barriers for students would greatly
enhance
program access to students who otherwise could not attend classes as
well as
provide an often closed pathway for students who truly need and want
these
services.


-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



From djgbrian at utk.edu  Tue Jul 11 14:22:26 2006
From: djgbrian at utk.edu (Brian, Dr Donna J G)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 14:22:26 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 121]  Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <53f.32565bd.31e543ac@aol.com>
Message-ID: <6A5CE13D731DE249BC61CB8C5C474B0A076C8165@UTKFSVS1.utk.tennessee.edu>

Attribution theory must surely play a part.  Someone who feels that the
success they are experiencing as a learner is due to their own hard work
and efforts would be more likely to persist in their efforts.
Donna Brian

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of MWPotts2001 at aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, July 11, 2006 2:11 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 119] Re: Persistence Discussion questions


In a message dated 7/11/2006 11:23:12 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
comingjo at gse.harvard.edu writes:

	As far as persistence is concerned, what other context or
personal factors 
	do people think might be important? That is, that the impact of
supports to 
	persistence might be affected by these factors.
	

John and All,
 
You have hit here on my question: What is the difference between program
supports to persistence and the nature of student persistence? I see
them as two different things, and most of the posts have been dealt with
supports.  If we can identify the nature of persistence, we might be
able to recruit to the point.  This may not be a popular stance, but
given the drop out rate and even the stop out rate, perhaps we should
give it a try.
 
Meta Potts
FOCUS on Literacy
Glen Allen, Virginia
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From khinson at future-gate.com  Tue Jul 11 14:32:48 2006
From: khinson at future-gate.com (Katrina Hinson)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 20:32:48 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 122] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
Message-ID: <44B40AF0020000A000002D5B@fgwiel01a.wie.de.future-gate.com>

By "nature of persistence" do you mean on the part of the student?  For
me, the one thing I've noticed in the years I've been teaching, the
biggest reason people keep coming no matter what they face is their own
personal "drive"; the "I want it bad enough to overcome anything" 
drive. That's not quantifiable though. It can't be measured and it's
going to vary from student to student.  On the flip side of that, you
have students who really do have drive and determination that if there
were no personal barriers to their persistence, they would continue to
attend and make progress. 

I don't think you can look at persistence and supports to persistance as
two different issues when they are so very much inter-dependent on one
another.

Regards
Katrina Hinson

>>> <MWPotts2001 at aol.com> 07/11/06 11:10 AM >>>
 
John and All,
 
You have hit here on my question: What is the difference between program
 
supports to persistence and the nature of student persistence? I see
them as two  
different things, and most of the posts have been dealt with supports. 
If  
we can identify the nature of persistence, we might be able to recruit
to the  
point.  This may not be a popular stance, but given the drop out rate
and  
even the stop out rate, perhaps we should give it a try.
 
Meta Potts
FOCUS on Literacy
Glen Allen, Virginia



From MWPotts2001 at aol.com  Tue Jul 11 14:53:17 2006
From: MWPotts2001 at aol.com (MWPotts2001 at aol.com)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 14:53:17 EDT
Subject: [SpecialTopics 123] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
Message-ID: <366.7ad322c.31e54d9d@aol.com>

 
In a message dated 7/11/2006 2:37:49 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
khinson at future-gate.com writes:

I don't  think you can look at persistence and supports to persistance as
two  different issues when they are so very much inter-dependent on  one
another.



Katrina,
 
You are so right: they are interdependent, but I do not think that they are  
the same thing.  Years ago, I participated in a study of motivation.   Same 
issue: Do we consider intrinsic motivation on the part of the student, or  
supports to motivation on the part of the programs?  Both necessary, but  two 
different things.
 
Meta Potts
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From MWPotts2001 at aol.com  Tue Jul 11 14:54:18 2006
From: MWPotts2001 at aol.com (MWPotts2001 at aol.com)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 14:54:18 EDT
Subject: [SpecialTopics 124] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
Message-ID: <565.178455c.31e54dda@aol.com>

 
In a message dated 7/11/2006 2:39:43 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
djgbrian at utk.edu writes:

Attribution theory must  surely play a part.  Someone who feels that the 
success they are  experiencing as a learner is due to their own hard work and 
efforts would be  more likely to persist in their efforts.
Donna  Brian



Yes!
 
 
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From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue Jul 11 15:00:18 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 15:00:18 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 125]  Persistence discussion messages are archived
Message-ID: <83AFC91F-1704-47CD-9548-27292D032834@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

I would like to welcome those who have recently joined the discussion  
and to let everyone know that all of the messages posted are publicly  
archived. f you want to "catch up" or find a particular posting for  
this discussion, you can go to the archive page:

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Tue Jul 11 15:52:27 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 15:52:27 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 126] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <53f.32565bd.31e543ac@aol.com>
References: <53f.32565bd.31e543ac@aol.com>
Message-ID: <ED6A9690FDF8C6CEA13C80AA@nic106>

In the final report of the second phase of our study, we developed a 
typology of "persistence pathways". We chose to describe these as pathways 
rather than as types of students because we saw evidence that people moved 
from one type to the other over the course of their lives.

One pathway was "try-out". People on this pathway were motivated to learn 
(demonstrated by showing up to enroll in a program) but had too many 
barriers to persistence and were destined to drop out early. We suggested 
that a good approach for people on this pathway was for programs to counsel 
them out of joining a class (why should they experience another failure in 
education?)but help them develop a plan to both do some self-study 
(possibly coming in to the program to talk with a tutor once a month) and 
develop a plan that would lead them into a class after they had addressed 
the barriers to persistence in their life.

However, this positive "outcome" is not listed on the NRS. This is one of 
the new forms of success our programs should help students achieve (in fact 
some programs do this informally) and should be able to report on the NRS.

--On Tuesday, July 11, 2006 2:10 PM -0400 MWPotts2001 at aol.com wrote:

>
>
> In a message dated 7/11/2006 11:23:12 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
> comingjo at gse.harvard.edu writes:
>
> As far as persistence is concerned, what other context or personal
> factors
> do people think might be important? That is, that the impact of supports
> to
> persistence might be affected by these factors.
>
>
>
> John and All,
>
> You have hit here on my question: What is the difference between program
> supports to persistence and the nature of student persistence? I see them
> as two different things, and most of the posts have been dealt with
> supports.  If we can identify the nature of persistence, we might be able
> to recruit to the point.  This may not be a popular stance, but given the
> drop out rate and even the stop out rate, perhaps we should give it a
> try.
>
> Meta Potts
> FOCUS on Literacy
> Glen Allen, Virginia



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Tue Jul 11 15:58:58 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 15:58:58 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 127] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <6A5CE13D731DE249BC61CB8C5C474B0A076C8165@UTKFSVS1.utk.tennessee.edu>
References: <6A5CE13D731DE249BC61CB8C5C474B0A076C8165@UTKFSVS1.utk.tennessee
	.edu>
Message-ID: <3CBFFB480F5D87D6A683E58A@nic106>

There is some research in K-12 that sets out students along a continuum 
from those who believe that achievement comes from hard work at one end of 
the scale and those who believe that achievement is the result of inherent 
ability. Students who believe in inherent ability exhibit behaviors, such 
as waiting until the last minute to study for a test so that they can blame 
failure on their lack of study rather than their lack of inherent ability. 
No one knows for sure, but I think many of our less successful students are 
at the inherent ability end of the scale. Helping our students learn, 
through direct experience, that consistent effort leads to achievement 
might help support persistence.

--On Tuesday, July 11, 2006 2:22 PM -0400 "Brian, Dr Donna J G" 
<djgbrian at utk.edu> wrote:

>
> Attribution theory must surely play a part.  Someone who feels that the
> success they are experiencing as a learner is due to their own hard work
> and efforts would be more likely to persist in their efforts.
> Donna Brian
>
>
> __________________________________________________
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of MWPotts2001 at aol.com
> Sent: Tuesday, July 11, 2006 2:11 PM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 119] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
>
>
>
>
> In a message dated 7/11/2006 11:23:12 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
> comingjo at gse.harvard.edu writes:
>
> As far as persistence is concerned, what other context or personal
> factors
> do people think might be important? That is, that the impact of supports
> to
> persistence might be affected by these factors.
>
>
>
> John and All,
>
> You have hit here on my question: What is the difference between program
> supports to persistence and the nature of student persistence? I see them
> as two different things, and most of the posts have been dealt with
> supports.  If we can identify the nature of persistence, we might be able
> to recruit to the point.  This may not be a popular stance, but given the
> drop out rate and even the stop out rate, perhaps we should give it a
> try.
>
> Meta Potts
> FOCUS on Literacy
> Glen Allen, Virginia



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From cnaamh at rcn.com  Tue Jul 11 17:54:08 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 17:54:08 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 128] Re: Persistence Strategies
References: <5ac5a277.a2775ac5@kean.edu>
Message-ID: <01de01c6a535$e0177040$3cd8accf@cnadln21kxvbnn>

Thank you Hugh.  You comments are well taken.  So true about many social agencies... They actually schedule appointments with clients during class time.

Nicole Graves


  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Hugh D. Snow 
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
  Sent: Tuesday, July 11, 2006 8:05 AM
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 113] Re: Persistence Strategies


  In response to Bruce Comer,

  Hello everyone I am the new comer to the chat room. My name is Hugh Snow and I have been a college professor for more than twenty years. My envolvement with specific /special programs is less than five years,however,I have experience in dealing with students/adults in such programs is quite extensive.

  Bruce,I enjoyed your two observations, and I concur. I would also like to add the following:

  I agree challenging curricular is a must,but if it does not meet the needs of the participants it simply is an exercise in futility. I also understand why students don't show up everyday,even when they are benefitting from the material. Economic and social problems abound in these communities, sometimes its a matter of not having carfare; or a babysitter, or the significant other tells them to stay home,or they don't have food.I have also seen examples where some of the social agencies that are designed to help them,act more as a deterrent for reasons known only to them.

  I believe a better system of interviewing potential students will in the long run provide us with better outcomes. Thus enhancing the persistence strategies.

  Regards,

  Hugh



------------------------------------------------------------------------------


  I agree with you, Bruce.  High-quality instruction in a supportive environment is key and has many components.  We may have to re-define success for funders but for students feeling successful NOW is a key element of persistence.  We evaluate every activity and every class.  All students should leave every class with a feeling of success.  I try my best to have students leave, even the first class, with something they can use now.

  Nicole B. Graves
  South Deerfield, MA
    ----- Original Message ----- 
    From: Bruce Carmel 
    To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
    Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:25 PM
    Subject: [SpecialTopics 91] Persistence Strategies


    Dear John,
    I've been working in adult literacy since 1989, and student persistence (and retention) has been a challenge in every setting I have known. Students' dropout or irregular attendance makes educational gain difficult and really frustrates teachers. I learned a lot when you and I worked together on the Wallace Funds project, where we focused on persistence among library literacy students.  There are two main strategies I have found helpful:
    1) Offer high-quality instruction in a supportive environment (There are many components of this.)
    2) Re-define success. Accept that students are going to attend classes in a way that fits into their lives and satisfies their needs.  This might not fit into staff's concept of intensity and duration of instruction--so staff have to accept a new, irregular, sporadic model of participation. 

    What do you think?  What do you think are the key issues, strategies, suggestions for programs and staff struggling with student persistence?

    From Bruce Carmel
    Turning Point
    Brooklyn, NY 



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From MMaralit at NIFL.gov  Wed Jul 12 09:06:25 2006
From: MMaralit at NIFL.gov (Maralit, Mary Jo)
Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2006 09:06:25 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 129] Re: Persistence DVD transcripts
Message-ID: <4062487BDB6029428A763CAEF4E1FE5B0E59BC1F@wdcrobe2m03.ed.gov>

Hello, All,

Just wanted to let you know that we just added the transcript for the
Persistence Among Adult Education Students Panel Discussion video, you can
access it at:
http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html

Jo Maralit
mmaralit at nifl.gov
National Institute for Literacy




From djrosen at comcast.net  Wed Jul 12 10:03:13 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2006 10:03:13 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 130]  Persistence video,
	and questions about two of the five patterns of persistence
Message-ID: <42B9D8E7-85B0-46C5-8938-F12677849F0E@comcast.net>

John and others,

The transcript of the persistence panel discussion video -- and the  
video itself -- are a quick way to introduce this topic to other  
colleagues.  If they wish to join this discussion, it lasts through  
next Tuesday, and they can catch up by reading the archived postings at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

For those who have not seen the video yet, you'll find it streamed  
online at

http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html

one of the highlights of the panel discussion for me was when  
panelist Ernest Best, in response to my question, "And are the men in  
the African-American Men?s Literacy Project persisting?" answered   
"Yes; they are.  We have amazing results.  First, I?d like to say  
that at all levels of education, African-American men have-- we?re at  
the lowest in terms of persistent rates and academic outcomes.  With  
all the things that we have in place to support persistence, our men  
have demonstrated history-making outcomes in terms of persisting.  We  
have a 93% persistence rate."

Another highlight was John's description of the five patterns of  
persistence: 1) long-term students, 2) mandatory students, 3) short- 
term students, 4) try-out students and 5) intermittent students.

John, could you -- or if others who teach mandatory students (those  
who have to be enrolled but may not want to be) --  have more  
information on how programs can build the personal motivation of  
these students.

And John, could you could talk more about what programs can do to  
address the needs of intermittent students, particularly how programs  
can organize themselves differently so that  students can participate  
-- fully or partially -- during periods of a few weeks to months --  
when they cannot attend classes.



David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From night-school at usa.net  Wed Jul 12 09:21:22 2006
From: night-school at usa.net (Terri DeVito)
Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2006 09:21:22 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 131] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
Message-ID: <303kgLNVw7536S13.1152710482@uwdvg013.cms.usa.net>

To John and All:  I had participated in the Persistence Study Circle that was
held in Massachusetts this spring and the description of the five pathways
rang so true when we thought of our students and has changed the way we think
about our students and the systems with which we address their needs.  We are
changing the role of our counselor beginning in September so that she will
spend far more time with each incoming student prior to entering class and
will conduct interviews, learning style inventories, discuss barriers and
barrier removal, and lay the ground work for goal setting which will then be
completed by the classroom teacher.  She will help students develop a plan if
they are not ready to enter classes yet and will stay in touch with those
students who do not enter immediately or "stop out" within the first 3 weeks. 
After a student has completed a 3 week (21 hour) orientation class and has
been enrolled in a class, it will then become the teacher's responsibility to
follow through and report back as to the status of a student.  We also
immediately began thinking about our mandated students very differently.  I
actually consider most immediate high school drop outs as mandated students
because I am pretty sure someone else is insisting that they get their GED at
once.  Of course, the court and agency mandated student falls clearly into
this category.  Our approach to these young students is far more parental
while still using youth development techniques and showing these students an
adult respect and level of expectation.  We're hoping that our awareness of
these pathways and our systems changes will settle the population from the
beginning and will be placing our most serious students in class.

------ Original Message ------
Received: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 05:50:14 PM EDT
From: John Comings <comingjo at gse.harvard.edu>
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 126] Re: Persistence Discussion questions

> In the final report of the second phase of our study, we developed a 
> typology of "persistence pathways". We chose to describe these as pathways 
> rather than as types of students because we saw evidence that people moved 
> from one type to the other over the course of their lives.
> 
> One pathway was "try-out". People on this pathway were motivated to learn 
> (demonstrated by showing up to enroll in a program) but had too many 
> barriers to persistence and were destined to drop out early. We suggested 
> that a good approach for people on this pathway was for programs to counsel

> them out of joining a class (why should they experience another failure in 
> education?)but help them develop a plan to both do some self-study 
> (possibly coming in to the program to talk with a tutor once a month) and 
> develop a plan that would lead them into a class after they had addressed 
> the barriers to persistence in their life.
> 
> However, this positive "outcome" is not listed on the NRS. This is one of 
> the new forms of success our programs should help students achieve (in fact

> some programs do this informally) and should be able to report on the NRS.
> 
> --On Tuesday, July 11, 2006 2:10 PM -0400 MWPotts2001 at aol.com wrote:
> 
> >
> >
> > In a message dated 7/11/2006 11:23:12 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
> > comingjo at gse.harvard.edu writes:
> >
> > As far as persistence is concerned, what other context or personal
> > factors
> > do people think might be important? That is, that the impact of supports
> > to
> > persistence might be affected by these factors.
> >
> >
> >
> > John and All,
> >
> > You have hit here on my question: What is the difference between program
> > supports to persistence and the nature of student persistence? I see them
> > as two different things, and most of the posts have been dealt with
> > supports.  If we can identify the nature of persistence, we might be able
> > to recruit to the point.  This may not be a popular stance, but given the
> > drop out rate and even the stop out rate, perhaps we should give it a
> > try.
> >
> > Meta Potts
> > FOCUS on Literacy
> > Glen Allen, Virginia
> 
> 
> 
> John Comings, Director
> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge MA 02138
> (617) 496-0516, voice
> (617) 495-4811, fax
> (617) 335-9839, mobile
> john_comings at harvard.edu
> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
> 
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> 





From djrosen at comcast.net  Wed Jul 12 10:41:23 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2006 10:41:23 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 132] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <303kgLNVw7536S13.1152710482@uwdvg013.cms.usa.net>
References: <303kgLNVw7536S13.1152710482@uwdvg013.cms.usa.net>
Message-ID: <435EF657-19D9-4A66-A3FF-2997F5299256@comcast.net>

Terri, and others,

Terri, you and I were both thinking about the five pathways at the  
same time.  I would be interested in hearing more about what you do  
with mandated (and perhaps "pressured") young adults. What are some  
of the "parental" strategies and "youth development techniques" which  
you have found to help motivate them, and to increase their persistence?

I would also like to hear from others who have effective strategies  
for increasing motivation and ultimately persistence for mandated  
students.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net

On Jul 12, 2006, at 9:21 AM, Terri DeVito wrote:

> To John and All:  I had participated in the Persistence Study  
> Circle that was
> held in Massachusetts this spring and the description of the five  
> pathways
> rang so true when we thought of our students and has changed the  
> way we think
> about our students and the systems with which we address their  
> needs.  We are
> changing the role of our counselor beginning in September so that  
> she will
> spend far more time with each incoming student prior to entering  
> class and
> will conduct interviews, learning style inventories, discuss  
> barriers and
> barrier removal, and lay the ground work for goal setting which  
> will then be
> completed by the classroom teacher.  She will help students develop  
> a plan if
> they are not ready to enter classes yet and will stay in touch with  
> those
> students who do not enter immediately or "stop out" within the  
> first 3 weeks.
> After a student has completed a 3 week (21 hour) orientation class  
> and has
> been enrolled in a class, it will then become the teacher's  
> responsibility to
> follow through and report back as to the status of a student.  We also
> immediately began thinking about our mandated students very  
> differently.  I
> actually consider most immediate high school drop outs as mandated  
> students
> because I am pretty sure someone else is insisting that they get  
> their GED at
> once.  Of course, the court and agency mandated student falls  
> clearly into
> this category.  Our approach to these young students is far more  
> parental
> while still using youth development techniques and showing these  
> students an
> adult respect and level of expectation.  We're hoping that our  
> awareness of
> these pathways and our systems changes will settle the population  
> from the
> beginning and will be placing our most serious students in class.
>
> ------ Original Message ------
> Received: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 05:50:14 PM EDT
> From: John Comings <comingjo at gse.harvard.edu>
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 126] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
>
>> In the final report of the second phase of our study, we developed a
>> typology of "persistence pathways". We chose to describe these as  
>> pathways
>> rather than as types of students because we saw evidence that  
>> people moved
>> from one type to the other over the course of their lives.
>>
>> One pathway was "try-out". People on this pathway were motivated  
>> to learn
>> (demonstrated by showing up to enroll in a program) but had too many
>> barriers to persistence and were destined to drop out early. We  
>> suggested
>> that a good approach for people on this pathway was for programs  
>> to counsel
>
>> them out of joining a class (why should they experience another  
>> failure in
>> education?)but help them develop a plan to both do some self-study
>> (possibly coming in to the program to talk with a tutor once a  
>> month) and
>> develop a plan that would lead them into a class after they had  
>> addressed
>> the barriers to persistence in their life.
>>
>> However, this positive "outcome" is not listed on the NRS. This is  
>> one of
>> the new forms of success our programs should help students achieve  
>> (in fact
>
>> some programs do this informally) and should be able to report on  
>> the NRS.
>>
>> --On Tuesday, July 11, 2006 2:10 PM -0400 MWPotts2001 at aol.com wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> In a message dated 7/11/2006 11:23:12 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
>>> comingjo at gse.harvard.edu writes:
>>>
>>> As far as persistence is concerned, what other context or personal
>>> factors
>>> do people think might be important? That is, that the impact of  
>>> supports
>>> to
>>> persistence might be affected by these factors.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> John and All,
>>>
>>> You have hit here on my question: What is the difference between  
>>> program
>>> supports to persistence and the nature of student persistence? I  
>>> see them
>>> as two different things, and most of the posts have been dealt with
>>> supports.  If we can identify the nature of persistence, we might  
>>> be able
>>> to recruit to the point.  This may not be a popular stance, but  
>>> given the
>>> drop out rate and even the stop out rate, perhaps we should give  
>>> it a
>>> try.
>>>
>>> Meta Potts
>>> FOCUS on Literacy
>>> Glen Allen, Virginia
>>
>>
>>
>> John Comings, Director
>> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
>> Harvard Graduate School of Education
>> 7 Appian Way
>> Cambridge MA 02138
>> (617) 496-0516, voice
>> (617) 495-4811, fax
>> (617) 335-9839, mobile
>> john_comings at harvard.edu
>> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to  
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics







From night-school at usa.net  Wed Jul 12 11:20:24 2006
From: night-school at usa.net (Terri DeVito)
Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2006 11:20:24 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 133] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
Message-ID: <806kgLPuy4896S29.1152717624@cmsweb29.cms.usa.net>

David and all:  As far as techniques and strategies, I would say that we
immediately show these young people a level of respect by speaking to them
very directly and as adults.  We let them know that we care and that we
realize that they may not really want to be there, but as long as they are
there they might as well work towards their GED.  We ususally end up having
lengthy discussion about what their lives might consist of if they don't get
the GED and often times we get initial agreement as to their behavior and
their intent.  However, keeping these students engaged in the classroom is far
more difficult.  We usually have the teachers try techniques from their "bag
of tricks", but the younger students who really need to or want to stay seem
to respond best when they have a serious one-to-one meeting with me, the
Director.  We discuss their reasons for being there and what they will do
differently going forward in order to be allowed to stay in the program.  The
"seriousness" of this last line being drawn in the sand seems to change many
behaviors.  Of course, this does not work for the "try-out" student who really
doesn't have good reason for being in class.  This is what we're going to try
to flesh out with the new counselor role of which I spoke earlier.  Also, we
now understand that this is a process through which we need to progress for
these students as oppossed to what we used to do which was say, basically, why
don't you come back when you're ready to be an adult.

------ Original Message ------
Received: Wed, 12 Jul 2006 10:45:31 AM EDT
From: David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net>
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 132] Re: Persistence Discussion questions

> Terri, and others,
> 
> Terri, you and I were both thinking about the five pathways at the  
> same time.  I would be interested in hearing more about what you do  
> with mandated (and perhaps "pressured") young adults. What are some  
> of the "parental" strategies and "youth development techniques" which  
> you have found to help motivate them, and to increase their persistence?
> 
> I would also like to hear from others who have effective strategies  
> for increasing motivation and ultimately persistence for mandated  
> students.
> 
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
> 
> On Jul 12, 2006, at 9:21 AM, Terri DeVito wrote:
> 
> > To John and All:  I had participated in the Persistence Study  
> > Circle that was
> > held in Massachusetts this spring and the description of the five  
> > pathways
> > rang so true when we thought of our students and has changed the  
> > way we think
> > about our students and the systems with which we address their  
> > needs.  We are
> > changing the role of our counselor beginning in September so that  
> > she will
> > spend far more time with each incoming student prior to entering  
> > class and
> > will conduct interviews, learning style inventories, discuss  
> > barriers and
> > barrier removal, and lay the ground work for goal setting which  
> > will then be
> > completed by the classroom teacher.  She will help students develop  
> > a plan if
> > they are not ready to enter classes yet and will stay in touch with  
> > those
> > students who do not enter immediately or "stop out" within the  
> > first 3 weeks.
> > After a student has completed a 3 week (21 hour) orientation class  
> > and has
> > been enrolled in a class, it will then become the teacher's  
> > responsibility to
> > follow through and report back as to the status of a student.  We also
> > immediately began thinking about our mandated students very  
> > differently.  I
> > actually consider most immediate high school drop outs as mandated  
> > students
> > because I am pretty sure someone else is insisting that they get  
> > their GED at
> > once.  Of course, the court and agency mandated student falls  
> > clearly into
> > this category.  Our approach to these young students is far more  
> > parental
> > while still using youth development techniques and showing these  
> > students an
> > adult respect and level of expectation.  We're hoping that our  
> > awareness of
> > these pathways and our systems changes will settle the population  
> > from the
> > beginning and will be placing our most serious students in class.
> >
> > ------ Original Message ------
> > Received: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 05:50:14 PM EDT
> > From: John Comings <comingjo at gse.harvard.edu>
> > To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> > Subject: [SpecialTopics 126] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
> >
> >> In the final report of the second phase of our study, we developed a
> >> typology of "persistence pathways". We chose to describe these as  
> >> pathways
> >> rather than as types of students because we saw evidence that  
> >> people moved
> >> from one type to the other over the course of their lives.
> >>
> >> One pathway was "try-out". People on this pathway were motivated  
> >> to learn
> >> (demonstrated by showing up to enroll in a program) but had too many
> >> barriers to persistence and were destined to drop out early. We  
> >> suggested
> >> that a good approach for people on this pathway was for programs  
> >> to counsel
> >
> >> them out of joining a class (why should they experience another  
> >> failure in
> >> education?)but help them develop a plan to both do some self-study
> >> (possibly coming in to the program to talk with a tutor once a  
> >> month) and
> >> develop a plan that would lead them into a class after they had  
> >> addressed
> >> the barriers to persistence in their life.
> >>
> >> However, this positive "outcome" is not listed on the NRS. This is  
> >> one of
> >> the new forms of success our programs should help students achieve  
> >> (in fact
> >
> >> some programs do this informally) and should be able to report on  
> >> the NRS.
> >>
> >> --On Tuesday, July 11, 2006 2:10 PM -0400 MWPotts2001 at aol.com wrote:
> >>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> In a message dated 7/11/2006 11:23:12 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
> >>> comingjo at gse.harvard.edu writes:
> >>>
> >>> As far as persistence is concerned, what other context or personal
> >>> factors
> >>> do people think might be important? That is, that the impact of  
> >>> supports
> >>> to
> >>> persistence might be affected by these factors.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> John and All,
> >>>
> >>> You have hit here on my question: What is the difference between  
> >>> program
> >>> supports to persistence and the nature of student persistence? I  
> >>> see them
> >>> as two different things, and most of the posts have been dealt with
> >>> supports.  If we can identify the nature of persistence, we might  
> >>> be able
> >>> to recruit to the point.  This may not be a popular stance, but  
> >>> given the
> >>> drop out rate and even the stop out rate, perhaps we should give  
> >>> it a
> >>> try.
> >>>
> >>> Meta Potts
> >>> FOCUS on Literacy
> >>> Glen Allen, Virginia
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> John Comings, Director
> >> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
> >> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> >> 7 Appian Way
> >> Cambridge MA 02138
> >> (617) 496-0516, voice
> >> (617) 495-4811, fax
> >> (617) 335-9839, mobile
> >> john_comings at harvard.edu
> >> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
> >>
> >> -------------------------------
> >> National Institute for Literacy
> >> Special Topics mailing list
> >> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> >> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> > http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> >>
> >
> >
> >
> > -------------------------------
> > National Institute for Literacy
> > Special Topics mailing list
> > SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> > To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to  
> > http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> 





From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Wed Jul 12 11:24:20 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2006 11:24:20 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 134] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <303kgLNVw7536S13.1152710482@uwdvg013.cms.usa.net>
References: <303kgLNVw7536S13.1152710482@uwdvg013.cms.usa.net>
Message-ID: <5BF393AC25884C5A5B05EE38@[192.168.1.102]>

In education, evidence-based practice is a partnership between researchers 
and practitioners. Researchers contribute empirical evidence and 
practitioners contribute professional wisdom. Empirical evidence generated 
by researchers through studies leads to research-based practices generated 
by practitioners who use that evidence in their programs.  The next step in 
this process is for researchers to test the efficacy of the practices 
developed by practitioners.

Terri DeVito just described an interesting example of how research-based 
evidence becomes useful through its adaptation by practitioners. The 
result, as outlined here, is the professional wisdom part of the 
partnership.

Unfortunately, our field does not have funding to do the third step, the 
testing to see if these practices work and if they do are they 
cost-effective.

Over the last 10 years, NCSALL has been pursuing these first two steps in 
the process of developing evidence-based practice. A few years ago, we 
began the testing phase on a couple of topics, one in ESOL and one in ABE, 
and we believe we now have enough knowledge about doing rigorous testing of 
practices in our field to be successful at it.

NCSALL doesn't have to do this next phase, any qualified research 
organization could take it on, but the Institute of Education Sciences 
(IES), the agency in the Dept of Education that funds this type of 
research, has decided not to fund a comprehensive adult education research 
center.  They do have some funds available for specific research topics, 
but adult education researchers must compete against K-12 researchers for 
those funds. Also, I doubt that IES would ever put out a request for 
proposals for a test of interventions meant to increase persistence of 
adults in adult education programs, because they have no adult education 
experts on their staff.

We should ask the Dept of Education to set aside funds for research in our 
field so that we will have more advice for programs that is based on the 
best available evidence. While waiting (and then waiting some more), 
practitioners should continue to adapt research findings to the needs of 
their programs and students and, if possible, they should also evaluate 
these practices to see if they work.  If they work, they should share these 
practices with other practitioners.

--On Wednesday, July 12, 2006 9:21 AM -0400 Terri DeVito 
<night-school at usa.net> wrote:

> To John and All:  I had participated in the Persistence Study Circle that
> was held in Massachusetts this spring and the description of the five
> pathways rang so true when we thought of our students and has changed the
> way we think about our students and the systems with which we address
> their needs.  We are changing the role of our counselor beginning in
> September so that she will spend far more time with each incoming student
> prior to entering class and will conduct interviews, learning style
> inventories, discuss barriers and barrier removal, and lay the ground
> work for goal setting which will then be completed by the classroom
> teacher.  She will help students develop a plan if they are not ready to
> enter classes yet and will stay in touch with those students who do not
> enter immediately or "stop out" within the first 3 weeks.  After a
> student has completed a 3 week (21 hour) orientation class and has been
> enrolled in a class, it will then become the teacher's responsibility to
> follow through and report back as to the status of a student.  We also
> immediately began thinking about our mandated students very differently.
> I actually consider most immediate high school drop outs as mandated
> students because I am pretty sure someone else is insisting that they get
> their GED at once.  Of course, the court and agency mandated student
> falls clearly into this category.  Our approach to these young students
> is far more parental while still using youth development techniques and
> showing these students an adult respect and level of expectation.  We're
> hoping that our awareness of these pathways and our systems changes will
> settle the population from the beginning and will be placing our most
> serious students in class.
>
> ------ Original Message ------
> Received: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 05:50:14 PM EDT
> From: John Comings <comingjo at gse.harvard.edu>
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 126] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
>
>> In the final report of the second phase of our study, we developed a
>> typology of "persistence pathways". We chose to describe these as
>> pathways  rather than as types of students because we saw evidence that
>> people moved  from one type to the other over the course of their lives.
>>
>> One pathway was "try-out". People on this pathway were motivated to
>> learn  (demonstrated by showing up to enroll in a program) but had too
>> many  barriers to persistence and were destined to drop out early. We
>> suggested  that a good approach for people on this pathway was for
>> programs to counsel
>
>> them out of joining a class (why should they experience another failure
>> in  education?)but help them develop a plan to both do some self-study
>> (possibly coming in to the program to talk with a tutor once a month)
>> and  develop a plan that would lead them into a class after they had
>> addressed  the barriers to persistence in their life.
>>
>> However, this positive "outcome" is not listed on the NRS. This is one
>> of  the new forms of success our programs should help students achieve
>> (in fact
>
>> some programs do this informally) and should be able to report on the
>> NRS.
>>
>> --On Tuesday, July 11, 2006 2:10 PM -0400 MWPotts2001 at aol.com wrote:
>>
>> >
>> >
>> > In a message dated 7/11/2006 11:23:12 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
>> > comingjo at gse.harvard.edu writes:
>> >
>> > As far as persistence is concerned, what other context or personal
>> > factors
>> > do people think might be important? That is, that the impact of
>> > supports to
>> > persistence might be affected by these factors.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > John and All,
>> >
>> > You have hit here on my question: What is the difference between
>> > program supports to persistence and the nature of student persistence?
>> > I see them as two different things, and most of the posts have been
>> > dealt with supports.  If we can identify the nature of persistence, we
>> > might be able to recruit to the point.  This may not be a popular
>> > stance, but given the drop out rate and even the stop out rate,
>> > perhaps we should give it a try.
>> >
>> > Meta Potts
>> > FOCUS on Literacy
>> > Glen Allen, Virginia
>>
>>
>>
>> John Comings, Director
>> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
>> Harvard Graduate School of Education
>> 7 Appian Way
>> Cambridge MA 02138
>> (617) 496-0516, voice
>> (617) 495-4811, fax
>> (617) 335-9839, mobile
>> john_comings at harvard.edu
>> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From Holly.Dilatush-Guthrie at ccs.k12.va.us  Wed Jul 12 22:11:39 2006
From: Holly.Dilatush-Guthrie at ccs.k12.va.us (Holly Dilatush-Guthrie)
Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2006 22:11:39 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 135]   Re: Persistence Strategies
Message-ID: <s4b573bf.058@mail.ccs.k12.va.us>

Hello all, a delayed response from Holly here -- 
This:
>>> cnaamh at rcn.com 7/10/2006 9:23 PM >>>
I agree with you, Bruce.  High-quality instruction in a supportive environment is key and has many components.  We may have to re-define success for funders but for students feeling successful NOW is a key element of persistence.  We evaluate every activity and every class.  All students should leave every class with a feeling of success.  I try my best to have students leave, even the first class, with something they can use now.
 Nicole B. Graves
South Deerfield, MA>>
...reminded me of an experience I had teaching a workplace ESL (Hotel employees) class a few years back -- after the third 2 hour class, IMMEDIATELY after the class, as we were exiting the classroom space, the employees' supervisor asked the students/employees:  "Well, what did you learn today?"   (she asked this to the group, and then repeated her question individually to each employee -- ).   The first response, "Nothing."   The second response, "nothing."   etc.  etc. ---   What I learned from this:   a new daily scheduled activity at the end of each class -- practicing (verbally) "What did you learn today?" answers!   <grins!>  

So, students left feeling success, KNOWING how to articulate that success -- both in simple written format (like writing a memo to their supervisor) and in simple spoken English format... 

and I learned to quiz the supervisor before the following class, "Well, what DID they learn last class?" --
it became a win-win-win --- and continued the contract!   
[supervisors then added, based on the students/employees feedback, 5 minutes language exchange show & tell at monthly staff meetings -- where everyone had to share what they'd learned -- in  a language of their choice!
Hooray for multilingualism -- hooray for feelings of success -- hooray for articulated mini-goals.... etc.
persistence -- motivation -- and hooray for continued funding!
Holly
 

"No matter what our attempts to inform, it is our ability to inspire that will turn the tides."
Holly Dilatush
ESL distance learning, Dialogue Cafe, Volunteer coordinator
Charlottesville City Schools Adult Learning Center
1000 Preston Ave., Suite D
Charlottesville  VA  22903
(434) 245.2815 office
(434) 960.7177 cell/mobile
http://theHsmile.org  ['home' to several Moodle CMS (course management systems/virtual classrooms)]
http://www.Charlottesville-ESL.org 
"Live with intention. Share inside~out smiles, inspire hope, seek awe and nurture in nature."



From alisapovenmire at hotmail.com  Thu Jul 13 12:54:16 2006
From: alisapovenmire at hotmail.com (Alisa Vlahakis Povenmire)
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2006 12:54:16 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 135]  Does managed enrollment support persistence?
In-Reply-To: <s4b573bf.058@mail.ccs.k12.va.us>
Message-ID: <BAY106-F122FE5873471397258ACE6C86E0@phx.gbl>

An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/attachments/20060713/4edce332/attachment.html 

From night-school at usa.net  Thu Jul 13 14:48:12 2006
From: night-school at usa.net (Terri DeVito)
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2006 14:48:12 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 136] Re: Does managed enrollment support persistence?
Message-ID: <989kgmsvm9216S24.1152816492@cmsweb24.cms.usa.net>

Alisa and all:  Thank you so much for raising this issue as it pertains to
persistence.  I am a 9 year Director of an ESOL and ABE/GED program in Mass.
and we have adopted a managed enrollment process based upon requests from our
students and on research/comments that I have read regarding college cohorts. 
Our students have told us loud and clearly that they do not like turbulance in
the classroom and that new students coming in and out is very turbulent.  Our
teachers find it almost impossible to effectively teach a class with open
enrollment.  We've only worked with this model for one year, but we met our
attendance goal, our pre/post test goals, and our meaningful gain goals this
year for the first time.  We are still a little short of our average attended
hours and our goals met goals for the year.  And, we feel more professional
and that we are offering far better education to our students.  We are looking
at a major system change for next year that we hope will further support this
management of enrollment by having new students attend a class (21 hours for
ABE/GED and 7 - 14 hours for ESOL students) prior to entering classes.  We
also are intending to enroll new ABE/GED students every two months and ESOL
students at the half year mark.  Our full staff is spending 23 hours each this
summer redesigning our curriculum based upon the Massachusetts State
Frameworks to determine what is truly possible to teach 7 hours per week 36
weeks of the year so that teachers can teach a skill, spiral back to check for
mastery, and reteach the skills again for new students who entered in a
cohort.  We all agree that we must have a clear and manageable curriculum in
order to effectively serve these students even on a managed basis.  

------ Original Message ------
Received: Thu, 13 Jul 2006 01:01:03 PM EDT
From: "Alisa Vlahakis Povenmire" <alisapovenmire at hotmail.com>
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 135]  Does managed enrollment support persistence?

> Hello all, 
>   
>  I am a few days late to join the list but have thoroughly enjoyed the
discussions.  In fair warning, I am submitting a somewhat long post.
>   
>  I am conducting somewhat informal research for the Massachusetts Department
of Education on the topic of managed enrollment.  
>   
>  Meta Potts wrote in post # 119:
>   
>  ?What is the difference between program supports to persistence and the
nature of student persistence??
>  My research addresses a small this question which regards the enrollment
policies and practices of Adult Education Programs.  My quest is to determine
the pros and cons of managed enrollment, and how managed enrollment affects
the retention, persistence, and learning gains of students.  I have
corresponded with several practitioners around the country who have forayed
into managed enrollment in their programs, and all seem VERY satisfied with
the results.  Most, but not all, programs that I have been in contact with do
also have at least one open entry classroom, and/or distance learning options
for students who cannot commit to the time and intensity required by the
managed enrollment classrooms.  
>  In John Comings? and Lisa Soricone?s NCSALL Paper, ?An Evidence-based
Adult Education Program Model Appropriate for Research?, certain scholars are
quoted who feel that open enrollment practices are ?not an effective way to
use limited resources?(p 66).  Other studies suggest that managed enrollment,
which allows students to enter a class during specific times only, is not only
easier and more productive for students and teachers, but also promotes a
higher rate of retention and persistence.  However, the report is careful to
recommend that programs take their own mission and student population into
account when making enrollment decisions and formal policies.  Many programs I
have had contact 
>  with, echo this sentiment and have found enrollment policy-making an
ongoing and often slow process, but worth the effort.  Although there hasn't,
to my knowledge, been a formal assessment of the effects of managed
enrollment, it seems like a program design element which tends to promote
persistence.
>  So my questions to John and listers are:
>       1.   What do you think about Managed Enrollment? Do you have a managed
enrollment policy at your program?  If so, for how long have you used this
policy and how is student persistence at your program affected by this
policy?
>  2.      There has been a lot of discussion on this list about students who
need flexible attendance schedules.  What is your sense of the percentage of
these students compared to the whole population of students? Do you think
managed enrollment works against these students?
>  3.      Is managed enrollment more suitable in certain contexts?  If so,
which?
>  4.      Many practitioners have only been able to cite (to me) benefits of
managed enrollment.  Do you feel that there are any negative aspects of this
practice?
>  5.      Does it cost more to use a managed enrollment system?  Is the
return on investment (learning gains) greater?
>  6.   Finally, in the broad context of persistence and support for learners,
how does the importance of enrollment policies compare to the importance of
supports like child care and transportation and teachers who really connect
with their learners? 
>  I thank you all, in advance, for what I know will be your thoughtful
comment on any of these questions.
>  Sincerely,
>  Alisa Povenmire, ABE Consultant, former SABES Coordinator
>  
>  
>  
>  From: "Holly Dilatush-Guthrie" <Holly.Dilatush-Guthrie at ccs.k12.va.us>
> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 135] Re: Persistence Strategies
> Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2006 22:11:39 -0400
> >Hello all, a delayed response from Holly here --
> >This:
> > >>> cnaamh at rcn.com 7/10/2006 9:23 PM >>>
> >I agree with you, Bruce. High-quality instruction in a supportive
environment is key and has many components. We may have to re-define success
for funders but for students feeling successful NOW is a key element of
persistence. We evaluate every activity and every class. All students should
leave every class with a feeling of success. I try my best to have students
leave, even the first class, with something they can use now.
> > Nicole B. Graves
> >South 
>  Deerfield, MA>>
> >...reminded me of an experience I had teaching a workplace ESL (Hotel
employees) class a few years back -- after the third 2 hour class, IMMEDIATELY
after the class, as we were exiting the classroom space, the employees'
supervisor asked the students/employees: "Well, what did you learn today?"
(she asked this to the group, and then repeated her question individually to
each employee -- ). The first response, "Nothing." The second response,
"nothing." etc. etc. --- What I learned from this: a new daily scheduled
activity at the end of each class -- practicing (verbally) "What did you learn
today?" answers! <grins!>
> >
> >So, students left feeling success, KNOWING how to articulate that success
-- both in simple written format (like writing a memo to their supervisor) and
in simple spoken English format...
> >
> >and I learned to quiz 
>  the supervisor before the following class, "Well, what DID they learn last
class?" --
> >it became a win-win-win --- and continued the contract!
> >[supervisors then added, based on the students/employees feedback, 5
minutes language exchange show & tell at monthly staff meetings -- where
everyone had to share what they'd learned -- in a language of their choice!
> >Hooray for multilingualism -- hooray for feelings of success -- hooray for
articulated mini-goals.... etc.
> >persistence -- motivation -- and hooray for continued funding!
> >Holly
> >
> >
> >"No matter what our attempts to inform, it is our ability to inspire that
will turn the tides."
> >Holly Dilatush
> >ESL distance learning, Dialogue Cafe, Volunteer coordinator
> >Charlottesville City Schools Adult Learning Center
> >1000 Preston Ave., Suite D
> >Charlottesville VA 
>  22903
> >(434) 245.2815 office
> >(434) 960.7177 cell/mobile
> >http://theHsmile.org ['home' to several Moodle CMS (course management
systems/virtual classrooms)]
> >http://www.Charlottesville-ESL.org
> >"Live with intention. Share inside~out smiles, inspire hope, seek awe and
nurture in nature."
> >
> >-------------------------------
> >National Institute for Literacy
> >Special Topics mailing list
> >SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> >To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>  Save time by searching from any Web page
 use the MSN Search Toolbar- it's
FREE!  
>  
>  
>  

> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics





From djgbrian at utk.edu  Thu Jul 13 15:42:37 2006
From: djgbrian at utk.edu (Brian, Dr Donna J G)
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2006 15:42:37 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 137] Re: Does managed enrollment support persistence?
In-Reply-To: <989kgmsvm9216S24.1152816492@cmsweb24.cms.usa.net>
Message-ID: <6A5CE13D731DE249BC61CB8C5C474B0A0796FB96@UTKFSVS1.utk.tennessee.edu>

I've been watching this discussion to see if anyone knows of a resource
that gives a good comparison of managed and open enrollment.  I know
there are plus and minus points for each view, and I'm looking for a
good reference that doesn't completely trash open enrollment (preferably
an online resource.)  Does anyone know of one?
Donna Brian
djgbrian at utk.edu 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Terri DeVito
Sent: Thursday, July 13, 2006 2:48 PM
To: alisa at caringhandsmt.com; specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 136] Re: Does managed enrollment support
persistence?

Alisa and all:  Thank you so much for raising this issue as it pertains
to persistence.  I am a 9 year Director of an ESOL and ABE/GED program
in Mass.
and we have adopted a managed enrollment process based upon requests
from our students and on research/comments that I have read regarding
college cohorts. 
Our students have told us loud and clearly that they do not like
turbulance in the classroom and that new students coming in and out is
very turbulent.  Our teachers find it almost impossible to effectively
teach a class with open enrollment.  We've only worked with this model
for one year, but we met our attendance goal, our pre/post test goals,
and our meaningful gain goals this year for the first time.  We are
still a little short of our average attended hours and our goals met
goals for the year.  And, we feel more professional and that we are
offering far better education to our students.  We are looking at a
major system change for next year that we hope will further support this
management of enrollment by having new students attend a class (21 hours
for ABE/GED and 7 - 14 hours for ESOL students) prior to entering
classes.  We also are intending to enroll new ABE/GED students every two
months and ESOL students at the half year mark.  Our full staff is
spending 23 hours each this summer redesigning our curriculum based upon
the Massachusetts State Frameworks to determine what is truly possible
to teach 7 hours per week 36 weeks of the year so that teachers can
teach a skill, spiral back to check for mastery, and reteach the skills
again for new students who entered in a cohort.  We all agree that we
must have a clear and manageable curriculum in order to effectively
serve these students even on a managed basis.  

------ Original Message ------
Received: Thu, 13 Jul 2006 01:01:03 PM EDT
From: "Alisa Vlahakis Povenmire" <alisapovenmire at hotmail.com>
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 135]  Does managed enrollment support
persistence?

> Hello all,
>   
>  I am a few days late to join the list but have thoroughly enjoyed the
discussions.  In fair warning, I am submitting a somewhat long post.
>   
>  I am conducting somewhat informal research for the Massachusetts 
> Department
of Education on the topic of managed enrollment.  
>   
>  Meta Potts wrote in post # 119:
>   
>  "What is the difference between program supports to persistence and 
> the
nature of student persistence?"
>  My research addresses a small this question which regards the 
> enrollment
policies and practices of Adult Education Programs.  My quest is to
determine the pros and cons of managed enrollment, and how managed
enrollment affects the retention, persistence, and learning gains of
students.  I have corresponded with several practitioners around the
country who have forayed into managed enrollment in their programs, and
all seem VERY satisfied with the results.  Most, but not all, programs
that I have been in contact with do also have at least one open entry
classroom, and/or distance learning options for students who cannot
commit to the time and intensity required by the managed enrollment
classrooms.  
>  In John Comings' and Lisa Soricone's NCSALL Paper, "An Evidence-based
Adult Education Program Model Appropriate for Research", certain
scholars are quoted who feel that open enrollment practices are "not an
effective way to use limited resources"(p 66).  Other studies suggest
that managed enrollment, which allows students to enter a class during
specific times only, is not only easier and more productive for students
and teachers, but also promotes a higher rate of retention and
persistence.  However, the report is careful to recommend that programs
take their own mission and student population into account when making
enrollment decisions and formal policies.  Many programs I have had
contact 
>  with, echo this sentiment and have found enrollment policy-making an
ongoing and often slow process, but worth the effort.  Although there
hasn't, to my knowledge, been a formal assessment of the effects of
managed enrollment, it seems like a program design element which tends
to promote persistence.
>  So my questions to John and listers are:
>       1.   What do you think about Managed Enrollment? Do you have a
managed
enrollment policy at your program?  If so, for how long have you used
this policy and how is student persistence at your program affected by
this policy?
>  2.      There has been a lot of discussion on this list about
students who
need flexible attendance schedules.  What is your sense of the
percentage of these students compared to the whole population of
students? Do you think managed enrollment works against these students?
>  3.      Is managed enrollment more suitable in certain contexts?  If
so,
which?
>  4.      Many practitioners have only been able to cite (to me)
benefits of
managed enrollment.  Do you feel that there are any negative aspects of
this practice?
>  5.      Does it cost more to use a managed enrollment system?  Is the
return on investment (learning gains) greater?
>  6.   Finally, in the broad context of persistence and support for
learners,
how does the importance of enrollment policies compare to the importance
of supports like child care and transportation and teachers who really
connect with their learners? 
>  I thank you all, in advance, for what I know will be your thoughtful
comment on any of these questions.
>  Sincerely,
>  Alisa Povenmire, ABE Consultant, former SABES Coordinator
>  
>  
>  
>  From: "Holly Dilatush-Guthrie" <Holly.Dilatush-Guthrie at ccs.k12.va.us>
> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 135] Re: Persistence Strategies
> Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2006 22:11:39 -0400
> >Hello all, a delayed response from Holly here --
> >This:
> > >>> cnaamh at rcn.com 7/10/2006 9:23 PM >>>
> >I agree with you, Bruce. High-quality instruction in a supportive
environment is key and has many components. We may have to re-define
success for funders but for students feeling successful NOW is a key
element of persistence. We evaluate every activity and every class. All
students should leave every class with a feeling of success. I try my
best to have students leave, even the first class, with something they
can use now.
> > Nicole B. Graves
> >South
>  Deerfield, MA>>
> >...reminded me of an experience I had teaching a workplace ESL (Hotel
employees) class a few years back -- after the third 2 hour class,
IMMEDIATELY after the class, as we were exiting the classroom space, the
employees'
supervisor asked the students/employees: "Well, what did you learn
today?"
(she asked this to the group, and then repeated her question
individually to each employee -- ). The first response, "Nothing." The
second response, "nothing." etc. etc. --- What I learned from this: a
new daily scheduled activity at the end of each class -- practicing
(verbally) "What did you learn today?" answers! <grins!>
> >
> >So, students left feeling success, KNOWING how to articulate that 
> >success
-- both in simple written format (like writing a memo to their
supervisor) and in simple spoken English format...
> >
> >and I learned to quiz
>  the supervisor before the following class, "Well, what DID they learn

> last
class?" --
> >it became a win-win-win --- and continued the contract!
> >[supervisors then added, based on the students/employees feedback, 5
minutes language exchange show & tell at monthly staff meetings -- where
everyone had to share what they'd learned -- in a language of their
choice!
> >Hooray for multilingualism -- hooray for feelings of success -- 
> >hooray for
articulated mini-goals.... etc.
> >persistence -- motivation -- and hooray for continued funding!
> >Holly
> >
> >
> >"No matter what our attempts to inform, it is our ability to inspire 
> >that
will turn the tides."
> >Holly Dilatush
> >ESL distance learning, Dialogue Cafe, Volunteer coordinator 
> >Charlottesville City Schools Adult Learning Center 1000 Preston Ave.,

> >Suite D Charlottesville VA
>  22903
> >(434) 245.2815 office
> >(434) 960.7177 cell/mobile
> >http://theHsmile.org ['home' to several Moodle CMS (course management
systems/virtual classrooms)]
> >http://www.Charlottesville-ESL.org
> >"Live with intention. Share inside~out smiles, inspire hope, seek awe

> >and
nurture in nature."
> >
> >-------------------------------
> >National Institute for Literacy
> >Special Topics mailing list
> >SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> >To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>  Save time by searching from any Web page... use the MSN Search
Toolbar- 
> it's
FREE!  
>  
>  
>  

> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
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From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu Jul 13 16:59:35 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2006 16:59:35 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 138]  oe/oe and managed enrollment
References: <1152823816.44b6b20853556@webmail.znet.net>
Message-ID: <A02029B3-9E45-4FE1-BC4C-769734178AB4@comcast.net>

Posted on behalf of Tom Sticht:

From: tsticht at znet.com
Date: July 13, 2006 4:50:16 PM EDT
To: djrosen at comcast.net
Subject: oe/oe and managed enrollment

David:

In response to Donna Brian, the Passports to Paradise report has lots  
of information about teaching in an open entry/open exit (oe/oe)  
system and shows how at least one vocational ESL (VESL) program was  
exemplary in accomplishing education within this type of system. The  
report also has a Chapter that examines the issue of open entry/open  
exit in greater detail and suggests that managed enrollment may offer  
a good alternative and should receive some research. Still a good  
idea I think.

Tom Sticht

January 31, 2005

Persistence in English as a Second Language (ESL) Programs: Research  
Using the Method of Natural Variations

Tom Sticht
International Consultant in Adult Education

Testing hypotheses derived from theory using experimental research  
designs with random assignment are extremely difficult to implement  
in operational settings such as adult literacy education programs. It  
may also be prohibitively expensive to conduct this sort of "gold  
standard" research.

For these reasons colleagues and I explored a different approach when  
we set out to test hypotheses from Functional Context Education  
theory in an operational context. In this case we followed a method  
used in sciences such as astronomy and biology and set out to test a  
hypotheses from FCE theory using the method of examining naturally  
occurring variations in adult literacy programs.

A basic tenet of Functional Context Education (FCE) theory is that  
adult literacy education ought to be based on what is relevant to the  
contexts of adults? lives. In research on the persistence of adults  
in Vocational English as a Second Language (VESL) programs,  
colleagues and I  considered the foregoing and hypothesized that the  
reasons why adults frequently enroll in a course of study and then  
quickly drop out might have something to do with mismatches between  
what the adults want to learn and what programs actually offer. So we  
tested this hypothesis by studying persistence in VESL programs that  
had only a general focus on work, or a focus on a specific career  
field, or a focus on a specific job.

Data on persistence showed that , in general, the closer the  match  
between the reasons of  the adult students for taking the VESL  
course, in this case to get a job, and the focus of the program, in  
this case focusing directly on vocational training and finding jobs  
for students, the more likely the students were to complete the course.

The method of studying naturally occurring variations in adult  
literacy programs is considerably less expensive and more feasible to  
implement than experimental designs. Though not as rigorous as true  
experiments, the method of natural variation can be used in testing  
hypotheses derived from adult literacy theory.  The paucity of such  
research may result at least in part from the lack of adult literacy  
theory that has been formulated explicitly enough to derive  
hypotheses that are testable.

Theory of this sort is crucial for the development of validated  
knowledge for the general advance of adult literacy education because  
it provides guidance beyond the specifics of particulars techniques,  
materials, technologies, management practices and other operational  
details of programs. The latter are too numerous and change too often  
to make it practicable to conduct experimental tests of the relative  
effectiveness of programs comprised of combinations of such particulars.

As  Kurt Lewin said,  "There is nothing so practical as a good theory. "

Reference

Sticht, Thomas G.; McDonald, Barbara A.; Erickson, Paul R. (1998,
January). Passports to Paradise: The Struggle To Teach and To Learn  
on the Margins of Adult Education. Online at:
http://SearchERIC.org/scripts/texis.exe/scripts/asearch1? 
db=ericft&expan=no&disp=snote&proximity=rank&lmt=nul&nsz=20&arg=passport 
s+to+passports

 From the ERIC database

Passports to Paradise: The Struggle To Teach and To Learn on the  
Margins of Adult Education.
Sticht, Thomas G.; McDonald, Barbara A.; Erickson, Paul R.
http://SearchERIC.org/scripts/seget2.asp?db=ericft&want=http:// 
SearchERIC.org/ericdc/ED418238.htm

Abstract: This report provides a 5-year perspective on the adult  
literacy education (ALE) system in the inner city of San Diego,  
California. Chapter 1 introduces the research. Chapters 2-5 in part  
1, "The Struggle To Learn," contain the following: information about  
the difficulties of determining how many adults might benefit from  
basic skill education; introduction of the practice of having adult  
literacy students perform as researchers to discover barriers to and  
ways to increase participation in ALE; what happens after adults  
decide to go back to school; and how various instructional factors  
affect learning and the transfer of learning to the home and  
community. Chapters 6-8 in part 2, "The Struggle To Teach," include  
the following: reports by two teacher researchers on hardships of  
teaching and learning and insights of 17 teachers about the  
educational system; a teacher researcher's experiences in trying to  
change instruction in an English as a second language class and how  
the dynamics of students' lives and classroom turbulence affected her  
work; and challenges to teaching posed by diversity in a classroom  
due to cultural factors and different language and literacy skill  
levels. Chapters 9-11 in part 3, "The Struggle To Be Better," cover  
the following: activities federal policy makers and officials have  
undertaken to try to improve the ALE system nationally; activities in  
California to improve the ALE system; and rebuttals to news stories  
about the low intellectual abilities of disadvantaged youth and  
adults. (YLB)

Title: Passports to Paradise: The Struggle To Teach and To Learn on  
the Margins of Adult Education.
Author: Sticht, Thomas G.; McDonald, Barbara A.; Erickson, Paul R.
Note: 125p.
Publication Year: 1998
Document Type: Research Report (143)
Target Audience: Practitioners and Teachers
ERIC Identifier: ED418238
Available from: Applied Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences, Inc., 2062  
Valley View Blvd., El Cajon, CA 92019-2059 ($20). You may be able to  
download this document from the ERIC Contractor.

-----

From cnaamh at rcn.com  Thu Jul 13 17:12:43 2006
From: cnaamh at rcn.com (Nicole Graves)
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2006 17:12:43 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 139] Re: Persistence Strategies
References: <s4b573bf.058@mail.ccs.k12.va.us>
Message-ID: <00af01c6a6c5$33126710$83b53bd0@cnadln21kxvbnn>

Wonderful story, Holly!

Nicole
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Holly Dilatush-Guthrie" <Holly.Dilatush-Guthrie at ccs.k12.va.us>
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Sent: Wednesday, July 12, 2006 10:11 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 135] Re: Persistence Strategies


> Hello all, a delayed response from Holly here -- 
> This:
> >>> cnaamh at rcn.com 7/10/2006 9:23 PM >>>
> I agree with you, Bruce.  High-quality instruction in a supportive
environment is key and has many components.  We may have to re-define
success for funders but for students feeling successful NOW is a key element
of persistence.  We evaluate every activity and every class.  All students
should leave every class with a feeling of success.  I try my best to have
students leave, even the first class, with something they can use now.
>  Nicole B. Graves
> South Deerfield, MA>>
> ...reminded me of an experience I had teaching a workplace ESL (Hotel
employees) class a few years back -- after the third 2 hour class,
IMMEDIATELY after the class, as we were exiting the classroom space, the
employees' supervisor asked the students/employees:  "Well, what did you
learn today?"   (she asked this to the group, and then repeated her question
individually to each employee -- ).   The first response, "Nothing."   The
second response, "nothing."   etc.  etc. ---   What I learned from this:   a
new daily scheduled activity at the end of each class -- practicing
(verbally) "What did you learn today?" answers!   <grins!>
>
> So, students left feeling success, KNOWING how to articulate that
success -- both in simple written format (like writing a memo to their
supervisor) and in simple spoken English format...
>
> and I learned to quiz the supervisor before the following class, "Well,
what DID they learn last class?" --
> it became a win-win-win --- and continued the contract!
> [supervisors then added, based on the students/employees feedback, 5
minutes language exchange show & tell at monthly staff meetings -- where
everyone had to share what they'd learned -- in  a language of their choice!
> Hooray for multilingualism -- hooray for feelings of success -- hooray for
articulated mini-goals.... etc.
> persistence -- motivation -- and hooray for continued funding!
> Holly
>
>
> "No matter what our attempts to inform, it is our ability to inspire that
will turn the tides."
> Holly Dilatush
> ESL distance learning, Dialogue Cafe, Volunteer coordinator
> Charlottesville City Schools Adult Learning Center
> 1000 Preston Ave., Suite D
> Charlottesville  VA  22903
> (434) 245.2815 office
> (434) 960.7177 cell/mobile
> http://theHsmile.org  ['home' to several Moodle CMS (course management
systems/virtual classrooms)]
> http://www.Charlottesville-ESL.org
> "Live with intention. Share inside~out smiles, inspire hope, seek awe and
nurture in nature."
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From alisapovenmire at hotmail.com  Fri Jul 14 14:47:56 2006
From: alisapovenmire at hotmail.com (Alisa Vlahakis Povenmire)
Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2006 14:47:56 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 140] Re: oe/oe and managed enrollment
In-Reply-To: <A02029B3-9E45-4FE1-BC4C-769734178AB4@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <BAY106-F303BFEF2609AD8E167C24DC86F0@phx.gbl>

An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/attachments/20060714/0a73e8e5/attachment.html 

From djrosen at comcast.net  Sun Jul 16 16:25:53 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2006 16:25:53 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 141]  Keeping students' eyes on the prize
Message-ID: <5006EFB2-897E-4EAB-AF29-6A68FA46CFE8@comcast.net>

John, and other colleagues,

Part of the persistence challenge is that some adult learners make  
progress very slowly and have so very far to go before they see the  
prize they may have their eyes on.  The prize might be a high school  
diploma, a better job, a living wage, a good job with a decent salary  
and good benefits, or going to college, but these may be basic  
literacy or beginning English language students who need years of  
study to achieve one of these goals.  One answer might be to increase  
intensity, more time on task, more hours of study.  But this is not  
always possible for programs, because they lack the funding to  
increase intensity of classroom instruction, or for learners, who  
usually have other commitments like working and parenting.  Funders  
-- especially companies when they fund "workplace literacy" -- often  
want results in  a few weeks or months, and even major federal and  
state funders want results at the end of the fiscal year, either one  
of these prizes or evidence of progress toward its attainment.

Are there some ways we could sustain the student's original motive or  
goal (the GED diploma, a good job, or an admission to college prize)  
over several years, if needed.  What do we know about  strategies  
like awarding certificates for small achievements, holding annual  
recognition ceremonies, and providing good formative assessment so  
students can see they have reached some milestones? How about  
strategies like building community, providing food, helping students  
to learn skills that they can use in daily living?  Can we articulate  
from research and/or professional wisdom what strategies work (if  
any) in sustaining long-term students' motivation and convince  
funders that we need their support for these strategies?

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net





From CGannon at qcc.mass.edu  Mon Jul 17 12:17:40 2006
From: CGannon at qcc.mass.edu (Cathy Gannon)
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2006 12:17:40 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 141] Re: [This message may be SPAM] Re: Fwd: Re:
	Persistence Discussion questions
Message-ID: <7D243C93CC45DC47BD40B11C9D073BA901278B12@HOBBES.campus.qcc.edu>

I hope I'm not too late to pose a question - have just gotten caught up
on this very interesting discussion.

John, Would you please elaborate a bit on "Learner-produced reading
materials, which many programs produce, at least in small quantities,
might be useful in this process, but informal dialogue and writing about
goals might work just as well." in your response to Marie below.

We (here at Central SABES) support a publication of learner produced
writings and know that the practitioners in our region of MA  would be
interested in connecting this learner writing to goal setting and thus
increased learner persistence.

Cathy Gannon


-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of John Comings
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 4:01 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [This message may be SPAM] [SpecialTopics 100] Re: Fwd: Re:
Persistence Discussion questions
Importance: Low

Sorry I'm late responding but I just got into the office after a morning
of conference calls and family business.

Let me start by saying that the last 8 years of research has given
NCSALL some insights into what might work to increase persistence, but
we don't yet have proof that the changes in program services that these
insights suggest lead to increased persistence.  However, I feel we have
some of the best available advice. That advice suggests two broad
approaches, one is to add supports to persistence in our existing
programs and the other suggests adding those supports to programs that
are designed to fit with the existing patterns of participation.  The
first approach is incremental and less expensive. That second requires
changes in policy, funding, accountability, and service delivery.

Now to Marie Cora's two questions:

1.  Goals:  The quantitative aspect of our research showed a correlation
between students who were able to state a specific goal for attending
(they persisted longer) and those who stated a vague goal or no goal at
all (they persisted less).  So we explored the goals of students and
found that they usually expressed both an instrumental goal ("I want to
get my GED, so I can get a better job" for example) and a
transformational goal (I want to be the kind of person who has a high
school education," for example). Many programs ask students at intake to
state their goals, which is probably helpful. But, it might be helpful
to weave the goal setting process into instruction as well. In this way,
students can have some time to think about what they want and why they
want it. Learner-produced reading materials, which many programs
produce, at least in small quantities, might be useful in this process,
but informal dialogue and writing about goals might work just as well.
Any activities that help students articulate their instrumental and
transformational goals, and revisit them as part of instruction,
probably adds this support to persistence.

2.  Stopout: In our interviews, students who had dropped out told us
that their program would not allow them to return after they stopped
attending, but the staff in their programs said this was not true and we
observed students returning and being welcomed back into the program.
The misconception started at intake and orientation, when staff
emphasized good attendance. Our longitudinal study is identifying a
pattern of participation in learning that is made up of episodes of
participation in programs and episodes of self-study.  Our research
suggests that a support to persistence would making sure that new
students know that they can stopout and also know how to reenter.
However, we might do better to change the form of participation to one
that links episodes of program participation and self study.


> Begin forwarded message:
>
>> From: "Marie Cora" <marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com>
>> Date: July 10, 2006 10:02:17 AM EDT
>> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 90] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
>> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>
>> Dear Colleagues,
>>
>> Thanks so much to John Comings for being with us this week to discuss

>> Persistence.  I am very much looking forward to hearing what 
>> strategies folks use out there to try and tackle this issue with 
>> their students.
>>
>> I actually have two questions for you (and list subscribers):  I am 
>> interested in hearing you elaborate a bit on the impact of having the

>> student set his or her own goals, and how best to help them to do 
>> that.
>> It's quite easy to set a student's goal for her/him - but not so easy

>> to get a student to determine a goal for her/himself.  What are some 
>> of the things that folks do around this issue?
>>
>> Second, I heard you speak at a conference last fall in which you 
>> noted that part of what could be helpful in persistence, is to 
>> acknowledge that the student might not persist.  In other words, why 
>> not explore with the student the reality that if they do "stop out", 
>> this doesn't have to mean "quit".  I found this fascinating and at 
>> the same time, completely logical.  This appears to be part of what 
>> you intend in your third area of research based on what I've read.
>>
>> Thank you again for your time this week and for the discussion.
>>
>> Marie Cora
>> NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator 
>> marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
>> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
>> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 7:37 AM
>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 89] Re: Persistence Discussion
>>
>> Dear Colleagues,
>>
>> Today we begin a discussion about the studies which Dr. John Comings 
>> and others at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and

>> Literacy have done on persistence.  The discussion will continue 
>> through Tuesday next week, July 18th.
>>
>> Please post your questions and comments to John beginning now.
>>
>> In John's message below he describes two publications which may be of
>> interest.  Each has a short executive summary.   There is also a 30-
>> minute video panel discussion about the study, with John and two 
>> practitioners, streamed at:
>>
>> http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html
>>
>> You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser, 
>> or you could try this shorter version:
>>
>> http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu
>>
>> Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing 
>> the presentation, and there are still some bugs to be worked out of 
>> the Mac streamed version.
>>
>> David J. Rosen
>> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator djrosen at comcast.net
>>
>> On Jul 5, 2006, at 4:33 PM, David Rosen wrote:
>>
>>> Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,
>>>
>>> John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult

>>> Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the 
>>> persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction, 
>>> below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of the 
>>> study. I hope you can read these before July 10th.  You are welcome 
>>> to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now, but 
>>> these will not be posted until July 10th.
>>>
>>> i am looking forward to your joining in on this important
discussion.
>>>
>>> David J. Rosen
>>> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator djrosen at comcast.net
>>> --------------
>>>
>>> When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the 
>>> proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed 
>>> practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us design

>>> our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the survey. 
>>> We asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they 
>>> wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and GED 
>>> programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and 
>>> second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way, 
>>> "Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the
>>> program.   How can I keep those students long enough that they can
>>> meet their educational goals?"
>>>
>>> That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of
persistence.
>>> The first two phases are complete.  The first phase surveyed the 
>>> literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England states, 
>>> and identified ways that programs were trying to support the 
>>> persistence of their students. The report of that first phase can be

>>> found at:
>>>
>>> <http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>
>>>
>>> In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided with 
>>> funds to implement interventions that might help improve 
>>> persistence, and our study team observed the programs and 
>>> interviewed their staff and students. We also followed a cohort of 
>>> 180 students for 14 months.  The report of that second phase can be
found at:
>>>
>>> <http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>
>>>
>>> We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer 
>>> has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would 
>>> test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to 
>>> existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of modes of 
>>> learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other
>>> ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their learning, 
>>> and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the 
>>> third approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem, 
>>> as well as it can be solved.
>>>
>>> I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be 
>>> interested in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence

>>> and how to expand opportunities for learning.
>>>
>>> John Comings, NCSALL Director
>>> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy Harvard

>>> Graduate School of Education
>>> 7 Appian Way
>>> Cambridge MA 02138
>>> (617) 496-0516, voice
>>> (617) 495-4811, fax
>>> (617) 335-9839, mobile
>>> john_comings at harvard.edu
>>> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> -------------------------------
>>> National Institute for Literacy
>>> Special Topics mailing list
>>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
>>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>
>> David Rosen
>> djrosen at comcast.net
>>
>>
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> David Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy Harvard
Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu

-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From dwyoho at earthlink.net  Mon Jul 17 15:48:44 2006
From: dwyoho at earthlink.net (Debbie Yoho)
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2006 15:48:44 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 142] Re: Managed enrollment
Message-ID: <380-220067117194844656@earthlink.net>

I thought it interesting that one of the suggestions as a result of the
persistence research is to find ways to accomodate the tendency of adult
learners to "drop in and out".  The idea of "managed enrollment", where
programs end open enrollment and instead offer coursework in 8-12 week
packages, as been touted in our area as a panacea for this problem. I'd
like to hear from programs that have tried "managed enrollment". My own
problem is I can't figure out how to include one-on-one services in a
"managed" context. 

My experience tells me, and the research seems to point to this too, that
the problem with persistence may not be one of motivation, but of juggling
the many realities of adult life.  Increasing the intensity of programs may
work for some, but may also have the result of pushing out those who just
can't commit to more than a few hours a week. 

"Turning Pages into Possibilities",  Debbie

Deborah W. Yoho
Executive Director, Greater Columbia Literacy Council
2728 Devine Street,  Columbia, SC  29205
803-765-2555   Fax  803-799-8417   dwyoho at earthlink.net

GCLC is a community service of Volunteers of America of the Carolinas.




From djrosen at comcast.net  Mon Jul 17 20:54:15 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David J. Rosen)
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2006 20:54:15 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 143]  Persistence: Student Transformation Goals
Message-ID: <44BC3137.9040204@comcast.net>

Posted for Andy Nash:

Hi John,

I was surprised and heartened to read the following in your 7/10 response to Marie Cora:

. . .  we explored the goals of students and found that they usually expressed both an instrumental goal (?I want to get my GED, so I can get a better job? for example) and a transformational goal (I want to be the kind of person who has a high school education,? for example). Many programs ask students at intake to state their goals, which is probably helpful. But, it might be helpful to weave the goal-setting process into instruction as well. . . . 

My sense is that the focus in programs, so far, has been on the instrumental goals * those that are clear, measurable, functional, etc. Since I?m interested in the ?transformational? goals, particularly in the sense of helping adults see themselves as ?the kind of person? who reads a newspaper or ?the kind of person? who understands (and speaks up about?) the decisions that are being made about their lives, I?ve been dismayed by this trend toward the immediately practical. 

While I agree that goal-setting needs to be an on-going process infused into instruction, I don?t think transformational goals are likely to be identified by students through an individual process. I have only seen individuals name the kinds of concrete items that appear on the goal lists being developed in many programs.  It seems to me that only when goal-setting is done as a group, and when students are invited to discuss what their concerns are, or what kind of person they want to  be, or how they want their lives to be different after participating in the program, that we?ll be able to start surfacing those transformational goals. Can you please comment on this, and on how you saw those transformational goals expressed during your research?

Andy Nash
New England Literacy Resource Center/World Educaton




From djrosen at comcast.net  Mon Jul 17 21:28:07 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David J. Rosen)
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2006 21:28:07 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 144] [Fwd: [Assessment 409] Re: FW: Keeping
 students' eyes on	the prize]
Message-ID: <44BC3927.6080904@comcast.net>


Forwarded from the Assessment Discussion List:

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: 	[Assessment 409] Re: FW: [SpecialTopics 141] Keeping students' 
eyes on the prize
Date: 	Mon, 17 Jul 2006 10:27:43 -0700
From: 	Tina_Luffman at yc.edu
Reply-To: 	The Assessment Discussion List <assessment at nifl.gov>
To: 	The Assessment Discussion List <assessment at nifl.gov>



Hi everyone,
 
Thank you for the terrific video presentation concerning persistence 
among students. We plan to use it for teacher training this August at 
Yavapai College.
 
I just wanted to add that, "yes," we do give our students certificates 
whenever they come up in a TABE regardless if it is a complete ed gain 
or not, and whenever they have perfect attendance each month. These 
certificates seem to be more motivating than anything we could offer 
them. I had one student who reportedly went home and hung his on the 
wall, and said he would keep it there until he had his GED Diploma. He 
was so thrilled because he hadn't received any kind of recognition 
certificate since elementary school.
 
<>Tina

Tina Luffman
Coordinator, Developmental Education
Verde Valley Campus
928-634-6544
tina_luffman at yc.edu <mailto:tina_luffman at yc.edu>
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From hsnow at cougar.kean.edu  Mon Jul 17 21:02:00 2006
From: hsnow at cougar.kean.edu (Hugh D. Snow)
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2006 20:02:00 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 145] Re: Managed enrollment
Message-ID: <541125378d.5378d54112@kean.edu>

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From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue Jul 18 07:27:46 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 07:27:46 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 146] Persistence: Keeping Students on a learning
	plan...
References: <20060717131227.86251.qmail@web36604.mail.mud.yahoo.com>
Message-ID: <9A944204-ABBE-4D19-9EF9-74ED3B921040@comcast.net>

Posted for Marilyn Knight:

From: Marilynn Knight <marilynnknight at yahoo.com>
Date: July 17, 2006 9:12:27 AM EDT
Subject: Keeping Students on a learning plan...

What I find most natural, and what seems to help undergird my  
students' committment to persevere, is to help my students bond to  
each other, and even across the lines of ABE and ESOL.  I teach both  
Reading and Writing to both groups, in both one-on-one tutoring and  
group settings.  I want them to know each other and to know they can  
learn from each other.

I have found interest in an ongoing Book Club to meet on Sundays from  
4 to 5pm.  Not a rigid, everyone must read the same book, kind of  
club, but where we are sharing in a discussion, reading aloud of  
individual books and a common book.  This is an outgrowth of a  
Reading/Writing Class I have taught here over the past year.  I want  
to maintain a relaxed, happy, enthusiastic, spontaneous approach,  
where each member is enjoyed and appreciated and contributes.  We  
don't have the time pressure of a formal class, but we also can exult  
in acquiring new vocabulary, new construction.  This is strictly a  
voluntary activity, but I think it will help them persevere, but also  
internalize the zest for learning, which I consider everyone's  
birthright.

Marilynn Latta Knight
The Greater Columbia Literacy Council
Columbia, SC




From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue Jul 18 07:34:57 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 07:34:57 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 147]  Last day of Discussion on Persistence
Message-ID: <8D627E6F-03BC-4612-BD32-993EAF110A41@comcast.net>

Special Topics Discussion Colleagues,

Today is the last day to post your questions and comments on  
Persistence.  After today, and after John Comings has responded to  
any recent posts, the discussion will close.  For those who have  
recently joined us, and others, the discussions on the Special Topics  
list are archived at http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/ 
date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Tue Jul 18 10:14:10 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 10:14:10 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 148] Re: Persistence: Student Transformation Goals
In-Reply-To: <44BC3137.9040204@comcast.net>
References: <44BC3137.9040204@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <D20E372ECC29B24335C379D0@nic106>

If you think back about your own adult education, that is college and 
graduate school along with learning related to improving your job prospects 
or enjoying your leisure time (language classes, golf lessons, and computer 
training, for example), you probably had an instrumental goal (get a better 
or specific job, speak Spanish, lower your handicap, or be able to produce 
better looking documents, for example). However, you also had a vision of 
yourself as person with that better or specific job, as a person who is 
bilingual, as being able to consistently hit 250 yards down the middle of 
the fairway of the tee [a transformation I am still waiting for], or being 
the person other people ask for computer help). This vision of who you 
wanted to become and the instrumental benefit supported your motivation to 
sit through and pass courses that were boring, make time in your schedule 
to practice and attend training programs.

The desire to change some aspect of personal identity came up in our 
interviews with ABE and ESOL students. So programs might consider exploring 
both instrumental and transitional goals. There is no reason why these 
explorations cannot be done within the context of teaching ESOL or ABE. The 
exploration should help students articulate these goals but should also 
build self-efficacy, that is the belief that they can reach those goals. 
The ways to build self-efficacy have been identified through research and 
are explained in the Persistence report on our website. But in summary, we 
should help our students

experience success by making meaningful progress and  seeing that they are 
making progress

meet people just like them who have succeeded

receive social support from teachers, fellow students, and from members of 
their family and friendship network

and learn to overcome any negative emotional states (nervousness or anxiety 
for example) around learning.


--On Monday, July 17, 2006 8:54 PM -0400 "David J. Rosen" 
<djrosen at comcast.net> wrote:

> Posted for Andy Nash:
>
> Hi John,
>
> I was surprised and heartened to read the following in your 7/10 response
> to Marie Cora:
>
> . . .  we explored the goals of students and found that they usually
> expressed both an instrumental goal ("I want to get my GED, so I can
> get a better job" for example) and a transformational goal (I want to
> be the kind of person who has a high school education," for example).
> Many programs ask students at intake to state their goals, which is
> probably helpful. But, it might be helpful to weave the goal-setting
> process into instruction as well. . . .
>
> My sense is that the focus in programs, so far, has been on the
> instrumental goals * those that are clear, measurable, functional, etc.
> Since I'm interested in the "transformational" goals, particularly
> in the sense of helping adults see themselves as "the kind of person"
> who reads a newspaper or "the kind of person" who understands (and
> speaks up about?) the decisions that are being made about their lives,
> I've been dismayed by this trend toward the immediately practical.
>
> While I agree that goal-setting needs to be an on-going process infused
> into instruction, I don't think transformational goals are likely to be
> identified by students through an individual process. I have only seen
> individuals name the kinds of concrete items that appear on the goal
> lists being developed in many programs.  It seems to me that only when
> goal-setting is done as a group, and when students are invited to discuss
> what their concerns are, or what kind of person they want to  be, or how
> they want their lives to be different after participating in the program,
> that we'll be able to start surfacing those transformational goals. Can
> you please comment on this, and on how you saw those transformational
> goals expressed during your research?
>
> Andy Nash
> New England Literacy Resource Center/World Educaton
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From john_strucker at harvard.edu  Tue Jul 18 10:49:46 2006
From: john_strucker at harvard.edu (john strucker)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 10:49:46 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 149] Re: Keeping students' eyes on the prize
In-Reply-To: <5006EFB2-897E-4EAB-AF29-6A68FA46CFE8@comcast.net>
References: <5006EFB2-897E-4EAB-AF29-6A68FA46CFE8@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <AA5394E2E7ADF7E88428D4CA@nichols303>

Hi David and colleagues,
	One part of a total approach to improved persistence that we should 
explore is the one they are trying in the UK.  Their adult students take a 
series of nationally developed curriculum-based benchmark tests that give 
them feedback on their mastery of various specific competencies and also 
give them a sense of how much closer they are getting to reaching their 
long-term goals.
Best,
John Strucker

--On Sunday, July 16, 2006 4:25 PM -0400 David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net> 
wrote:

> John, and other colleagues,
>
> Part of the persistence challenge is that some adult learners make
> progress very slowly and have so very far to go before they see the
> prize they may have their eyes on.  The prize might be a high school
> diploma, a better job, a living wage, a good job with a decent salary
> and good benefits, or going to college, but these may be basic
> literacy or beginning English language students who need years of
> study to achieve one of these goals.  One answer might be to increase
> intensity, more time on task, more hours of study.  But this is not
> always possible for programs, because they lack the funding to
> increase intensity of classroom instruction, or for learners, who
> usually have other commitments like working and parenting.  Funders
> -- especially companies when they fund "workplace literacy" -- often
> want results in  a few weeks or months, and even major federal and
> state funders want results at the end of the fiscal year, either one
> of these prizes or evidence of progress toward its attainment.
>
> Are there some ways we could sustain the student's original motive or
> goal (the GED diploma, a good job, or an admission to college prize)
> over several years, if needed.  What do we know about  strategies
> like awarding certificates for small achievements, holding annual
> recognition ceremonies, and providing good formative assessment so
> students can see they have reached some milestones? How about
> strategies like building community, providing food, helping students
> to learn skills that they can use in daily living?  Can we articulate
> from research and/or professional wisdom what strategies work (if
> any) in sustaining long-term students' motivation and convince
> funders that we need their support for these strategies?
>
> David J. Rosen
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Strucker, EdD
Nichols House 303
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138

617 495 4745
617 495 4811 (fax)


From ckillack at uno.edu  Tue Jul 18 11:04:40 2006
From: ckillack at uno.edu (Cecil J Killacky)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 10:04:40 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 150] Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence
References: <8D627E6F-03BC-4612-BD32-993EAF110A41@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <9BD100EEFBE35A4092F56A9E6763EC39EB0FCD@mail3.uno.edu>

Hi David and friends: many thanks for facilitating this discussion.
It has been engaging and valuable.
 
Jim Killacky
University of New Orleans

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Tue 7/18/2006 6:34 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 147] Last day of Discussion on Persistence



Special Topics Discussion Colleagues,

Today is the last day to post your questions and comments on 
Persistence.  After today, and after John Comings has responded to 
any recent posts, the discussion will close.  For those who have 
recently joined us, and others, the discussions on the Special Topics 
list are archived at http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/
date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


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From drichardson at jclibrary.org  Tue Jul 18 12:21:29 2006
From: drichardson at jclibrary.org (Darnelle Richardson)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 12:21:29 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 151] Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence
In-Reply-To: <8D627E6F-03BC-4612-BD32-993EAF110A41@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <4EA97732BEFF5041A6AABC9CD77655BD03F279@jersey-mail.jcpl_serv.jclibrary.org>

I managed to read most of the discussions on this topic and concur with everyone on the strategies that need to be implemented or changed to support our adult learners.  There's one thing I would like to add, and most people might not agree with me.  In terms of our adults stopping out and dropping in, I think we need to hold them more accountable.  The trend I've seen is that some of them think it's okay to stop at any time and jump back in at any time.  While I understand that circumstances might warrant them having to take a break, all too often some of them don't take their learning serious enough to try to make adjustments that might enable them to continue in their programs.  Is it because we are too lenient with them?    We try our best to be accountable to our funders, which can be rigid at times when you consider how much manpower goes into producing some reports, and yet we allow our adults to move nonchalantly through our programs. Some of them place no value on persistence because most of the services are free. Perhaps if they were required to pay high fees like some of us do for our college education, they might be persistent.  I realize this might be outside of the box for most programs, including mine, but we should try to find ways to make them more accountable; this might improve persistence.  

Darnelle L. Richardson
Program Coordinator
Literacy Program 
Jersey City Public Library
472 Jersey Avenue
Jersey City, NJ  07302
T: 201/547-5770
F: 201/435-5746
E-mail:  drichardson at jclibrary.org

"The ability to read and write is critical to personal freedom and the maintenance of a democratic society."


-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Tuesday, July 18, 2006 7:35 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 147] Last day of Discussion on Persistence


Special Topics Discussion Colleagues,

Today is the last day to post your questions and comments on  
Persistence.  After today, and after John Comings has responded to  
any recent posts, the discussion will close.  For those who have  
recently joined us, and others, the discussions on the Special Topics  
list are archived at http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/ 
date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



From Holly.Dilatush-Guthrie at ccs.k12.va.us  Tue Jul 18 12:51:26 2006
From: Holly.Dilatush-Guthrie at ccs.k12.va.us (Holly Dilatush-Guthrie)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 12:51:26 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 152]   Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence
Message-ID: <s4bcd95f.026@mail.ccs.k12.va.us>

Ditto!  <<many thanks for facilitating this discussion.  It has been engaging and valuable.>>

kudos
Holly


"No matter what our attempts to inform, it is our ability to inspire that will turn the tides."
Holly Dilatush
ESL distance learning, Dialogue Cafe, Volunteer coordinator
Charlottesville City Schools Adult Learning Center
1000 Preston Ave., Suite D
Charlottesville  VA  22903
(434) 245.2815 office
(434) 960.7177 cell/mobile
http://theHsmile.org  ['home' to several Moodle CMS (course management systems/virtual classrooms)]
http://www.Charlottesville-ESL.org 
"Live with intention. Share inside~out smiles, inspire hope, seek awe and nurture in nature."



From meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org  Tue Jul 18 13:21:01 2006
From: meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org (Jane Meyer)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 13:21:01 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 153] Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence
In-Reply-To: <4EA97732BEFF5041A6AABC9CD77655BD03F279@jersey-mail.jcpl_serv.jclibrary.org>
References: <4EA97732BEFF5041A6AABC9CD77655BD03F279@jersey-mail.jcpl_serv.jclibrary.org>
Message-ID: <44BD187D.7020005@ccsdistrict.org>



Darnelle Richardson wrote:

>In terms of our adults stopping out and dropping in, I think we need to hold them more accountable.  The trend I've seen is that some of them think it's okay to stop at any time and jump back in at any time.  While I understand that circumstances might warrant them having to take a break, all too often some of them don't take their learning serious enough to try to make adjustments that might enable them to continue in their programs.  
>  
>
Debbie Yoho brought up the question of how managed enrollment fits with 
stopping out. 

I once heard someone speak at an NCFL conference (sorry I forget who) 
about a way their program structured stopping out.  When students need 
to stop out for some reason the teacher and the student talk it over and 
decide on a time to check in with the family about returning.  They also 
talk about what the student might need to do during the stop out, both 
academically and to get through the problem that is causing them to stop 
out.  The time would be in several weeks depending on the problem.  
During the check-in conference the student would show they are ready to 
return or the time might be extended if needed, but again they are 
looking at a set time to check back which helps the student see the stop 
out as an issue to move through, not an ongoing set of one smaller 
problem after another.  During the stop out teachers could have some 
kind of contact with the student, or the student might attend some 
flexible services, but not the class.  This sounded like it might work.  
I like the way it clarifies the difference between stopping out to deal 
with an issue that has become a barrier and just poor attendance (which 
could be delved into as an issue).

 I'd like to hear how others have managed the balancing act between 
managed enrollment and flexing to meet students needs. 
Jane Meyer
Canton City Schools ABLE
meyer_j at ccsdistrict.org


From cspin at searchproject.org  Tue Jul 18 14:50:06 2006
From: cspin at searchproject.org (Christine Spin)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 13:50:06 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 154] Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence
Message-ID: <AA7F8FA5631D0544A1B7BAE9EA6766AAB40A43@s3.shp.local>

I am writing from an adult education program for the homeless.  I have
read all of the discussions thus far, and have found many comments and
suggestions helpful, as they pertain to the demographic I work with on a
daily basis.  The lack of student persistence is frustrating, and it
would be a perfect world if we could institute some method of holding
students accountable for their schedule--to keep them from "stopping out
and dropping in."

There are, however, many more factors than simply work and family that
keep them from maintaining a consistent effort & schedule for their
education.   In my population, in particular, we deal with instances of
multiple learning & mental disabilities; many of our students have both.
Unless we maintain an open enrollment standard in our organization, our
services will be rendered unsustainable.  Hence, we work constantly with
managing many other factors in each student's life: shelter, food,
health, medication, etc.  Once those needs are addressed, then we can
only hope that they are sustained, and can possibly contribute to
student persistence.

Because many of our students, due to their physical & mental conditions,
have rarely had to be held accountable for many parts of their lives
(work, education, family), it is a struggle for us to attempt to instill
that in them now as adults, no matter how medication & rehabilitation
have alleviated their initial disabilities.  My hope now lies in most of
the "goal-setting" suggestions I have read in this discussion.  I have
taken notes and I am planning to execute the idea asking students to set
forth their goals in an initial interview and then clarifying these
goals as they pertain to our classroom's abilities and their own.  I
also plan on setting both immediate instrumental and more long-term
transformative goals with each student upon entry and periodically
(quarterly) throughout their time here.  By working with them and
posting their goals in a portfolio, which we revisit to see how far they
have come to attaining their goals, I do believe we can see advanced
persistence.

Thank you for your suggestions, and I look forward to implementing them
in my classroom.

Christine Spin
GED Instructor


From jjarrell at sdccd.edu  Tue Jul 18 15:14:57 2006
From: jjarrell at sdccd.edu (Jan Jarrell)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 12:14:57 -0700
Subject: [SpecialTopics 155] Re: Managed enrollment
Message-ID: <A515C8FF0940D3119B560008C7917E8E0295933E@ntxecc.sdccd.cc.ca.us>

While the benefits of managed enrollment for some students (and teachers)
seems clear and unarguable, I wonder about what is lost.  Students who have
trouble committing to a managed enrollment program may not be able to access
education at all, or if they do, they may enter what is perceived (or even
promoted) to be an inferior learning environment (oe/oe), or they may feel
discouraged or embarrassed if they attempt a managed enrollment class and
are subsequently dropped from a class because they cannot sustain attendance
requirements.   In oe/oe classes, there is a certain dynamism and freedom,
and the potential for daily renewal, which is rare in any type of
institution -- educational or otherwise. Moreover, we do not know what
students' stopping in may have meant to them.  We do have evidence, however,
that prior exposure to adult education is a factor in persistence (Comings,
Parrella, & Soricone).
 
Some additional food for thought . . .
 
In 2003, we conducted an informal case study of "high retention ESL
teachers," in our Continuing Education (oe/oe) program, which involved class
observations, instructor interviews, and student focus groups.  We
identified the following themes: structure, organization, community, and
expertise.  All of these classes demonstrated structure in the form of
schedules, calendars, weekly or daily routines, syllabi, agendas, and/or
classroom management through student teams.  In terms of organization,
students in these classes were busy during the entire class period and were
actively engaged in meaningful and relevant tasks.  Third, there was a sense
of community in these classrooms. Instructors knew all of their students'
names as well as details about their lives.  Students also knew and cared
about other students in their class.  Finally, the teachers were experts.
They knew their material well and could provide clear explanations and
examples.  Students in the higher-level classes especially appreciated this
skill. One comment we frequently heard from teachers was: "Students feel
they miss something if they don't come to class."  
 
I've appreciated the discussion.  Thanks to all.
 
Jan Jarrell
Professor of ESL
San Diego Continuing Education
4343 Ocean View Blvd.
San Diego, CA  92113
 
619-388-4847

  _____  

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]
On Behalf Of Hugh D. Snow
Sent: Monday, July 17, 2006 6:02 PM
To: dwyoho at earthlink.net; specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 145] Re: Managed enrollment



Debbie,

I agree with you. In fact I stated a few days ago,there needs to be a
different system of interviewing the potential students,so that we can bring
about a change in their lives and circumstances.

Today, rich and poor, literate and illiterate suffer from a poverty of
time.They (students) have many additional issues as well. We can do better.

Hugh`

 

 

----- Original Message -----

From: Debbie Yoho <dwyoho at earthlink.net> 

Date: Monday, July 17, 2006 2:48 pm 

Subject: [SpecialTopics 142] Re: Managed enrollment 

> I thought it interesting that one of the suggestions as a result 
> of the 
> persistence research is to find ways to accomodate the tendency of 
> adultlearners to "drop in and out". The idea of "managed 
> enrollment", where 
> programs end open enrollment and instead offer coursework in 8-12 week 
> packages, as been touted in our area as a panacea for this 
> problem. I'd 
> like to hear from programs that have tried "managed enrollment". 
> My own 
> problem is I can't figure out how to include one-on-one services 
> in a 
> "managed" context. 
> 
> My experience tells me, and the research seems to point to this 
> too, that 
> the problem with persistence may not be one of motivation, but of 
> jugglingthe many realities of adult life. Increasing the 
> intensity of programs may 
> work for some, but may also have the result of pushing out those 
> who just 
> can't commit to more than a few hours a week. 
> 
> "Turning Pages into Possibilities", Debbie 
> 
> Deborah W. Yoho 
> Executive Director, Greater Columbia Literacy Council 
> 2728 Devine Street, Columbia, SC 29205 
> 803-765-2555 Fax 803-799-8417 dwyoho at earthlink.net 
> 
> GCLC is a community service of Volunteers of America of the Carolinas. 
> 
> 
> ------------------------------- 
> National Institute for Literacy 
> Special Topics mailing list 
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov 
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics 
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From khinson at future-gate.com  Tue Jul 18 17:02:38 2006
From: khinson at future-gate.com (Katrina Hinson)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 23:02:38 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 156] Re: Persistence: Student Transformation	Goals
Message-ID: <44BD688E020000A000002E0D@fgwiel01a.wie.de.future-gate.com>

I periodically have my students write a paper that answers the question "Why am I here?" where they are to tell me what it is that brings them to my class everyday, what their expectations are of themselves and of me as their instructor. Additionally, I have them tell me what it is that motivates them to get out of bed and show up in the mornings.

The responses I get always start with "I want to get my GED" but they end with "I want to be a better role model for my child/children/brothers/sisters" or " I want to feel better about myself" or "I want people to respect me more." I don't do this as a shared group experience all the time - but have each student write and submit to me. This is one of the few writing assignments where I don't mark mechanical or grammatical errors and simply read for content and provide feedback as necessary. Occassionally, we'll discuss the goals that they've given and how important it is to understand that goal setting is a process. We'll take it to the "how do I get to where I want to be" steps.

Regards
Katrina Hinson

>>> "David J. Rosen" <djrosen at comcast.net> 07/17/06 5:54 PM >>>
Posted for Andy Nash:

Hi John,

I was surprised and heartened to read the following in your 7/10 response to Marie Cora:

. . .  we explored the goals of students and found that they usually expressed both an instrumental goal (???I want to get my GED, so I can get a better job??? for example) and a transformational goal (I want to be the kind of person who has a high school education,??? for example). Many programs ask students at intake to state their goals, which is probably helpful. But, it might be helpful to weave the goal-setting process into instruction as well. . . . 

My sense is that the focus in programs, so far, has been on the instrumental goals * those that are clear, measurable, functional, etc. Since I???m interested in the ???transformational??? goals, particularly in the sense of helping adults see themselves as ???the kind of person??? who reads a newspaper or ???the kind of person??? who understands (and speaks up about?) the decisions that are being made about their lives, I???ve been dismayed by this trend toward the immediately practical. 

While I agree that goal-setting needs to be an on-going process infused into instruction, I don???t think transformational goals are likely to be identified by students through an individual process. I have only seen individuals name the kinds of concrete items that appear on the goal lists being developed in many programs.  It seems to me that only when goal-setting is done as a group, and when students are invited to discuss what their concerns are, or what kind of person they want to  be, or how they want their lives to be different after participating in the program, that we???ll be able to start surfacing those transformational goals. Can you please comment on this, and on how you saw those transformational goals expressed during your research?

Andy Nash
New England Literacy Resource Center/World Educaton


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From hsnow at cougar.kean.edu  Tue Jul 18 17:14:38 2006
From: hsnow at cougar.kean.edu (Hugh D. Snow)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 16:14:38 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 157] Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence
Message-ID: <31ccf317e3.317e331ccf@kean.edu>

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From khinson at future-gate.com  Tue Jul 18 17:11:10 2006
From: khinson at future-gate.com (Katrina Hinson)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 23:11:10 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 158] Re: Last day of Discussion on	Persistence
Message-ID: <44BD6A8E020000A000002E12@fgwiel01a.wie.de.future-gate.com>

I'd have to agree with Ms. Richardson. I do think accountability is a
factor that plays into leaner persistence. Recently, we made a move
towards holding our Adult High School students more accountable. It's
made a difference in the attendance over the summer and it wasn't an
easy transition for them. They were used to being able to miss 12 hours 
in mulitple classes, make it up, miss some more etc. This summer we went
to an 8 hour max for a particular class and a short 2 week window to
make it up. If they didn't get it made up, they got dropped from the
class. The students, (with few exceptions) have opted to attend class as
required. Sometimes, expecting students to act like adults and hold them
accountable is very important to helping them learn accountability.

Regards
Katrina Hinson

>>> "Darnelle Richardson" <drichardson at jclibrary.org> 07/18/06 9:21 AM
>>>
I managed to read most of the discussions on this topic and concur with
everyone on the strategies that need to be implemented or changed to
support our adult learners.  There's one thing I would like to add, and
most people might not agree with me.  In terms of our adults stopping
out and dropping in, I think we need to hold them more accountable.  The
trend I've seen is that some of them think it's okay to stop at any time
and jump back in at any time.  While I understand that circumstances
might warrant them having to take a break, all too often some of them
don't take their learning serious enough to try to make adjustments that
might enable them to continue in their programs.  Is it because we are
too lenient with them?    We try our best to be accountable to our
funders, which can be rigid at times when you consider how much manpower
goes into producing some reports, and yet we allow our adults to move
nonchalantly through our programs. Some of them place no value on pe
 rsistence because most of the services are free. Perhaps if they were
required to pay high fees like some of us do for our college education,
they might be persistent.  I realize this might be outside of the box
for most programs, including mine, but we should try to find ways to
make them more accountable; this might improve persistence.  

Darnelle L. Richardson
Program Coordinator
Literacy Program 
Jersey City Public Library
472 Jersey Avenue
Jersey City, NJ  07302
T: 201/547-5770
F: 201/435-5746
E-mail:  drichardson at jclibrary.org

"The ability to read and write is critical to personal freedom and the
maintenance of a democratic society."


-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Tuesday, July 18, 2006 7:35 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 147] Last day of Discussion on Persistence


Special Topics Discussion Colleagues,

Today is the last day to post your questions and comments on  
Persistence.  After today, and after John Comings has responded to  
any recent posts, the discussion will close.  For those who have  
recently joined us, and others, the discussions on the Special Topics  
list are archived at http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/ 
date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
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Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

-------------------------------
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Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



From mcarro at lmi.net  Tue Jul 18 19:59:02 2006
From: mcarro at lmi.net (Maureen Carro)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 16:59:02 -0700
Subject: [SpecialTopics 159] Re: Last day of Discussion on	Persistence
In-Reply-To: <44BD6A8E020000A000002E12@fgwiel01a.wie.de.future-gate.com>
References: <44BD6A8E020000A000002E12@fgwiel01a.wie.de.future-gate.com>
Message-ID: <fba51be0089179e38952bac5d5a56fb1@lmi.net>

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this discussion!  I too have 
managed to followed most of the comments.  All of the points made have 
merit, and reflect someone's reality. It is obvious that a variety of 
program options would be ideal!  I love the idea of "transitional 
goals"!   I also agree with Darnelle Richardson and others who believe 
that learner accountability is an important factor.  Persistence is a 
quality that leads to success in life in general, not just for our 
students, as students, but for their lifetime. We persist with things 
that are important to us, and we prioritize accordingly!    There is 
also such a thing as "goodness of fit".  The best program is useless to 
one who cannot access it.  There is more to it than just setting a 
goal.  Although I cannot remember the author, the saying " a goal 
without a plan is just  a dream" comes to mind.  I often discuss this 
saying as part of an intake process.  We fill out a calendar with 
everything that MUST be done at a particular time and cannot be 
changed.  This includes work and family committments.  The next level, 
what needs to be done, but has some flexibility.  After prioritizing in 
this manner, the student can determine whether the particular program 
is a "good fit".  Is the time the student has available compatible with 
the class time?  We also discuss the fact that progress may be 
disappointing to the client if frequency and intensity cannot be 
maintained.  The intake process is also a good time to discuss 
'self-advocacy".  It may be worth a try to ask for a work schedule that 
accommodates class attendance.    These activities are part of 
developing a plan to achieve the goal.  Planning is also an important 
ingredient to a successful outcome, and lack of it can result in chaos. 
  Prioritizing, planning, monitoring, and evaluating are "life skills" 
that can be continually woven into our "academic" programs.  Some 
students need "explicit instruction" and modeling in order to learn 
these skills in the same way that they  learn academic skills.



On Jul 18, 2006, at 2:11 PM, Katrina Hinson wrote:

> I'd have to agree with Ms. Richardson. I do think accountability is a
> factor that plays into leaner persistence. Recently, we made a move
> towards holding our Adult High School students more accountable. It's
> made a difference in the attendance over the summer and it wasn't an
> easy transition for them. They were used to being able to miss 12 hours
> in mulitple classes, make it up, miss some more etc. This summer we 
> went
> to an 8 hour max for a particular class and a short 2 week window to
> make it up. If they didn't get it made up, they got dropped from the
> class. The students, (with few exceptions) have opted to attend class 
> as
> required. Sometimes, expecting students to act like adults and hold 
> them
> accountable is very important to helping them learn accountability.
>
> Regards
> Katrina Hinson
>
>>>> "Darnelle Richardson" <drichardson at jclibrary.org> 07/18/06 9:21 AM
>>>>
> I managed to read most of the discussions on this topic and concur with
> everyone on the strategies that need to be implemented or changed to
> support our adult learners.  There's one thing I would like to add, and
> most people might not agree with me.  In terms of our adults stopping
> out and dropping in, I think we need to hold them more accountable.  
> The
> trend I've seen is that some of them think it's okay to stop at any 
> time
> and jump back in at any time.  While I understand that circumstances
> might warrant them having to take a break, all too often some of them
> don't take their learning serious enough to try to make adjustments 
> that
> might enable them to continue in their programs.  Is it because we are
> too lenient with them?    We try our best to be accountable to our
> funders, which can be rigid at times when you consider how much 
> manpower
> goes into producing some reports, and yet we allow our adults to move
> nonchalantly through our programs. Some of them place no value on pe
>  rsistence because most of the services are free. Perhaps if they were
> required to pay high fees like some of us do for our college education,
> they might be persistent.  I realize this might be outside of the box
> for most programs, including mine, but we should try to find ways to
> make them more accountable; this might improve persistence.
>
> Darnelle L. Richardson
> Program Coordinator
> Literacy Program
> Jersey City Public Library
> 472 Jersey Avenue
> Jersey City, NJ  07302
> T: 201/547-5770
> F: 201/435-5746
> E-mail:  drichardson at jclibrary.org
>
> "The ability to read and write is critical to personal freedom and the
> maintenance of a democratic society."
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen
> Sent: Tuesday, July 18, 2006 7:35 AM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 147] Last day of Discussion on Persistence
>
>
> Special Topics Discussion Colleagues,
>
> Today is the last day to post your questions and comments on
> Persistence.  After today, and after John Comings has responded to
> any recent posts, the discussion will close.  For those who have
> recently joined us, and others, the discussions on the Special Topics
> list are archived at http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/
> date.html
>
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>


Maureen



From drichardson at jclibrary.org  Tue Jul 18 18:40:01 2006
From: drichardson at jclibrary.org (Darnelle Richardson)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 18:40:01 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 160] Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence
In-Reply-To: <31ccf317e3.317e331ccf@kean.edu>
Message-ID: <4EA97732BEFF5041A6AABC9CD77655BD03F27C@jersey-mail.jcpl_serv.jclibrary.org>

Hugh,
 
Sometimes I do get frustrated, but not to the point of giving up.  I'm encouraged by the success stories of the few persistent and hard working students.   
 
Darnelle L. Richardson 
Program Coordinator 
Literacy Program 
Jersey City Public Library 
472 Jersey Avenue 
Jersey City, NJ  07302 
T: 201/547-5770 
F: 201/435-5746 
E-mail:  drichardson at jclibrary.org 

"The ability to read and write is critical to personal freedom and the maintenance of a democratic society." 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Hugh D. Snow
Sent: Tuesday, July 18, 2006 5:15 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 157] Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence





Darnelle,

I didn't plan to respond to your e-mail at first but had a change of heart. You seem to be a bit frustrated with your student population.Am I correct? That's because you care and when the targeted group fails to respond in kind it hurts. Stay the course,the results will get better.If you charge a fee for service you will lose most if not all of the students your program was designed to help. There are so many things going on in their minds (I might add, ours too) its a wonder any of them persist. Once more for the record, if we can devise a screening mechanism which allows us to really assess the level of concern and what really matters to the students; we can effectuate a more meaningful program and a significant increase in the persistence level of the students. Hope this makes sense. I sure would enjoy working on such a platform. 

Regards,

Hugh

 

 

----- Original Message -----



From: Darnelle Richardson <drichardson at jclibrary.org> 



Date: Tuesday, July 18, 2006 11:21 am 



Subject: [SpecialTopics 151] Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence 





> I managed to read most of the discussions on this topic and concur 
> with everyone on the strategies that need to be implemented or 
> changed to support our adult learners. There's one thing I would 
> like to add, and most people might not agree with me. In terms of 
> our adults stopping out and dropping in, I think we need to hold 
> them more accountable. The trend I've seen is that some of them 
> think it's okay to stop at any time and jump back in at any time. 
> While I understand that circumstances might warrant them having to 
> take a break, all too often some of them don't take their learning 
> serious enough to try to make adjustments that might enable them 
> to continue in their programs. Is it because we are too lenient 
> with them? We try our best to be accountable to our funders, 
> which can be rigid at times when you consider how much manpower 
> goes into producing some reports, and yet we allow our adults to 
> move nonchalantly through our programs. Some of them place no 
> value on pe 
> rsistence because most of the services are free. Perhaps if they 
> were required to pay high fees like some of us do for our college 
> education, they might be persistent. I realize this might be 
> outside of the box for most programs, including mine, but we 
> should try to find ways to make them more accountable; this might 
> improve persistence. 
> 
> Darnelle L. Richardson 
> Program Coordinator 
> Literacy Program 
> Jersey City Public Library 
> 472 Jersey Avenue 
> Jersey City, NJ 07302 
> T: 201/547-5770 
> F: 201/435-5746 
> E-mail: drichardson at jclibrary.org 
> 
> "The ability to read and write is critical to personal freedom and 
> the maintenance of a democratic society." 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message----- 
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 
> [specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen 
> Sent: Tuesday, July 18, 2006 7:35 AM 
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 147] Last day of Discussion on Persistence 
> 
> 
> Special Topics Discussion Colleagues, 
> 
> Today is the last day to post your questions and comments on 
> Persistence. After today, and after John Comings has responded to 
> 
> any recent posts, the discussion will close. For those who have 
> recently joined us, and others, the discussions on the Special 
> Topics 
> list are archived at 
> http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/ 
> date.html 
> 
> 
> David J. Rosen 
> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator 
> djrosen at comcast.net 
> 
> 
> 
> ------------------------------- 
> National Institute for Literacy 
> Special Topics mailing list 
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov 
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics 
> ------------------------------- 
> National Institute for Literacy 
> Special Topics mailing list 
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov 
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics 

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From ktashjian at yahoo.com  Tue Jul 18 20:59:30 2006
From: ktashjian at yahoo.com (karisa tashjian)
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 17:59:30 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [SpecialTopics 161] Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence
In-Reply-To: <fba51be0089179e38952bac5d5a56fb1@lmi.net>
Message-ID: <20060719005930.65914.qmail@web52709.mail.yahoo.com>

I, too, have greatly enjoyed and appreciated the conversation over the past few weeks on persistence.  I am sorry to ask a question so late into the discussion but Maureen's posting prompted my interest on how other programs approach the intake process.
   
  As a result of Dr. Comings work on persistence, our program is focusing on this topic and making changes for the upcoming year.  Some of the changes include offering teacher office hours, drop-in hours and open lab time, scheduling individual student/family appointments as part of our intake process (the first time we can say we have an organized and distinct intake period planned) as well as fostering discussion about student barriers, supports and building more opportunities to promote self-efficacy into our curriculum (Dr. Comings - I hope we are doing this right!!).
   
  Maureen mentioned some very interesting topics that she discusses with students during intake (prioritizing commitments, completing a calendar, the need for a plan to meet goals, and self-advocacy).  As most of our students are beginning and low intermediate, what strategies/activities/questions can you suggest for intake?  What are the specifics/logistics of how your intake process is designed?  What tools can be used to determine if the student is a good fit for the program?  
   
  I look forward to your help -- our intake period is fast approaching!
   
  Best regards,
  Karisa Tashjian
  Rhode Island Family Literacy Initiative
   

 		
---------------------------------
Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and 30+ countries) for 2?/min or less.
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From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Wed Jul 19 08:14:55 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2006 08:14:55 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 162] Re: [This message may be SPAM] Re: Fwd:
 Re:	Persistence Discussion questions
In-Reply-To: <7D243C93CC45DC47BD40B11C9D073BA901278B12@HOBBES.campus.qcc.edu>
References: <7D243C93CC45DC47BD40B11C9D073BA901278B12@HOBBES.campus.qcc.edu>
Message-ID: <6B70A19005F9A335BE37E0D4@[192.168.1.102]>

These types of materials often focus on students' tranformational vision. 
They also present people who are similar to our students who have struggled 
to succeed against the same barriers and who have succeeded.

Reading and discussing these materials provides an opportunity to improve 
and practice reading and speaking skills, but this activity also allows 
students the chance to discuss their vision for their personal future, the 
new identity they are seeking, which is their true motivation for learning.

Understanding these two types of goals is best done with an example. For 
example, when I first started playing golf, I took some lessons to improve 
my game. The lessons were expensive and it was difficult to get the time to 
both attend the lessons and to do the practice required to make the lesson 
effective. My stated instrumental goal was to start getting a score in the 
90s, a pathetic goal in golf terms but my goal none the less. I also had a 
vision of myself being able to join a group of golfers and be feel 
confident that my game was going to be OK and someday quite good.  It was 
that vision, the one of me hitting the 250 yard drive right down the middle 
of the fairway that kept me going.

Our learners have a vision of themselves. It might be someone they know who 
is also an immigrant but who can always speak English in every situation. 
Or, it might be a friend who got her GED and then went on to medical 
assistant training at a community college and now works in a hospital 
helping people who are sick and who is now talking about becoming a nurse. 
In both cases they want to become that person.

I think learner-generated stories would be good vehicles for articulating 
and connecting to this aspect of motivation.  Along with teaching language 
and literacy skills, this kind of an activity can build critical thinking 
skills as well, by having the discussion follow Freire's "decoding" 
approach. That is, use a logical sequence for the discussion that starts 
with description (what happened in this story), then moves on to analysis 
(why did it happen), personalization (does this happen to you), planning 
(what can you/we do about this), action (trying something out), and 
reflection (what did we learn from the action and what should we do next). 
This allows students an opportunity to practice a process of critical 
thinking that may lead to action that supports persistence and learning.

--On Monday, July 17, 2006 12:17 PM -0400 Cathy Gannon 
<CGannon at qcc.mass.edu> wrote:

> I hope I'm not too late to pose a question - have just gotten caught up
> on this very interesting discussion.
>
> John, Would you please elaborate a bit on "Learner-produced reading
> materials, which many programs produce, at least in small quantities,
> might be useful in this process, but informal dialogue and writing about
> goals might work just as well." in your response to Marie below.
>
> We (here at Central SABES) support a publication of learner produced
> writings and know that the practitioners in our region of MA  would be
> interested in connecting this learner writing to goal setting and thus
> increased learner persistence.
>
> Cathy Gannon
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of John Comings
> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 4:01 PM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [This message may be SPAM] [SpecialTopics 100] Re: Fwd: Re:
> Persistence Discussion questions
> Importance: Low
>
> Sorry I'm late responding but I just got into the office after a morning
> of conference calls and family business.
>
> Let me start by saying that the last 8 years of research has given
> NCSALL some insights into what might work to increase persistence, but
> we don't yet have proof that the changes in program services that these
> insights suggest lead to increased persistence.  However, I feel we have
> some of the best available advice. That advice suggests two broad
> approaches, one is to add supports to persistence in our existing
> programs and the other suggests adding those supports to programs that
> are designed to fit with the existing patterns of participation.  The
> first approach is incremental and less expensive. That second requires
> changes in policy, funding, accountability, and service delivery.
>
> Now to Marie Cora's two questions:
>
> 1.  Goals:  The quantitative aspect of our research showed a correlation
> between students who were able to state a specific goal for attending
> (they persisted longer) and those who stated a vague goal or no goal at
> all (they persisted less).  So we explored the goals of students and
> found that they usually expressed both an instrumental goal ("I want to
> get my GED, so I can get a better job" for example) and a
> transformational goal (I want to be the kind of person who has a high
> school education," for example). Many programs ask students at intake to
> state their goals, which is probably helpful. But, it might be helpful
> to weave the goal setting process into instruction as well. In this way,
> students can have some time to think about what they want and why they
> want it. Learner-produced reading materials, which many programs
> produce, at least in small quantities, might be useful in this process,
> but informal dialogue and writing about goals might work just as well.
> Any activities that help students articulate their instrumental and
> transformational goals, and revisit them as part of instruction,
> probably adds this support to persistence.
>
> 2.  Stopout: In our interviews, students who had dropped out told us
> that their program would not allow them to return after they stopped
> attending, but the staff in their programs said this was not true and we
> observed students returning and being welcomed back into the program.
> The misconception started at intake and orientation, when staff
> emphasized good attendance. Our longitudinal study is identifying a
> pattern of participation in learning that is made up of episodes of
> participation in programs and episodes of self-study.  Our research
> suggests that a support to persistence would making sure that new
> students know that they can stopout and also know how to reenter.
> However, we might do better to change the form of participation to one
> that links episodes of program participation and self study.
>
>
>> Begin forwarded message:
>>
>>> From: "Marie Cora" <marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com>
>>> Date: July 10, 2006 10:02:17 AM EDT
>>> To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
>>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 90] Re: Persistence Discussion questions
>>> Reply-To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>>
>>> Dear Colleagues,
>>>
>>> Thanks so much to John Comings for being with us this week to discuss
>
>>> Persistence.  I am very much looking forward to hearing what
>>> strategies folks use out there to try and tackle this issue with
>>> their students.
>>>
>>> I actually have two questions for you (and list subscribers):  I am
>>> interested in hearing you elaborate a bit on the impact of having the
>
>>> student set his or her own goals, and how best to help them to do
>>> that.
>>> It's quite easy to set a student's goal for her/him - but not so easy
>
>>> to get a student to determine a goal for her/himself.  What are some
>>> of the things that folks do around this issue?
>>>
>>> Second, I heard you speak at a conference last fall in which you
>>> noted that part of what could be helpful in persistence, is to
>>> acknowledge that the student might not persist.  In other words, why
>>> not explore with the student the reality that if they do "stop out",
>>> this doesn't have to mean "quit".  I found this fascinating and at
>>> the same time, completely logical.  This appears to be part of what
>>> you intend in your third area of research based on what I've read.
>>>
>>> Thank you again for your time this week and for the discussion.
>>>
>>> Marie Cora
>>> NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
>>> marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
>>> [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
>>> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 7:37 AM
>>> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
>>> Subject: [SpecialTopics 89] Re: Persistence Discussion
>>>
>>> Dear Colleagues,
>>>
>>> Today we begin a discussion about the studies which Dr. John Comings
>>> and others at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and
>
>>> Literacy have done on persistence.  The discussion will continue
>>> through Tuesday next week, July 18th.
>>>
>>> Please post your questions and comments to John beginning now.
>>>
>>> In John's message below he describes two publications which may be of
>>> interest.  Each has a short executive summary.   There is also a 30-
>>> minute video panel discussion about the study, with John and two
>>> practitioners, streamed at:
>>>
>>> http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/webcasts/persistence/persistence_cast.html
>>>
>>> You may need to cut and paste the whole web address in your browser,
>>> or you could try this shorter version:
>>>
>>> http://tinyurl.com/s6tcu
>>>
>>> Macintosh users will need to select the Quicktime format for viewing
>>> the presentation, and there are still some bugs to be worked out of
>>> the Mac streamed version.
>>>
>>> David J. Rosen
>>> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator djrosen at comcast.net
>>>
>>> On Jul 5, 2006, at 4:33 PM, David Rosen wrote:
>>>
>>>> Special Topics List Discussion Colleagues,
>>>>
>>>> John Comings, Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult
>
>>>> Learning and Literacy, will join us on July 10th to discuss the
>>>> persistence study he has done. John has written an introduction,
>>>> below, and included links to reports of the first two phases of the
>>>> study. I hope you can read these before July 10th.  You are welcome
>>>> to submit questions, ideas and comments for John beginning now, but
>>>> these will not be posted until July 10th.
>>>>
>>>> i am looking forward to your joining in on this important
> discussion.
>>>>
>>>> David J. Rosen
>>>> Special Topics Discussion List Moderator djrosen at comcast.net
>>>> --------------
>>>>
>>>> When a group of us at World Education were preparing to write the
>>>> proposal for the funds that have supported NCSALL, we surveyed
>>>> practitioners and policy makers around the country to help us design
>
>>>> our research agenda. Almost 500 people participated in the survey.
>>>> We asked the survey participants to send us the questions that they
>>>> wanted answered to help them improve practice in ABE, ESOL, and GED
>>>> programs. One question was at the top of the list for teachers and
>>>> second on everyone else's list. One teacher phrased it this way,
>>>> "Just when they begin to make progress, many students leave the
>>>> program.   How can I keep those students long enough that they can
>>>> meet their educational goals?"
>>>>
>>>> That question formed the basis of a three-phase study of
> persistence.
>>>> The first two phases are complete.  The first phase surveyed the
>>>> literature, interviewed 150 students in the six New England states,
>>>> and identified ways that programs were trying to support the
>>>> persistence of their students. The report of that first phase can be
>
>>>> found at:
>>>>
>>>> <http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/report12.pdf>
>>>>
>>>> In the second phase, 9 library literacy programs were provided with
>>>> funds to implement interventions that might help improve
>>>> persistence, and our study team observed the programs and
>>>> interviewed their staff and students. We also followed a cohort of
>>>> 180 students for 14 months.  The report of that second phase can be
> found at:
>>>>
>>>> <http://www.mdrc.org/publications/401/overview.html>
>>>>
>>>> We are prepared to implement the third phase, but NCSALL no longer
>>>> has funding to begin a new research project. This next phase would
>>>> test three interventions. One would add persistence supports to
>>>> existing classroom programs, one would use a wide range of modes of
>>>> learning (in programs and through self study on-line and in other
>>>> ways) that more closely match the way adults manage their learning,
>>>> and the third would combine these two approaches. I believe the
>>>> third approach is a promising way to solve the persistence problem,
>>>> as well as it can be solved.
>>>>
>>>> I'm looking forward to your questions, but I would also be
>>>> interested in practical ideas of how to build support to persistence
>
>>>> and how to expand opportunities for learning.
>>>>
>>>> John Comings, NCSALL Director
>>>> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy Harvard
>
>>>> Graduate School of Education
>>>> 7 Appian Way
>>>> Cambridge MA 02138
>>>> (617) 496-0516, voice
>>>> (617) 495-4811, fax
>>>> (617) 335-9839, mobile
>>>> john_comings at harvard.edu
>>>> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> -------------------------------
>>>> National Institute for Literacy
>>>> Special Topics mailing list
>>>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>>>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>>>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>>
>>> David Rosen
>>> djrosen at comcast.net
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> -------------------------------
>>> National Institute for Literacy
>>> Special Topics mailing list
>>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>>
>>> -------------------------------
>>> National Institute for Literacy
>>> Special Topics mailing list
>>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>>
>> David Rosen
>> djrosen at comcast.net
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
> John Comings, Director
> National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy Harvard
> Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge MA 02138
> (617) 496-0516, voice
> (617) 495-4811, fax
> (617) 335-9839, mobile
> john_comings at harvard.edu
> http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Wed Jul 19 08:23:44 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2006 08:23:44 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 163] Re: Managed enrollment
In-Reply-To: <380-220067117194844656@earthlink.net>
References: <380-220067117194844656@earthlink.net>
Message-ID: <52815FE507985E769AA878B0@[192.168.1.102]>

Yes, this is our finding so far. We need to think about our programs as 
providing a range of modes of learning, modes that are connected and 
consistent. For example, a student might only be able to regularly show up 
for instruction one hour, once a week. That student could be connected to 
selfstudy options on-line or in print. The hour class might focus on 
progress with self study. Then, after a few months, that student might have 
some extra time available on the weekends. The student might be sent to a 
intensive one-day class that focuses only on spelling, pronunciation, 
algebra, or vocabulary.  The student's self-study plan might be changed to 
build on that one-day intensive class. Then a few months later the student 
might decide they are able to spend 6 hours a week in class for 3 or 4 
months, and they add that to their plan but continue the selfstudy so that 
after the class ends they don't go back to selfstudy but continue it.

--On Monday, July 17, 2006 3:48 PM -0400 Debbie Yoho <dwyoho at earthlink.net> 
wrote:

> I thought it interesting that one of the suggestions as a result of the
> persistence research is to find ways to accomodate the tendency of adult
> learners to "drop in and out".  The idea of "managed enrollment", where
> programs end open enrollment and instead offer coursework in 8-12 week
> packages, as been touted in our area as a panacea for this problem. I'd
> like to hear from programs that have tried "managed enrollment". My own
> problem is I can't figure out how to include one-on-one services in a
> "managed" context.
>
> My experience tells me, and the research seems to point to this too, that
> the problem with persistence may not be one of motivation, but of juggling
> the many realities of adult life.  Increasing the intensity of programs
> may work for some, but may also have the result of pushing out those who
> just can't commit to more than a few hours a week.
>
> "Turning Pages into Possibilities",  Debbie
>
> Deborah W. Yoho
> Executive Director, Greater Columbia Literacy Council
> 2728 Devine Street,  Columbia, SC  29205
> 803-765-2555   Fax  803-799-8417   dwyoho at earthlink.net
>
> GCLC is a community service of Volunteers of America of the Carolinas.
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Wed Jul 19 08:29:53 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2006 08:29:53 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 164] Re: Keeping students' eyes on the prize
In-Reply-To: <AA5394E2E7ADF7E88428D4CA@nichols303>
References: <5006EFB2-897E-4EAB-AF29-6A68FA46CFE8@comcast.net>
	<AA5394E2E7ADF7E88428D4CA@nichols303>
Message-ID: <DE2677A09C7F95AB03E36C12@[192.168.1.102]>

I, too, think national curriculum frameworks for subgroups of students 
(based on their goals and their learning needs) would be helpful to 
persistence. It would make it much easier to build learning plans that 
included guides self-study, classes, tutoring, one-day intensive workshops 
and other modes of learning into a coherent learning activity.

--On Tuesday, July 18, 2006 10:49 AM -0400 john strucker 
<john_strucker at harvard.edu> wrote:

> Hi David and colleagues,
> 	One part of a total approach to improved persistence that we should
> explore is the one they are trying in the UK.  Their adult students take
> a  series of nationally developed curriculum-based benchmark tests that
> give  them feedback on their mastery of various specific competencies and
> also  give them a sense of how much closer they are getting to reaching
> their  long-term goals.
> Best,
> John Strucker
>
> --On Sunday, July 16, 2006 4:25 PM -0400 David Rosen
> <djrosen at comcast.net>  wrote:
>
>> John, and other colleagues,
>>
>> Part of the persistence challenge is that some adult learners make
>> progress very slowly and have so very far to go before they see the
>> prize they may have their eyes on.  The prize might be a high school
>> diploma, a better job, a living wage, a good job with a decent salary
>> and good benefits, or going to college, but these may be basic
>> literacy or beginning English language students who need years of
>> study to achieve one of these goals.  One answer might be to increase
>> intensity, more time on task, more hours of study.  But this is not
>> always possible for programs, because they lack the funding to
>> increase intensity of classroom instruction, or for learners, who
>> usually have other commitments like working and parenting.  Funders
>> -- especially companies when they fund "workplace literacy" -- often
>> want results in  a few weeks or months, and even major federal and
>> state funders want results at the end of the fiscal year, either one
>> of these prizes or evidence of progress toward its attainment.
>>
>> Are there some ways we could sustain the student's original motive or
>> goal (the GED diploma, a good job, or an admission to college prize)
>> over several years, if needed.  What do we know about  strategies
>> like awarding certificates for small achievements, holding annual
>> recognition ceremonies, and providing good formative assessment so
>> students can see they have reached some milestones? How about
>> strategies like building community, providing food, helping students
>> to learn skills that they can use in daily living?  Can we articulate
>> from research and/or professional wisdom what strategies work (if
>> any) in sustaining long-term students' motivation and convince
>> funders that we need their support for these strategies?
>>
>> David J. Rosen
>> djrosen at comcast.net
>>
>>
>>
>> -------------------------------
>> National Institute for Literacy
>> Special Topics mailing list
>> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
>> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
>> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
>
>
> John Strucker, EdD
> Nichols House 303
> Harvard Graduate School of Education
> 7 Appian Way
> Cambridge, MA 02138
>
> 617 495 4745
> 617 495 4811 (fax)
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From comingjo at gse.harvard.edu  Wed Jul 19 08:55:19 2006
From: comingjo at gse.harvard.edu (John Comings)
Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2006 08:55:19 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 165] Re: Last day of Discussion on Persistence
In-Reply-To: <20060719005930.65914.qmail@web52709.mail.yahoo.com>
References: <20060719005930.65914.qmail@web52709.mail.yahoo.com>
Message-ID: <40596EBFB8E619024249250B@[192.168.1.102]>

Thank you for this chance to talk and think about my research. I think I'll 
end my participation by touching on the issue of student responsibility. 
Responsibility is a two way street.  I do think our students need to make 
every effort to meet the schedule they have agree to, and when life 
intervenes to upset that schedule to contact the program and change the 
schedule.

However, we should be looking at our schedule of services to see if we are 
providing a schedule that functions under a "catch 22", a rule that makes 
responsibility difficult or even impossible. We can't expect our students 
to stay engaged with our programs unless our programs are committed to 
staying engaged with them. That means providing them with services on a 
schedule that, when they are being responsible, they can actually keep.

I don't think we have good models for this, but I do think there are all 
the bits and pieces scattered around the country and the minds of 
researchers and practitioners.

Unfortunately, our funding mechanisms and accountability systems are not 
open to the kind of experimentation that might lead to a better approach to 
providing services. A good next step would be for someone, OVAE, IES, NIFL, 
a state or group of states, or a foundation to fund an experiment that set 
up some programs that function under a new model for services and tested it 
against the existing model.

Right not, when we make changes, such as managed enrolment, we don't know 
if we are helping student persist or weeding out those students who face 
barriers to persistence. The K-12 system has good persistence because 
children are forced to attend up to the age of 16, or in some cases 18. 
That system doesn't have to provide supports to persistence. We have to do 
something that helps our students persist.

John Comings, Director
National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy
Harvard Graduate School of Education
7 Appian Way
Cambridge MA 02138
(617) 496-0516, voice
(617) 495-4811, fax
(617) 335-9839, mobile
john_comings at harvard.edu
http://ncsall.gse.harvard.edu



From djrosen at comcast.net  Wed Jul 19 10:13:02 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2006 10:13:02 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 166]  Persistence Discussion coming to a close
Message-ID: <5D61E389-EF8D-4A92-9880-B9C1955AF135@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

I want to thank John Comings for making time available during the  
last several days to join us in this discussion about research on  
learner persistence.  And thanks also to those of you who  
participated by asking good questions and giving helpful examples  
from your experience. The dialogue was engaging and enlightening.   
For me the highlights were the discussion about instrumental and  
transformational goals, and the recommendation by John that we can  
improve persistence by providing more supports within programs, but  
also by re-designing our systems of services so that we offer a range  
of options from supported self study, distance learning, hybrid  
learning (Face-to-face and online),  to intensive classes and  
tutorials, and that we expect that students will shift from one mode  
of learning to another, to more and less intensive modes, depending  
on what else is happening in their lives.

With many of you, I very much hope that the third stage of the  
Persistence study will be funded and carried out soon.  As a field,  
we need the answers which such a study could provide.

This discussion is now closed.  It will be archived on the Adult  
Literacy Education Wiki and on the National Institute for Literacy  
Web sites sometime in August.
Messages will not be posted to this list until the next discussion.   
Subscribers can unsubscribe -- or wait for the announcement of the  
next discussion to decide whether to unsubscribe or continue.  Of  
course, I hope you will continue.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue Aug 15 08:14:36 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 15 Aug 2006 08:14:36 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 167] Live NIFL Webcast on NAAL findings for Basic &
	Below Basic Adults Tuesday afternoon
Message-ID: <F9AE836F-D445-4175-A380-FCB9C89E2BAF@comcast.net>

Special Topics Colleagues,

The announcement below might be of interest to some of you as John  
Strucker was a guest on the Special Topics list, and also as we may  
have a guest discussion on the NAAL sometime in the next few months.  
The webcast takes place this afternoon, EST.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net

---------------

Join the National Institute for Literacy for a LIVE webcast on:
Adults with Basic and Below Basic Literacy Levels: Findings from NAAL  
and
Implications for Practice.
Featuring Dr. Sheida White, Dr. John Strucker, & Brian Bosworth, and
moderated by Lori Aratani

WHEN: August 15, 2006
1:30 p.m. - 3:15 p.m. EST

The webcast can be viewed from your computer. We encourage you to  
register
in advance. To register for this webcast go to:
<http://w.on24.com/r.htm?e=26758&s=1&k=EC4046F499FFDA3117E9FDB1758666EB>
For more information about this webcast, go to: <http://www.nifl.gov/>


------------------------------------------------------------------------ 
----


The National Institute for Literacy is hosting a live webcast on  
Tuesday,
August 15 at 1:30 p.m. to discuss the results of the National  
Assessement of
Adult Literacy (NAAL) 2003, specifically relating to Americans who  
tested in
the Below Basic and Basic literacy levels. The webcast will feature Dr.
Sheida White, of the National Center for Education Statistics, who  
served as
project officer for the NAAL, who will present the findings of the  
NAAL for
Below Basic and Basic levels. In addition, there will be a panel of
subject-matter experts who will discuss what implications the NAAL  
findings
for Below Basic and Basic adults will have on programs. The panelists
include John Strucker, of the National Center for Adult Literacy and
Learning, will discuss basic skills; and Brian Bosworth, of the  
consulting
firm FutureWorks, will discuss implications for workforce programs.

The live webcast will feature:

*	Dr. Sheida White directs the National Assessment of Adult Literacy
at the National Center for Education Statistics (or NCES). After  
working as
a full-time reading researcher for 6 years, she joined NCES in 1991.   
During
the first 8 years at NCES, she monitored the National Assessment of
Education Progress (NAEP).  Since 1999, she has been directing the NAAL
project. Her articles have appeared in journals such as Language in  
Society
and Reading Research Quarterly.
*	John Strucker, Ed.D., is a Lecturer in Education and Research
Associate at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and
Literacy (NCSALL) at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. He  
teaches a
laboratory practicum course at Harvard, "Developing Reading in Adults  
and
Older Adolescents," and he has been the principal investigator on two
large-scale assessment projects, NCSALL's Adult Reading Components Study
(ARCS) and the joint NCSALL/ETS Level 1 Study.
*	Brian Bosworth is the founder and President of FutureWorks, a
private consulting and public policy research firm in Belmont,
Massachusetts, that builds regional institutions and strategies for  
economic
growth, workforce education, and civic improvement.

The webcast will be moderated by Lori Aratani, Education Staff Writer  
at the
Washington Post.


My Linh Nguyen
Associate Director of Communications
National Institute for Literacy
(202) 233-2041
fax (202) 233-2050
mnguyen at nifl.gov






From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu Aug 31 09:55:20 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Thu, 31 Aug 2006 09:55:20 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 168] Special Topic: Formative Assessment in
	International Education
Message-ID: <4D6F0855-BAE6-47B9-85E3-B86262C5EA69@comcast.net>

Special Topic Discussion Colleagues,

In preparation for celebrating International Literacy Day, on  
September 5th-7th the Special Topics Discussion List is pleased to  
welcome  Ms. Janet Looney representing the Organisation for Economic  
Co-operation and Development(OECD).  Janet is the leader of the  
Centre for Educational Research and Innovation program known as What  
Works in Innovation in Education. Its current focus is formative  
assessment.  The discussion will serve to introduce some of OECD's  
work in international education. The primary focus of the discussion  
will be on the value of formative assessment for promoting higher  
levels of learner achievement, greater equity of outcomes, and the  
development of "learning to learn" skills.

Not a term widely known in the U.S., formative assessment refers to  
what teachers and learners do in the classroom to assess learning  
progress.  An assessment is _formative_ when information gathered in  
the assessment process is used to modify teaching and learning  
activities.  It's an assessment _for_ learning  not just _of_ learning.

Between 2002 and 2004, the What Works program explored formative  
assessment in lower secondary classrooms in eight international  
systems [see Formative Assessment: Improving Learning in Secondary  
Classrooms (2005)].  OECD will publish a second study addressing  
formative assessment for adult basic skill learners in 2007.

Together, the two studies are intended to strengthen understanding of  
effective approaches to lifelong learning.

FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT IN LOWER SECONDARY SCHOOLS

While many teachers incorporate aspects of formative assessment into  
their teaching, it is not often practiced systematically.  The What  
Works study, Formative Assessment: Improving Learning in Secondary  
Classrooms (2005), features exemplary cases from secondary schools in  
eight systems and international research reviews, and relates these  
to the broader policy environment.  The study shows how teachers have  
addressed barriers to systematic practice, and how school and policy  
leaders may apply the principles of formative assessment to promote  
constructive cultures of assessment and evaluation throughout  
education systems.

FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT IN ADULT BASIC SKILL PROGRAMS

Formative approaches may be particularly appropriate for adults with  
basic skill needs, the focus of the current What Works study.   
Instructors using formative approaches are able to tailor instruction  
more closely to the needs of diverse adult learners.  Formative  
approaches also place an explicit focus on identifying and building  
upon learners' prior knowledge and skills - whether gained in formal  
education settings, or informal work or other settings.

The OECD study on "Improving Teaching and Learning for Adults with  
Basic Skill Needs through Formative Assessment" , now underway, is:

1. Developing studies of exemplary teaching and assessment practice  
for adults with basic skill needs
2. Bringing together international scholarship on teaching and  
assessment for adults with basic skill needs
3. Identifying effective policy levers for improving the quality of  
provision in the adult basic skills sector, and
4. Creating opportunities for policy officials, researchers and  
practitioners to exchange insights and ideas on promoting effective  
teaching, assessment and evaluation.

We look forward to your participation in this three-day discussion  
beginning on September 5th

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net







From Mylinh.Nguyen at ed.gov  Wed Aug 30 13:17:30 2006
From: Mylinh.Nguyen at ed.gov (Nguyen, My Linh)
Date: Wed, 30 Aug 2006 13:17:30 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 169]  NIFL Webcast Now Available in Archive
Message-ID: <CB4082E7B582144084C72EC6C98D495911889562@wdcrobe2m04.ed.gov>

Hi Everyone,

The National Institute for Literacy has now made available an archived
version of its latest webcast: "Adults with Basic and Below Basic Literacy
Levels: Findings from NAAL and Implications for Practice" from August 15,
2006. 

We have made the entire webcast available (include transcript and slides for
download) on our website at www.nifl.gov. Look under the heading "What's
New."

Thank you.

My Linh Nguyen
Associate Director of Communications
National Institute for Literacy
(202) 233-2041
fax (202) 233-2050
mnguyen at nifl.gov



From djrosen at comcast.net  Fri Sep  1 11:01:54 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Fri, 1 Sep 2006 11:01:54 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 170] Formative Assessment Discussion to Begin Tuesday
Message-ID: <8D5E7E35-9035-495E-BD02-72B4AACA6C7A@comcast.net>

Special Topics Discussion List Colleagues,

On Tuesday, Janet Looney will join us from Paris to answer questions  
about the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development  
(OECD) formative assessment studies. In preparation, you may wish to  
look at the OECD Thematic Review of Adult Learning - a two-part study  
exploring policies on qualifications, pathways for progression and  
other issues in adult learning.  These documents  are downloadable at  
http://www.oecd.org/edu/adultlearning .
Please also look at at "Formative Assessment: Improving Learning in  
Secondary Classrooms" and "Formative Assessment: Improving Teaching  
and Learning for Adults with Basic Skill Needs" at  http:// 
www.oecd.org/edu/whatworks . And if you would like to learn more  
about the OECD Education Directorate a .pdf brochure will be found at  
http://www.oecd.org/edu/brochure

This will be an opportunity to begin a discussion, that can continue  
on the Assessment discussion list, of formative assessment practice  
in the U.S.

Meanwhile, let's hear your questions.  Here are some I have already  
anticipated:

For Janet:

1. What is OECD and what does it do?
2. How does OECD's work include or affect what happens in the U.S.?
3. What is "formative assessment" and why is OECD interested in this?
4. Why has OECD embarked on a study addressing formative assessment  
for adult basic skill learners?

For subscribers:

1. Are you involved in a program which actively engages in formative  
assessment?  If so, tell us about your practice.  What do teachers  
and learners look at? How are data from formative assessment used to  
improve the learning process?
2. What do you think is the right mix of formative and summative  
assessment?
3. How did you learn how to do formative assessment?

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net







From djrosen at comcast.net  Fri Sep  1 12:49:17 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Fri, 1 Sep 2006 12:49:17 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 171]  Formative Assessment: our guest's background,
	some readings and posting questions
Message-ID: <F11CA4AA-1959-4706-82ED-AA27BF84D187@comcast.net>

Special Topic Discussion Colleagues,

Please post your questions for Janet as soon as you like.  She will  
answer them on Tuesday, or perhaps Wednesday since Janet is located  
in France and there is a time difference.

Here's a little background:

Janet Looney has led the What Works in Innovation in Education  
program at the OECD's Centre for Educational Research and Innovation  
since 2002.  Prior to
joining the OECD, Janet was the Assistant Director of the Institute  
for Public Policy and Management at the University of Washington and  
a policy analyst in the Education Directorate of the Office of  
Management and Budget in Washington, D.C.  She earned her Master of  
Public Administration and Master of Arts in International Studies  
from the University of Washington in 1993.

In preparation for our discussion you may wish to look at the OECD  
Thematic Review of Adult Learning - a two-part study exploring  
policies on qualifications, pathways for progression and other issues  
in adult learning.  These documents  are downloadable at http:// 
www.oecd.org/edu/adultlearning .

Please also look at "Formative Assessment: Improving Learning in  
Secondary Classrooms"   http://www.oecd.org/edu/whatworks  [Note  
that, although the book must be purchased, the "exemplary cases"  and  
"international research reviews" are all online as .pdfs]  and  
"Formative Assessment: Improving Teaching and Learning for Adults  
with Basic Skill Needs" also at  http://www.oecd.org/edu/whatworks .   
[The bold words "current What Works study" in this section will lead  
you to a downloadable .pdf, the Study Outline] .

If you would like to learn more about the OECD Education Directorate  
a .pdf brochure will be found at http://www.oecd.org/edu/brochure

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion List Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From sbaxter at nifl.gov  Fri Sep  1 14:51:07 2006
From: sbaxter at nifl.gov (sbaxter at nifl.gov)
Date: Fri,  1 Sep 2006 14:51:07 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: [SpecialTopics 172] NIFL welcomes OECD for the start of the
	Formative Assessment Discussion
Message-ID: <20060901185107.6B75F46555@dev.nifl.gov>

Hello everyone and welcome to the discussion on Formative Assessment in International Education. I am pleased to welcome and thank Ms. Janet Looney from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), for spending the next few days helping us better understand international education. 

The National Institute for Literacy has recently begun work with OECD to identify and describe high quality adult literacy programs around the world. We are very excited to host Ms. Looney for this week's discussion, and encourage all of you to participate in this discussion with an expert in international education. I know you will find this to be a stimulating and informative discussion. 

Coinciding with this week's discussion, the National Institute for Literacy has launched a special section on our website dedicated to international literacy, http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/international/intro.html. The site provides valuable information and resources about worldwide education and literacy, and to some of the key organizations, including OECD, currently engaged in addressing and eradicating the problem of access to education and illiteracy around the world.

This week's discussion and the launch of our new international literacy web resources come as the world is preparing to observe International Literacy Day on September 8. We encourage you to participate in this discussion and visit our website for more information on how the United States and other countries are tackling the issue of literacy. 

Finally, I would like to thank our Special Topics moderator David Rosen for organizing both the international literacy web resources and this special discussion. 

Thank you for participating, now let's begin the discussion!

Sandra L. Baxter
Director
National Institute for Literacy
http://www.nifl.gov


From djrosen at comcast.net  Mon Sep  4 22:54:31 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Mon, 4 Sep 2006 22:54:31 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 173] Discussion of Formative Assessment in
	International Education
Message-ID: <9108AC77-B55B-4BE5-9075-C273F92118C3@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

As International Literacy Day -- September 8th -- approaches, I would  
like to welcome our guest, Janet Looney, from the Organisation for  
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD),  who will be with us  
through Thursday to discuss the OECD formative assessment project.   
Janet lives in Paris, in a time zone that is 6-9 hours ahead of those  
of us in North America, so there might be some delays in her  
responses to questions posted in the afternoon or evening. Do please  
post your questions to Janet as soon as you wish, remembering that  
this is only a three-day discussion, so don't wait!

To begin, Janet, here are some questions that I anticipate some of  
our subscribers may have

1. What is OECD and what does it do?
2. How does OECD's work include or affect what happens in the U.S.?
3. What is "formative assessment" and why is OECD interested in this?
4. Why has OECD embarked on a study addressing formative assessment  
for adult basic skill learners?

I should say, Special Topics discussion subscribers , that I have  
some knowledge of the project that Janet will be describing, that I  
am one of the researchers for the formative assessment case studies  
in Flanders, in Belgium.

Thanks so much for being with us, Janet.

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net





From marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com  Sat Sep  2 17:27:52 2006
From: marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com (Marie Cora)
Date: Sat, 2 Sep 2006 17:27:52 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 174]  Questions on formative assessment
Message-ID: <005701c6ced6$a609c860$0202a8c0@LITNOW>

Ms. Looney,
 
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your findings and respond
to some of our questions.  This is an extremely timely topic for us to
explore here in the U.S.  I am very interested in hearing you discuss in
some detail these two points of the study:
 
"The study shows how teachers have addressed barriers to systematic
practice, and how school and policy leaders may apply the principles of
formative assessment to promote constructive cultures of assessment and
evaluation throughout education systems."
 
Specifically:
Can you discuss further how formative assessment is not practiced
systematically in secondary schools?  Does this refer to certain schools
using the practice and others not, or rather, that formative assessment
is used for certain purposes within a school or school system, but is
not practiced in all aspects of the school (system)?
 
Formative assessment is an excellent approach for informing the teaching
and learning process.  Can you discuss how formative assessment is also
useful at the evaluation level - for example, for purposes of examining
success on the program or system level?  
 
I'm not sure how the systems you studied are funded/supported, but is
formative assessment used for reporting purposes to funders or
government agencies?  How is this achieved?  
 
In the systems that you researched, how are formative assessments
developed and used?  Are they uniform or standardized?  Are there
guidelines for development?  Who develops the assessments?  Is special
training involved for administrators, teachers, or others using the
assessments?
 
Thank you for your responses.
 
Marie Cora
 
 
Marie Cora
NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection
http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/
 
 
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From Mylinh.Nguyen at ed.gov  Tue Sep  5 09:44:42 2006
From: Mylinh.Nguyen at ed.gov (Nguyen, My Linh)
Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2006 09:44:42 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 175] National Institute for Literacy Launches
	International Perspective Webpages
Message-ID: <CB4082E7B582144084C72EC6C98D4959118895CD@wdcrobe2m04.ed.gov>

Just in time for International Literacy Day on September 8, the National
Institute for Literacy has launched a series of webpages on its website
(www.nifl.gov) to highlight worldwide efforts to address and combat literacy
problems. The International Perspectives webpages allow American adult
literacy and English language teachers and students quick access to
information about:
	*	adult literacy education in other countries and cultures,
including both developing and industrialized countries, and including
curriculum and outcomes standards for adult education in other countries 
	*	international comparative studies of adult literacy and
PreK-12 education, and 
	*	international efforts to raise literacy levels (e.g.UNESCO,
International Reading Association, and the Venezuelan and Argentinian
literacy campaigns) 
The Institute plans to continue to build on the information on the
International Perspective pages
(<http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/international/intro.html>) as they develop into a
central site for worldwide literacy resources.
	The National Institute for Literacy provides leadership on literacy
issues, including the improvement of reading instruction for children,
youth, and adults. In consultation with the U.S. Departments of Education,
Labor, and Health and Human Services, the Institute serves as a national
resource on current, comprehensive literacy research, practice, and policy.


My Linh Nguyen
Associate Director of Communications
National Institute for Literacy
(202) 233-2041
fax (202) 233-2050
mnguyen at nifl.gov



From Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org  Tue Sep  5 10:26:45 2006
From: Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org (Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org)
Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2006 16:26:45 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 176] Re: Discussion of Formative Assessment
	inInternational Education
In-Reply-To: <9108AC77-B55B-4BE5-9075-C273F92118C3@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF8EB@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>

Hello and thank you for the opportunity to participate in this special topics
discussion.  Thank you also to both David Rosen organising and getting this
discussion started.  Below are my responses to his questions.

1. WHAT IS THE OECD AND WHAT DOES IT DO?

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)  was
established in 1961.  Its mission is to help governments achieve sustainable
economic growth and employment and rising standards of living in while
maintaining financial stability.  There are 30 member countries, including
the U.S., one of the OECD's founding members. OECD also has relationships
with some 70 other countries, non-government organizations and civil society.

OECD addresses a range of policy issues, including education, labour, trade,
employment, migration, energy, health, industry, taxation and the
environment.  OECD provides a forum for dialogue and consensus and peer
review as well as the development of internationally agreed instruments,
decisions and recommendations.  

The OECD is also a source for comparative statistical, economic and social
data.  

NIfL readers may be familiar with OECD's statistical work in education. The
statistics work includes 

- the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). PISA, a
three-yearly survey (2000, 2003, 2006...) of 15-year-olds in the principal
industrialised countries.  It assesses problem-solving skills in literacy,
mathematics and science.  

- the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS)(1994, 1998) (accessible
through the NIfL website). 

- the Adult Literacy and Life Skills Survey (ALL)(2005).

The U.S. has participated in each of these surveys.   

NIfL readers may also be familiar with OECD reports related to literacy and
to adult learning (see http://www.oecd.org/edu/adultlearning). 

The U.S. participated in the first round of the Thematic Review of Adult
Learning (see OECD, (2003). Beyond Rhetoric: Adult Learning Policies and
Practices,  OECD, Paris at http://www.oecd.org/edu/adultlearning), and has
joined the current study, provisionally entitled "Improving Teaching and
Learning for Adults with Basic Skill Needs through Formative Assessment".
The results of this study will be published in 2007.

> 2. HOW DOES THE OECD'S WORK INCLUDE OR AFFECT WHAT HAPPENS IN THE U.S.? 

The U.S. actively participates in decisions regarding the strategic
directions and governance of the organisation and its policy directorates. 

Participation in specific projects is voluntary. In the realm of education,
in addition to the studies mentioned above, the U.S. has most recently
participated in the 2005 study, Teachers Matter, and a recent series of
forums and workshops exploring evidence-based policy.  

Each country can draw upon OECD statistics, research and policy analyses to
inform development of its own strategy. 

Certainly there are important differences in approaches to education in the
United States and in other OECD systems - starting with the very obvious
difference of size (and in some cases, most useful comparisons may be between
a smaller  country and the individual state level in the U.S.).  But all OECD
countries are concerned with accountability, equity, raising levels of
student achievement, and helping students "learn to learn", and can learn
from the experiences of others.


3. WHAT IS "FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT" AND WHY IS OECD INTERESTED IN THIS?  

"Formative assessment" refers to frequent, interactive assessments of student
progress and understanding. Teachers are then able to adjust teaching
approaches to better meet identified learning needs. Assessment is
"formative" when the information gathered is actually used to alter the
student's performance gap. 

Formative assessment differs from summative assessment (tests, examinations)
in that the information gathered in the formative process is used to shape
improvements, rather than serve as a summary of performances.   

The OECD's interest in formative assessment is based on research supporting
the effectiveness of the approach (in their seminal 1998 review* , Paul Black
and Dylan Wiliam describe the achievement gains associated with formative
assessment as "among the largest ever reported for educational
interventions.") It has also emerged as an important strategy for education
reform in several countries.

Between 2002 and 2004, the OECD's What Works in Innovation in Education"
program examined exemplary practice of formative assessment in secondary
schools in eight countries (Australia [Queensland], different provinces in
Canada, Denmark, England, Finland, Italy, New Zealand and Scotland). The
study also brought together literature reviews from different linguistic
research traditions (English, French and German) and related all this to the
broader current policy environment. The resulting study [OECD, 2005.
Formative Assessment: Improving Learning in Secondary Classrooms, OECD,
Paris) combined these elements to clarify the concept of, and approaches to,
formative assessment and its relation to teaching strategies. It offered
suggestions for policies to support this direction of reform in schools and
classrooms.

* See Black P. and D. Wiliam (1998), "Assessment and Classroom Learning",
Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy and Practice, CARFAX,
Oxfordshire, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 7-74.


4. > WHY HAS OECD EMBARKED ON A STUDY ADDRESSING FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT FOR
ADULT BASIC SKILL LEARNERS? 

The results of the study on formative assessment in secondary schools
suggested that formative assessment merits attention in adult education as
well.   

Formative approaches may be particularly appropriate for adults with basic
skill needs, the focus of the current What Works study.  Instructors using
formative approaches are able to tailor instruction more closely to the needs
of diverse adult learners.  Formative approaches also place an explicit focus
on identifying and building upon learners' prior knowledge and skills -
whether gained in formal education settings, or informal work or other
settings.

Together, the What Works studies on formative assessment in secondary
classrooms and in programmes for adults with basic skill needs will
strengthen understanding of effective approaches to lifelong learning.

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]
On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Tuesday, September 05, 2006 4:55 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 173] Discussion of Formative Assessment
inInternational Education


Colleagues,

As International Literacy Day -- September 8th -- approaches, I would  
like to welcome our guest, Janet Looney, from the Organisation for  
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD),  who will be with us  
through Thursday to discuss the OECD formative assessment project.   
Janet lives in Paris, in a time zone that is 6-9 hours ahead of those  
of us in North America, so there might be some delays in her  
responses to questions posted in the afternoon or evening. Do please  
post your questions to Janet as soon as you wish, remembering that  
this is only a three-day discussion, so don't wait!

To begin, Janet, here are some questions that I anticipate some of  
our subscribers may have

1. What is OECD and what does it do?
2. How does OECD's work include or affect what happens in the U.S.? 3. What
is "formative assessment" and why is OECD interested in this? 4. Why has OECD
embarked on a study addressing formative assessment  
for adult basic skill learners?

I should say, Special Topics discussion subscribers , that I have  
some knowledge of the project that Janet will be describing, that I  
am one of the researchers for the formative assessment case studies  
in Flanders, in Belgium.

Thanks so much for being with us, Janet.

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org  Tue Sep  5 10:32:54 2006
From: Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org (Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org)
Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2006 16:32:54 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 177] Re: Questions on formative assessment
In-Reply-To: <005701c6ced6$a609c860$0202a8c0@LITNOW>
Message-ID: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF8EC@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>

Dear Marie,
Thank you for your questions.  I've provided some rather detailed answers
here to be sure that the concepts are clear in this initial phases of the
discussion.
 
> "The study shows how teachers have addressed barriers to systematic  
> practice, and how school and policy leaders may apply the  
> principles of formative assessment to promote constructive cultures  
> of assessment and evaluation throughout education systems."
 
> Specifically:
> Can you discuss further how formative assessment is not practiced  
> systematically in secondary schools?  Does this refer to certain  
> schools using the practice and others not, or rather, that  
> formative assessment is used for certain purposes within a school  
> or school system, but is not practiced in all aspects of the school  
> (system)?
 
 
When we talk about the "systematic" practice of formative assessment, we are
talking about formative assessment as an integrated part of teaching and
learning in classrooms.  Many (probably most) teachers often incorporate
aspects of formative assessment - for example, finding new ways to explain a
concept when a student does not understand.  But as teachers in our own case
studies noted, prior to establishing formative assessment as an overall
framework for teaching and learning, these kinds of interactions were
somewhat haphazard.   Many of the teachers in our case study schools said
they had made fundamental changes in their approaches to teaching - in their
interactions with students, the way they set up learning situations and
guided students toward learning goals - even in the way they thought about
student success - when they started to use formative assessment
systematically.
 
> Formative assessment is an excellent approach for informing the  
> teaching and learning process.  Can you discuss how formative  
> assessment is also useful at the evaluation level - for example,  
> for purposes of examining success on the program or system level?
 
In our study, we distinguish between assessment and evaluation. The term
"assessment" is used to refer to judgments of student performance, and the
term "evaluation" to refer to judgements of programme or organisational
effectiveness.  
 
Ideally, information gathered in assessments and evaluations is used to shape
strategies for improvement at each level of the education system. At the
classroom level, teachers gather information on student understanding, and
adjust teaching to meet identified learning needs. At the school level,
school leaders use information to identify areas of strength and weakness
across the school, and to develop strategies for improvement. At the policy
level, officials use information gathered through national or regional tests,
or through monitoring of school performance, to guide investments in training
and support for schools and teachers, or to set broad priorities for
education. In this way, summative information is used formatively at each
level of the system. Teachers, school leaders and policy officials are more
likely to use assessment information when assessments are well coordinated,
and it is clear why and how the information is relevant to their work. 
 
One very valuable example of how formative principles can be applied at
school and system level is found in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.  Since
2001, schools in this province have been developing action plans based on the
provincial test results. School boards manage the planning process. Each
school board brings principals together for two days. Consultants from the
Department of Education review all test results with the district programme
staff and school principals. Through this review and subsequent discussions,
principals identify learning needs and incorporate them into their school
development plan. The consultants are then available to help plan and
implement teacher professional development programmes for schools that have
identified teacher training as part of their action plan.
 
Another example may be found in Finland.  Finland does not have an
inspectorate, and does not sponsor national examinations, except for the
matriculation examination at the end of upper secondary general education.
Instead, the National Board of Education tracks school quality through random
sample evaluations of different subjects in each comprehensive school every
third year. The results of these evaluations provide information on the
quality of learning outcomes, and are utilised in ongoing development of the
education system and core curricula, as well as in practical teaching work.
 
 
> I'm not sure how the systems you studied are funded/supported, but  
> is formative assessment used for reporting purposes to funders or  
> government agencies?  How is this achieved?
 
Formative assessment within the classroom is used to inform teaching and
learning and is not be used for reporting purposes in any of the systems we
studied.  I would classify information used in this way as "summative
assessment". 
 
 
> In the systems that you researched, how are formative assessments  
> developed and used?  Are they uniform or standardized?  Are there  
> guidelines for development?  Who develops the assessments?  Is  
> special training involved for administrators, teachers, or others  
> using the assessments?
 
We found a variety of strategies for promoting formative assessment.  I'll
provide just a few examples to illustrate the range of approaches (note that
this is by no means a thorough list of each country's approach): 
*	legislation promoting and supporting the practice of formative
assessment and establishing it as a priority.   Italy first introduced  the
national "valuation form" in national legislation in 1977. Teachers are
required to use the valuation form to compile data on their students,
including information on what has been taught, any discipline issues, and
results of assessment (including social, behavioural, cognitive and
metacognitive factors). The form, which has been revised several times since
1977, is intended to facilitate communication between school leaders,
teachers and students.
 
?         efforts to encourage the use of summative data for formative
purposes.  In Canada, all provinces and territories participate in a national
programme to assess student achievement in mathematics, reading and writing,
and science on a four-year cycle. Each province and territory receives its
own results as well as an analysis by sub-test. Provinces may then conduct a
secondary analysis to shape teaching practices. The three Canadian provinces
participating in the OECD study, Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, and
Qu?bec, encourage schools to use school-level data in school planning. 
 
In the early 1990s Her Majesty's Inspectors of Education in Scotland
published school self-assessment and development planning guidelines that
schools could use on a voluntary basis. Since 2001, all schools have been
required to use these guidelines to develop school plans. The plans are to
refer to data on student performance as gathered in national examinations for
16-year-olds and on attainment levels for students between the ages of 5 and
14 (as established in official targets). School plans are expected to
evaluate teaching and learning practices and to include strategies for
improvement. The plans are shared with parents and published in school
outreach materials and on websites.
 
?         Guidelines on effective teaching and formative assessment have been
embedded in the national curriculum and other materials. 
In 2000, the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) in England introduced
the Assessment for Learning (AfL) programme, targeting pilots to Key Stage 3
schools - that is, lower secondary schools. AfL provides teachers, school
leaders, local education authorities and other stakeholders with guidance and
resources on the principles of good classroom assessment, as supported in
research. DfES promises also to provide a repertoire of teaching strategies
and tools from which schools and teachers may choose, based on students'
needs and the school's goals and priorities.
?         provision of tools and exemplars to support effective formative
assessment. 
The New Zealand Ministry of Education has also supported the development of a
number of tools for formative assessment. These include Assessment Tools for
Teaching and Learning (asTTle) for assessing literacy and numeracy from years
5 to 10, in English and te reo Maori, and national curriculum exemplars for
students in years 1-10 in all curriculum areas. The asTTle are a key
component of both the government's literacy and numeracy assessment
strategies. Teachers use the tools to evaluate the impact of teaching
approaches on student achievement, and when necessary, to adjust teaching to
better meet student needs. The national exemplars include annotated work
samples and feature sample teacher-student dialogues and written teacher
comments, showing how teachers might assess the student work in a formative
manner, and in a way that is sensitive to different learning and
communication styles of students. They are available in print form and
on-line. Many are also supported by video clips.
 
?         investments in special initiatives and innovative programmes
incorporating formative assessment approaches. 
 
Several schools included in the case study countries participated in pilot or
other special projects before deciding to adopt formative assessment teaching
methods. Certainly, their participation in special projects signals that
these are schools that are more open to innovation and change, and is likely
one of the reasons the schools have come to the attention of researchers.
Their participation in these projects also helped to prepare the ground for
further change. 
 
?         Investments in teacher professional development for formative
assessment. 
 
Queensland has a variety of in-service workshops and professional development
opportunities for teachers on assessment. At the senior secondary school
level, professional workshops assist teachers in implementing assessment in
the subjects they teach. Teacher practice is supported by strong professional
networks and professional subject-based organisations. Service on moderation
panels (discussed above) is recognised as providing powerful professional
development for panellists, and many schools encourage their staff to seek
panel membership. Feedback from moderation panels to schools involves
teachers in discussions on their assessment practices, both within their
school and with the relevant panel. Being wholly responsible for student
assessment, teachers continually reflect on their assessment practice and
consider how it can be improved. Assessment practice is therefore always
evolving. 
 
 
	-----Original Message-----
	From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Marie Cora
	Sent: Saturday, September 02, 2006 11:28 PM
	To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
	Subject: [SpecialTopics 174] Questions on formative assessment
	
	
	Ms. Looney,
	 
	Thank you so much for taking the time to share your findings and
respond to some of our questions.  This is an extremely timely topic for us
to explore here in the U.S.  I am very interested in hearing you discuss in
some detail these two points of the study:
	 
	"The study shows how teachers have addressed barriers to systematic
practice, and how school and policy leaders may apply the principles of
formative assessment to promote constructive cultures of assessment and
evaluation throughout education systems."
	 
	Specifically:
	Can you discuss further how formative assessment is not practiced
systematically in secondary schools?  Does this refer to certain schools
using the practice and others not, or rather, that formative assessment is
used for certain purposes within a school or school system, but is not
practiced in all aspects of the school (system)?
	 
	Formative assessment is an excellent approach for informing the
teaching and learning process.  Can you discuss how formative assessment is
also useful at the evaluation level - for example, for purposes of examining
success on the program or system level?  
	 
	I'm not sure how the systems you studied are funded/supported, but is
formative assessment used for reporting purposes to funders or government
agencies?  How is this achieved?  
	 
	In the systems that you researched, how are formative assessments
developed and used?  Are they uniform or standardized?  Are there guidelines
for development?  Who develops the assessments?  Is special training involved
for administrators, teachers, or others using the assessments?
	 
	Thank you for your responses.
	 
	Marie Cora
	 
	 
	Marie Cora
	NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
	marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
	Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection
	http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/
	 
	 
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From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue Sep  5 21:10:05 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2006 21:10:05 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 178] Discussion of Formative Assessment in
	International Education
Message-ID: <7415F6F7-C7A3-402C-88D1-31C58F8D3552@comcast.net>

Hello Janet,

You wrote:

The OECD's interest in formative assessment is based on research  
supporting
the effectiveness of the approach (in their seminal 1998 review* ,  
Paul Black
and Dylan Wiliam describe the achievement gains associated with  
formative
assessment as "among the largest ever reported for educational  
interventions.")
It has also emerged as an important strategy for education reform in  
several countries.

* See Black P. and D. Wiliam (1998), "Assessment and Classroom  
Learning",
Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy and Practice, CARFAX,
Oxfordshire, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 7-74.

Based on the Black and William study, if the same findings were to  
hold true for adults as for secondary school students , that the use  
of (systematic) formative assessment is associated with very large  
learning gains, perhaps the Black and William study should be  
replicated in adult learning settings. Are the OECD case studies a  
step toward that? Are they a way to investigate whether such a study  
would be warranted?

Are you aware of any other studies of the use of formative assessment  
with adults other than those OECD is conducting now?

And here are three questions for discussion participants:

1. Are you involved in a program which actively engages in formative  
assessment?  If so, tell us about your practice.  What do teachers  
and learners look at? How are data from formative assessment used to  
improve the learning process?
2. What do you think is the right mix of formative and summative  
assessment?
3. How did you learn how to do formative assessment?

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net






From Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org  Wed Sep  6 07:56:34 2006
From: Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org (Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org)
Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2006 13:56:34 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 179] Re: Discussion of Formative Assessment
	inInternational Education
In-Reply-To: <7415F6F7-C7A3-402C-88D1-31C58F8D3552@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF8F0@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>

Hello David,

I'VE PLACED MY REPLIES BELOW IN CAPS, FOLLOWING EACH OF THE QUESTIONS YOU
SENT.  

You wrote:

The OECD's interest in formative assessment is based on research  
supporting
the effectiveness of the approach (in their seminal 1998 review* ,  
Paul Black
and Dylan Wiliam describe the achievement gains associated with  
formative
assessment as "among the largest ever reported for educational  
interventions.")
It has also emerged as an important strategy for education reform in  
several countries.

* See Black P. and D. Wiliam (1998), "Assessment and Classroom  
Learning",
Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy and Practice, CARFAX,
Oxfordshire, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 7-74.

Based on the Black and William study, if the same findings were to  
hold true for adults as for secondary school students , that the use  
of (systematic) formative assessment is associated with very large  
learning gains, perhaps the Black and William study should be  
replicated in adult learning settings. Are the OECD case studies a  
step toward that? Are they a way to investigate whether such a study  
would be warranted?

DAVID, 
WE HAVE COMMISSIONED REVIEWS OF THE INTERNATIONAL LITERATURE ON ADULT
TEACHING, LEARNING AND ASSESSMENT (THUS FAR FOR ENGLISH, GERMAN AND SPANISH
LITERATURE), TO LEARN MORE ABOUT "WHAT'S OUT THERE" IN THE RESEARCH ON ADULT
BASIC SKILL LEARNING, AND WHETHER IT WOULD INDEED BE POSSIBLE TO REPLICATE
THE BLACK & WILIAM STUDY.  THE BLACK & WILIAM STUDY GATHERED A WIDE RANGE OF
ARTICLES ON ECOLOGICALLY VALID CONTROLLED STUDIES OF FORMATIVE APPROACHES AND
TECHNIQUES (COVERING, AS THEY DESCRIBE "...ALL THOSE ACTIVITIES ENCOMPASSING
ALL THOSE ACTIVITIES UNDERTAKEN BY TEACHERS, AND/OR BY THEIR STUDENTS, WHICH
PROVIDE INFORMATION TO BE USED AS FEEDBACK TO MODIFY THE TEACHING AND
LEARNING ACTIVITIES IN WHICH THEY ARE ENGAGED.")

THUS FAR, WE HAVE FOUND VERY FEW SIMILAR CONTROLLED STUDIES FOR ADULT BASIC
SKILL LEARNERS IN THE INTERNATIONAL LITERATURE.  THE FEW EXISTING EMPIRICAL
STUDIES DO APPEAR TO POINT TO THE PROMISE OF FORMATIVE METHODS FOR ADULTS, AS
DO ARTICLES BASED ON "PRACTITIONER WISDOM".  

OUR OWN CASE STUDIES ARE NOT SET UP AS CONTROLLED STUDIES OF FORMATIVE
APPROACHES AND TECHNIQUES.  RATHER, OUR INTENTION IS TO EXAMINE WHAT
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT LOOKS LIKE IN PRACTICE, WHAT KIND OF BARRIERS
INSTRUCTORS AND PROGRAMME LEADERS CONFRONT IN TRYING TO INTEGRATE FORMATIVE
METHODS INTO REGULAR TEACHING AND LEARNING AND HOW THEY ADDRESS THOSE
BARRIERS.  WE HAVE ASKED OUR CASE STUDY PARTICIPANTS FOR EVIDENCE AND/OR
INDICATORS OF THE IMPACT OF THE FORMATIVE METHODS ON TEACHING AND LEARNING.  

THE INTERNATIONAL REVIEWS OF LITERATURE AND CASE STUDIES WILL HELP TO
IDENTIFY THE GAPS AND MOST PROMISING DIRECTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH (BOTH
QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE).

Are you aware of any other studies of the use of formative assessment  
with adults other than those OECD is conducting now?

THE NATIONAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTRE FOR ADULT LITERACY AND NUMERACY
IN THE UK, ONE OF OUR PARTNERS IN THIS RESEARCH (www.nrdc.org.uk), HAS
INITIATED A STUDY ON FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT FOR ADULT BASIC SKILL LEARNERS
(WITH THE SUPPORT OF THE NUFFIELD FOUNDATION, WHICH SUPPORTED THE BLACK &
WILIAM WORK, AS WELL) NIACE (THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ADULT CONTINUING
EDUCATION - ENGLAND AND WALES) [www.niace.org.uk] HAS ALSO INITIATED PROJECT
INVESTIGATING FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT. 

And here are three questions for discussion participants:

1. Are you involved in a program which actively engages in formative  
assessment?  If so, tell us about your practice.  What do teachers  
and learners look at? How are data from formative assessment used to  
improve the learning process?
2. What do you think is the right mix of formative and summative  
assessment?
3. How did you learn how to do formative assessment?

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net




-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From djrosen at comcast.net  Wed Sep  6 08:16:08 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2006 08:16:08 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 180] Formative Assessment in International Education
Message-ID: <CB7E27A5-07B1-4E2D-ABA4-8C0365113740@comcast.net>

Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,

We would like to hear from you.

What has been your experience with formative assessment?
Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom?
Have you done research -- qualitative or quantitative, including  
classroom research -- on the effects of formative assessment? What  
did you find?
Are you satisfied with using only summative (standardized per-post  
NRS-required) assessment?
Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or questions now.

Thanks.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From lpetty at twmi.rr.com  Wed Sep  6 08:31:04 2006
From: lpetty at twmi.rr.com (Leslie Petty)
Date: Wed, 06 Sep 2006 08:31:04 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 181] Re: Formative Assessment in International
	Education
In-Reply-To: <CB7E27A5-07B1-4E2D-ABA4-8C0365113740@comcast.net>
References: <CB7E27A5-07B1-4E2D-ABA4-8C0365113740@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <44FEBF88.2090402@twmi.rr.com>

I work with a consortium of states exploring the use of distance 
education for their adult basic learners.  A key challenge for many 
distance programs is to increase student persistence.  At our recent 
conference, participants suggested that two factors that led to 
increased persistence were carefully screening and counseling students 
into appropriate programs and frequent, positive communication with the 
teacher.  I would also suggest that formative assessment, used as the 
basis of individual lesson planning, might also have a role in 
increasing persistence.  While teachers are doing this on an informal 
basis, I am unaware of any structured attempts to explore this issue.  
Does anyone have any knowledge about the impact of formative assessment 
on student persistence and retention?

Leslie Petty
Project IDEAL
lpetty at mich.edu

David Rosen wrote:
> Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,
>
> We would like to hear from you.
>
> What has been your experience with formative assessment?
> Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom?
> Have you done research -- qualitative or quantitative, including  
> classroom research -- on the effects of formative assessment? What  
> did you find?
> Are you satisfied with using only summative (standardized per-post  
> NRS-required) assessment?
> Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?
>
> Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or questions now.
>
> Thanks.
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics Discussion Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
>
>   


-- 
*********************************
Leslie Petty
Associate Director, Project IDEAL
University of Michigan
Institute for Social Research
734-425-0748



From marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com  Wed Sep  6 14:02:00 2006
From: marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com (Marie Cora)
Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2006 14:02:00 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 182] Re: Questions on formative assessment
In-Reply-To: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF8EC@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>
Message-ID: <010b01c6d1de$8dd77390$0302a8c0@LITNOW>

Dear Janet,
 
Thanks for this rich amount of info and explanation.  I?m so impressed
by the array of innovative thought and action that these different
countries and programs are pursuing.  I see formative assessment as a
fundamental mechanism for examining what is happening, and then taking
this information (data) in order to improve practice on the classroom,
program, or state/country scale.  Your study clearly shows that
formative assessment can and is being used to improve service delivery
on all levels ? including guiding the investments that are necessary for
success in the program and classroom.
 
A couple questions:  You noted that in Finland, they use ?random sample
evaluations of different subjects? ? does this mean that they study test
data in subjects on an aggregate level and make determinations from
this?  If so, this would mean that accountability is spread more
broadly, as opposed to studying individual performance/test data and
then linking success or failure to either individuals (the student or
the teacher) or smaller entities (one school as opposed to a whole
school system).  I would think that such an approach would necessitate
studying not only what is happening in the classroom and school, but
also what types of educational materials and assessments are being used.
Would that be a correct assumption?
 
Also, you discuss the use of guidelines for promoting formative
assessment in various countries/programs that you studied, and you do
note that one set from New Zealand is available for us to look at.  Are
the other materials from the countries you studied also accessible?
These guidelines, case studies, and action plans would be extremely
helpful in developing a focus on the use of formative assessments in
this country.
 
You note that many teachers described changes in their behavior once
they started to use formative assessments ? in their interactions with
students, how they set up learning, in providing guidance toward goals,
and in how they think about student success.  I would be extremely
interested in hearing more about this ? can you provide us with a couple
of examples of these types of teacher change?  Did the process of going
from random to systematic use of formative assessments begin with
professional development for the teachers, application of the learning,
and then reflecting on the results, or was it less deliberate?  In other
words, did the teachers in your case study already use this approach and
just realized it was successful so incorporated it further?  Or were
these teachers part of a process to get them to learn and use formative
assessment strategies? 
 
And I also have a question for subscribers:  Janet notes that one
example of incorporating formative assessment into teaching would be
finding new ways to explain concepts when the student is struggling to
understand.  I?m guessing that this sounds super familiar to everyone
out there ? searching for new ways to help the student when the old ways
are not cutting it.   Can subscribers talk about any formative
assessment strategies they use and how this improves classroom or
program level practice.
 
Thanks so much!!
 
Marie Cora
 
Marie Cora
NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection
http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/
 
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of
Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org
Sent: Tuesday, September 05, 2006 10:33 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 177] Re: Questions on formative assessment
 
Dear Marie,
Thank you for your questions.  I've provided some rather detailed
answers here to be sure that the concepts are clear in this initial
phases of the discussion.
 
> ?The study shows how teachers have addressed barriers to systematic  
> practice, and how school and policy leaders may apply the  
> principles of formative assessment to promote constructive cultures  
> of assessment and evaluation throughout education systems.?
 
> Specifically:
> Can you discuss further how formative assessment is not practiced  
> systematically in secondary schools?  Does this refer to certain  
> schools using the practice and others not, or rather, that  
> formative assessment is used for certain purposes within a school  
> or school system, but is not practiced in all aspects of the school  
> (system)?
 
 
When we talk about the ?systematic? practice of formative assessment, we
are talking about formative assessment as an integrated part of teaching
and learning in classrooms.  Many (probably most) teachers often
incorporate aspects of formative assessment ? for example, finding new
ways to explain a concept when a student does not understand.  But as
teachers in our own case studies noted, prior to establishing formative
assessment as an overall framework for teaching and learning, these
kinds of interactions were somewhat haphazard.   Many of the teachers in
our case study schools said they had made fundamental changes in their
approaches to teaching ? in their interactions with students, the way
they set up learning situations and guided students toward learning
goals ? even in the way they thought about student success ? when they
started to use formative assessment systematically.
 
> Formative assessment is an excellent approach for informing the  
> teaching and learning process.  Can you discuss how formative  
> assessment is also useful at the evaluation level ? for example,  
> for purposes of examining success on the program or system level?
 
In our study, we distinguish between assessment and evaluation. The term
?assessment? is used to refer to judgments of student performance, and
the term ?evaluation? to refer to judgements of programme or
organisational effectiveness.  
 
Ideally, information gathered in assessments and evaluations is used to
shape strategies for improvement at each level of the education system.
At the classroom level, teachers gather information on student
understanding, and adjust teaching to meet identified learning needs. At
the school level, school leaders use information to identify areas of
strength and weakness across the school, and to develop strategies for
improvement. At the policy level, officials use information gathered
through national or regional tests, or through monitoring of school
performance, to guide investments in training and support for schools
and teachers, or to set broad priorities for education. In this way,
summative information is used formatively at each level of the system.
Teachers, school leaders and policy officials are more likely to use
assessment information when assessments are well coordinated, and it is
clear why and how the information is relevant to their work. 
 
One very valuable example of how formative principles can be applied at
school and system level is found in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
Since 2001, schools in this province have been developing action plans
based on the provincial test results. School boards manage the planning
process. Each school board brings principals together for two days.
Consultants from the Department of Education review all test results
with the district programme staff and school principals. Through this
review and subsequent discussions, principals identify learning needs
and incorporate them into their school development plan. The consultants
are then available to help plan and implement teacher professional
development programmes for schools that have identified teacher training
as part of their action plan.
 
Another example may be found in Finland.  Finland does not have an
inspectorate, and does not sponsor national examinations, except for the
matriculation examination at the end of upper secondary general
education. Instead, the National Board of Education tracks school
quality through random sample evaluations of different subjects in each
comprehensive school every third year. The results of these evaluations
provide information on the quality of learning outcomes, and are
utilised in ongoing development of the education system and core
curricula, as well as in practical teaching work.
 
 
> I?m not sure how the systems you studied are funded/supported, but  
> is formative assessment used for reporting purposes to funders or  
> government agencies?  How is this achieved?
 
Formative assessment within the classroom is used to inform teaching and
learning and is not be used for reporting purposes in any of the systems
we studied.  I would classify information used in this way as ?summative
assessment?. 
 
 
> In the systems that you researched, how are formative assessments  
> developed and used?  Are they uniform or standardized?  Are there  
> guidelines for development?  Who develops the assessments?  Is  
> special training involved for administrators, teachers, or others  
> using the assessments?
 
We found a variety of strategies for promoting formative assessment.
I?ll provide just a few examples to illustrate the range of approaches
(note that this is by no means a thorough list of each country?s
approach): 
1.    legislation promoting and supporting the practice of formative
assessment and establishing it as a priority.   Italy first introduced
the national ?valuation form? in national legislation in 1977. Teachers
are required to use the valuation form to compile data on their
students, including information on what has been taught, any discipline
issues, and results of assessment (including social, behavioural,
cognitive and metacognitive factors). The form, which has been revised
several times since 1977, is intended to facilitate communication
between school leaders, teachers and students.
 
1.    efforts to encourage the use of summative data for formative
purposes.  In Canada, all provinces and territories participate in a
national programme to assess student achievement in mathematics, reading
and writing, and science on a four-year cycle. Each province and
territory receives its own results as well as an analysis by sub-test.
Provinces may then conduct a secondary analysis to shape teaching
practices. The three Canadian provinces participating in the OECD study,
Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, and Qu?bec, encourage schools
to use school-level data in school planning. 
 
In the early 1990s Her Majesty?s Inspectors of Education in Scotland
published school self-assessment and development planning guidelines
that schools could use on a voluntary basis. Since 2001, all schools
have been required to use these guidelines to develop school plans. The
plans are to refer to data on student performance as gathered in
national examinations for 16-year-olds and on attainment levels for
students between the ages of 5 and 14 (as established in official
targets). School plans are expected to evaluate teaching and learning
practices and to include strategies for improvement. The plans are
shared with parents and published in school outreach materials and on
websites.
 
2.    Guidelines on effective teaching and formative assessment have
been embedded in the national curriculum and other materials. 
In 2000, the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) in England
introduced the Assessment for Learning (AfL) programme, targeting pilots
to Key Stage 3 schools ? that is, lower secondary schools. AfL provides
teachers, school leaders, local education authorities and other
stakeholders with guidance and resources on the principles of good
classroom assessment, as supported in research. DfES promises also to
provide a repertoire of teaching strategies and tools from which schools
and teachers may choose, based on students? needs and the school?s goals
and priorities.
3.    provision of tools and exemplars to support effective formative
assessment. 
The New Zealand Ministry of Education has also supported the development
of a number of tools for formative assessment. These include Assessment
Tools for Teaching and Learning (asTTle) for assessing literacy and
numeracy from years 5 to 10, in English and te reo Maori, and national
curriculum exemplars for students in years 1-10 in all curriculum areas.
The asTTle are a key component of both the government?s literacy and
numeracy assessment strategies. Teachers use the tools to evaluate the
impact of teaching approaches on student achievement, and when
necessary, to adjust teaching to better meet student needs. The national
exemplars include annotated work samples and feature sample
teacher-student dialogues and written teacher comments, showing how
teachers might assess the student work in a formative manner, and in a
way that is sensitive to different learning and communication styles of
students. They are available in print form and on-line. Many are also
supported by video clips.
 
4.  investments in special initiatives and innovative programmes
incorporating formative assessment approaches. 
 
Several schools included in the case study countries participated in
pilot or other special projects before deciding to adopt formative
assessment teaching methods. Certainly, their participation in special
projects signals that these are schools that are more open to innovation
and change, and is likely one of the reasons the schools have come to
the attention of researchers. Their participation in these projects also
helped to prepare the ground for further change. 
 
5.    Investments in teacher professional development for formative
assessment. 
 
Queensland has a variety of in-service workshops and professional
development opportunities for teachers on assessment. At the senior
secondary school level, professional workshops assist teachers in
implementing assessment in the subjects they teach. Teacher practice is
supported by strong professional networks and professional subject-based
organisations. Service on moderation panels (discussed above) is
recognised as providing powerful professional development for
panellists, and many schools encourage their staff to seek panel
membership. Feedback from moderation panels to schools involves teachers
in discussions on their assessment practices, both within their school
and with the relevant panel. Being wholly responsible for student
assessment, teachers continually reflect on their assessment practice
and consider how it can be improved. Assessment practice is therefore
always evolving. 
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Marie Cora
Sent: Saturday, September 02, 2006 11:28 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 174] Questions on formative assessment
Ms. Looney,
 
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your findings and respond
to some of our questions.  This is an extremely timely topic for us to
explore here in the U.S.  I am very interested in hearing you discuss in
some detail these two points of the study:
 
?The study shows how teachers have addressed barriers to systematic
practice, and how school and policy leaders may apply the principles of
formative assessment to promote constructive cultures of assessment and
evaluation throughout education systems.?
 
Specifically:
Can you discuss further how formative assessment is not practiced
systematically in secondary schools?  Does this refer to certain schools
using the practice and others not, or rather, that formative assessment
is used for certain purposes within a school or school system, but is
not practiced in all aspects of the school (system)?
 
Formative assessment is an excellent approach for informing the teaching
and learning process.  Can you discuss how formative assessment is also
useful at the evaluation level ? for example, for purposes of examining
success on the program or system level?  
 
I?m not sure how the systems you studied are funded/supported, but is
formative assessment used for reporting purposes to funders or
government agencies?  How is this achieved?  
 
In the systems that you researched, how are formative assessments
developed and used?  Are they uniform or standardized?  Are there
guidelines for development?  Who develops the assessments?  Is special
training involved for administrators, teachers, or others using the
assessments?
 
Thank you for your responses.
 
Marie Cora
 
 
Marie Cora
NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection
http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/
 
 
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From sreid at workbase.org.nz  Wed Sep  6 14:24:24 2006
From: sreid at workbase.org.nz (Susan Reid)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 06:24:24 +1200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 183] Re: Formative Assessment in International
 Education
Message-ID: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E23C4A2@secure.workbase.org.nz>


 


Hi David 

as you are aware New Zealand is taking part in the OECD study. 

In New Zealand the Government has also undertaken a small scale research study on assessment in a range of adult literacy programmes ( called foundation learning in New Zealand). The purpose of the research study was to contribute to an understanding of what is required to enhance the assessment capability of tertiary education providers of learning in literacy, numeracy, and language. Formative assessment has been pushed hard in the compulsory education sector in New Zealand ( K-12) and as the report shows is a bit hit and miss in the adult literacy sector in New Zealand. We don't yet have standardised tests that we have to use in the adult literacy sector here. 

the summary report about the research study  is at http://educationcounts.edcentre.govt.nz/publications/tertairy/assessment-foundation.html

the full report is available for download at the bottom of the webpage about the summary report

 

Janet is it useful to give the urls for the PowerPoint presentations from the International Conference in Paris last year around Improving Learning through Formative Assessment - even though they are school focussed there is some interesting information in them. I really liked a quote from one of them - I am recalling this from memory and not sure whether it was your quote Janet  - Hope doesn't build good schools - aspiration does  

same applies for adult literacy although funding and perspiration seem to be factors as well. 

Very interesting discussion - I like these Special Topics 

Thank you 

Susan Reid 

Manager Professional Development 

Workbase the New Zealand for Workforce Literacy 

www.workbase.org.nz

see also the New Zealand Literacy Portal www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz

 

 

 


________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Thu 7/09/2006 12:16 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 180] Formative Assessment in International Education



Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,

We would like to hear from you.

What has been your experience with formative assessment?
Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom?
Have you done research -- qualitative or quantitative, including 
classroom research -- on the effects of formative assessment? What 
did you find?
Are you satisfied with using only summative (standardized per-post 
NRS-required) assessment?
Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or questions now.

Thanks.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
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SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


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From akohring at utk.edu  Wed Sep  6 14:36:23 2006
From: akohring at utk.edu (Kohring, Aaron M)
Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2006 14:36:23 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 184] Re: Formative Assessment in International
	Education
In-Reply-To: <CB7E27A5-07B1-4E2D-ABA4-8C0365113740@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <6A5CE13D731DE249BC61CB8C5C474B0A146F3F94@UTKFSVS1.utk.tennessee.edu>

 David,

I was struck by your last question in regards to my own work: Do we need
to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

I would say- Yes.

With teachers that I've worked with- they always mention how the
standardized (summative) tests they are required to administer do not
really tell them what they need to be teaching.  Then we go another step
and talk about how formative assessments add to that picture of what
learners know and can do- thus giving them more information about what
to teach as well as helping to show progress.

Yet, some of the recurring themes many instructors seem to deal with-
especially in the U.S.- where many only work part-time are:
1) Having time (preferably paid) for: working with learners to assess
what they want to know and be able to do, understanding where they are
starting from, planning the lesson along with useful assessment(s), etc.
2) Not having much experience in developing a 'suitable' formative
assessment
3) Dealing with tensions for accountability (needing to show level gains
based on acceptable reporting measures for the federal government)

So does that mean education to understand the benefits and uses of
formative and summative assessments?  Professional development on
developing/creating assessments?  Educating legislators/funders about
issues with accountability and part-time staff?  All of these?

Aaron  

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 8:16 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 180] Formative Assessment in International
Education

Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,

We would like to hear from you.

What has been your experience with formative assessment?
Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom?
Have you done research -- qualitative or quantitative, including
classroom research -- on the effects of formative assessment? What did
you find?
Are you satisfied with using only summative (standardized per-post
NRS-required) assessment?
Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or questions now.

Thanks.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From MMaralit at NIFL.gov  Wed Sep  6 15:27:05 2006
From: MMaralit at NIFL.gov (Maralit, Mary Jo)
Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2006 15:27:05 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 185] Re: The Health Literacy of America's Adults:
	Results from the 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy
Message-ID: <4062487BDB6029428A763CAEF4E1FE5B0B93313A@wdcrobe2m03.ed.gov>

The following announcement is posted on behalf of The National Center for
Education Statistics:

The Health Literacy of America's Adults: Results from the 2003 National
Assessment of Adult Literacy (9/6/2006) 

Results from the Health Literacy component of the 2003 National Assessment
of Adult Literacy (NAAL) were just released. The health literacy findings
are based on the first large-scale national assessment designed specifically
to measure the health literacy of adults living in America. This report
measures health literacy among American adults including their ability to
read, understand, and apply health-related information in English. 

Findings include:
*	The majority of American adults (53 percent) had Intermediate health
literacy. Fewer than 15 percent of adults had either Below Basic or
Proficient health literacy. 
*	Women had higher average health literacy than men. 
*	Adults who were ages 65 and older had lower average health literacy
than younger adults. 
*	Hispanic adults had lower average health literacy than adults in any
other racial/ethnic group. 

To download, view and print the publication as a PDF file, please visit:
<http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006483>

To view other NAAL reports and for more information, visit
<http://nces.ed.gov/naal>

Jaleh Behroozi Soroui
Education Statistics Services Institute (ESSI-Stat)
American Institutes for Research 
1990 K Street, NW Suite 500 
Washington, DC 20006
Phone: 202/403-6958
email: jsoroui at air.org



From j.benseman at auckland.ac.nz  Wed Sep  6 17:41:30 2006
From: j.benseman at auckland.ac.nz (Benseman John)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 09:41:30 +1200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 186] Re: Formative Assessment in
	InternationalEducation
Message-ID: <EAC016DA373E1043AAF027E99C2EF50105FA8A54@acemail02n.foed.auckland.ac.nz>

In response to Aaron's posting about formative assessment being yet another thing to add to teachers' already long list of tasks to do:
 

*	
	Black and Wiliam argue that formative assessment should replace/improve what teachers already do, not just be added on top of every thing else.
*	
	the point about formative assessment is to improve what we already do as teachers and make better use of the information that we get in the process
*	
	one of the attractions about formative assessment is that teachers can improve/add to their teaching skills incrementally and not have to change everything - they could for example focus on improving their questioning skills before tackling students learning to review each others' work

Two other points about formative assessment:

*	because it is fundamentally about generic aspects of teaching, it has currency for all teachers, irrespective of the content of their teaching, level etc. It is a very good strategy for professional development because of its relevance across the board
*	being involved in developing formative assessment usually involves peer observation for teachers, which is probably one of the best prompts to critically review our own practices. My own interest in formative assessment was initially prompted by carrying out an observation study of 15 literacy and numeracy teachers ( http://www.minedu.govt.nz/index.cfm?layout=document&documentid=10929&indexid=1028&indexparentid=1000 ), which really brought home to me the importance of generic teaching skills such as questioning (eg teachers asking questions and then supplying the answer themselves ('rescuing' their learners so that they don't feel failures) about 2 seconds later) and scaffolding off learners' responses.

Janet - it might be useful to outline what is going to come out of the OECD study when it is published?

John

John Benseman PhD
 
Director of Research & Evaluation, Upskilling NZ
(based at Department of Labour)
DDI 04 915 4195 - Cell: 021 0489 143
 
Faculty of Education, The University of Auckland
PB 92019, Auckland, NZ
*   j.benseman at auckland.ac.nz <mailto:j.benseman at auckland.ac.nz> 
(   0064 9 623 8899, ext 87161
7 0064 9 373 7455
Office location: Room 365, N Block, Epsom Campus

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of Kohring, Aaron M
Sent: Thu 7/09/2006 6:36 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 184] Re: Formative Assessment in InternationalEducation



 David,

I was struck by your last question in regards to my own work: Do we need
to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

I would say- Yes.

With teachers that I've worked with- they always mention how the
standardized (summative) tests they are required to administer do not
really tell them what they need to be teaching.  Then we go another step
and talk about how formative assessments add to that picture of what
learners know and can do- thus giving them more information about what
to teach as well as helping to show progress.

Yet, some of the recurring themes many instructors seem to deal with-
especially in the U.S.- where many only work part-time are:
1) Having time (preferably paid) for: working with learners to assess
what they want to know and be able to do, understanding where they are
starting from, planning the lesson along with useful assessment(s), etc.
2) Not having much experience in developing a 'suitable' formative
assessment
3) Dealing with tensions for accountability (needing to show level gains
based on acceptable reporting measures for the federal government)

So does that mean education to understand the benefits and uses of
formative and summative assessments?  Professional development on
developing/creating assessments?  Educating legislators/funders about
issues with accountability and part-time staff?  All of these?

Aaron 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 8:16 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 180] Formative Assessment in International
Education

Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,

We would like to hear from you.

What has been your experience with formative assessment?
Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom?
Have you done research -- qualitative or quantitative, including
classroom research -- on the effects of formative assessment? What did
you find?
Are you satisfied with using only summative (standardized per-post
NRS-required) assessment?
Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or questions now.

Thanks.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


 
The Faculty invites you  to its 125th Jubilee of Teacher Education,  23 September 2006 
For further information: http://alumniandfriends.education.auckland.ac.nz 
Phone Maureen Tizard on [09]6238899 extn48689 
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Attention: 
This e-mail message is privileged and confidential. If you are not the 
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Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author.

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From sreid at workbase.org.nz  Wed Sep  6 17:58:11 2006
From: sreid at workbase.org.nz (Susan Reid)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 09:58:11 +1200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 187] Re: Formative Assessment in International
 Education
Message-ID: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E32478F@secure.workbase.org.nz>

I am at my desk in the ofice now where the quote is pinned on my wall 
 
Sympathy doesn't raise standards , aspiration does 
 
shows you how good my memory is 
 
Regards Susan Reid 
 

	-----Original Message-----
	From: Susan Reid
	Sent: 7/09/2006 9:09 a.m.
	To: specialtopics at nifl.gov; specialtopics at nifl.gov
	Subject: [SpecialTopics 183] Re: Formative Assessment in International Education
	
	
	
	

	 


	Hi David 

	as you are aware New Zealand is taking part in the OECD study. 

	In New Zealand the Government has also undertaken a small scale research study on assessment in a range of adult literacy programmes ( called foundation learning in New Zealand). The purpose of the research study was to contribute to an understanding of what is required to enhance the assessment capability of tertiary education providers of learning in literacy, numeracy, and language. Formative assessment has been pushed hard in the compulsory education sector in New Zealand ( K-12) and as the report shows is a bit hit and miss in the adult literacy sector in New Zealand. We don't yet have standardised tests that we have to use in the adult literacy sector here. 

	the summary report about the research study  is at http://educationcounts.edcentre.govt.nz/publications/tertairy/assessment-foundation.html

	the full report is available for download at the bottom of the webpage about the summary report

	 

	Janet is it useful to give the urls for the PowerPoint presentations from the International Conference in Paris last year around Improving Learning through Formative Assessment - even though they are school focussed there is some interesting information in them. I really liked a quote from one of them - I am recalling this from memory and not sure whether it was your quote Janet  - Hope doesn't build good schools - aspiration does  

	same applies for adult literacy although funding and perspiration seem to be factors as well. 

	Very interesting discussion - I like these Special Topics 

	Thank you 

	Susan Reid 

	Manager Professional Development 

	Workbase the New Zealand for Workforce Literacy 

	www.workbase.org.nz

	see also the New Zealand Literacy Portal www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz

	 

	 

	 


________________________________

	From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
	Sent: Thu 7/09/2006 12:16 a.m.
	To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
	Subject: [SpecialTopics 180] Formative Assessment in International Education
	
	

	Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,
	
	We would like to hear from you.
	
	What has been your experience with formative assessment?
	Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom?
	Have you done research -- qualitative or quantitative, including 
	classroom research -- on the effects of formative assessment? What 
	did you find?
	Are you satisfied with using only summative (standardized per-post 
	NRS-required) assessment?
	Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?
	
	Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or questions now.
	
	Thanks.
	
	David J. Rosen
	Special Topics Discussion Moderator
	djrosen at comcast.net
	
	
	
	-------------------------------
	National Institute for Literacy
	Special Topics mailing list
	SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
	To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
	

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From sreid at workbase.org.nz  Wed Sep  6 17:58:11 2006
From: sreid at workbase.org.nz (Susan Reid)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 09:58:11 +1200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 188] Re: Questions on formative assessment
Message-ID: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E324789@secure.workbase.org.nz>

Hi Marie 
apart from asTTLE which is online in New Zealand 
http://www.tki.org.nz/r/asttle/index_e.php
there has also been a number of other efforts around assessment developed for the K-12 sector 
 
 http://www.tki.org.nz/r/assessment/
 
this online PD is about formative assessment  developed for our K-12 sector but is really relevant to the adult sector as well 
http://www.tki.org.nz/r/assessment/atol_online/ppt/online_workshop_1.ppt
 
 
there is a part in this resource which talks about the importance of feedback in formative assessment and I know as a tutor I have struggled in this area to do more that say you have done really well and have learned over the years  not to stop at that but to keep going and point out what has been done well and a couple of areas for improvement and work out with the learner what could be done  to achieve those improvements
 
Regards Susan Reid 
 
Manager, Professional Development 
Workbase: The New Zealand Centre for Workforce Literacy Development 
2 Vermont Street, Ponsonby - PO Box 56571, Dominion Road, Auckland 1030
Phone: 09 361 3800 - Fax: 09 376 3700           
Website: www.workbase.org.nz - Email: sreid at workbase.org.nz
 
See New Zealand Literacy Portal 
 
www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz
 
Caution - This email and its contents contain privileged information that is intended solely for the recipient.  If you are not the intended recipient you are hereby notified that any use, dissemination, distribution or reproduction of this email is prohibited.  If you have received this email in error please notify admin at workbase.org.nz immediately.  Any views expressed in this email are of the sender and may not necessarily reflect the views of Workbase: The New Zealand Centre for Workforce Literacy Development.
 
 

	-----Original Message-----
	From: Marie Cora
	Sent: 7/09/2006 6:57 a.m.
	To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
	Subject: [SpecialTopics 182] Re: Questions on formative assessment
	
	
	

	Dear Janet,

	 

	Thanks for this rich amount of info and explanation.  I'm so impressed by the array of innovative thought and action that these different countries and programs are pursuing.  I see formative assessment as a fundamental mechanism for examining what is happening, and then taking this information (data) in order to improve practice on the classroom, program, or state/country scale.  Your study clearly shows that formative assessment can and is being used to improve service delivery on all levels - including guiding the investments that are necessary for success in the program and classroom.

	 

	A couple questions:  You noted that in Finland, they use "random sample evaluations of different subjects" - does this mean that they study test data in subjects on an aggregate level and make determinations from this?  If so, this would mean that accountability is spread more broadly, as opposed to studying individual performance/test data and then linking success or failure to either individuals (the student or the teacher) or smaller entities (one school as opposed to a whole school system).  I would think that such an approach would necessitate studying not only what is happening in the classroom and school, but also what types of educational materials and assessments are being used.  Would that be a correct assumption?

	 

	Also, you discuss the use of guidelines for promoting formative assessment in various countries/programs that you studied, and you do note that one set from New Zealand is available for us to look at.  Are the other materials from the countries you studied also accessible?  These guidelines, case studies, and action plans would be extremely helpful in developing a focus on the use of formative assessments in this country.

	 

	You note that many teachers described changes in their behavior once they started to use formative assessments - in their interactions with students, how they set up learning, in providing guidance toward goals, and in how they think about student success.  I would be extremely interested in hearing more about this - can you provide us with a couple of examples of these types of teacher change?  Did the process of going from random to systematic use of formative assessments begin with professional development for the teachers, application of the learning, and then reflecting on the results, or was it less deliberate?  In other words, did the teachers in your case study already use this approach and just realized it was successful so incorporated it further?  Or were these teachers part of a process to get them to learn and use formative assessment strategies? 

	 

	And I also have a question for subscribers:  Janet notes that one example of incorporating formative assessment into teaching would be finding new ways to explain concepts when the student is struggling to understand.  I'm guessing that this sounds super familiar to everyone out there - searching for new ways to help the student when the old ways are not cutting it.   Can subscribers talk about any formative assessment strategies they use and how this improves classroom or program level practice.

	 

	Thanks so much!!

	 

	Marie Cora

	 

	Marie Cora

	NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator

	marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com

	Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection

	http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/

	 

	 

	 

	-----Original Message-----
	From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org
	Sent: Tuesday, September 05, 2006 10:33 AM
	To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
	Subject: [SpecialTopics 177] Re: Questions on formative assessment

	 

	Dear Marie,

	Thank you for your questions.  I've provided some rather detailed answers here to be sure that the concepts are clear in this initial phases of the discussion.

	 

	> "The study shows how teachers have addressed barriers to systematic  

	> practice, and how school and policy leaders may apply the  

	> principles of formative assessment to promote constructive cultures  

	> of assessment and evaluation throughout education systems."

	 

	> Specifically:

	> Can you discuss further how formative assessment is not practiced  

	> systematically in secondary schools?  Does this refer to certain  

	> schools using the practice and others not, or rather, that  

	> formative assessment is used for certain purposes within a school  

	> or school system, but is not practiced in all aspects of the school  

	> (system)?

	 

	 

	When we talk about the "systematic" practice of formative assessment, we are talking about formative assessment as an integrated part of teaching and learning in classrooms.  Many (probably most) teachers often incorporate aspects of formative assessment - for example, finding new ways to explain a concept when a student does not understand.  But as teachers in our own case studies noted, prior to establishing formative assessment as an overall framework for teaching and learning, these kinds of interactions were somewhat haphazard.   Many of the teachers in our case study schools said they had made fundamental changes in their approaches to teaching - in their interactions with students, the way they set up learning situations and guided students toward learning goals - even in the way they thought about student success - when they started to use formative assessment systematically.

	 

	> Formative assessment is an excellent approach for informing the  

	> teaching and learning process.  Can you discuss how formative  

	> assessment is also useful at the evaluation level - for example,  

	> for purposes of examining success on the program or system level?

	 

	In our study, we distinguish between assessment and evaluation. The term "assessment" is used to refer to judgments of student performance, and the term "evaluation" to refer to judgements of programme or organisational effectiveness.  

	 

	Ideally, information gathered in assessments and evaluations is used to shape strategies for improvement at each level of the education system. At the classroom level, teachers gather information on student understanding, and adjust teaching to meet identified learning needs. At the school level, school leaders use information to identify areas of strength and weakness across the school, and to develop strategies for improvement. At the policy level, officials use information gathered through national or regional tests, or through monitoring of school performance, to guide investments in training and support for schools and teachers, or to set broad priorities for education. In this way, summative information is used formatively at each level of the system. Teachers, school leaders and policy officials are more likely to use assessment information when assessments are well coordinated, and it is clear why and how the information is relevant to their work. 

	 

	One very valuable example of how formative principles can be applied at school and system level is found in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.  Since 2001, schools in this province have been developing action plans based on the provincial test results. School boards manage the planning process. Each school board brings principals together for two days. Consultants from the Department of Education review all test results with the district programme staff and school principals. Through this review and subsequent discussions, principals identify learning needs and incorporate them into their school development plan. The consultants are then available to help plan and implement teacher professional development programmes for schools that have identified teacher training as part of their action plan.

	 

	Another example may be found in Finland.  Finland does not have an inspectorate, and does not sponsor national examinations, except for the matriculation examination at the end of upper secondary general education. Instead, the National Board of Education tracks school quality through random sample evaluations of different subjects in each comprehensive school every third year. The results of these evaluations provide information on the quality of learning outcomes, and are utilised in ongoing development of the education system and core curricula, as well as in practical teaching work.

	 

	 

	> I'm not sure how the systems you studied are funded/supported, but  

	> is formative assessment used for reporting purposes to funders or  

	> government agencies?  How is this achieved?

	 

	Formative assessment within the classroom is used to inform teaching and learning and is not be used for reporting purposes in any of the systems we studied.  I would classify information used in this way as "summative assessment". 

	 

	 

	> In the systems that you researched, how are formative assessments  

	> developed and used?  Are they uniform or standardized?  Are there  

	> guidelines for development?  Who develops the assessments?  Is  

	> special training involved for administrators, teachers, or others  

	> using the assessments?

	 

	We found a variety of strategies for promoting formative assessment.  I'll provide just a few examples to illustrate the range of approaches (note that this is by no means a thorough list of each country's approach): 

	1.    legislation promoting and supporting the practice of formative assessment and establishing it as a priority.   Italy first introduced  the national "valuation form" in national legislation in 1977. Teachers are required to use the valuation form to compile data on their students, including information on what has been taught, any discipline issues, and results of assessment (including social, behavioural, cognitive and metacognitive factors). The form, which has been revised several times since 1977, is intended to facilitate communication between school leaders, teachers and students.

	 

	1.    efforts to encourage the use of summative data for formative purposes.  In Canada, all provinces and territories participate in a national programme to assess student achievement in mathematics, reading and writing, and science on a four-year cycle. Each province and territory receives its own results as well as an analysis by sub-test. Provinces may then conduct a secondary analysis to shape teaching practices. The three Canadian provinces participating in the OECD study, Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, and Qu?bec, encourage schools to use school-level data in school planning. 

	 

	In the early 1990s Her Majesty's Inspectors of Education in Scotland published school self-assessment and development planning guidelines that schools could use on a voluntary basis. Since 2001, all schools have been required to use these guidelines to develop school plans. The plans are to refer to data on student performance as gathered in national examinations for 16-year-olds and on attainment levels for students between the ages of 5 and 14 (as established in official targets). School plans are expected to evaluate teaching and learning practices and to include strategies for improvement. The plans are shared with parents and published in school outreach materials and on websites.

	 

	2.    Guidelines on effective teaching and formative assessment have been embedded in the national curriculum and other materials. 

	In 2000, the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) in England introduced the Assessment for Learning (AfL) programme, targeting pilots to Key Stage 3 schools - that is, lower secondary schools. AfL provides teachers, school leaders, local education authorities and other stakeholders with guidance and resources on the principles of good classroom assessment, as supported in research. DfES promises also to provide a repertoire of teaching strategies and tools from which schools and teachers may choose, based on students' needs and the school's goals and priorities.

	3.    provision of tools and exemplars to support effective formative assessment. 

	The New Zealand Ministry of Education has also supported the development of a number of tools for formative assessment. These include Assessment Tools for Teaching and Learning (asTTle) for assessing literacy and numeracy from years 5 to 10, in English and te reo Maori, and national curriculum exemplars for students in years 1-10 in all curriculum areas. The asTTle are a key component of both the government's literacy and numeracy assessment strategies. Teachers use the tools to evaluate the impact of teaching approaches on student achievement, and when necessary, to adjust teaching to better meet student needs. The national exemplars include annotated work samples and feature sample teacher-student dialogues and written teacher comments, showing how teachers might assess the student work in a formative manner, and in a way that is sensitive to different learning and communication styles of students. They are available in print form and on-line. Many are also supported by video clips.

	 

	4.  investments in special initiatives and innovative programmes incorporating formative assessment approaches. 

	 

	Several schools included in the case study countries participated in pilot or other special projects before deciding to adopt formative assessment teaching methods. Certainly, their participation in special projects signals that these are schools that are more open to innovation and change, and is likely one of the reasons the schools have come to the attention of researchers. Their participation in these projects also helped to prepare the ground for further change. 

	 

	5.    Investments in teacher professional development for formative assessment. 

	 

	Queensland has a variety of in-service workshops and professional development opportunities for teachers on assessment. At the senior secondary school level, professional workshops assist teachers in implementing assessment in the subjects they teach. Teacher practice is supported by strong professional networks and professional subject-based organisations. Service on moderation panels (discussed above) is recognised as providing powerful professional development for panellists, and many schools encourage their staff to seek panel membership. Feedback from moderation panels to schools involves teachers in discussions on their assessment practices, both within their school and with the relevant panel. Being wholly responsible for student assessment, teachers continually reflect on their assessment practice and consider how it can be improved. Assessment practice is therefore always evolving. 

	 

	 

		-----Original Message-----
		From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Marie Cora
		Sent: Saturday, September 02, 2006 11:28 PM
		To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
		Subject: [SpecialTopics 174] Questions on formative assessment

		Ms. Looney,

		 

		Thank you so much for taking the time to share your findings and respond to some of our questions.  This is an extremely timely topic for us to explore here in the U.S.  I am very interested in hearing you discuss in some detail these two points of the study:

		 

		"The study shows how teachers have addressed barriers to systematic practice, and how school and policy leaders may apply the principles of formative assessment to promote constructive cultures of assessment and evaluation throughout education systems."

		 

		Specifically:

		Can you discuss further how formative assessment is not practiced systematically in secondary schools?  Does this refer to certain schools using the practice and others not, or rather, that formative assessment is used for certain purposes within a school or school system, but is not practiced in all aspects of the school (system)?

		 

		Formative assessment is an excellent approach for informing the teaching and learning process.  Can you discuss how formative assessment is also useful at the evaluation level - for example, for purposes of examining success on the program or system level?  

		 

		I'm not sure how the systems you studied are funded/supported, but is formative assessment used for reporting purposes to funders or government agencies?  How is this achieved?  

		 

		In the systems that you researched, how are formative assessments developed and used?  Are they uniform or standardized?  Are there guidelines for development?  Who develops the assessments?  Is special training involved for administrators, teachers, or others using the assessments?

		 

		Thank you for your responses.

		 

		Marie Cora

		 

		 

		Marie Cora

		NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator

		marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com

		Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection

		http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/

		 

		 

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From marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com  Wed Sep  6 22:21:18 2006
From: marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com (Marie Cora)
Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2006 22:21:18 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 189] Re: Questions on formative assessment
In-Reply-To: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E324789@secure.workbase.org.nz>
Message-ID: <019001c6d224$4e2549c0$0302a8c0@LITNOW>

Hi Susan,
 
Thanks so much for this ? I?m anxious to check it all out!
 
Marie 
 
Marie Cora
NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection
http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/
 
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Susan Reid
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 5:58 PM
To: Marie Cora; specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 188] Re: Questions on formative assessment
 
Hi Marie 
apart from asTTLE which is online in New Zealand 
http://www.tki.org.nz/r/asttle/index_e.php
there has also been a number of other efforts around assessment
developed for the K-12 sector 
 
 http://www.tki.org.nz/r/assessment/
 
this online PD is about formative assessment  developed for our K-12
sector but is really relevant to the adult sector as well 
http://www.tki.org.nz/r/assessment/atol_online/ppt/online_workshop_1.ppt
 
 
there is a part in this resource which talks about the importance of
feedback in formative assessment and I know as a tutor I have struggled
in this area to do more that say you have done really well and have
learned over the years  not to stop at that but to keep going and point
out what has been done well and a couple of areas for improvement and
work out with the learner what could be done  to achieve those
improvements
 
Regards Susan Reid 
 
Manager, Professional Development 
Workbase: The New Zealand Centre for Workforce Literacy Development 
2 Vermont Street, Ponsonby - PO Box 56571, Dominion Road, Auckland 1030
Phone: 09 361 3800 - Fax: 09 376 3700           
Website: www.workbase.org.nz - Email: sreid at workbase.org.nz
 
See New Zealand Literacy Portal 
 
www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz
 
Caution - This email and its contents contain privileged information
that is intended solely for the recipient.  If you are not the intended
recipient you are hereby notified that any use, dissemination,
distribution or reproduction of this email is prohibited.  If you have
received this email in error please notify admin at workbase.org.nz
immediately.  Any views expressed in this email are of the sender and
may not necessarily reflect the views of Workbase: The New Zealand
Centre for Workforce Literacy Development.
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: Marie Cora
Sent: 7/09/2006 6:57 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 182] Re: Questions on formative assessment


Dear Janet,
 
Thanks for this rich amount of info and explanation.  I?m so impressed
by the array of innovative thought and action that these different
countries and programs are pursuing.  I see formative assessment as a
fundamental mechanism for examining what is happening, and then taking
this information (data) in order to improve practice on the classroom,
program, or state/country scale.  Your study clearly shows that
formative assessment can and is being used to improve service delivery
on all levels ? including guiding the investments that are necessary for
success in the program and classroom.
 
A couple questions:  You noted that in Finland, they use ?random sample
evaluations of different subjects? ? does this mean that they study test
data in subjects on an aggregate level and make determinations from
this?  If so, this would mean that accountability is spread more
broadly, as opposed to studying individual performance/test data and
then linking success or failure to either individuals (the student or
the teacher) or smaller entities (one school as opposed to a whole
school system).  I would think that such an approach would necessitate
studying not only what is happening in the classroom and school, but
also what types of educational materials and assessments are being used.
Would that be a correct assumption?
 
Also, you discuss the use of guidelines for promoting formative
assessment in various countries/programs that you studied, and you do
note that one set from New Zealand is available for us to look at.  Are
the other materials from the countries you studied also accessible?
These guidelines, case studies, and action plans would be extremely
helpful in developing a focus on the use of formative assessments in
this country.
 
You note that many teachers described changes in their behavior once
they started to use formative assessments ? in their interactions with
students, how they set up learning, in providing guidance toward goals,
and in how they think about student success.  I would be extremely
interested in hearing more about this ? can you provide us with a couple
of examples of these types of teacher change?  Did the process of going
from random to systematic use of formative assessments begin with
professional development for the teachers, application of the learning,
and then reflecting on the results, or was it less deliberate?  In other
words, did the teachers in your case study already use this approach and
just realized it was successful so incorporated it further?  Or were
these teachers part of a process to get them to learn and use formative
assessment strategies? 
 
And I also have a question for subscribers:  Janet notes that one
example of incorporating formative assessment into teaching would be
finding new ways to explain concepts when the student is struggling to
understand.  I?m guessing that this sounds super familiar to everyone
out there ? searching for new ways to help the student when the old ways
are not cutting it.   Can subscribers talk about any formative
assessment strategies they use and how this improves classroom or
program level practice.
 
Thanks so much!!
 
Marie Cora
 
Marie Cora
NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection
http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/
 
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of
Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org
Sent: Tuesday, September 05, 2006 10:33 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 177] Re: Questions on formative assessment
 
Dear Marie,
Thank you for your questions.  I've provided some rather detailed
answers here to be sure that the concepts are clear in this initial
phases of the discussion.
 
> ?The study shows how teachers have addressed barriers to systematic  
> practice, and how school and policy leaders may apply the  
> principles of formative assessment to promote constructive cultures  
> of assessment and evaluation throughout education systems.?
 
> Specifically:
> Can you discuss further how formative assessment is not practiced  
> systematically in secondary schools?  Does this refer to certain  
> schools using the practice and others not, or rather, that  
> formative assessment is used for certain purposes within a school  
> or school system, but is not practiced in all aspects of the school  
> (system)?
 
 
When we talk about the ?systematic? practice of formative assessment, we
are talking about formative assessment as an integrated part of teaching
and learning in classrooms.  Many (probably most) teachers often
incorporate aspects of formative assessment ? for example, finding new
ways to explain a concept when a student does not understand.  But as
teachers in our own case studies noted, prior to establishing formative
assessment as an overall framework for teaching and learning, these
kinds of interactions were somewhat haphazard.   Many of the teachers in
our case study schools said they had made fundamental changes in their
approaches to teaching ? in their interactions with students, the way
they set up learning situations and guided students toward learning
goals ? even in the way they thought about student success ? when they
started to use formative assessment systematically.
 
> Formative assessment is an excellent approach for informing the  
> teaching and learning process.  Can you discuss how formative  
> assessment is also useful at the evaluation level ? for example,  
> for purposes of examining success on the program or system level?
 
In our study, we distinguish between assessment and evaluation. The term
?assessment? is used to refer to judgments of student performance, and
the term ?evaluation? to refer to judgements of programme or
organisational effectiveness.  
 
Ideally, information gathered in assessments and evaluations is used to
shape strategies for improvement at each level of the education system.
At the classroom level, teachers gather information on student
understanding, and adjust teaching to meet identified learning needs. At
the school level, school leaders use information to identify areas of
strength and weakness across the school, and to develop strategies for
improvement. At the policy level, officials use information gathered
through national or regional tests, or through monitoring of school
performance, to guide investments in training and support for schools
and teachers, or to set broad priorities for education. In this way,
summative information is used formatively at each level of the system.
Teachers, school leaders and policy officials are more likely to use
assessment information when assessments are well coordinated, and it is
clear why and how the information is relevant to their work. 
 
One very valuable example of how formative principles can be applied at
school and system level is found in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
Since 2001, schools in this province have been developing action plans
based on the provincial test results. School boards manage the planning
process. Each school board brings principals together for two days.
Consultants from the Department of Education review all test results
with the district programme staff and school principals. Through this
review and subsequent discussions, principals identify learning needs
and incorporate them into their school development plan. The consultants
are then available to help plan and implement teacher professional
development programmes for schools that have identified teacher training
as part of their action plan.
 
Another example may be found in Finland.  Finland does not have an
inspectorate, and does not sponsor national examinations, except for the
matriculation examination at the end of upper secondary general
education. Instead, the National Board of Education tracks school
quality through random sample evaluations of different subjects in each
comprehensive school every third year. The results of these evaluations
provide information on the quality of learning outcomes, and are
utilised in ongoing development of the education system and core
curricula, as well as in practical teaching work.
 
 
> I?m not sure how the systems you studied are funded/supported, but  
> is formative assessment used for reporting purposes to funders or  
> government agencies?  How is this achieved?
 
Formative assessment within the classroom is used to inform teaching and
learning and is not be used for reporting purposes in any of the systems
we studied.  I would classify information used in this way as ?summative
assessment?. 
 
 
> In the systems that you researched, how are formative assessments  
> developed and used?  Are they uniform or standardized?  Are there  
> guidelines for development?  Who develops the assessments?  Is  
> special training involved for administrators, teachers, or others  
> using the assessments?
 
We found a variety of strategies for promoting formative assessment.
I?ll provide just a few examples to illustrate the range of approaches
(note that this is by no means a thorough list of each country?s
approach): 
1.    legislation promoting and supporting the practice of formative
assessment and establishing it as a priority.   Italy first introduced
the national ?valuation form? in national legislation in 1977. Teachers
are required to use the valuation form to compile data on their
students, including information on what has been taught, any discipline
issues, and results of assessment (including social, behavioural,
cognitive and metacognitive factors). The form, which has been revised
several times since 1977, is intended to facilitate communication
between school leaders, teachers and students.
 
1.    efforts to encourage the use of summative data for formative
purposes.  In Canada, all provinces and territories participate in a
national programme to assess student achievement in mathematics, reading
and writing, and science on a four-year cycle. Each province and
territory receives its own results as well as an analysis by sub-test.
Provinces may then conduct a secondary analysis to shape teaching
practices. The three Canadian provinces participating in the OECD study,
Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, and Qu?bec, encourage schools
to use school-level data in school planning. 
 
In the early 1990s Her Majesty?s Inspectors of Education in Scotland
published school self-assessment and development planning guidelines
that schools could use on a voluntary basis. Since 2001, all schools
have been required to use these guidelines to develop school plans. The
plans are to refer to data on student performance as gathered in
national examinations for 16-year-olds and on attainment levels for
students between the ages of 5 and 14 (as established in official
targets). School plans are expected to evaluate teaching and learning
practices and to include strategies for improvement. The plans are
shared with parents and published in school outreach materials and on
websites.
 
2.    Guidelines on effective teaching and formative assessment have
been embedded in the national curriculum and other materials. 
In 2000, the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) in England
introduced the Assessment for Learning (AfL) programme, targeting pilots
to Key Stage 3 schools ? that is, lower secondary schools. AfL provides
teachers, school leaders, local education authorities and other
stakeholders with guidance and resources on the principles of good
classroom assessment, as supported in research. DfES promises also to
provide a repertoire of teaching strategies and tools from which schools
and teachers may choose, based on students? needs and the school?s goals
and priorities.
3.    provision of tools and exemplars to support effective formative
assessment. 
The New Zealand Ministry of Education has also supported the development
of a number of tools for formative assessment. These include Assessment
Tools for Teaching and Learning (asTTle) for assessing literacy and
numeracy from years 5 to 10, in English and te reo Maori, and national
curriculum exemplars for students in years 1-10 in all curriculum areas.
The asTTle are a key component of both the government?s literacy and
numeracy assessment strategies. Teachers use the tools to evaluate the
impact of teaching approaches on student achievement, and when
necessary, to adjust teaching to better meet student needs. The national
exemplars include annotated work samples and feature sample
teacher-student dialogues and written teacher comments, showing how
teachers might assess the student work in a formative manner, and in a
way that is sensitive to different learning and communication styles of
students. They are available in print form and on-line. Many are also
supported by video clips.
 
4.  investments in special initiatives and innovative programmes
incorporating formative assessment approaches. 
 
Several schools included in the case study countries participated in
pilot or other special projects before deciding to adopt formative
assessment teaching methods. Certainly, their participation in special
projects signals that these are schools that are more open to innovation
and change, and is likely one of the reasons the schools have come to
the attention of researchers. Their participation in these projects also
helped to prepare the ground for further change. 
 
5.    Investments in teacher professional development for formative
assessment. 
 
Queensland has a variety of in-service workshops and professional
development opportunities for teachers on assessment. At the senior
secondary school level, professional workshops assist teachers in
implementing assessment in the subjects they teach. Teacher practice is
supported by strong professional networks and professional subject-based
organisations. Service on moderation panels (discussed above) is
recognised as providing powerful professional development for
panellists, and many schools encourage their staff to seek panel
membership. Feedback from moderation panels to schools involves teachers
in discussions on their assessment practices, both within their school
and with the relevant panel. Being wholly responsible for student
assessment, teachers continually reflect on their assessment practice
and consider how it can be improved. Assessment practice is therefore
always evolving. 
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Marie Cora
Sent: Saturday, September 02, 2006 11:28 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 174] Questions on formative assessment
Ms. Looney,
 
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your findings and respond
to some of our questions.  This is an extremely timely topic for us to
explore here in the U.S.  I am very interested in hearing you discuss in
some detail these two points of the study:
 
?The study shows how teachers have addressed barriers to systematic
practice, and how school and policy leaders may apply the principles of
formative assessment to promote constructive cultures of assessment and
evaluation throughout education systems.?
 
Specifically:
Can you discuss further how formative assessment is not practiced
systematically in secondary schools?  Does this refer to certain schools
using the practice and others not, or rather, that formative assessment
is used for certain purposes within a school or school system, but is
not practiced in all aspects of the school (system)?
 
Formative assessment is an excellent approach for informing the teaching
and learning process.  Can you discuss how formative assessment is also
useful at the evaluation level ? for example, for purposes of examining
success on the program or system level?  
 
I?m not sure how the systems you studied are funded/supported, but is
formative assessment used for reporting purposes to funders or
government agencies?  How is this achieved?  
 
In the systems that you researched, how are formative assessments
developed and used?  Are they uniform or standardized?  Are there
guidelines for development?  Who develops the assessments?  Is special
training involved for administrators, teachers, or others using the
assessments?
 
Thank you for your responses.
 
Marie Cora
 
 
Marie Cora
NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection
http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/
 
 
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From Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org  Thu Sep  7 05:21:46 2006
From: Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org (Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 11:21:46 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 190] Re: Questions on formative assessment
In-Reply-To: <010b01c6d1de$8dd77390$0302a8c0@LITNOW>
Message-ID: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF8F5@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>

Good morning from Paris.  
 
Yesterday, Maria wrote:   " You noted that in Finland, they use "random
sample evaluations of different subjects" - does this mean that they study
test data in subjects on an aggregate level and make determinations from
this?  If so, this would mean that accountability is spread more broadly, as
opposed to studying individual performance/test data and then linking success
or failure to either individuals (the student or the teacher) or smaller
entities (one school as opposed to a whole school system).  I would think
that such an approach would necessitate studying not only what is happening
in the classroom and school, but also what types of educational materials and
assessments are being used.  Would that be a correct assumption? "
 
You are correct in your assumptions - the test data are used to track general
trends in student learning, not as a mechanism for holding individual schools
accountable.  Schools being evaluated do receive their results, but the
results are not published more widely.  The Finnish National Board of
Education uses the results of the random evaluations for ongoing development
of the education system and core curricula.
 
 
Also, you discuss the use of guidelines for promoting formative assessment in
various countries/programs that you studied, and you do note that one set
from New Zealand is available for us to look at.  Are the other materials
from the countries you studied also accessible?  These guidelines, case
studies, and action plans would be extremely helpful in developing a focus on
the use of formative assessments in this country. 
 
Thanks to Susan Reid for providing the url for guidelines used in New
Zealand.  You will find a number of resources from other countries by
searching their sites for "formative assessment".  Sites from the
English-speaking countries will be easiest to follow, of course.
 
- The site for the UK is http://www.dfes.gov.uk <http://www.dfes.gov.uk> 
- Learning and Teaching Scotland has a number of resources at
http://www.ltscotland.org.uk
- The Ministry of Education in Canada will also link you to a number of
resources.  See http://www.edu.gov.on.ca <http://www.edu.gov.on.ca> 
-  For Queensland, Australia, consult http://www.qsa.qld.edu.au
<http://www.qsa.qld.edu.au> 
- And as Susan Reid mentioned, you may find resources used by New Zealand
teachers for asTTLE at htpp://www.tki.org.nz/r/asttle/index_e.php
<http://www.tki.org.nz/r/asttle/index_e.php> ; and other resources at
http://www.tki.org.nz/r/assessment/  
 
 Countries revise their strategies and update and improve materials, so it is
worth checking in from time to time. 
 
Maria wrote that "You note that many teachers described changes in their
behavior once they started to use formative assessments - in their
interactions with students, how they set up learning, in providing guidance
toward goals, and in how they think about student success.  I would be
extremely interested in hearing more about this - can you provide us with a
couple of examples of these types of teacher change?  Did the process of
going from random to systematic use of formative assessments begin with
professional development for the teachers, application of the learning, and
then reflecting on the results, or was it less deliberate?  In other words,
did the teachers in your case study already use this approach and just
realized it was successful so incorporated it further?  Or were these
teachers part of a process to get them to learn and use formative assessment
strategies? " 
 
The process of going from somewhat random, or haphazard to systematic use of
formative assessment varied in each of the sites we visited.  Very often the
schools featured in our study had been involved in special pilot projects,
partnerships with University-based research projects, or other innovations.
Participation in special projects signals that these are schools that are
more open to innovation and change, and is likely one of the reasons the
schools have come to the attention of researchers for our own study. Their
experiences also provide useful lessons for others on the process of change.
 
A couple of examples of how schools approached the process of integrating
formative assessment into regular teaching....At Rosehill College in
Auckland, New Zealand,  the school's involvement in the national "Assessment
for Better Learning" professional development programme as the development of
National Curriculum Exemplars helped place the focus on formative assessment.
The leadership team  at the school  also  started staff discussions on
formative assessment ,    shared  professional reading on formative
assessment ,  invited expert speakers and asked individual departments tihin
the school to work on their own ideas about how to implement formative
assessment within classrooms.
 
Each of the schools involved in the English case study were part of the
King's-Medway-Oxfordshire Formative Assessment Project initiated in January
1999 (KMOFAP -  refers to the partnership between Paul Black and Dylan
Wiliam's team at King's College and selected schools in Medway and
Oxfordshire).  The project, funded by the Nuffield foundation, introduced a
small group of teachers (usually department heads)  to the Black & Wiliam
research on formative assessment through a series of three one-day workshops
over a six-month period, and encouraged them to try out some innovations in
their practice, and to plan the innovations they wanted to implement with one
class in the following school year. These teachers, in turn, shared their
ideas with colleagues.   The process of translating research into practice
involved a close partnership between the University and the schools.   
 
Between 1985 and 1995 the Michelangelo School in Bari, Italy was among a
small number of schools selected by the Italian Ministry of Education to
participate in a project to revise the national valuation form (mentioned the
other day).  This school is unusual in having very low turnover, in fact,
several of the teachers involved in the pilot recall that the experience of
working together on this demonstration project was key to shaping their
strong working relationship.
 
These are just a few of examples.  
 
 
 And I also have a question for subscribers:  Janet notes that one example of
incorporating formative assessment into teaching would be finding new ways to
explain concepts when the student is struggling to understand.  I'm guessing
that this sounds super familiar to everyone out there - searching for new
ways to help the student when the old ways are not cutting it.   Can
subscribers talk about any formative assessment strategies they use and how
this improves classroom or program level practice 
 
Good discussion question.  I'd be very interested in hearing about this from
subscribers, as well.
	 
	 
	Thanks so much!!
	 
	Marie Cora
	 
	Marie Cora
	NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
	marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
	Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection
	http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/
	 
	 
	 
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From Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org  Thu Sep  7 05:56:59 2006
From: Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org (Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 11:56:59 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 191] Re: Formative Assessment
	inInternationalEducation
In-Reply-To: <EAC016DA373E1043AAF027E99C2EF50105FA8A54@acemail02n.foed.auckland.ac.nz>
Message-ID: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF8F6@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>

Let me jump into the discussion between Aaron and John about "formative
assessment being yet another thing to add to teachers' already long list of
tasks to do".  

As John notes, Black and Wiliam do argue that formative assessment should
replace/improve what teachers already do.  Our argument in the OECD study is
that formative assessment should be an overall framework for teaching - part
of the classroom culture, where teachers and students use tools for
assessment, set goals and track progress, use varied approaches to
teaching,learning and assessment, and give regular feedback on how to reach
learning goals.  

One of the school leaders in a school we visited said that formative
assessment had helped them to be more strategic about innovation...rather
than just letting a thousand flowers bloom.

It's also important to note that the process of introducing change involves
some pragmatic solutions.  For example, teachers involved in a couple of the
English case study schools had gotten into the habit of giving individual
students feedback orally, and having the student record the feedback in their
learning journal....saving quite a bit of time for the teacher. 

Other teachers said they invested more time up front in training students to
use criteria and rubrics for self and peer-assessment, but saved a lot of
time later - and also built students' learning to learn skills.  

Sometimes teachers decided to cut back on the quantity of learning to focus
on quality...those core concepts most important for students to understand if
they are really to grasp the subject.

I agree with John that formative assessment can improve/add to  teaching
skills incrementally and teachers do not have to change everything.  It's
kind of a "scaffolding" for teachers, and ultimatey more effective as
teachers see small changes and build their confidence.

In response to John's question on what will come out of the OECD study on
adult basic skill learners and foramtive assessment: 

- We are finalising country background reports addressing challenges facing
countries, and current policy approaches.  These will appear on our Internet
site over Autumn 2006.  Then countries are contributing background reports.
They include: Australia, Belgium (the Flemish Community), Denmark, England,
France, New Zealand, Norway, Scotland, Spain and the United States.

- We are gathering findings from the country case studies.  Seven countries
are contributing case studies.  They include: Belgium (the Flemish
Community), Denmark, England, France, Norway, Scotland, and the United
States.

- We have also commissioned reviews of English-language, German-language and
Spanish literature.

Each of these components will inform the OECD analysis. The final OECD report
on the study findings is scheduled for mid-2007.  

We will also share the findings in confererences and workshops, and with this
discussion group!

- Janet

Analyst and Project Lead, What Works in Innovation
Centre for Educational Research and Innovation
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
www.oecd.org/edu/ceri
Phone: +33 (0)1 45 24 91 71
Fax:     +33 (0)1 44 30 63 94 



-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]
On Behalf Of Benseman John
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 11:42 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 186] Re: Formative Assessment
inInternationalEducation


In response to Aaron's posting about formative assessment being yet another
thing to add to teachers' already long list of tasks to do:
 

*	
	Black and Wiliam argue that formative assessment should
replace/improve what teachers already do, not just be added on top of every
thing else.
*	
	the point about formative assessment is to improve what we already do
as teachers and make better use of the information that we get in the process
*	
	one of the attractions about formative assessment is that teachers
can improve/add to their teaching skills incrementally and not have to change
everything - they could for example focus on improving their questioning
skills before tackling students learning to review each others' work

Two other points about formative assessment:

*	because it is fundamentally about generic aspects of teaching, it has
currency for all teachers, irrespective of the content of their teaching,
level etc. It is a very good strategy for professional development because of
its relevance across the board
*	being involved in developing formative assessment usually involves
peer observation for teachers, which is probably one of the best prompts to
critically review our own practices. My own interest in formative assessment
was initially prompted by carrying out an observation study of 15 literacy
and numeracy teachers (
http://www.minedu.govt.nz/index.cfm?layout=document&documentid=10929&indexid=
1028&indexparentid=1000 ), which really brought home to me the importance of
generic teaching skills such as questioning (eg teachers asking questions and
then supplying the answer themselves ('rescuing' their learners so that they
don't feel failures) about 2 seconds later) and scaffolding off learners'
responses.

Janet - it might be useful to outline what is going to come out of the OECD
study when it is published?

John

John Benseman PhD
 
Director of Research & Evaluation, Upskilling NZ
(based at Department of Labour)
DDI 04 915 4195 - Cell: 021 0489 143
 
Faculty of Education, The University of Auckland
PB 92019, Auckland, NZ
*   j.benseman at auckland.ac.nz <mailto:j.benseman at auckland.ac.nz> 
(   0064 9 623 8899, ext 87161
7 0064 9 373 7455
Office location: Room 365, N Block, Epsom Campus

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of Kohring, Aaron M
Sent: Thu 7/09/2006 6:36 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 184] Re: Formative Assessment in
InternationalEducation



 David,

I was struck by your last question in regards to my own work: Do we need to
pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

I would say- Yes.

With teachers that I've worked with- they always mention how the standardized
(summative) tests they are required to administer do not really tell them
what they need to be teaching.  Then we go another step and talk about how
formative assessments add to that picture of what learners know and can do-
thus giving them more information about what to teach as well as helping to
show progress.

Yet, some of the recurring themes many instructors seem to deal with-
especially in the U.S.- where many only work part-time are:
1) Having time (preferably paid) for: working with learners to assess what
they want to know and be able to do, understanding where they are starting
from, planning the lesson along with useful assessment(s), etc.
2) Not having much experience in developing a 'suitable' formative assessment
3) Dealing with tensions for accountability (needing to show level gains
based on acceptable reporting measures for the federal government)

So does that mean education to understand the benefits and uses of formative
and summative assessments?  Professional development on developing/creating
assessments?  Educating legislators/funders about issues with accountability
and part-time staff?  All of these?

Aaron 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]
On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 8:16 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 180] Formative Assessment in International Education

Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,

We would like to hear from you.

What has been your experience with formative assessment?
Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom? Have you done
research -- qualitative or quantitative, including classroom research -- on
the effects of formative assessment? What did you find? Are you satisfied
with using only summative (standardized per-post
NRS-required) assessment?
Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or questions now.

Thanks.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


 
The Faculty invites you  to its 125th Jubilee of Teacher Education,  23
September 2006 
For further information: http://alumniandfriends.education.auckland.ac.nz 
Phone Maureen Tizard on [09]6238899 extn48689 
######################################################################
Attention: 
This e-mail message is privileged and confidential. If you are not the 
intended recipient please delete the message and notify the sender. 
Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author.

This e-mail has been scanned and cleared by MailMarshal 
www.marshalsoftware.com
######################################################################
-------------------------------
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Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org  Thu Sep  7 06:04:50 2006
From: Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org (Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 12:04:50 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 192] Re: Formative Assessment in International
	Education
In-Reply-To: <14794889A1E3AF419042F64CC5425A1E32478F@secure.workbase.org.nz>
Message-ID: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF8F7@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>

Susan - 
 
On the quote "Sympathy doesn't raise standards , aspiration does". 
 
I can't take credit for it....but it's certainly a good quote.  We had
several school leaders presenting at workships at the conference ...perhaps
it is from one of their presentations?
 
- Janet

	-----Original Message-----
	From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Susan Reid
	Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 11:58 PM
	To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
	Subject: [SpecialTopics 187] Re: Formative Assessment in
International Education
	
	
	I am at my desk in the ofice now where the quote is pinned on my wall

	 
	Sympathy doesn't raise standards , aspiration does 
	 
	shows you how good my memory is 
	 
	Regards Susan Reid 
	 

		-----Original Message-----
		From: Susan Reid
		Sent: 7/09/2006 9:09 a.m.
		To: specialtopics at nifl.gov; specialtopics at nifl.gov
		Subject: [SpecialTopics 183] Re: Formative Assessment in
International Education
		
		
		
		

		 


		Hi David 

		as you are aware New Zealand is taking part in the OECD
study. 

		In New Zealand the Government has also undertaken a small
scale research study on assessment in a range of adult literacy programmes (
called foundation learning in New Zealand). The purpose of the research study
was to contribute to an understanding of what is required to enhance the
assessment capability of tertiary education providers of learning in
literacy, numeracy, and language. Formative assessment has been pushed hard
in the compulsory education sector in New Zealand ( K-12) and as the report
shows is a bit hit and miss in the adult literacy sector in New Zealand. We
don't yet have standardised tests that we have to use in the adult literacy
sector here. 

		the summary report about the research study  is at
http://educationcounts.edcentre.govt.nz/publications/tertairy/assessment-foun
dation.html

		the full report is available for download at the bottom of
the webpage about the summary report

		 

		Janet is it useful to give the urls for the PowerPoint
presentations from the International Conference in Paris last year around
Improving Learning through Formative Assessment - even though they are school
focussed there is some interesting information in them. I really liked a
quote from one of them - I am recalling this from memory and not sure whether
it was your quote Janet  - Hope doesn't build good schools - aspiration does


		same applies for adult literacy although funding and
perspiration seem to be factors as well. 

		Very interesting discussion - I like these Special Topics 

		Thank you 

		Susan Reid 

		Manager Professional Development 

		Workbase the New Zealand for Workforce Literacy 

		www.workbase.org.nz

		see also the New Zealand Literacy Portal
www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz

		 

		 

		 


________________________________

		From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
		Sent: Thu 7/09/2006 12:16 a.m.
		To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
		Subject: [SpecialTopics 180] Formative Assessment in
International Education
		
		

		Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,
		
		We would like to hear from you.
		
		What has been your experience with formative assessment?
		Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom?
		Have you done research -- qualitative or quantitative,
including 
		classroom research -- on the effects of formative assessment?
What 
		did you find?
		Are you satisfied with using only summative (standardized
per-post 
		NRS-required) assessment?
		Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in
the U.S.?
		
		Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or
questions now.
		
		Thanks.
		
		David J. Rosen
		Special Topics Discussion Moderator
		djrosen at comcast.net
		
		
		
		-------------------------------
		National Institute for Literacy
		Special Topics mailing list
		SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
		To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please
go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
		

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From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu Sep  7 07:25:36 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David J. Rosen)
Date: Thu, 07 Sep 2006 07:25:36 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 193] Formative assessment and professional
	development
In-Reply-To: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF8F5@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>
References: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF8F5@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>
Message-ID: <450001B0.4080009@comcast.net>

Thanks for your thoughtful and informative answers to these questions, 
Janet.  And thanks for your willingness to stay on through Friday 
(morning in the U.S.).

Colleagues, if you have more questions or comments, please post them now.

Marie wrote:  "Did the process of going from random to systematic use of 
formative assessments begin with professional development for the 
teachers, application of the learning, and then reflecting on the 
results, or was it less deliberate?  In other words, did the teachers in 
your case study already use this approach and just realized it was 
successful so incorporated it further?  Or were these teachers part of a 
process to get them to learn and use formative assessment strategies? "

I too have been wondering about professional development for formative 
assessment.  In the high school study, or in the current adult basic 
skill study, are there examples of good models for professional 
development for formative assessment? Are any of these documented?  And 
has a relationship been established between professional development, 
especially ongoing professional development, and success in implementing 
formative assessment?

David

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



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From akohring at utk.edu  Thu Sep  7 08:15:13 2006
From: akohring at utk.edu (Kohring, Aaron M)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 08:15:13 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 194] Re: Formative Assessment
	inInternationalEducation
In-Reply-To: <EAC016DA373E1043AAF027E99C2EF50105FA8A54@acemail02n.foed.auckland.ac.nz>
Message-ID: <6A5CE13D731DE249BC61CB8C5C474B0A147398A7@UTKFSVS1.utk.tennessee.edu>

John,

Thanks for raising your point about adding formative assessment to the
list of things to do as an instructor.  I also feel like it should be
integrated into the teaching process not an add-on.  Which is why I
replied "yes" to David's issue of paying more attention to formative
assessment.  Perhaps an area that needs much more PD support here in the
U.S.?
Aaron 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Benseman John
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 5:42 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 186] Re: Formative Assessment
inInternationalEducation

In response to Aaron's posting about formative assessment being yet
another thing to add to teachers' already long list of tasks to do:
 

*	
	Black and Wiliam argue that formative assessment should
replace/improve what teachers already do, not just be added on top of
every thing else.
*	
	the point about formative assessment is to improve what we
already do as teachers and make better use of the information that we
get in the process
*	
	one of the attractions about formative assessment is that
teachers can improve/add to their teaching skills incrementally and not
have to change everything - they could for example focus on improving
their questioning skills before tackling students learning to review
each others' work

Two other points about formative assessment:

*	because it is fundamentally about generic aspects of teaching,
it has currency for all teachers, irrespective of the content of their
teaching, level etc. It is a very good strategy for professional
development because of its relevance across the board
*	being involved in developing formative assessment usually
involves peer observation for teachers, which is probably one of the
best prompts to critically review our own practices. My own interest in
formative assessment was initially prompted by carrying out an
observation study of 15 literacy and numeracy teachers (
http://www.minedu.govt.nz/index.cfm?layout=document&documentid=10929&ind
exid=1028&indexparentid=1000 ), which really brought home to me the
importance of generic teaching skills such as questioning (eg teachers
asking questions and then supplying the answer themselves ('rescuing'
their learners so that they don't feel failures) about 2 seconds later)
and scaffolding off learners' responses.

Janet - it might be useful to outline what is going to come out of the
OECD study when it is published?

John

John Benseman PhD
 
Director of Research & Evaluation, Upskilling NZ (based at Department of
Labour) DDI 04 915 4195 - Cell: 021 0489 143
 
Faculty of Education, The University of Auckland PB 92019, Auckland, NZ
*   j.benseman at auckland.ac.nz <mailto:j.benseman at auckland.ac.nz> 
(   0064 9 623 8899, ext 87161
7 0064 9 373 7455
Office location: Room 365, N Block, Epsom Campus

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of Kohring, Aaron M
Sent: Thu 7/09/2006 6:36 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 184] Re: Formative Assessment in
InternationalEducation



 David,

I was struck by your last question in regards to my own work: Do we need
to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

I would say- Yes.

With teachers that I've worked with- they always mention how the
standardized (summative) tests they are required to administer do not
really tell them what they need to be teaching.  Then we go another step
and talk about how formative assessments add to that picture of what
learners know and can do- thus giving them more information about what
to teach as well as helping to show progress.

Yet, some of the recurring themes many instructors seem to deal with-
especially in the U.S.- where many only work part-time are:
1) Having time (preferably paid) for: working with learners to assess
what they want to know and be able to do, understanding where they are
starting from, planning the lesson along with useful assessment(s), etc.
2) Not having much experience in developing a 'suitable' formative
assessment
3) Dealing with tensions for accountability (needing to show level gains
based on acceptable reporting measures for the federal government)

So does that mean education to understand the benefits and uses of
formative and summative assessments?  Professional development on
developing/creating assessments?  Educating legislators/funders about
issues with accountability and part-time staff?  All of these?

Aaron 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 8:16 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 180] Formative Assessment in International
Education

Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,

We would like to hear from you.

What has been your experience with formative assessment?
Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom?
Have you done research -- qualitative or quantitative, including
classroom research -- on the effects of formative assessment? What did
you find?
Are you satisfied with using only summative (standardized per-post
NRS-required) assessment?
Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or questions now.

Thanks.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


 
The Faculty invites you  to its 125th Jubilee of Teacher Education,  23
September 2006 For further information:
http://alumniandfriends.education.auckland.ac.nz
Phone Maureen Tizard on [09]6238899 extn48689
######################################################################
Attention: 
This e-mail message is privileged and confidential. If you are not the
intended recipient please delete the message and notify the sender. 
Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author.

This e-mail has been scanned and cleared by MailMarshal
www.marshalsoftware.com
######################################################################
-------------------------------
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Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From jcrawford at nifl.gov  Thu Sep  7 10:27:40 2006
From: jcrawford at nifl.gov (Crawford, June)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 10:27:40 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 195] Re: Formative Assessment in International
	Education
Message-ID: <9B35BF1886881547B5DFF88364AF31A30C842F76@wdcrobe2m03.ed.gov>

Susan,
I tried to reach the page you list in your message but I keep getting an
error message.  Can anyone get this?  Is it just my government computer that
is blocking it or is there an error in the address?  Please advise.
June Crawford

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Susan Reid
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 5:58 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 187] Re: Formative Assessment in International
Education


I am at my desk in the ofice now where the quote is pinned on my wall 
 
Sympathy doesn't raise standards , aspiration does 
 
shows you how good my memory is 
 
Regards Susan Reid 
 

-----Original Message-----
From: Susan Reid
Sent: 7/09/2006 9:09 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov; specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 183] Re: Formative Assessment in International
Education





 


Hi David 

as you are aware New Zealand is taking part in the OECD study. 

In New Zealand the Government has also undertaken a small scale research
study on assessment in a range of adult literacy programmes ( called
foundation learning in New Zealand). The purpose of the research study was
to contribute to an understanding of what is required to enhance the
assessment capability of tertiary education providers of learning in
literacy, numeracy, and language. Formative assessment has been pushed hard
in the compulsory education sector in New Zealand ( K-12) and as the report
shows is a bit hit and miss in the adult literacy sector in New Zealand. We
don't yet have standardised tests that we have to use in the adult literacy
sector here. 

the summary report about the research study  is at
http://educationcounts.edcentre.govt.nz/publications/tertairy/assessment-fou
ndation.html

the full report is available for download at the bottom of the webpage about
the summary report

 

Janet is it useful to give the urls for the PowerPoint presentations from
the International Conference in Paris last year around Improving Learning
through Formative Assessment - even though they are school focussed there is
some interesting information in them. I really liked a quote from one of
them - I am recalling this from memory and not sure whether it was your
quote Janet  - Hope doesn't build good schools - aspiration does  

same applies for adult literacy although funding and perspiration seem to be
factors as well. 

Very interesting discussion - I like these Special Topics 

Thank you 

Susan Reid 

Manager Professional Development 

Workbase the New Zealand for Workforce Literacy 

www.workbase.org.nz

see also the New Zealand Literacy Portal www.nzliteracyportal.org.nz

 

 

 


  _____  

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Thu 7/09/2006 12:16 a.m.
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 180] Formative Assessment in International Education



Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,

We would like to hear from you.

What has been your experience with formative assessment?
Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom?
Have you done research -- qualitative or quantitative, including 
classroom research -- on the effects of formative assessment? What 
did you find?
Are you satisfied with using only summative (standardized per-post 
NRS-required) assessment?
Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?

Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or questions now.

Thanks.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


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From marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com  Thu Sep  7 10:44:16 2006
From: marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com (Marie Cora)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 10:44:16 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 196] Re: questions on formative assessment
In-Reply-To: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF8F5@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>
Message-ID: <020101c6d28c$18821330$0302a8c0@LITNOW>

Hi again Janet.  Thanks a million for all these resources, I'm very
anxious to study what's going on and how some of these strategies might
work for us here in the U.S.
 
Thanks also for outlining some of your findings on the professional
development piece of this puzzle.  I note that many of the approaches
used are in fact similar.  It makes me think that there may be a 'menu
of options' from which to consider and select what would work best for a
particular program or state.
 
I'm so struck by the Bari, Italy example:  the fact that launching into
formative assessment processes has also affected the stability of the
school staff is huge.  For me, stability in personnel forms a good part
of the backbone to the success of a program.  I think that formative
assessment approaches allow for the inclusiveness that sometimes (ok,
often) is lacking in school systems and programs here in the U.S.  By
inclusiveness, I mean that it should be the ENTIRE staff of a program
that builds that program, not just the leadership, or not just from
directives that come from outside of a school system, for example.  The
student body must also be a part of this inclusiveness - they have a lot
to offer since they are the ones with the goals to achieve and are in
the process of trying to achieve them.  I saw this when I was program
director in the 90s - it was really my staff who built the program, I
was just there to feed them information, guidance, resources, and also
fight for our funding.  If they build it, they will stay.
 
Marie Cora
 
 
Marie Cora
NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection
http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of
Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org
Sent: Thursday, September 07, 2006 5:22 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 190] Re: Questions on formative assessment
 
Good morning from Paris.  
 
Yesterday, Maria wrote:   " You noted that in Finland, they use "random
sample evaluations of different subjects" - does this mean that they
study test data in subjects on an aggregate level and make
determinations from this?  If so, this would mean that accountability is
spread more broadly, as opposed to studying individual performance/test
data and then linking success or failure to either individuals (the
student or the teacher) or smaller entities (one school as opposed to a
whole school system).  I would think that such an approach would
necessitate studying not only what is happening in the classroom and
school, but also what types of educational materials and assessments are
being used.  Would that be a correct assumption? "
 
You are correct in your assumptions - the test data are used to track
general trends in student learning, not as a mechanism for holding
individual schools  accountable.  Schools being evaluated do receive
their results, but the results are not published more widely.  The
Finnish National Board of Education uses the results of the random
evaluations for ongoing development of the education system and core
curricula.
 
 
Also, you discuss the use of guidelines for promoting formative
assessment in various countries/programs that you studied, and you do
note that one set from New Zealand is available for us to look at.  Are
the other materials from the countries you studied also accessible?
These guidelines, case studies, and action plans would be extremely
helpful in developing a focus on the use of formative assessments in
this country. 
 
Thanks to Susan Reid for providing the url for guidelines used in New
Zealand.  You will find a number of resources from other countries by
searching their sites for "formative assessment".  Sites from the
English-speaking countries will be easiest to follow, of course.
 
- The site for the UK is http://www.dfes.gov.uk
- Learning and Teaching Scotland has a number of resources at
http://www.ltscotland.org.uk
- The Ministry of Education in Canada will also link you to a number of
resources.  See http://www.edu.gov.on.ca
-  For Queensland, Australia, consult http://www.qsa.qld.edu.au
- And as Susan Reid mentioned, you may find resources used by New
Zealand teachers for asTTLE at
htpp://www.tki.org.nz/r/asttle/index_e.php
<http://www.tki.org.nz/r/asttle/index_e.php> ; and other resources at
http://www.tki.org.nz/r/assessment/ 
 
Countries revise their strategies and update and improve materials, so
it is worth checking in from time to time. 
 
Maria wrote that "You note that many teachers described changes in their
behavior once they started to use formative assessments - in their
interactions with students, how they set up learning, in providing
guidance toward goals, and in how they think about student success.  I
would be extremely interested in hearing more about this - can you
provide us with a couple of examples of these types of teacher change?
Did the process of going from random to systematic use of formative
assessments begin with professional development for the teachers,
application of the learning, and then reflecting on the results, or was
it less deliberate?  In other words, did the teachers in your case study
already use this approach and just realized it was successful so
incorporated it further?  Or were these teachers part of a process to
get them to learn and use formative assessment strategies? " 
 
The process of going from somewhat random, or haphazard to systematic
use of formative assessment varied in each of the sites we visited.
Very often the schools featured in our study had been involved in
special pilot projects, partnerships with University-based research
projects, or other innovations.  Participation in special projects
signals that these are schools that are more open to innovation and
change, and is likely one of the reasons the schools have come to the
attention of researchers for our own study. Their experiences also
provide useful lessons for others on the process of change.
 
A couple of examples of how schools approached the process of
integrating formative assessment into regular teaching....At Rosehill
College in Auckland, New Zealand,  the school's involvement in the
national "Assessment for Better Learning" professional development
programme as the development of National Curriculum Exemplars helped
place the focus on formative assessment.  The leadership team  at the
school  also  started staff discussions on formative assessment ,
shared  professional reading on formative assessment ,  invited expert
speakers and asked individual departments tihin the school to work on
their own ideas about how to implement formative assessment within
classrooms.
 
Each of the schools involved in the English case study were part of the
King's-Medway-Oxfordshire Formative Assessment Project initiated in
January 1999 (KMOFAP -  refers to the partnership between Paul Black and
Dylan Wiliam's team at King's College and selected schools in Medway and
Oxfordshire).  The project, funded by the Nuffield foundation,
introduced a small group of teachers (usually department heads)  to the
Black & Wiliam research on formative assessment through a series of
three one-day workshops over a six-month period, and encouraged them to
try out some innovations in their practice, and to plan the innovations
they wanted to implement with one class in the following school year.
These teachers, in turn, shared their ideas with colleagues.   The
process of translating research into practice involved a close
partnership between the University and the schools.   
 
Between 1985 and 1995 the Michelangelo School in Bari, Italy was among a
small number of schools selected by the Italian Ministry of Education to
participate in a project to revise the national valuation form
(mentioned the other day).  This school is unusual in having very low
turnover, in fact, several of the teachers involved in the pilot recall
that the experience of working together on this demonstration project
was key to shaping their strong working relationship.
 
These are just a few of examples.  
 
 
 And I also have a question for subscribers:  Janet notes that one
example of incorporating formative assessment into teaching would be
finding new ways to explain concepts when the student is struggling to
understand.  I'm guessing that this sounds super familiar to everyone
out there - searching for new ways to help the student when the old ways
are not cutting it.   Can subscribers talk about any formative
assessment strategies they use and how this improves classroom or
program level practice 
 
Good discussion question. I'd be very interested in hearing about this
from subscribers, as well.
 
 
Thanks so much!!
 
Marie Cora
 
Marie Cora
NIFL Assessment Discussion List Moderator
marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com
Coordinator, LINCS Assessment Special Collection
http://literacy.kent.edu/Midwest/assessment/
 
 
 
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From Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org  Thu Sep  7 12:02:56 2006
From: Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org (Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 18:02:56 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 197] Re: Formative assessment and
	professionaldevelopment
In-Reply-To: <450001B0.4080009@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF907@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>

David and Marie have both raised questions about professional development for
teachers,  helping them to integrate foramtive assessment into their regular
teaching.  
 
I gave a few examples earlier of strategies different schools involved in the
OECD study used to encourage systematic practice of formative assessment.
Each school had a very different approach.  To  add to the examples cited
earlier -  at the time we visited Waitakere College in New Zealand, they had
a 1/2 time coordinator who worked intensively with the four or five teachers
engaged in a pilot programme targeted to Maori students (and incorporating
the principles of formative assessment).  This coordinator also liaised with
researchers at the University of Waikato. I would have to say this was
probably the Rolls Royce model of teacher p.d.  
 
Teachers and school heads we met in England participated in short-term
professional development, but really, their most intensive development
occured in the process of figuring out among themselves and with King's
College researchers how to use the principle of formative assessment in the
classroom.  They spent time observing each other in the classroom, as well.
 
We visited 19 schools in 8 different countries.  The majority of these
schools  had some kind of relationship with an external expert who was able
to give input and advice on formative assessment as well as the process of
implementation.  Sometimes, only department heads were able to take advantage
of professional development opportunities, but they were well positioned to
share what they had learnt.  All teachers were involved in broader networks. 
 
It is safe to say that that the teachers and school heads in our case study
schools saw their ongoing professional development, as well as professional
dialogue among teachers, as absolutely essential to their efforts to
implement formative assessment as part of their regular practice.  Certainly,
though, there's a need for more research on "what works" in effective
professional development.
 
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]
On Behalf Of David J. Rosen
Sent: Thursday, September 07, 2006 1:26 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 193] Formative assessment and professionaldevelopment



	Thanks for your thoughtful and informative answers to these
questions, Janet.  And thanks for your willingness to stay on through Friday
(morning in the U.S.). 
	
	Colleagues, if you have more questions or comments, please post them
now.
	
	Marie wrote:  "Did the process of going from random to systematic use
of formative assessments begin with professional development for the
teachers, application of the learning, and then reflecting on the results, or
was it less deliberate?  In other words, did the teachers in your case study
already use this approach and just realized it was successful so incorporated
it further?  Or were these teachers part of a process to get them to learn
and use formative assessment strategies? " 
	
	I too have been wondering about professional development for
formative assessment.  In the high school study, or in the current adult
basic skill study, are there examples of good models for professional
development for formative assessment? Are any of these documented?  And has a
relationship been established between professional development, especially
ongoing professional development, and success in implementing formative
assessment?
	
	David 
	
	David J. Rosen
	Special Topics Discussion Moderator
	djrosen at comcast.net
	
	
	

		
		


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From Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org  Thu Sep  7 12:13:47 2006
From: Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org (Janet.LOONEY at oecd.org)
Date: Thu, 7 Sep 2006 18:13:47 +0200
Subject: [SpecialTopics 198] Re: Formative Assessment in
	InternationalEducation
In-Reply-To: <44FEBF88.2090402@twmi.rr.com>
Message-ID: <227A8C8F337FB14CB1304302479F1B89066EF908@EXCHANGEB.main.oecd.org>

Leslie - You raise questions for subscribers about structured attempts to
explore the relationship between formative assessment and its role in
increasing learner persistence.  Through the ongoing OECD study on adults
with basic skill needs, we are getting anecdotal evidence that it is one
important element in persistence.  I'm not aware of any structured studies,
though, and would also be interested in hearing from anyone who does have
some references.

I'll add that I have heard of a couple of small case-studies on e-learning
programmes that provide feedback to learners (a study in Spain and a study in
Germany)....The studies are more focused on what kind of feedback is
effective in an e-learning environment; they do not look at persistence.




-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]
On Behalf Of Leslie Petty
Sent: Wednesday, September 06, 2006 2:31 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 181] Re: Formative Assessment in
InternationalEducation


I work with a consortium of states exploring the use of distance 
education for their adult basic learners.  A key challenge for many 
distance programs is to increase student persistence.  At our recent 
conference, participants suggested that two factors that led to 
increased persistence were carefully screening and counseling students 
into appropriate programs and frequent, positive communication with the 
teacher.  I would also suggest that formative assessment, used as the 
basis of individual lesson planning, might also have a role in 
increasing persistence.  While teachers are doing this on an informal 
basis, I am unaware of any structured attempts to explore this issue.  
Does anyone have any knowledge about the impact of formative assessment 
on student persistence and retention?

Leslie Petty
Project IDEAL
lpetty at mich.edu

David Rosen wrote:
> Special Topics Discussion Subscribers,
>
> We would like to hear from you.
>
> What has been your experience with formative assessment?
> Do you use formative assessment strategies in your classroom? Have you 
> done research -- qualitative or quantitative, including
> classroom research -- on the effects of formative assessment? What  
> did you find?
> Are you satisfied with using only summative (standardized per-post  
> NRS-required) assessment?
> Do we need to pay more attention to formative assessment in the U.S.?
>
> Our discussion ends soon so please post your answers or questions now.
>
> Thanks.
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics Discussion Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
>
>   


-- 
*********************************
Leslie Petty
Associate Director, Project IDEAL
University of Michigan
Institute for Social Research
734-425-0748

-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From djrosen at comcast.net  Sat Sep  9 06:40:14 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Sat, 9 Sep 2006 06:40:14 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 199] Formative assessment discussion coming to a
	close
Message-ID: <4DA6AA10-AD2E-44FC-BDAB-C802F8005521@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

I want to thank our guest, Janet Looney,  for joining us this week to  
discuss formative assessment.  Thanks, also, to those who  
participated in the discussion and asked thoughtful questions,  
especially to Marie Cora, moderator of the National Institute for  
Literacy Assessment list, who has a keen interest in this topic.   
Janet has provided us with a great introduction to formative  
assessment, a topic which may be new for many in the U.S.  Janet,   
and Susan Reid and John Benseman, from New Zealand, have provided us  
with many references and resources to learn more.

Perhaps the discussion of what U.S. educators are doing -- or could  
be doing -- with formative assessment will continue sometime on the  
Assessment discussion list.  We look forward to next year's results  
of the OECD study on formative assessment in adult basic skill  
settings, andhope that Janet and others might join us again then.

For those who were not able to find the New Zealand assessment web  
page suggested by Susan Reid, try

http://educationcounts.edcentre.govt.nz/publications/tertiary/ 
assessment-foundation.html

or, this short form of the web address,

http://tinyurl.com/gv39x

In a few days we will have a discussion on corrections education. We  
will look at research and professional wisdom on family literacy in a  
corrections setting, and the education transition from corrections to  
the community.  We have a panel of outstanding guests joining us from  
September 18-22nd, and I look forward to your joining us.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From djrosen at comcast.net  Mon Sep 11 08:30:24 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Mon, 11 Sep 2006 08:30:24 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 200]  Corrections Education,
	Family Literacy and Transition to Community Education: September
	18-22
Message-ID: <58321B79-5F30-45E4-A3DC-7A3A3E3004AC@comcast.net>

Dear Colleagues,

 From September 18-22, on the Special Topics List, we are pleased to  
have a panel of expert guests in corrections education.  The topic  
will focus on research and professional wisdom in corrections family  
literacy, and on the transition from corrections education to  
community education for inmates who have been released.  Our guests are:

John Linton, Correctional Education, Office of Safe and Drug Free  
Schools, U.S. Department of Education

John is the program officer for two correctional education grant  
programs ("Lifeskills for State and Local Prisoners" and "Grants to  
States for Workplace and Community Transition Training for  
Incarcerated Youth Offenders") in the Office of Safe and Drug Free  
Schools of the U. S. Department of Education.  John formerly served  
the State of Maryland as the director of adult correctional education  
programs.  He has been with the federal agency since 2001, originally  
with the Office of Vocational and Adult Education.

Stephen J. Steurer, Ph.D., Executive Director, Correctional Education  
Association
The Correctional Education Association is a professional organization  
of educators who work in prisons, jails and juvenile settings.

William R. Muth, PhD, Assistant Professor, Reading Education and  
Adult Literacy, Virginia Commonwealth University

Bill is an Assistant Professor of Adult and Adolescent Literacy at  
Virginia Commonwealth University. Until August 2005, he was the  
Education Administrator for the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Other  
positions with the FBOP included: reading teacher, principal, and  
Chief of the Program Analysis Branch. In 2004 Bill earned his  
doctorate in adult literacy from George Mason University. His  
dissertation, ?Performance and Perspective: Two Assessments of  
Federal Prisoners in Literacy Programs? won the College Reading  
Association?s Dissertation of the Year Award. His research interests  
include Thirdspace and Reading Components theories, especially as  
these apply to prison-based family literacy programs and children of  
incarcerated parents.

  The following readings are recommended by the panelists as  
background for the discussion:

1. "Locked Up and Locked Out, An Educational Perspective on the US  
Prison Population," Coley, Richard J. and Barton, Paul E., 2006
Available on line at the ETS web site:

http://tinyurl.com/qmzfa (short URL)

2. "Learning to Reduce Recidivism: A 50-state analysis of  
postsecondary correctional education policy," Institute for Higher  
Education Policy, Erisman, Wendy and Contardo, Jeanne B., 2005.   
Available on line at the IHEP web site:

http://tinyurl.com/pj2sh (short URL)

3. "Understanding California Corrections" from the California Policy  
Research Center, U of C. (Chapter 4) http://www.ucop.edu/cprc/ 
documents/understand_ca_corrections.pdf

John Linton believes that California is a watershed state in  
corrections issues and policies , and that how things unfold there  
has great national significance.  He says that this is a thoughtful  
and well-informed report on the "overview" of the corrections  
situation in California -- including the role of treatment programs.   
Education is not presented as a central issue, but it has a place --  
as a piece of a bigger puzzle.

4. An article by Bill Muth in Exploring Adult Literacy can be found at

http://literacy.kent.edu/cra/2006/wmuth/index.html

The article contains other on-line links related to prison-based  
intergenerational programs. He recommends especially the link to the  
Hudson River Center's excellent publication, Bringing Family Literacy  
to Incarcerated Settings: An Instructional Guide at:

http://www.hudrivctr.org/products_ce.htm


David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From djrosen at comcast.net  Sun Sep 17 22:44:49 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Sun, 17 Sep 2006 22:44:49 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 201]  Corrections Education,
	Family Literacy and Transition to Community Education
Message-ID: <DE24C618-3CD7-450F-835B-E88BBFBF3FAA@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

I would like to welcome our guests: John Linton, Correctional  
Education, Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools, U.S. Department of  
Education; Stephen J. Steurer, Ph.D., Executive Director,  
Correctional Education Association; and William R. Muth, PhD,  
Assistant Professor, Reading Education and Adult Literacy, Virginia  
Commonwealth University.

The discussion this week is in the realm of corrections education and  
its connections with family and community education.  Together we  
guest experts and participants -- will explore what we know from  
research, professional wisdom, experience as practitioners and as  
students, about prison family literacy and about how to help inmates  
who are being released to connect with community-based education  
programs and to continue their learning until they achieve their goals.

First I would like to invite each of our guests to introduce  
themselves, to tell us about their work in this area and their  
interest in corrections education which connects with family and  
community education.

I would also like to invite you to begin posting your questions for  
our guests.  I'll begin by posting some of mine:

I would like to start with some general questions about corrections  
education before focusing on family literacy and connections to  
community education. One of the readings that was suggested was  
Locked Up and Locked Out   [ "Locked Up and Locked Out, An  
Educational Perspective on the US Prison Population," Coley, Richard  
J. and Barton, Paul E., 2006 Available on line at the ETS web site:
http://tinyurl.com/qmzfa ] I have three questions stimulated by that  
reading:
1. Locked Up and Locked Out  claims that research shows that  
?education and training programs can raise employment prospects and  
cut recidivism?  Can you elaborate on that. What is the research  
evidence? What do we know about what makes corrections education and  
training effective?

2. Steve Steurer, you have written that ?Public policy on crime and  
punishment should be determined by the most effective crime  
prevention and reduction technique available through proven  
research.? (quote cited in Locked Up and Locked Out)  Can you tell us  
what are some of these techniques?

3. Locked Up and Locked Out  describes the declining investment in  
prison education. ?Captive Students, an ETS report published in early  
1996, reported a decline in the resources available for education and  
training in prisons, as well as a wide variation of resources among  
the states.  According to the report, at least half of all state  
correctional institutions had cut their inmate educational programs  
over the prior five years.?  ?The decline has continued. From 1990 to  
2000, the proportion of prison staff providing education fell from  
4.1 to 3.2 percent of the total staff.? What has been the investment  
pattern since 2000? Further decreases? Level, increases? Has there  
been a ?turnaround? as it was predicted there would be by Marc Mauer,  
assistant director of the Sentencing Project based in Washington,  
D.C.? What are the prospects for increased funding for prison education?

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



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From wrmuth at vcu.edu  Mon Sep 18 10:46:43 2006
From: wrmuth at vcu.edu (William R Muth/FS/VCU)
Date: Mon, 18 Sep 2006 10:46:43 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 202] Re: Corrections Education,
 Family Literacy and Transition to Community Education
In-Reply-To: <DE24C618-3CD7-450F-835B-E88BBFBF3FAA@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <OFA9A154A7.27E9E33C-ON852571ED.00510D34-852571ED.00512E51@vcu.edu>

Greetings, David & All,
It is a real privilege to be a part of this discussion group. As David 
noted, I am currently at Virginia Commonwealth University, but in my past 
life (until a year ago), I was an educator with the Federal Bureau of 
Prisons (and before that, a special education teacher K-6). I will be "in 
& out" of this discussion as my meetings & classes permit, but I look 
forward to learning much from the conversation, and I thank David and NIFL 
for providing this much-needed focus on correctional education (CE).

David, you asked three very hard questions! I am taking a shot at the 
recidivism one...

Participation in prison education programs has been associated with 
reductions of 10 to 33 percent in recidivism rates (Gaes, Flanagan, 
Motiuk, & Stewart, 1999; Saylor & Gaes, 1997; Steurer, Smith, & Tracy, 
2001). Gaes & Kendig (2002) concluded conservatively that correctional 
?programs had an average effect size of .10. Translating this into a more 
understandable metric, program participants had a 45 percent likelihood of 
being arrested compared to a 55 percent likelihood for members of 
comparison groups.? If this low-estimate seems like a small effect, I 
suggest we look at the scale of the problem (650,000 or so people released 
from prison each year!) 

But recidivism is an enormously complex subject ? definitions of 
recidivism, variety of learner needs, opportunities for follow-through in 
the community, etc. -- prompting Thom Gehring (2000) to ask if impact on 
recidivism is the right question. For example, teachers know when a 
student ?transforms? and gets enthused about learning. Is this not an 
outcome of the highest order? But will this transformation be sufficient 
to sustain this learner through the post-release roller-coaster ride, peer 
pressures, ongoing poverty effects, etc.? Is it reasonable to expect our 
education programs to have a sustaining power 3+ years after release? 

I am conflicted about this issue. When I was in the Federal Bureau of 
Prisons, a post-release employment effects of vocational training programs 
(Saylor & Gaes, 1997) found a 33% greater survival rate among prisoners 
that participated in vocational training programs while incarcerated. This 
study, which was well-designed and stood the test  of time as they say, 
enabled FBOP educators to find new funding sources for these programs 
after the elimination of Pell Grants in 1995. So I know the language of 
recidivism is the language of currency. 

Sorry for the side-track, David?back to your question: Why does CE have a 
positive impact on post-release success? It may be related to the broad 
relationship between education, work, and crime. Reder and Vogel (1997) 
found that adults (not limited to prisoners) with self-reported learning 
disabilities were more likely to be unemployed or work in jobs with low 
pay and low status. In a study of 68 male prisoners, ages 19-36, Gazze 
(1988) found an association between lower education levels and higher 
unemployment and crime, independent of learning disabilities status. 
Kling, Weiman, and Western (2002) found a relationship between wages, work 
and crime, and estimated that a 10 percent decrease in an individual?s 
wages could result in a 10 to 20 percent increase in criminal activity and 
incarceration. So higher level of education is associated with more work, 
and better jobs are associated with less crime. Should we be surprised by 
this?

I am certain that our programs make a difference. In a strange way, 
prison-based programs have at least one potential advantage over 
community-based ones. For one, learners tend to persist in school (often 
for less than ideal reasons, of course), and school is 5-days a week for 
90 minutes or more per day. 
Got to run.  More later...

William R. Muth, PhD
Assistant Professor, Reading Education and Adult Literacy
Virginia Commonwealth University
(804) 828-8768




David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
09/17/2006 10:44 PM
Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov


To
specialtopics at nifl.gov
cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 201]  Corrections Education,     Family Literacy and 
Transition to Community Education






Colleagues,

I would like to welcome our guests: John Linton, Correctional Education, 
Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools, U.S. Department of 
Education; Stephen J. Steurer, Ph.D., Executive Director, Correctional 
Education Association; and William R. Muth, PhD, Assistant Professor, 
Reading Education and Adult Literacy, Virginia Commonwealth University.

The discussion this week is in the realm of corrections education and its 
connections with family and community education.  Together we guest 
experts and participants -- will explore what we know from research, 
professional wisdom, experience as practitioners and as students, about 
prison family literacy and about how to help inmates who are being 
released to connect with community-based education programs and to 
continue their learning until they achieve their goals.

First I would like to invite each of our guests to introduce themselves, 
to tell us about their work in this area and their interest in corrections 
education which connects with family and community education.

I would also like to invite you to begin posting your questions for our 
guests.  I'll begin by posting some of mine:

I would like to start with some general questions about corrections 
education before focusing on family literacy and connections to community 
education. One of the readings that was suggested was Locked Up and Locked 
Out   [ "Locked Up and Locked Out, An Educational Perspective on the 
US Prison Population," Coley, Richard J. and Barton, Paul E., 
2006 Available on line at the ETS web site:
http://tinyurl.com/qmzfa ] I have three questions stimulated by that 
reading:
1. Locked Up and Locked Out  claims that research shows that ?education 
and training programs can raise employment prospects and cut recidivism?  
Can you elaborate on that. What is the research evidence? What do we know 
about what makes corrections education and training effective?
2. Steve Steurer, you have written that ?Public policy on crime and 
punishment should be determined by the most effective crime prevention and 
reduction technique available through proven research.? (quote cited in 
Locked Up and Locked Out)  Can you tell us what are some of these 
techniques?
 
3. Locked Up and Locked Out  describes the declining investment in prison 
education. ?Captive Students, an ETS report published in early 1996, 
reported a decline in the resources available for education and training 
in prisons, as well as a wide variation of resources among the states.  
According to the report, at least half of all state correctional 
institutions had cut their inmate educational programs over the prior five 
years.?  ?The decline has continued. From 1990 to 2000, the proportion of 
prison staff providing education fell from 4.1 to 3.2 percent of the total 
staff.? What has been the investment pattern since 2000? Further 
decreases? Level, increases? Has there been a ?turnaround? as it was 
predicted there would be by Marc Mauer, assistant director of the 
Sentencing Project based in Washington, D.C.? What are the prospects for 
increased funding for prison education?

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net


-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
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From John.Linton at ed.gov  Mon Sep 18 11:25:47 2006
From: John.Linton at ed.gov (Linton, John)
Date: Mon, 18 Sep 2006 11:25:47 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 203] Re: Corrections Education,
	Family Literacy and Transition to Community Education
Message-ID: <BEBF16B91CE3AD4EBBC71AE4F114286203101AE2@wdcrobe2m02.ed.gov>

Introduction:  

 

Greetings.  David asked me to introduce myself.  That?s a bit of a
challenge.  Should I talk about my astrological sign, my weird hobbies, and
my hopes for mankind?  Perhaps I had better keep this conversation related
to correctional education and save those other topics for the happy hour at
the next conference.  

 <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"
/>

I?ve been privileged to have opportunities to work with prisoner education
for quite some number of years ? starting as a prison based teacher and then
doing a lot of prison school administration work ? all in the State of
Maryland.  For most of my career, the prisoner education programs in
Maryland ran out of the State Department of Education, and I worked in close
proximity to the state adult education staff.  So I?ve generally felt pretty
connected to adult education community.  

 

I started to work with prisoner education related federal grant program at
the U.S. Department of Education in 2001.  This has given me many
opportunities to connect with correctional education programs in various
states ? as well as in some jails.  I guess my perspective remains primarily
that of a practitioner ? but I?ve had good opportunities to rub shoulders
with researcher, and to be engaged with policy issues.    

 

One thing that I find interesting about prisoner education is that it exists
on the edge of ?education? and rubs up against numerous other disciplines.
Working in correctional education requires engagement across various
disciplines.  Positions I held in Maryland bounced back and forth a few
times between the State's departments of education and public safety.  Some
of the most interesting work I have done during my federal services has been
with the interagency ?prisoner reentry? initiative.  I?ve had many occasions
to learn that what something looks like does vary a lot by where you are
standing!  

 

David's Question 1 -- My Response:

 

Thanks to David for calling attention to the ETS publication ?Locked Up and
Locked Out.?  I think it is a great piece on the state of correctional
education today.  The conclusions that education and training behind bars
can improve employment prospects and cut recidivism are well supported in a
heavily footnoted chapter titled ?The Prison Education Enterprise.?  I won?t
attempt to rehash that well developed and well-documented discussion.  

 

Another interesting support important to those who handle State tax dollars
is the work done by the ?Washington State Institute for Public Policy.?
This unit is a well-respected GAO like agency in the State of Washington.
In January of this year, they posted tables of ?Evidence Based Adult
Corrections Programs, What Works and What Does Not.?  Their tables show that
adult education and vocational training in prison are effective.  See:
http://www.wsipp.wa.gov/pub.asp?docid=06-01-1201

 

But what do we mean by effective?  Correctional education is not a miracle
drug and does not ?cure? individuals with criminal tendencies.  The best
predictor of future behavior is prior behavior.  Individuals who have
embarked on a life course that includes arrests, convictions, and various
sanctions including incarceration are not easily launched on alternative pro
social live paths.  Many would argue that we have come to rely too heavily
on incarceration, and thus now face the challenge of how to deal with ever
larger prison populations, even as our crime rate has trended downward.  The
prisons are overcrowded because of the staggering return rate for released
prisoners ? approaching two thirds.  

 

A ?prisoner re-entry movement? has taken hold in this country and is cutting
across traditional political affiliations, recognizing that an approach best
described as ?lock em up for a long time in a harsh environment and then
dump them out when they have finished their sentences? is leaving us with a
large group of repeat offenders who are then requiring that more and more
prison cells be constructed.    

 

A thoughtful and research informed approach to this issue suggests that
inmates should be prepared for success in the community while they are still
incarcerated and then that their attempts to attain a crime free life post
incarceration needs various practical supports.  (Of course criminal justice
supervision and sanctions may also be required.)  So education is an
important tool in a program of criminal rehabilitation ? not a be all and
end all solution.  

 

David's Question 3 -- My Response:

 

Correctional education generally doesn?t have enemies or people lined up to
oppose it.  Some years back an editor of the journal published by the
American Correctional Association Journal invited me to do a column in favor
of prisoner education to run alongside another written in opposition.  We
had to change the format because the editor failed to find an author willing
to develop the opposing piece.  If education didn?t have a significant cost
? correctional education would be doing great.  

 

Unfortunately, education isn?t cheap ? behind bars or in other settings.
Those who decide where to commit our tax dollars are being tugged in a lot
of directions at once.  We?ve all heard education advocates say ?let?s
invest in education and slow spending on prisons.?  In fact, most
correctional expenses are mandated.  Security, plant, utilities, food, and
medical care ? if you have the inmates, you have these costs.  ?Treatment?
programs such as recreation, drug treatment, counseling, religion, work
programs and education are discretionary.  These make up a very small
proportion of the corrections budget.  If your population is increasing, and
you are being told ?hold down spending? ? prison schools don?t always come
out of that process intact.  (Many fail to realize that the explosive costs
of medical care has hit prison budgets just as they have other segments of
our society.  If you are told to hold spending to a 3% increase while
medical costs are going up 10% -- how do you balance that budget?)

 

But to respond more directly to the question ? we hear of increases one year
in one State ? decreases in two others.   It is very difficult to track a
trend.  We don?t have great data on the investment in correctional
education.  Richard Coley and his fellow authors come down hard on the lack
of good national data about correctional education.  I think it is one of
the most important conclusions of this publication.   That we really don?t
know trends in program availability, spending, enrollments and outcomes ?
this indicates to me that we need to do better.  

 

John Linton

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 10:45 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 201] Corrections Education,Family Literacy and
Transition to Community Education


Colleagues, 

I would like to welcome our guests: John Linton, Correctional Education,
Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools, U.S. Department of Education; Stephen
J. Steurer, Ph.D., Executive Director, Correctional Education Association;
and William R. Muth, PhD, Assistant Professor, Reading Education and Adult
Literacy, Virginia Commonwealth University.

The discussion this week is in the realm of corrections education and its
connections with family and community education.  Together we guest experts
and participants -- will explore what we know from research, professional
wisdom, experience as practitioners and as students, about prison family
literacy and about how to help inmates who are being released to connect
with community-based education programs and to continue their learning until
they achieve their goals.

First I would like to invite each of our guests to introduce themselves, to
tell us about their work in this area and their interest in corrections
education which connects with family and community education.

I would also like to invite you to begin posting your questions for our
guests.  I'll begin by posting some of mine:

I would like to start with some general questions about corrections
education before focusing on family literacy and connections to community
education. One of the readings that was suggested was Locked Up and Locked
Out   [ "Locked Up and Locked Out, An Educational Perspective on the US
Prison Population," Coley, Richard J. and Barton, Paul E., 2006 Available on
line at the ETS web site:
http://tinyurl.com/qmzfa ] I have three questions stimulated by that
reading:

1. Locked Up and Locked Out  claims that research shows that ?education and
training programs can raise employment prospects and cut recidivism?  Can
you elaborate on that. What is the research evidence? What do we know about
what makes corrections education and training effective?

2. Steve Steurer, you have written that ?Public policy on crime and
punishment should be determined by the most effective crime prevention and
reduction technique available through proven research.? (quote cited in
Locked Up and Locked Out)  Can you tell us what are some of these
techniques?
3. Locked Up and Locked Out  describes the declining investment in prison
education. ?Captive Students, an ETS report published in early 1996,
reported a decline in the resources available for education and training in
prisons, as well as a wide variation of resources among the states.
According to the report, at least half of all state correctional
institutions had cut their inmate educational programs over the prior five
years.?  ?The decline has continued. From 1990 to 2000, the proportion of
prison staff providing education fell from 4.1 to 3.2 percent of the total
staff.? What has been the investment pattern since 2000? Further decreases?
Level, increases? Has there been a ?turnaround? as it was predicted there
would be by Marc Mauer, assistant director of the Sentencing Project based
in Washington, D.C.? What are the prospects for increased funding for prison
education?



David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net




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From djrosen at comcast.net  Mon Sep 18 19:38:40 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Mon, 18 Sep 2006 19:38:40 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 204]  Posting your questions
Message-ID: <4F8145D8-8104-4D9C-BC43-72A486041F18@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you  
are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like  
"What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education  
program to a community education program?" or "What does family  
literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions  
like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's  
reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion to be  
introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All  
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





From Taylor.Stoehr at umb.edu  Mon Sep 18 20:37:36 2006
From: Taylor.Stoehr at umb.edu (Taylor Stoehr)
Date: Mon, 18 Sep 2006 20:37:36 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 205] Comment on discussion of "re-entry education"
	for ex-offenders
Message-ID: <DB33CB380BDB6A43A06FF44519FB40050DF114EF@ems4.umassb.net>

I work in a Massachusetts program for probationers called Changing Lives
Through Literature.  (See our website: cltl at umassd.edu )  Started in
1991 in a single court, it has spread to a number of jurisdictions in
Massachusetts and to six other states.  I can speak for the men's
program in Dorchester, the busiest criminal court in the state, where we
have the experience of a dozen years - perhaps 250 graduates of our
ten-week program offered every semester.  We are currently involved in a
study of recidivism in five jurisdictions, but the results will not be
available for quite some time.  For the moment, I can say that the
probationers themselves believe that they change during this short
period of intense focus on a few texts, and a set of concerns that are
central in their lives.  Our primary text is Frederick Douglass's
Narrative of the Life of an American Slave, which serves as the starting
point for discussion of problems faced by the students themselves -
poverty and racism, the struggle for social  justice, family breakdown,
the weakening of community bonds and thinning out of spiritual
sustenance.  Short supplementary readings by other authors - black and
white, American and foreign, contemporary and classic - clarify issues
Douglass raises by putting them in a broader context, and a writing
assignment helps us focus on their relevance today.  For example, after
reading how Douglass describes his childhood, and how Malcolm X, Bill
Russell, Maxim Gorky, or Leo Tolstoy describe theirs, students are asked
to state their own opinion of what is necessary for a "normal"
childhood, and who has the responsibility to provide it.  What was your
childhood like?  What kind of a father do you want to be?  Those are the
implied questions.  We also ask how a man like Frederick Douglass or
Malcolm X finds himself.  "Where do people get their courage,
self-esteem, and righteousness?"

With men like those I work with, it's probably better to concentrate on
the literacy skills they already possess - a complicated mix of street
smarts and a colloquial eloquence among friends and family - than to
imagine that we are going to "improve" their reading, writing, or
talking.  To speak in their own voices in a public setting like our
classroom, where we talk about serious issues that affect their lives,
is the best training in literacy we can offer them.  

One of our aims is to demystify the whole realm of social control,
schooling, and literacy.  All their lives our students have been told
they are incompetent readers and writers, and this tends to make them
so.  But the incompetence is superficial in most cases.  Their speech
skills are usually more than adequate, and often superb.  In fact, their
failure in school has protected them from certain kinds of glibness and
beating about the bush.  

All students, including ours, have the right to success in a truly
democratic classroom - not just an opportunity to learn, but active
exercise of language, taste, and ethics, in order to explore their own
individual powers and ideals in relation to a growing sense of how
others speak and judge and evaluate.  "Success" means both discovering
and making standards, rather than merely living up to them.  "Failure"
means being left out of the most essential aspects of civic life.  Often
the schools fail to do this important work, through a misguided notion
of what kind of education is appropriate in an egalitarian society.  The
men we meet in Changing Lives typically think of themselves as failures.
>From their earliest experiences in schooling to the regimen of
incarceration and probation, they have stubbornly resisted demands and
admonishments, have been labeled incorrigible, and have little or no
sense of what it might mean to be part of a democratic forum deciding
matters of concern for their own lives.  We want to establish such a
classroom, in which no one will be left out.

Our aim is to give each man a chance to think better of himself, while
simultaneously dispelling the illusion that success in school is the
only route to respectability.  We aren't trying to get people back on
the educational track, but to let them judge for themselves what it
would mean to return to school, or to decide not to go that route, a
question that asks them to assess their own lives - Who am I, really,
and what kind of future do I want for myself?

 

Taylor Stoehr, English Department

University of Massachusetts - Boston

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From Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us  Mon Sep 18 20:39:27 2006
From: Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us (Lobaccaro Gina (DOC))
Date: Mon, 18 Sep 2006 20:39:27 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 206] Re: Posting your questions
References: <4F8145D8-8104-4D9C-BC43-72A486041F18@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <A7439902C13D6C459A2217AB22A386FB0752BD@DOVERSCLS01N1.state.de.us>

Hello All,
I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex Correctional Institution in Georgetown Delaware.  I work for the Delaware Department of Education Prison Education program.. I have corresponded with David and Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of conferences.
I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area of motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.  We have so many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no progress over and extended time.  They appear to be coming to get off the tiers or to receive "good time".  In truth, they do not receive much "good time" for education.  Our education program is a classified program.  If a student does not have  GED or HS diploma they must attend school.  We have a long waiting list for the low level ABE students, but we also have students sitting in classes who appear to me totally unmotivated to improve their academic skills.
Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating ABE low level learners in CE settings?
Gina

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions



Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you 
are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like 
"What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education 
program to a community education program?" or "What does family 
literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions 
like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's 
reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion to be 
introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All 
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


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From lainemarsh at optonline.net  Mon Sep 18 21:24:30 2006
From: lainemarsh at optonline.net (Helaine W. Marshall)
Date: Mon, 18 Sep 2006 21:24:30 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 207]  Adapting existing curriculum
Message-ID: <0J5T00C1YFW1R320@mta3.srv.hcvlny.cv.net>

Question:  As a curriculum developer, I am charged with adapting a currently
existing literacy curriculum to the prison setting.  What are the major
factors I need to keep in mind as I view the curriculum through this new
lens?  

 

Helaine Marshall

Literacy Volunteers of Westchester County, NY - consultant

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From jgordon at fortunesociety.org  Tue Sep 19 01:34:42 2006
From: jgordon at fortunesociety.org (John Gordon)
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2006 01:34:42 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 208] Re: Comment on discussion of "re-entry
	education"for ex-offenders
Message-ID: <FCE5A738D738724AB9ED7A61D3E733F00341110C@mail.fortunesociety.org>

Thanks to Taylor Stoehr for his thought-provoking piece. I think we have
much to learn from such work. I'd like to hear more.
 
I work at the Fortune Society, a 39 year old organization in New York
City dedicated to (1) advocating for prison and criminal justice reform
and (2) working with people after they leave prison. At Fortune,
education is just one of a wide array of programs people coming out of
prison can participate in. Even though most people who come to us do not
have a high school diploma, education is usually not the first thing on
their minds. The vast majority need a job and many are either homeless
or one step from it. In addition, most people are dealing with a range
of parole and probation mandates like substance abuse treatment and
anger management. 
 
Approximately 250 people participate in our Education program each year;
in the last few years, the percentage of younger students and
particularly of people mandated to one of Fortune's Alternative to
Incarceration program has grown dramatically. I think our underlying
philosophy has much in common with the program described by Taylor
Stoehr - we develop curriculum around the needs and issues brought to
the class by the students themselves. However, a number of factors have
undermined our ability to maintain that focus on content:

*	
	The sheer numbers of people coming through our doors every year
has stretched our resources. We have struggled to keep up with the
demand. Recently we have restructured our program so that it serves
fewer people, but more intensively.
*	
	We are serving increasing numbers of court mandated students,
many of whom really don't want to be in class. We have worked hard to
develop a curriculum that honors their right and need to make autonomous
decisions about the role of education in their lives and at the same
time to insist on the integrity of the process in the classroom.  
*	
	Perhaps though, the biggest obstacle has been the fact that we
are caught up in the National Reporting System and its focus on
educational gain as defined by test scores. The pressure to meet state
targets, lumped together indiscriminately as we are with every other
program in the state, has produced enormous pressure to test, test,
test. This has not been all bad as it has led us to look closely at what
we are doing and think about how we can do it better. But the narrow
focus on test scores has made it difficult to shape the program around
the real and individual needs of the students.

Perhaps in a later post, I can address some other issues, but I did want
to pose one question:  Given that the elimination of Pell Grants for
prisoners has virtually ended the possibility of going to college while
in prison, what do the panelists think is the importance of and
possibility of reinstating that right? Here at Fortune where many of the
staff have been incarcerated themselves, the value and significance of
college level work in prison is a given. Many of the staff members in
the leadership of the agency got their degrees (or at least started
them) while in prison. Obviously, the college degree, or college level
coursework, opens up job possibilities for people once they're out. But
it also contributes to the development of leadership skills that will
allow former prisoners to come back to their communities and play
critical roles in shaping collective responses to the problems those
communities are facing.
 
john gordon
The Fortune Society 
 
While we 

  _____  

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Taylor Stoehr
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 205] Comment on discussion of "re-entry
education"for ex-offenders



I work in a Massachusetts program for probationers called Changing Lives
Through Literature.  (See our website: cltl at umassd.edu )  Started in
1991 in a single court, it has spread to a number of jurisdictions in
Massachusetts and to six other states.  I can speak for the men's
program in Dorchester, the busiest criminal court in the state, where we
have the experience of a dozen years - perhaps 250 graduates of our
ten-week program offered every semester.  We are currently involved in a
study of recidivism in five jurisdictions, but the results will not be
available for quite some time.  For the moment, I can say that the
probationers themselves believe that they change during this short
period of intense focus on a few texts, and a set of concerns that are
central in their lives.  Our primary text is Frederick Douglass's
Narrative of the Life of an American Slave, which serves as the starting
point for discussion of problems faced by the students themselves -
poverty and racism, the struggle for social  justice, family breakdown,
the weakening of community bonds and thinning out of spiritual
sustenance.  Short supplementary readings by other authors - black and
white, American and foreign, contemporary and classic - clarify issues
Douglass raises by putting them in a broader context, and a writing
assignment helps us focus on their relevance today.  For example, after
reading how Douglass describes his childhood, and how Malcolm X, Bill
Russell, Maxim Gorky, or Leo Tolstoy describe theirs, students are asked
to state their own opinion of what is necessary for a "normal"
childhood, and who has the responsibility to provide it.  What was your
childhood like?  What kind of a father do you want to be?  Those are the
implied questions.  We also ask how a man like Frederick Douglass or
Malcolm X finds himself.  "Where do people get their courage,
self-esteem, and righteousness?"

With men like those I work with, it's probably better to concentrate on
the literacy skills they already possess - a complicated mix of street
smarts and a colloquial eloquence among friends and family - than to
imagine that we are going to "improve" their reading, writing, or
talking.  To speak in their own voices in a public setting like our
classroom, where we talk about serious issues that affect their lives,
is the best training in literacy we can offer them.  

One of our aims is to demystify the whole realm of social control,
schooling, and literacy.  All their lives our students have been told
they are incompetent readers and writers, and this tends to make them
so.  But the incompetence is superficial in most cases.  Their speech
skills are usually more than adequate, and often superb.  In fact, their
failure in school has protected them from certain kinds of glibness and
beating about the bush.  

All students, including ours, have the right to success in a truly
democratic classroom - not just an opportunity to learn, but active
exercise of language, taste, and ethics, in order to explore their own
individual powers and ideals in relation to a growing sense of how
others speak and judge and evaluate.  "Success" means both discovering
and making standards, rather than merely living up to them.  "Failure"
means being left out of the most essential aspects of civic life.  Often
the schools fail to do this important work, through a misguided notion
of what kind of education is appropriate in an egalitarian society.  The
men we meet in Changing Lives typically think of themselves as failures.
>From their earliest experiences in schooling to the regimen of
incarceration and probation, they have stubbornly resisted demands and
admonishments, have been labeled incorrigible, and have little or no
sense of what it might mean to be part of a democratic forum deciding
matters of concern for their own lives.  We want to establish such a
classroom, in which no one will be left out.

Our aim is to give each man a chance to think better of himself, while
simultaneously dispelling the illusion that success in school is the
only route to respectability.  We aren't trying to get people back on
the educational track, but to let them judge for themselves what it
would mean to return to school, or to decide not to go that route, a
question that asks them to assess their own lives - Who am I, really,
and what kind of future do I want for myself?

 

Taylor Stoehr, English Department

University of Massachusetts - Boston

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From aburruss2 at cox.net  Tue Sep 19 07:19:31 2006
From: aburruss2 at cox.net (Ann Burruss)
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2006 07:19:31 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 209] Re: Comment on discussion of
	"re-entryeducation"for ex-offenders
References: <FCE5A738D738724AB9ED7A61D3E733F00341110C@mail.fortunesociety.org>
Message-ID: <002001c6dbdd$7a78a4a0$0202a8c0@D1WJ3821>

I am a volunteer in a local jail.  Your third bullet is so true!  Due to limited time and space, and the NRS system, we are often hard-pressed to determine the progress made - much less allow for meaningful instruction on any/all levels.
Any ideas bout how we can made the reporting system work better for those inmates who have relatively short terms to serve :12 to 18 months?

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: John Gordon 
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
  Sent: Tuesday, September 19, 2006 1:34 AM
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 208] Re: Comment on discussion of "re-entryeducation"for ex-offenders


  Thanks to Taylor Stoehr for his thought-provoking piece. I think we have much to learn from such work. I'd like to hear more.

  I work at the Fortune Society, a 39 year old organization in New York City dedicated to (1) advocating for prison and criminal justice reform and (2) working with people after they leave prison. At Fortune, education is just one of a wide array of programs people coming out of prison can participate in. Even though most people who come to us do not have a high school diploma, education is usually not the first thing on their minds. The vast majority need a job and many are either homeless or one step from it. In addition, most people are dealing with a range of parole and probation mandates like substance abuse treatment and anger management. 

  Approximately 250 people participate in our Education program each year; in the last few years, the percentage of younger students and particularly of people mandated to one of Fortune's Alternative to Incarceration program has grown dramatically. I think our underlying philosophy has much in common with the program described by Taylor Stoehr - we develop curriculum around the needs and issues brought to the class by the students themselves. However, a number of factors have undermined our ability to maintain that focus on content:
    a.. The sheer numbers of people coming through our doors every year has stretched our resources. We have struggled to keep up with the demand. Recently we have restructured our program so that it serves fewer people, but more intensively.
    b.. We are serving increasing numbers of court mandated students, many of whom really don't want to be in class. We have worked hard to develop a curriculum that honors their right and need to make autonomous decisions about the role of education in their lives and at the same time to insist on the integrity of the process in the classroom.  
    c.. Perhaps though, the biggest obstacle has been the fact that we are caught up in the National Reporting System and its focus on educational gain as defined by test scores. The pressure to meet state targets, lumped together indiscriminately as we are with every other program in the state, has produced enormous pressure to test, test, test. This has not been all bad as it has led us to look closely at what we are doing and think about how we can do it better. But the narrow focus on test scores has made it difficult to shape the program around the real and individual needs of the students.
  Perhaps in a later post, I can address some other issues, but I did want to pose one question:  Given that the elimination of Pell Grants for prisoners has virtually ended the possibility of going to college while in prison, what do the panelists think is the importance of and possibility of reinstating that right? Here at Fortune where many of the staff have been incarcerated themselves, the value and significance of college level work in prison is a given. Many of the staff members in the leadership of the agency got their degrees (or at least started them) while in prison. Obviously, the college degree, or college level coursework, opens up job possibilities for people once they're out. But it also contributes to the development of leadership skills that will allow former prisoners to come back to their communities and play critical roles in shaping collective responses to the problems those communities are facing.

  john gordon
  The Fortune Society 

  While we 



------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Taylor Stoehr
  Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:38 PM
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 205] Comment on discussion of "re-entry education"for ex-offenders


  I work in a Massachusetts program for probationers called Changing Lives Through Literature.  (See our website: cltl at umassd.edu )  Started in 1991 in a single court, it has spread to a number of jurisdictions in Massachusetts and to six other states.  I can speak for the men's program in Dorchester, the busiest criminal court in the state, where we have the experience of a dozen years - perhaps 250 graduates of our ten-week program offered every semester.  We are currently involved in a study of recidivism in five jurisdictions, but the results will not be available for quite some time.  For the moment, I can say that the probationers themselves believe that they change during this short period of intense focus on a few texts, and a set of concerns that are central in their lives.  Our primary text is Frederick Douglass's Narrative of the Life of an American Slave, which serves as the starting point for discussion of problems faced by the students themselves - poverty and racism, the struggle for social  justice, family breakdown, the weakening of community bonds and thinning out of spiritual sustenance.  Short supplementary readings by other authors - black and white, American and foreign, contemporary and classic - clarify issues Douglass raises by putting them in a broader context, and a writing assignment helps us focus on their relevance today.  For example, after reading how Douglass describes his childhood, and how Malcolm X, Bill Russell, Maxim Gorky, or Leo Tolstoy describe theirs, students are asked to state their own opinion of what is necessary for a "normal" childhood, and who has the responsibility to provide it.  What was your childhood like?  What kind of a father do you want to be?  Those are the implied questions.  We also ask how a man like Frederick Douglass or Malcolm X finds himself.  "Where do people get their courage, self-esteem, and righteousness?"

  With men like those I work with, it's probably better to concentrate on the literacy skills they already possess - a complicated mix of street smarts and a colloquial eloquence among friends and family - than to imagine that we are going to "improve" their reading, writing, or talking.  To speak in their own voices in a public setting like our classroom, where we talk about serious issues that affect their lives, is the best training in literacy we can offer them.  

  One of our aims is to demystify the whole realm of social control, schooling, and literacy.  All their lives our students have been told they are incompetent readers and writers, and this tends to make them so.  But the incompetence is superficial in most cases.  Their speech skills are usually more than adequate, and often superb.  In fact, their failure in school has protected them from certain kinds of glibness and beating about the bush.  

  All students, including ours, have the right to success in a truly democratic classroom - not just an opportunity to learn, but active exercise of language, taste, and ethics, in order to explore their own individual powers and ideals in relation to a growing sense of how others speak and judge and evaluate.  "Success" means both discovering and making standards, rather than merely living up to them.  "Failure" means being left out of the most essential aspects of civic life.  Often the schools fail to do this important work, through a misguided notion of what kind of education is appropriate in an egalitarian society.  The men we meet in Changing Lives typically think of themselves as failures.  From their earliest experiences in schooling to the regimen of incarceration and probation, they have stubbornly resisted demands and admonishments, have been labeled incorrigible, and have little or no sense of what it might mean to be part of a democratic forum deciding matters of concern for their own lives.  We want to establish such a classroom, in which no one will be left out.

  Our aim is to give each man a chance to think better of himself, while simultaneously dispelling the illusion that success in school is the only route to respectability.  We aren't trying to get people back on the educational track, but to let them judge for themselves what it would mean to return to school, or to decide not to go that route, a question that asks them to assess their own lives - Who am I, really, and what kind of future do I want for myself?

   

  Taylor Stoehr, English Department

  University of Massachusetts - Boston



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From John.Linton at ed.gov  Tue Sep 19 09:04:05 2006
From: John.Linton at ed.gov (Linton, John)
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2006 09:04:05 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 210] Re: College for inmates
Message-ID: <BEBF16B91CE3AD4EBBC71AE4F114286203101AE7@wdcrobe2m02.ed.gov>

Wow -- I'm impressed with the thoughtful comments in this discussion
already!
 
On the question about college for inmates -- this is a dynamic topic and
there is much to be said.  First, there are still college programs in
prisons.  A recent Ford Foundation supported study by the Institute for
Higher Education Policy documented the extent of postsecondary education in
prisons -- and there are more programs out there than many had thought
(myself included).  This is a well documented and very forward thinking
publication which needs to be seen by more people.   ("Learning to Reduce
Recidivism, A 50 State analysis of postsecondary correctional education
policy," November 2005,
<http://www.ihep.org/organizations.php3?action=printContentItem&orgid=104&ty
peID=906&itemID=14017>
http://www.ihep.org/organizations.php3?action=printContentItem&orgid=104&typ
eID=906&itemID=14017 )
 
There is still State money being invested in postsecondary education in a
number of States, federal funds are being spent on postsecondary education
in the Bureau of Prisons, and our Department provides more than $20 million
annually for postsecondary State prisoner education in the Grants to States
for Workplace and Community Transition Training for Incarcerated Youth
Offenders Program.
<http://www.ed.gov/programs/transitiontraining/index.html>
http://www.ed.gov/programs/transitiontraining/index.html   In a number of
States, postsecondary education seems to be quite an issue -- still to be
settled at a policy level.  New York comes to mind.  California seems very
recently to have settled this issue at a policy level and is now developing
and implementing new partnerships with colleges.  
 
Will inmates become eligible for Pell grants again at some time in the
future?  That is for the lawmakers to decide, but it seems to be an issue
that never goes away.  CURE is one national organization that has worked
hard year after year on this issue.
http://www.curenational.org/new/index.html  The Open Society Institute has
also shown an ongoing interest.  
 
John Linton
 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of John Gordon
Sent: Tuesday, September 19, 2006 1:35 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 208] Re: Comment on discussion of
"re-entryeducation"for ex-offenders


Thanks to Taylor Stoehr for his thought-provoking piece. I think we have
much to learn from such work. I'd like to hear more.
 
I work at the Fortune Society, a 39 year old organization in New York City
dedicated to (1) advocating for prison and criminal justice reform and (2)
working with people after they leave prison. At Fortune, education is just
one of a wide array of programs people coming out of prison can participate
in. Even though most people who come to us do not have a high school
diploma, education is usually not the first thing on their minds. The vast
majority need a job and many are either homeless or one step from it. In
addition, most people are dealing with a range of parole and probation
mandates like substance abuse treatment and anger management. 
 
Approximately 250 people participate in our Education program each year; in
the last few years, the percentage of younger students and particularly of
people mandated to one of Fortune's Alternative to Incarceration program has
grown dramatically. I think our underlying philosophy has much in common
with the program described by Taylor Stoehr - we develop curriculum around
the needs and issues brought to the class by the students themselves.
However, a number of factors have undermined our ability to maintain that
focus on content:

*	

	The sheer numbers of people coming through our doors every year has
stretched our resources. We have struggled to keep up with the demand.
Recently we have restructured our program so that it serves fewer people,
but more intensively.
*	

	We are serving increasing numbers of court mandated students, many
of whom really don't want to be in class. We have worked hard to develop a
curriculum that honors their right and need to make autonomous decisions
about the role of education in their lives and at the same time to insist on
the integrity of the process in the classroom.  
*	

	Perhaps though, the biggest obstacle has been the fact that we are
caught up in the National Reporting System and its focus on educational gain
as defined by test scores. The pressure to meet state targets, lumped
together indiscriminately as we are with every other program in the state,
has produced enormous pressure to test, test, test. This has not been all
bad as it has led us to look closely at what we are doing and think about
how we can do it better. But the narrow focus on test scores has made it
difficult to shape the program around the real and individual needs of the
students.

Perhaps in a later post, I can address some other issues, but I did want to
pose one question:  Given that the elimination of Pell Grants for prisoners
has virtually ended the possibility of going to college while in prison,
what do the panelists think is the importance of and possibility of
reinstating that right? Here at Fortune where many of the staff have been
incarcerated themselves, the value and significance of college level work in
prison is a given. Many of the staff members in the leadership of the agency
got their degrees (or at least started them) while in prison. Obviously, the
college degree, or college level coursework, opens up job possibilities for
people once they're out. But it also contributes to the development of
leadership skills that will allow former prisoners to come back to their
communities and play critical roles in shaping collective responses to the
problems those communities are facing.
 
john gordon
The Fortune Society 
 
While we 

  _____  

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]
On Behalf Of Taylor Stoehr
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 205] Comment on discussion of "re-entry
education"for ex-offenders



I work in a Massachusetts program for probationers called Changing Lives
Through Literature.  (See our website: cltl at umassd.edu )  Started in 1991 in
a single court, it has spread to a number of jurisdictions in Massachusetts
and to six other states.  I can speak for the men's program in Dorchester,
the busiest criminal court in the state, where we have the experience of a
dozen years - perhaps 250 graduates of our ten-week program offered every
semester.  We are currently involved in a study of recidivism in five
jurisdictions, but the results will not be available for quite some time.
For the moment, I can say that the probationers themselves believe that they
change during this short period of intense focus on a few texts, and a set
of concerns that are central in their lives.  Our primary text is Frederick
Douglass's Narrative of the Life of an American Slave, which serves as the
starting point for discussion of problems faced by the students themselves -
poverty and racism, the struggle for social  justice, family breakdown, the
weakening of community bonds and thinning out of spiritual sustenance.
Short supplementary readings by other authors - black and white, American
and foreign, contemporary and classic - clarify issues Douglass raises by
putting them in a broader context, and a writing assignment helps us focus
on their relevance today.  For example, after reading how Douglass describes
his childhood, and how Malcolm X, Bill Russell, Maxim Gorky, or Leo Tolstoy
describe theirs, students are asked to state their own opinion of what is
necessary for a "normal" childhood, and who has the responsibility to
provide it.  What was your childhood like?  What kind of a father do you
want to be?  Those are the implied questions.  We also ask how a man like
Frederick Douglass or Malcolm X finds himself.  "Where do people get their
courage, self-esteem, and righteousness?"

With men like those I work with, it's probably better to concentrate on the
literacy skills they already possess - a complicated mix of street smarts
and a colloquial eloquence among friends and family - than to imagine that
we are going to "improve" their reading, writing, or talking.  To speak in
their own voices in a public setting like our classroom, where we talk about
serious issues that affect their lives, is the best training in literacy we
can offer them.  

One of our aims is to demystify the whole realm of social control,
schooling, and literacy.  All their lives our students have been told they
are incompetent readers and writers, and this tends to make them so.  But
the incompetence is superficial in most cases.  Their speech skills are
usually more than adequate, and often superb.  In fact, their failure in
school has protected them from certain kinds of glibness and beating about
the bush.  

All students, including ours, have the right to success in a truly
democratic classroom - not just an opportunity to learn, but active exercise
of language, taste, and ethics, in order to explore their own individual
powers and ideals in relation to a growing sense of how others speak and
judge and evaluate.  "Success" means both discovering and making standards,
rather than merely living up to them.  "Failure" means being left out of the
most essential aspects of civic life.  Often the schools fail to do this
important work, through a misguided notion of what kind of education is
appropriate in an egalitarian society.  The men we meet in Changing Lives
typically think of themselves as failures.  From their earliest experiences
in schooling to the regimen of incarceration and probation, they have
stubbornly resisted demands and admonishments, have been labeled
incorrigible, and have little or no sense of what it might mean to be part
of a democratic forum deciding matters of concern for their own lives.  We
want to establish such a classroom, in which no one will be left out.

Our aim is to give each man a chance to think better of himself, while
simultaneously dispelling the illusion that success in school is the only
route to respectability.  We aren't trying to get people back on the
educational track, but to let them judge for themselves what it would mean
to return to school, or to decide not to go that route, a question that asks
them to assess their own lives - Who am I, really, and what kind of future
do I want for myself?

 

Taylor Stoehr, English Department

University of Massachusetts - Boston

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From John.Linton at ed.gov  Tue Sep 19 09:36:32 2006
From: John.Linton at ed.gov (Linton, John)
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2006 09:36:32 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 211] Re: Correctional education -- student motivation
Message-ID: <BEBF16B91CE3AD4EBBC71AE4F114286203101AE8@wdcrobe2m02.ed.gov>

A couple of quick reactions on motivation:
 

*	Is there something that a successful student can graduate to?  In
some systems, high value prison jobs (prison industry) and high demand
vocational training programs are linked to completion of programs.  The
availability of a college program can really motivate GED students.  Indiana
State prisons award time off sentence credits to students -- not for
participation -- but for completion of educational goals.  

 

*	Is the teacher motivating?  In community based adult education,
students tend to pretty clearly "vote with their feet."  The unmotivating
adult ed teacher in the community might end up alone in a classroom.
(Although this seems to happen to a certain extent even in prisons where
students are "forced" to attend.  Attendance records do tell a story.)
Sometimes the motivation issue does come back to the capability and
motivation of the teacher, at least in part.  Are indicators such as
attendance, disciplinary issues, progress and drop out rates tracked by
teacher and are teachers recognized for positive outcomes?  Are high quality
professional development opportunities available to teachers?

 

*	Why would potentially motivated students be allowed to languish
unserved in cells while unmotivated students occupy classroom seats?  An
exceptional correctional principal I was privileged to work with routinely
called "well behaved" but passive students into his office and told them
that they were being rotated out of the program for "lack of progress."
This supported a cultural norm in that school where it was "ok" for tough
guys to act like motivated students.  They had an excuse:  "I have to
participate or I might get kicked out."   And some of the unmotivated
students did return after a semester off with an altered approach.  I note
the reference to a mandatory education policy.  Some similar policies
require a minimum time period (three months) of participation for inmates
below a certain grade level or without a diploma.  They don't require the
inmate student to stay in school until they get the degree or attain the
pre-determined grade level.  If the existing policy is resulting in the
school becoming clogged with "dead wood," perhaps it needs to be revisited.
I'll bet those unmotivated students impact school climate, don't they?   

 
 
John Linton  

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Lobaccaro Gina (DOC)
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: RE: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions


Hello All,
I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex Correctional
Institution in Georgetown Delaware.  I work for the Delaware Department of
Education Prison Education program.. I have corresponded with David and
Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of conferences.
I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area of
motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.  We have so
many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no progress over
and extended time.  They appear to be coming to get off the tiers or to
receive "good time".  In truth, they do not receive much "good time" for
education.  Our education program is a classified program.  If a student
does not have  GED or HS diploma they must attend school.  We have a long
waiting list for the low level ABE students, but we also have students
sitting in classes who appear to me totally unmotivated to improve their
academic skills.
Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating ABE
low level learners in CE settings?
Gina

  _____  

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions



Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you 
are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like 
"What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education 
program to a community education program?" or "What does family 
literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions 
like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's 
reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion to be 
introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All 
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


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From Jnally at doc.in.gov  Tue Sep 19 10:22:30 2006
From: Jnally at doc.in.gov (John Nally)
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2006 10:22:30 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 212]   Re: College for inmates
Message-ID: <s50fc4fe.087@docgwia01.doc.in.gov>

Hello from the Hoosier State,
A brief comment on the college programs in the Indiana Department of
Correction:

IDOC has contracts with six colleges and universities to provide
associate/bachelor degree programs to offenders.  This morning, 17% of
all offenders who have a GED/hs diploma and enough time are enrolled in
degree programs.  At this time the only limiting factor on enrollment is
projected release date.  Our offenders have the highest completion rate
of any college group in the state.  

The Department's recid rate for 2001 was 37.7%.  
The recid rate for bachelor completers was 6.9%.
The recid rate for associate completers was 16.3%

The Department's recid rate for 2002 was 39.3%.
The recid rate for bachelor completers was 18.0%
The recid rate for associate completers was 17.3%.

We recently did a very detailed recidivist study on 856 offenders who
completed programs that are aligned with the USDOE's Youthful Offender
Grant program.  Recid rate= Less than 10%.  We accessed the state's
workforce and welfare database to detail employment, retention, and
access to social services. 

We are currently expanding that study to all offenders regardless of
age  who completed degrees in 2002, 2003, and 2004.  (almost 2,000
individuals).  Why?  The prior study suggests to us that there are
factors other than degree completion:  Date of First Hire; Concurrent
Substance Abuse Treatment; and, alignment of degrees to current
workforce needs.  

Lastly, we just signed contracts for one female facility where the
start to end education program is modeled on practices outlined by the
NIFL.  NIFL's documents were the basis for the RFP and the resulting
contract.  Undereducated offenders will be in literacy and GED programs
that are focused from day-1 on successful enrollment in and completion
of associate degree programs.  

I hope this adds a little to the on-going discussion.  John Nally




John M. Nally
Director of Education, IDOC
IGCS, 329
302 W. Washington St
Indianapolis, IN 46204
317-233-3111
FAX:  317-234-0956


>>> John.Linton at ed.gov Tuesday, September 19, 2006 >>>
Wow -- I'm impressed with the thoughtful comments in this discussion
already!
 
On the question about college for inmates -- this is a dynamic topic
and
there is much to be said.  First, there are still college programs in
prisons.  A recent Ford Foundation supported study by the Institute
for
Higher Education Policy documented the extent of postsecondary
education in
prisons -- and there are more programs out there than many had thought
(myself included).  This is a well documented and very forward
thinking
publication which needs to be seen by more people.   ("Learning to
Reduce
Recidivism, A 50 State analysis of postsecondary correctional
education
policy," November 2005,
<http://www.ihep.org/organizations.php3?action=printContentItem&orgid=104&ty

peID=906&itemID=14017>
http://www.ihep.org/organizations.php3?action=printContentItem&orgid=104&typ

eID=906&itemID=14017 )
 
There is still State money being invested in postsecondary education in
a
number of States, federal funds are being spent on postsecondary
education
in the Bureau of Prisons, and our Department provides more than $20
million
annually for postsecondary State prisoner education in the Grants to
States
for Workplace and Community Transition Training for Incarcerated Youth
Offenders Program.
<http://www.ed.gov/programs/transitiontraining/index.html>
http://www.ed.gov/programs/transitiontraining/index.html   In a number
of
States, postsecondary education seems to be quite an issue -- still to
be
settled at a policy level.  New York comes to mind.  California seems
very
recently to have settled this issue at a policy level and is now
developing
and implementing new partnerships with colleges.  
 
Will inmates become eligible for Pell grants again at some time in the
future?  That is for the lawmakers to decide, but it seems to be an
issue
that never goes away.  CURE is one national organization that has
worked
hard year after year on this issue.
http://www.curenational.org/new/index.html  The Open Society Institute
has
also shown an ongoing interest.  
 
John Linton
 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of John Gordon
Sent: Tuesday, September 19, 2006 1:35 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
Subject: [SpecialTopics 208] Re: Comment on discussion of
"re-entryeducation"for ex-offenders


Thanks to Taylor Stoehr for his thought-provoking piece. I think we
have
much to learn from such work. I'd like to hear more.
 
I work at the Fortune Society, a 39 year old organization in New York
City
dedicated to (1) advocating for prison and criminal justice reform and
(2)
working with people after they leave prison. At Fortune, education is
just
one of a wide array of programs people coming out of prison can
participate
in. Even though most people who come to us do not have a high school
diploma, education is usually not the first thing on their minds. The
vast
majority need a job and many are either homeless or one step from it.
In
addition, most people are dealing with a range of parole and probation
mandates like substance abuse treatment and anger management. 
 
Approximately 250 people participate in our Education program each
year; in
the last few years, the percentage of younger students and particularly
of
people mandated to one of Fortune's Alternative to Incarceration
program has
grown dramatically. I think our underlying philosophy has much in
common
with the program described by Taylor Stoehr - we develop curriculum
around
the needs and issues brought to the class by the students themselves.
However, a number of factors have undermined our ability to maintain
that
focus on content:

*	

	The sheer numbers of people coming through our doors every year
has
stretched our resources. We have struggled to keep up with the demand.
Recently we have restructured our program so that it serves fewer
people,
but more intensively.
*	

	We are serving increasing numbers of court mandated students,
many
of whom really don't want to be in class. We have worked hard to
develop a
curriculum that honors their right and need to make autonomous
decisions
about the role of education in their lives and at the same time to
insist on
the integrity of the process in the classroom.  
*	

	Perhaps though, the biggest obstacle has been the fact that we
are
caught up in the National Reporting System and its focus on educational
gain
as defined by test scores. The pressure to meet state targets, lumped
together indiscriminately as we are with every other program in the
state,
has produced enormous pressure to test, test, test. This has not been
all
bad as it has led us to look closely at what we are doing and think
about
how we can do it better. But the narrow focus on test scores has made
it
difficult to shape the program around the real and individual needs of
the
students.

Perhaps in a later post, I can address some other issues, but I did
want to
pose one question:  Given that the elimination of Pell Grants for
prisoners
has virtually ended the possibility of going to college while in
prison,
what do the panelists think is the importance of and possibility of
reinstating that right? Here at Fortune where many of the staff have
been
incarcerated themselves, the value and significance of college level
work in
prison is a given. Many of the staff members in the leadership of the
agency
got their degrees (or at least started them) while in prison.
Obviously, the
college degree, or college level coursework, opens up job possibilities
for
people once they're out. But it also contributes to the development of
leadership skills that will allow former prisoners to come back to
their
communities and play critical roles in shaping collective responses to
the
problems those communities are facing.
 
john gordon
The Fortune Society 
 
While we 

  _____  

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] 
On Behalf Of Taylor Stoehr
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
Subject: [SpecialTopics 205] Comment on discussion of "re-entry
education"for ex-offenders



I work in a Massachusetts program for probationers called Changing
Lives
Through Literature.  (See our website: cltl at umassd.edu )  Started in
1991 in
a single court, it has spread to a number of jurisdictions in
Massachusetts
and to six other states.  I can speak for the men's program in
Dorchester,
the busiest criminal court in the state, where we have the experience
of a
dozen years - perhaps 250 graduates of our ten-week program offered
every
semester.  We are currently involved in a study of recidivism in five
jurisdictions, but the results will not be available for quite some
time.
For the moment, I can say that the probationers themselves believe that
they
change during this short period of intense focus on a few texts, and a
set
of concerns that are central in their lives.  Our primary text is
Frederick
Douglass's Narrative of the Life of an American Slave, which serves as
the
starting point for discussion of problems faced by the students
themselves -
poverty and racism, the struggle for social  justice, family breakdown,
the
weakening of community bonds and thinning out of spiritual sustenance.
Short supplementary readings by other authors - black and white,
American
and foreign, contemporary and classic - clarify issues Douglass raises
by
putting them in a broader context, and a writing assignment helps us
focus
on their relevance today.  For example, after reading how Douglass
describes
his childhood, and how Malcolm X, Bill Russell, Maxim Gorky, or Leo
Tolstoy
describe theirs, students are asked to state their own opinion of what
is
necessary for a "normal" childhood, and who has the responsibility to
provide it.  What was your childhood like?  What kind of a father do
you
want to be?  Those are the implied questions.  We also ask how a man
like
Frederick Douglass or Malcolm X finds himself.  "Where do people get
their
courage, self-esteem, and righteousness?"

With men like those I work with, it's probably better to concentrate on
the
literacy skills they already possess - a complicated mix of street
smarts
and a colloquial eloquence among friends and family - than to imagine
that
we are going to "improve" their reading, writing, or talking.  To speak
in
their own voices in a public setting like our classroom, where we talk
about
serious issues that affect their lives, is the best training in
literacy we
can offer them.  

One of our aims is to demystify the whole realm of social control,
schooling, and literacy.  All their lives our students have been told
they
are incompetent readers and writers, and this tends to make them so. 
But
the incompetence is superficial in most cases.  Their speech skills
are
usually more than adequate, and often superb.  In fact, their failure
in
school has protected them from certain kinds of glibness and beating
about
the bush.  

All students, including ours, have the right to success in a truly
democratic classroom - not just an opportunity to learn, but active
exercise
of language, taste, and ethics, in order to explore their own
individual
powers and ideals in relation to a growing sense of how others speak
and
judge and evaluate.  "Success" means both discovering and making
standards,
rather than merely living up to them.  "Failure" means being left out
of the
most essential aspects of civic life.  Often the schools fail to do
this
important work, through a misguided notion of what kind of education
is
appropriate in an egalitarian society.  The men we meet in Changing
Lives
typically think of themselves as failures.  From their earliest
experiences
in schooling to the regimen of incarceration and probation, they have
stubbornly resisted demands and admonishments, have been labeled
incorrigible, and have little or no sense of what it might mean to be
part
of a democratic forum deciding matters of concern for their own lives. 
We
want to establish such a classroom, in which no one will be left out.

Our aim is to give each man a chance to think better of himself, while
simultaneously dispelling the illusion that success in school is the
only
route to respectability.  We aren't trying to get people back on the
educational track, but to let them judge for themselves what it would
mean
to return to school, or to decide not to go that route, a question that
asks
them to assess their own lives - Who am I, really, and what kind of
future
do I want for myself?

 

Taylor Stoehr, English Department

University of Massachusetts - Boston



From wrmuth at vcu.edu  Tue Sep 19 12:29:37 2006
From: wrmuth at vcu.edu (William R Muth/FS/VCU)
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2006 12:29:37 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 213] Re: Correctional education -- student motivation
In-Reply-To: <BEBF16B91CE3AD4EBBC71AE4F114286203101AE8@wdcrobe2m02.ed.gov>
Message-ID: <OFF16E38E2.6224EDB2-ON852571EE.005A65AA-852571EE.005A9A0A@vcu.edu>

Greetings. I agree with my friend & colleague John Linton that these are 
excellent postings.  My response will touch on points raised by a number 
of contributors.

First, Taylor Stoehr?s impressive program Changing Lives Through 
Literature reminds me very much of a Core Humanities program Stephen 
Duguid created in the late 1980?s in prisons in British Columbia. Like 
Taylor, Duguid?s program encouraged learners to look critically at social 
power structures that defined them. Further, it forced practitioners as 
well as students to confront the myth that literacy learners ? even those 
in ABE ? do not have the intelligence or higher level thinking skills to 
discuss such ?advanced? topics. (In a parallel way, the work by Robert 
Kegan et al. supports this point: the capacity for higher complexity of 
thought has little to do with formal educational attainment. See: 
http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/brief19.pdf )

Gina Lobaccaro raised the issue of motivation. As I look back to Taylor?s 
statements - and John Gordon?s stance: ?we develop curriculum around the 
needs and issues brought to the class by the students? ? the question that 
comes to mind is, ?to what extent can we implement student centered 
programs in prison?? This question gets to the heart of prison culture, 
and the negative by-products of even the most well-meaning top-down 
systems that attempt to ?fix? people from without.  And what should a 
student-centered prison-based literacy program look like? 

I fully agree that the pressing needs of  learners should be invited into 
the classroom, and that they have the potential to become potent themes 
for learning and potent reasons to learn. So many learners in traditional 
literacy programs are placed into skill-based texts and rushed to the GED. 
Teachers feel this pressure, of course!  But recent studies challenge the 
usefulness of programs that are focused primarily on passing the GED and 
ignore the need for foundational learning. And for both ethical and 
pedagogical reasons, why would an incarcerated woman (for example) who is 
struggling at a low-literacy level, and who is trying to keep her family 
together through letter writing be asked to leave these literacy-life 
needs at the classroom door? 

I have tremendous admiration for what you are doing, John (Gordon), but do 
differ a bit from your stance. I do believe we can and should teach 
foundational literacy skills to our learners --many of whom have histories 
of learning disabilities and severe health problems that sometimes require 
explicit (yes, top-down) instruction.  For me the key is to take a 
bi-cultural approach. I agree with Vivian Gadsden that these two world 
views are not contradictory and the challenge for correctional teachers (I 
believe) is to embrace both. 

I need to run (again). But in part to begin to address Helaine Marshall?s 
question about adopting curricula to meet the needs of incarcerated 
learners, and in part to (hopefully) to provide another example of a 
student-centered program (this time a family literacy program in New 
York), I call the readers? attention to an excellent guide put out by the 
Hudson River Center at:    http://www.hudrivctr.org/products_ce.htm

Warm regards,  Bill





"Linton, John" <John.Linton at ed.gov> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
09/19/2006 09:36 AM
Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov


To
<specialtopics at nifl.gov>
cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 211] Re: Correctional education -- student motivation






A couple of quick reactions on motivation:
 
Is there something that a successful student can graduate to?  In some 
systems, high value prison jobs (prison industry) and high demand 
vocational training programs are linked to completion of programs.  The 
availability of a college program can really motivate GED students. 
Indiana State prisons award time off sentence credits to students -- not 
for participation -- but for completion of educational goals. 
 
Is the teacher motivating?  In community based adult education, students 
tend to pretty clearly "vote with their feet."  The unmotivating adult ed 
teacher in the community might end up alone in a classroom.  (Although 
this seems to happen to a certain extent even in prisons where students 
are "forced" to attend.  Attendance records do tell a story.)   Sometimes 
the motivation issue does come back to the capability and motivation of 
the teacher, at least in part.  Are indicators such as attendance, 
disciplinary issues, progress and drop out rates tracked by teacher and 
are teachers recognized for positive outcomes?  Are high quality 
professional development opportunities available to teachers?
 
Why would potentially motivated students be allowed to languish unserved 
in cells while unmotivated students occupy classroom seats?  An 
exceptional correctional principal I was privileged to work with routinely 
called "well behaved" but passive students into his office and told them 
that they were being rotated out of the program for "lack of progress." 
This supported a cultural norm in that school where it was "ok" for tough 
guys to act like motivated students.  They had an excuse:  "I have to 
participate or I might get kicked out."   And some of the unmotivated 
students did return after a semester off with an altered approach.  I note 
the reference to a mandatory education policy.  Some similar policies 
require a minimum time period (three months) of participation for inmates 
below a certain grade level or without a diploma.  They don't require the 
inmate student to stay in school until they get the degree or attain the 
pre-determined grade level.  If the existing policy is resulting in the 
school becoming clogged with "dead wood," perhaps it needs to be 
revisited.  I'll bet those unmotivated students impact school climate, 
don't they? 
 
 
John Linton 
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Lobaccaro Gina (DOC)
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: RE: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions

Hello All,
I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex 
Correctional Institution in Georgetown Delaware.  I work for the Delaware 
Department of Education Prison Education program.. I have corresponded 
with David and Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of conferences.
I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area of 
motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.  We have 
so many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no progress 
over and extended time.  They appear to be coming to get off the tiers or 
to receive "good time".  In truth, they do not receive much "good time" 
for education.  Our education program is a classified program.  If a 
student does not have  GED or HS diploma they must attend school.  We have 
a long waiting list for the low level ABE students, but we also have 
students sitting in classes who appear to me totally unmotivated to 
improve their academic skills.
Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating ABE 
low level learners in CE settings?
Gina

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions

Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you 
are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like 
"What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education 
program to a community education program?" or "What does family 
literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions 
like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's 
reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion to be 
introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All 
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



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From djrosen at comcast.net  Tue Sep 19 12:42:30 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2006 12:42:30 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 214]  Discussion to be extended through Monday
Message-ID: <AB04F3EF-FFC7-4A04-B0F5-1784A06AF4A4@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

Steve Steurer emailed me that he won't be able to join us until  
Friday.  So I am going to extend our discussion through Monday next  
week so that he has a chance to read and respond to your questions  
and comments, and so that you have an opportunity to have a dialogue  
with him as well as with John Linton and Bill Muth.

These are great questions and comments, and it's great to learn about  
programs in the community which have thought through the needs of  
those released from prison or jail.  I hope we will have more  
questions, more examples from programs and practitioners -- and  
continued dialogue.

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net





From djrosen at comcast.net  Wed Sep 20 13:55:33 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 13:55:33 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 215]  Family Literacy and Corrections
Message-ID: <45CE0C5B-FF77-43CB-B532-EF576B656356@comcast.net>

Bill, John and Steve,

I have a question about family literacy.  "Locked Up and Locked Out"   
points out that punishment ?is not appropriate for the more than 1.5  
million children of prisoners? and that  ?Neglecting these unintended  
victims will likely lead to these children replacing their parents in  
the prisons of the future.?

What is being done about this? Can you give us some examples of  
programs in prison settings that help inmates help their children to  
read or with their homework, or with other education-related or  
parenting issues?

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net








From Carolyn.Buser at ed.gov  Wed Sep 20 14:19:20 2006
From: Carolyn.Buser at ed.gov (Buser, Carolyn)
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 14:19:20 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 216] Re: Family Literacy and Corrections
Message-ID: <CB4082E7B582144084C72EC6C98D49590E1A20E8@wdcrobe2m04.ed.gov>

David --  Maryland has long had family literacy programs within selected
institutions.  Prisoners who are in the school program are able to bring
children in one morning every other month along with the children's' care
giver.  The incarcerated parent participates in reading activities with the
child or children, and the caregivers have a session led by social workers
or other professionals on how to help children and themselves adjust to the
incarceration of the parent.  The program began at the Maryland Correctional
Institution for Women in the 1990's through Reading is Fundamental.  It has
expanded to two men's institutions and has had continued support from
Maryland's Correctional Education Program under the Maryland Department of
Education.  Each parent studies children's literature appropriate for
her/his children in advance of the visit, and then each child may select two
books to take home.  Some of these books are purchased, and others are
donated.  Last year Maryland's public school teacher of the year made the
donation of these books her project for the year.  There is nothing quite
like watching the commissioner of correction do the hokey-pokey with 25 or
so prisoners and their children.  Recently the program was awarded a Barbara
Bush Family Literacy Grant.  A contact for more information on this program
is the Correctional Education Librarian, Glennor Shirley, at
gshirley at msde.state.md.us.  Thank you for an informative discussion.  

Carolyn Buser, Education Specialist
United States Department of Education
Division of Adult Education and Literacy



-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2006 1:56 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 215] Family Literacy and Corrections


Bill, John and Steve,

I have a question about family literacy.  "Locked Up and Locked Out"   
points out that punishment ?is not appropriate for the more than 1.5  
million children of prisoners? and that  ?Neglecting these unintended  
victims will likely lead to these children replacing their parents in  
the prisons of the future.?

What is being done about this? Can you give us some examples of  
programs in prison settings that help inmates help their children to  
read or with their homework, or with other education-related or  
parenting issues?

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net






-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From wrmuth at vcu.edu  Wed Sep 20 15:22:04 2006
From: wrmuth at vcu.edu (William R Muth/FS/VCU)
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 15:22:04 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 217] Re: Family Literacy and Corrections
In-Reply-To: <CB4082E7B582144084C72EC6C98D49590E1A20E8@wdcrobe2m04.ed.gov>
Message-ID: <OF09D26B42.D795FB66-ON852571EF.0069B2A7-852571EF.006A6351@vcu.edu>

Hi Cay!
In addition to the notable work being done in Maryland, four other 
examples follow. It would be wonderful to hear from others about their 
family literacy work programs. -Bill

(a)     The Hudson River Center program mentioned yesterday. 
(b)     The Hope House DC program, which uses videoconferencing to support 
regular (biweekly) father-child contact. In addition to videoconferencing, 
letter writing, taped storybook readings, and poetry workshops are used to 
support and build relationships.
(c)     Reading-Is-Fundamental programs, like those Cay Buser mentioned, 
are now in at least a dozen federal facilities (and I am aware of similar 
programs sponsored by the Virginia Department of Correctional Education.) 
Typically, in these programs, incarcerated mothers and fathers tape record 
their reading of a storybook and the tape and book are sent home to the 
child. R-I-F (wisely) requires that these mailings happen regularly, so an 
individual child can expect a series of books over the course of a year.   
 
(d)     An e-mail pilot program that the Federal BOP is planning at its 
female facility in Danbury CT. It will involve the use of carefully 
monitored e-mail correspondence between incarcerated mothers (who are also 
enrolled in the literacy program) and their children (who are part of a 
mentoring program). 

Here is some background info on this topic:
1.      55 % of male prisoners are fathers with children under age 18; 44 
percent of these fathers lived in the home of at least one of their 
children at the time of arrest.
2.      75% of all female prisoners are mothers, and 72% were primary 
caretakers of their children prior to arrest. The number of incarcerated 
women is expanding more rapidly than that of male incarcerates. 
3.      Children of prisoners are six times more likely to enter the 
criminal justice system; the Human Rights Watch (2002) found that African 
American children were over eight times more likely to do time than 
Caucasian children, and Latino/a children were three times more likely. 
Children separated from parents as a result of incarceration experience 
higher rates of anxiety disorders, withdrawal, depression, guilt, shame, 
anger, aggression, school phobias, and poor academic performance. (These 
problems often started before the mother or father was arrested, parental 
removal tended to exacerbate them.)
4.      About 55% of adjudicated youth have a parent in prison
5.      Some proponents of tough sentencing for criminals challenge the 
?right? of prisoners to have contact with their children. But 
practitioners that work with either the parents or the children or both, 
report on the need for this contact: (a) for the emotional health of the 
children (often described as the ?other victims,?) (b) to promote 
successful reintegration after prison, and (c) to stop the corrosive 
effects of high rates of incarceration on the community. 
The Reentry initiative has nurtured numerous community-prison 
partnerships, and increased political support for life skills and 
parenting programs, but I am not aware of nearly as many programs 
attempting to integrate parenting and literacy. For example, I recently 
found 1,187 research articles on family literacy, but only 8 of these had 
anything to do with incarcerated parents. It is not realistic to leave 
this problem at teacher?s doorsteps. It is foremost a policy issue that 
touches on a number of concerns that have already been discussed in this 
forum - pressure to show results (GED), a reporting system that is not 
sensitive to the kinds of learning that are engendered in 
intergenerational literacy programs, etc?.
Bill




"Buser, Carolyn" <Carolyn.Buser at ed.gov> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
09/20/2006 02:19 PM
Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov


To
<specialtopics at nifl.gov>
cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 216] Re: Family Literacy and Corrections






David --  Maryland has long had family literacy programs within selected
institutions.  Prisoners who are in the school program are able to bring
children in one morning every other month along with the children's' care
giver.  The incarcerated parent participates in reading activities with 
the
child or children, and the caregivers have a session led by social workers
or other professionals on how to help children and themselves adjust to 
the
incarceration of the parent.  The program began at the Maryland 
Correctional
Institution for Women in the 1990's through Reading is Fundamental.  It 
has
expanded to two men's institutions and has had continued support from
Maryland's Correctional Education Program under the Maryland Department of
Education.  Each parent studies children's literature appropriate for
her/his children in advance of the visit, and then each child may select 
two
books to take home.  Some of these books are purchased, and others are
donated.  Last year Maryland's public school teacher of the year made the
donation of these books her project for the year.  There is nothing quite
like watching the commissioner of correction do the hokey-pokey with 25 or
so prisoners and their children.  Recently the program was awarded a 
Barbara
Bush Family Literacy Grant.  A contact for more information on this 
program
is the Correctional Education Librarian, Glennor Shirley, at
gshirley at msde.state.md.us.  Thank you for an informative discussion. 

Carolyn Buser, Education Specialist
United States Department of Education
Division of Adult Education and Literacy



-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2006 1:56 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 215] Family Literacy and Corrections


Bill, John and Steve,

I have a question about family literacy.  "Locked Up and Locked Out" 
points out that punishment ?is not appropriate for the more than 1.5 
million children of prisoners? and that  ?Neglecting these unintended 
victims will likely lead to these children replacing their parents in 
the prisons of the future.?

What is being done about this? Can you give us some examples of 
programs in prison settings that help inmates help their children to 
read or with their homework, or with other education-related or 
parenting issues?

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net






-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
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From djgbrian at utk.edu  Wed Sep 20 15:23:34 2006
From: djgbrian at utk.edu (Brian, Dr Donna J G)
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 15:23:34 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 218] Re: Family Literacy and Corrections
In-Reply-To: <CB4082E7B582144084C72EC6C98D49590E1A20E8@wdcrobe2m04.ed.gov>
Message-ID: <A6B32D41E04B2F43807EC42DA182C21830D447@UTKFSVS5.utk.tennessee.edu>

This is certainly a "feel good" post, Carolyn!  Thank you for sharing.
Donna Brian 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Buser, Carolyn
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2006 2:19 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 216] Re: Family Literacy and Corrections

David --  Maryland has long had family literacy programs within selected
institutions.  Prisoners who are in the school program are able to bring
children in one morning every other month along with the children's'
care giver.  The incarcerated parent participates in reading activities
with the child or children, and the caregivers have a session led by
social workers or other professionals on how to help children and
themselves adjust to the incarceration of the parent.  The program began
at the Maryland Correctional Institution for Women in the 1990's through
Reading is Fundamental.  It has expanded to two men's institutions and
has had continued support from Maryland's Correctional Education Program
under the Maryland Department of Education.  Each parent studies
children's literature appropriate for her/his children in advance of the
visit, and then each child may select two books to take home.  Some of
these books are purchased, and others are donated.  Last year Maryland's
public school teacher of the year made the donation of these books her
project for the year.  There is nothing quite like watching the
commissioner of correction do the hokey-pokey with 25 or so prisoners
and their children.  Recently the program was awarded a Barbara Bush
Family Literacy Grant.  A contact for more information on this program
is the Correctional Education Librarian, Glennor Shirley, at
gshirley at msde.state.md.us.  Thank you for an informative discussion.  

Carolyn Buser, Education Specialist
United States Department of Education
Division of Adult Education and Literacy



-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2006 1:56 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 215] Family Literacy and Corrections


Bill, John and Steve,

I have a question about family literacy.  "Locked Up and Locked Out"   
points out that punishment "is not appropriate for the more than 1.5
million children of prisoners" and that  "Neglecting these unintended
victims will likely lead to these children replacing their parents in
the prisons of the future."

What is being done about this? Can you give us some examples of programs
in prison settings that help inmates help their children to read or with
their homework, or with other education-related or parenting issues?

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net






-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From mgilbert at emporia.edu  Wed Sep 20 16:22:41 2006
From: mgilbert at emporia.edu (Melisa Gilbert)
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 15:22:41 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 219]  correctional library support for education
Message-ID: <45115CC1020000C100008343@zeno.emporia.edu>

Hi,
I am a correctional library supervisor and Master of Library Science
graduate student.  I joined this list as part of class assignment, but I
also have a professional interest in building a special collection of
adult literacy books for the library where I am working (500 bed,
minimum-security, all male correctional center).  I am also very
interested in supporting the educational programs at my facility.  

I would like to know, from GED, ESL, and/or ABE instructors who work in
corrections:  What books or other media you would like to see in the
correctional library at your facility?  I'm looking for specific titles,
or general types/categories, that would support your educational program
AND be attractive or helpful to adult learners, but still be general
enough to justify purchase in a library that must serve the entire
facility. 

Sincerely, 
M. Gilbert
Arrowhead Correctional Center - General Library



From eappleton at fortunesociety.org  Wed Sep 20 18:07:59 2006
From: eappleton at fortunesociety.org (Eric Appleton)
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 18:07:59 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 220]  self-education
Message-ID: <FCE5A738D738724AB9ED7A61D3E733F00341183E@mail.fortunesociety.org>

Hello everyone,

I teach reading, writing and math at the Fortune Society with John
Gordon. I have taught here for about seven years. As part of my work, I
have done individual intakes with many of the students here. Student
after student has told me that they really began to love reading when
they were in prison. Not every student who has served time learned to
love to read, but many did. It has been amazing to me to see how
important books were to these people at hardest point in their lives.

I don't want to minimize the work that teachers in prison are doing, but
from my vantage point, self-education has been the most important type
of education in the lives of most students I meet. I hear students talk
about how they began to get interested in history, in science and in
reading for reading's sake. I hear about how books became prized
possessions and were passed from person to person. I look at the
students in our program and wish that they were doing the same thing
now, while continuing their studies.

For students who are working towards their GED or are hoping to go to
college, daily independent reading is essential. Unfortunately, many
students drop out of the habit of reading once they get back in the free
world, where friends, family and TV lead them away from books. 

How can teachers on the outside help students retain and continue this
enthusiasm for reading on their own and learning for learning's sake?
How can prison teachers and administrators encourage (and facilitate)
more prisoners taking opportunities to educate themselves?

Looking forward to more discussion,
Eric

**********
Eric Appleton
Teacher/Coordinator
The Fortune Society
212.691.7554, x.702
53 W. 23rd St., 7th floor, NYC 10010
eappleton at fortunesociety.org
http://www.fortunesociety.org/education



From eappleton at fortunesociety.org  Wed Sep 20 18:19:09 2006
From: eappleton at fortunesociety.org (Eric Appleton)
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 18:19:09 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 221]  college for inmates
Message-ID: <FCE5A738D738724AB9ED7A61D3E733F003411840@mail.fortunesociety.org>

Hi everyone,

The Fortune Society corresponds with inmates all over the country. Many
receive our newsletter, the Fortune News, free of charge. I received the
following letter from an inmate in Clinton Correctional Facility in
Dannemora, New York:

"Would you send me all the information about what you have to offer? I
am in the middle of studying a college course on health. A source here
brought to my attention that you have some sort of college courses.

Please send me all the information on college courses you deal with. Is
it free? And/or connect me with other places who deal with a larger
variety of college courses.

Thank you."

Unfortunately, the Fortune Society doesn't have college courses and I
don't have any information to share. Does anyone have advice for this
inmate? How can inmates find college opportunities? How can people on
the outside help inmates find resources?

Cheers,
Eric



From jgordon at fortunesociety.org  Wed Sep 20 23:39:56 2006
From: jgordon at fortunesociety.org (John Gordon)
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 23:39:56 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 222] Re: Correctional education -- student motivation
Message-ID: <FCE5A738D738724AB9ED7A61D3E733F003411856@mail.fortunesociety.org>

Bill et al,
 
Thanks for the thoughtful response. I cannot speak knowledgeably to the
question of "to what extent can we implement student centered programs
in prison?" since I have never taught on the inside. (Kathy Boudin
speaks to this issue much more profoundly than I could ever do in her
seminal piece in the Harvard Ed Review "Participatory Literacy Education
Behind Bars:  AIDS Opens the Door.," Harvard Educational Review, Vol.
63, number 2, Summer 1993. http://www.kathyboudin.com/harvard.htm). 
 
However, I do believe that one can bring a certain "stance" to teaching
no matter where it is done. I don't really describe our approach as
"student-centered" because I think that term has come to mean many
things and sometimes implies a mushy, unrigorous methodology - similar
to the way "empowerment" has lost any real meaning. I do believe that as
teachers we must start from the assumption that we and the students we
work with walk into the class as equals, each with things to teach and
learn from each other. I believe as well that students may learn as much
from each other as from me. Given those assumptions, the process will
play out differently in different contexts. But that stance would inform
what I do, no matter where I teach. I don't think centering your
curriculum around the needs and concerns of the students means that we
don't teach "foundational skills", but, again, I would say that it will
inform how we go about teaching those skills. Obviously, this is a much
longer conversation, and from your comments I think you might agree, but
I welcome the opportunity to talk about these things.
 
Students come to Fortune from a variety of places and for different
reasons. Some are coming back from doing serious time upstate.... they
tend to be pretty centered, with definite ideas about what they want.
They're generally a little older, a little further from the high school
experience. Others are on probation, one step from the street, and not
really clear about where they are going and why they are here, other
than to satisfy a probation officer. Still others are mandated into an
alternative to incarceration program and risk prison time if they don't
attend regularly. This last group is the youngest; they're often angry
at having to be in school and a lot of their feelings play out in the
classroom. It's not an easy mix; for all the problems, classes inside
prison may simplify things. But the task is the same:  to find some
common ground, build trust and community within the classroom, and find
a way to begin exchanging ideas about things that are important to the
participants.  
 
A comment for David who does such a wonderful job instigating and
facilitating these conversations. It would be great to do this in person
some time, some where. If you have ideas about that, I would welcome
them.
 
best,
john

  _____  

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of William R
Muth/FS/VCU
Sent: Tuesday, September 19, 2006 12:30 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 213] Re: Correctional education -- student
motivation



Greetings. I agree with my friend & colleague John Linton that these are
excellent postings.  My response will touch on points raised by a number
of contributors. 

First, Taylor Stoehr's impressive program Changing Lives Through
Literature reminds me very much of a Core Humanities program Stephen
Duguid created in the late 1980's in prisons in British Columbia. Like
Taylor, Duguid's program encouraged learners to look critically at
social power structures that defined them. Further, it forced
practitioners as well as students to confront the myth that literacy
learners - even those in ABE - do not have the intelligence or higher
level thinking skills to discuss such "advanced" topics. (In a parallel
way, the work by Robert Kegan et al. supports this point: the capacity
for higher complexity of thought has little to do with formal
educational attainment. See:
http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/research/brief19.pdf ) 

Gina Lobaccaro raised the issue of motivation. As I look back to
Taylor's statements - and John Gordon's stance: "we develop curriculum
around the needs and issues brought to the class by the students" - the
question that comes to mind is, "to what extent can we implement student
centered programs in prison?" This question gets to the heart of prison
culture, and the negative by-products of even the most well-meaning
top-down systems that attempt to "fix" people from without.  And what
should a student-centered prison-based literacy program look like?   

I fully agree that the pressing needs of  learners should be invited
into the classroom, and that they have the potential to become potent
themes for learning and potent reasons to learn. So many learners in
traditional literacy programs are placed into skill-based texts and
rushed to the GED. Teachers feel this pressure, of course!  But recent
studies challenge the usefulness of programs that are focused primarily
on passing the GED and ignore the need for foundational learning. And
for both ethical and pedagogical reasons, why would an incarcerated
woman (for example) who is struggling at a low-literacy level, and who
is trying to keep her family together through letter writing be asked to
leave these literacy-life needs at the classroom door?     

I have tremendous admiration for what you are doing, John (Gordon), but
do differ a bit from your stance. I do believe we can and should teach
foundational literacy skills to our learners --many of whom have
histories of learning disabilities and severe health problems that
sometimes require explicit (yes, top-down) instruction.  For me the key
is to take a  bi-cultural approach. I agree with Vivian Gadsden that
these two world views are not contradictory and the challenge for
correctional teachers (I believe) is to embrace both.   

I need to run (again). But in part to begin to address Helaine
Marshall's question about adopting curricula to meet the needs of
incarcerated learners, and in part to (hopefully) to provide another
example of a student-centered program (this time a family literacy
program in New York), I call the readers' attention to an excellent
guide put out by the Hudson River Center at:
http://www.hudrivctr.org/products_ce.htm
<http://www.hudrivctr.org/products_ce.htm>  

Warm regards,  Bill 





"Linton, John" <John.Linton at ed.gov> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 

09/19/2006 09:36 AM 
Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov


To
<specialtopics at nifl.gov> 
cc
Subject
[SpecialTopics 211] Re: Correctional education -- student motivation

	




A couple of quick reactions on motivation: 
  

*	Is there something that a successful student can graduate to?
In some systems, high value prison jobs (prison industry) and high
demand vocational training programs are linked to completion of
programs.  The availability of a college program can really motivate GED
students.  Indiana State prisons award time off sentence credits to
students -- not for participation -- but for completion of educational
goals.  

  

*	Is the teacher motivating?  In community based adult education,
students tend to pretty clearly "vote with their feet."  The
unmotivating adult ed teacher in the community might end up alone in a
classroom.  (Although this seems to happen to a certain extent even in
prisons where students are "forced" to attend.  Attendance records do
tell a story.)   Sometimes the motivation issue does come back to the
capability and motivation of the teacher, at least in part.  Are
indicators such as attendance, disciplinary issues, progress and drop
out rates tracked by teacher and are teachers recognized for positive
outcomes?  Are high quality professional development opportunities
available to teachers?

  

*	Why would potentially motivated students be allowed to languish
unserved in cells while unmotivated students occupy classroom seats?  An
exceptional correctional principal I was privileged to work with
routinely called "well behaved" but passive students into his office and
told them that they were being rotated out of the program for "lack of
progress."  This supported a cultural norm in that school where it was
"ok" for tough guys to act like motivated students.  They had an excuse:
"I have to participate or I might get kicked out."   And some of the
unmotivated students did return after a semester off with an altered
approach.  I note the reference to a mandatory education policy.  Some
similar policies require a minimum time period (three months) of
participation for inmates below a certain grade level or without a
diploma.  They don't require the inmate student to stay in school until
they get the degree or attain the pre-determined grade level.  If the
existing policy is resulting in the school becoming clogged with "dead
wood," perhaps it needs to be revisited.  I'll bet those unmotivated
students impact school climate, don't they?   

  
  
John Linton   
-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Lobaccaro Gina (DOC)
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: RE: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions

Hello All, 
I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex
Correctional Institution in Georgetown Delaware.  I work for the
Delaware Department of Education Prison Education program.. I have
corresponded with David and Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of
conferences. 
I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area
of motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.  We
have so many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no
progress over and extended time.  They appear to be coming to get off
the tiers or to receive "good time".  In truth, they do not receive much
"good time" for education.  Our education program is a classified
program.  If a student does not have  GED or HS diploma they must attend
school.  We have a long waiting list for the low level ABE students, but
we also have students sitting in classes who appear to me totally
unmotivated to improve their academic skills. 
Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating
ABE low level learners in CE settings? 
Gina 


  _____  

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions


Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you 
are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like 
"What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education 
program to a community education program?" or "What does family 
literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions 
like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's 
reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion to be 
introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All 
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



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From djrosen at comcast.net  Thu Sep 21 06:52:31 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2006 06:52:31 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 223] Community education for inmates who are released
Message-ID: <4F790135-E095-436B-B774-5CCEBD702A19@comcast.net>

Hello Colleagues,

I would like our guests -- and others -- to explore some other  
challenging questions:

1. One of the characteristics of a successful prison education  
program (Gerber and Fritsch,  and Luiden and Perry) is follow-up with  
inmates after release.  Can you describe some models that do this  
well, and that lead to released prisoners continuing their education  
in the community?

2.  Do you know of examples of prisons or jails that invite community  
education programs to provide basic education inside so that when  
inmates are released there is continuity with the community education  
program outside? Can you tell us about how the model(s) works?

3. Is there any way that a web-based learning system could be offered  
to prisoners for self study inside that they could continue to use  
outside in a library, community technology center or at a community  
education program? I know that prisons and jails cannot offer  
Internet access, but are there any examples of a version of a web  
site being run on an internal server, in the prison, offering  
(nearly) the same experience as the user would have with internet  
access to the web site?

I hope others will continue to post their questions and comments.   
Steve Steurer plans to join us tomorrow or Monday, and the discussion  
continues through Tuesday.

Those who have just joined us, and others, the postings in this  
discussion are archived at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

If you would like to know more about other National Institute for  
Literacy-sponsored discussion lists, you will find information at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net







From John.Linton at ed.gov  Thu Sep 21 07:50:40 2006
From: John.Linton at ed.gov (Linton, John)
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2006 07:50:40 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 224] Re: college for inmates -- correspondence
	programs
Message-ID: <BEBF16B91CE3AD4EBBC71AE4F114286203101AF5@wdcrobe2m02.ed.gov>

Hi Eric

We're challenged to respond to a lot of inmate mail here also.  There are a
number of new distance learning initiatives out there -- I'm frankly having
trouble keeping up with them -- but one that has been around for a while and
seems to be solid is a distance learning program at the Ohio University
called "College Program for the Incarcerated."
http://www.ohiou.edu/adultlearning/incarc.htm  (There is an a mailing
address at this link where persons can send for an information packet.)  The
program is oriented toward prisons -- does not require phone or internet
access.  The only issue I've heard of with this program is the cost.   Few
incarcerated persons have the financial resources to afford this program --
but some do.

John Linton

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Eric Appleton
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2006 6:19 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 221] college for inmates


Hi everyone,

The Fortune Society corresponds with inmates all over the country. Many
receive our newsletter, the Fortune News, free of charge. I received the
following letter from an inmate in Clinton Correctional Facility in
Dannemora, New York:

"Would you send me all the information about what you have to offer? I
am in the middle of studying a college course on health. A source here
brought to my attention that you have some sort of college courses.

Please send me all the information on college courses you deal with. Is
it free? And/or connect me with other places who deal with a larger
variety of college courses.

Thank you."

Unfortunately, the Fortune Society doesn't have college courses and I
don't have any information to share. Does anyone have advice for this
inmate? How can inmates find college opportunities? How can people on
the outside help inmates find resources?

Cheers,
Eric

-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From wrmuth at vcu.edu  Thu Sep 21 11:13:21 2006
From: wrmuth at vcu.edu (William R Muth/FS/VCU)
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2006 11:13:21 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 225] Re: Community education for inmates who are
	released
In-Reply-To: <4F790135-E095-436B-B774-5CCEBD702A19@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <OF6984FCF1.748725F0-ON852571F0.00539372-852571F0.00539F0C@vcu.edu>

Eric (and All), 
I also found that incarcerated people in literacy programs are quite 
literate. In a study I did a few years back I was surprised to find that, 
except for participants in the lowest reading group (word recognition 
scores at about 1st grade level, and very slow reading rates) all others 
reported reading outside of class as much as 6 hours a week or more. (Even 
those at the lowest reading levels that had a bit stronger reading rate 
scores were active readers.) One mother ? also in the lowest reading group 
? regularly wrote letters home in her effort to hold the family together. 
Another (male) literacy learner, who really struggled with print, said he 
read (USA Today, magazines) 3-4 hours every night. Not to say that these 
literacy practices always came easily to them, but their literacy 
practices certainly defied the stereotypical image of ?illiteracy!? 

And I agree they present opportunities for outside of school programs such 
as book clubs and discussion groups. There is a fathers group at one of 
our federal prison in Allenwood PA, that formed out of the parenting 
class. Because the teacher established a culture of dignity and trust (as 
John Gordon so eloquently described), the men began opening up and talking 
about the pressing issues facing their children, spouses, and parents back 
home. They found this conversation so helpful they took it upon themselves 
(with the support of the staff) to create the fathers group that met one 
evening a week in the school. One of the men told me that he never 
identified as a father until some others from the fathering group urged 
him to come to their meetings; now his responsibilities as a father were 
the defining purpose for how he was doing time. Another told me, ?The 
thing I will miss most about prison when I go home will be the support I 
receive from this (fathers) group.?  (Miss? about prison?)

Footnote to John Gordon:
I love your suggest to bring us together. The Correctional Education 
Association provides one important forum for this. I wonder others would 
be interested if we created a strand in next summer?s international 
meeting?  Of course, David, we?d love for you to fund something to, 
please.  :) 

This has been such a good exchange. It would be good to know who the 
participants are, which systems they work with/in, & types of populations 
& settings...
-Bill




David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
09/21/2006 06:52 AM
Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov


To
specialtopics at nifl.gov
cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 223] Community education for inmates who are released






Hello Colleagues,

I would like our guests -- and others -- to explore some other 
challenging questions:

1. One of the characteristics of a successful prison education 
program (Gerber and Fritsch,  and Luiden and Perry) is follow-up with 
inmates after release.  Can you describe some models that do this 
well, and that lead to released prisoners continuing their education 
in the community?

2.  Do you know of examples of prisons or jails that invite community 
education programs to provide basic education inside so that when 
inmates are released there is continuity with the community education 
program outside? Can you tell us about how the model(s) works?

3. Is there any way that a web-based learning system could be offered 
to prisoners for self study inside that they could continue to use 
outside in a library, community technology center or at a community 
education program? I know that prisons and jails cannot offer 
Internet access, but are there any examples of a version of a web 
site being run on an internal server, in the prison, offering 
(nearly) the same experience as the user would have with internet 
access to the web site?

I hope others will continue to post their questions and comments. 
Steve Steurer plans to join us tomorrow or Monday, and the discussion 
continues through Tuesday.

Those who have just joined us, and others, the postings in this 
discussion are archived at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

If you would like to know more about other National Institute for 
Literacy-sponsored discussion lists, you will find information at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
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SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
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From John.Linton at ed.gov  Thu Sep 21 08:52:08 2006
From: John.Linton at ed.gov (Linton, John)
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2006 08:52:08 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 226] Re: self-education and libraries
Message-ID: <BEBF16B91CE3AD4EBBC71AE4F114286203101AF6@wdcrobe2m02.ed.gov>

I noted this posting in the context of another referencing libraries.  

Access by prisoners to all types of print materials is somewhat problematic
in American prisons and jails.  While some inmates are able to address some
of their educational goals in prison schools -- others don't want to learn
that way, can't get into a school program, or want to address legitimate
learning goals that are not addressed by prison school programs. 

The Autobiography of Malcolm X includes a great example of "self education"
in prison.  I was already in the prisoner education business when I first
read it, and found it more than a little humbling.  

I don't know who, but apparently someone somewhere decided that every
American inmate should have virtually around the clock access to television.
Unfortunately, access to books, newspapers and magazines is more
problematic.

Space, staffing, materials, technology and systems of access -- all are
issues in the context of prison libraries.  Educators need to be strong
advocates of library services for inmates. 

John Linton  

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Eric Appleton
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2006 6:08 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 220] self-education


Hello everyone,

I teach reading, writing and math at the Fortune Society with John
Gordon. I have taught here for about seven years. As part of my work, I
have done individual intakes with many of the students here. Student
after student has told me that they really began to love reading when
they were in prison. Not every student who has served time learned to
love to read, but many did. It has been amazing to me to see how
important books were to these people at hardest point in their lives.

I don't want to minimize the work that teachers in prison are doing, but
from my vantage point, self-education has been the most important type
of education in the lives of most students I meet. I hear students talk
about how they began to get interested in history, in science and in
reading for reading's sake. I hear about how books became prized
possessions and were passed from person to person. I look at the
students in our program and wish that they were doing the same thing
now, while continuing their studies.

For students who are working towards their GED or are hoping to go to
college, daily independent reading is essential. Unfortunately, many
students drop out of the habit of reading once they get back in the free
world, where friends, family and TV lead them away from books. 

How can teachers on the outside help students retain and continue this
enthusiasm for reading on their own and learning for learning's sake?
How can prison teachers and administrators encourage (and facilitate)
more prisoners taking opportunities to educate themselves?

Looking forward to more discussion,
Eric

**********
Eric Appleton
Teacher/Coordinator
The Fortune Society
212.691.7554, x.702
53 W. 23rd St., 7th floor, NYC 10010
eappleton at fortunesociety.org
http://www.fortunesociety.org/education

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From Janet_Isserlis at brown.edu  Thu Sep 21 08:54:43 2006
From: Janet_Isserlis at brown.edu (Janet Isserlis)
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2006 08:54:43 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 227] Re: Correctional education -- student motivation
In-Reply-To: <FCE5A738D738724AB9ED7A61D3E733F003411856@mail.fortunesociety.org>
Message-ID: <C13803D3.10736%Janet_Isserlis@brown.edu>

John and all

Thanks for this very helpful articulation of what is/isn?t useful in
contemplating student-centered learning.
This statement: But the task is the same:  to find some common ground, build
trust and community within the classroom, and find a way to begin exchanging
ideas about things that are important to the participants.  is especially
helpful in framing the issue of bring foundational skills and rigor to a
context that is jointly constructed by learners and teachers.  I?ve tutored
in prison since 2000, and while only working with a couple of women (as
opposed to a class with external mandates, or students coming and going),
have found that regardless of the setting, we each (practitioners and
learners) bring our previous learning and understandings to the tasks at
hand.  I do understand that in larger classes and in different settings the
challenges may be lesser/ greater / different ? but I appreciate your
pointing out that motivation, learning and the other pieces under
consideration are those shared across the board by adult educators
everywhere.   

I also agree that an opportunity to meet face to face would be wonderful.

thanks to all for this conversation

Janet Isserlis


From: John Gordon <jgordon at fortunesociety.org>
Reply-To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 23:39:56 -0400
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Conversation: [SpecialTopics 213] Re: Correctional education -- student
motivation
Subject: [SpecialTopics 222] Re: Correctional education -- student
motivation

Bill et al,
 
Thanks for the thoughtful response. I cannot speak knowledgeably to the
question of "to what extent can we implement student centered programs in
prison?" since I have never taught on the inside. (Kathy Boudin speaks to
this issue much more profoundly than I could ever do in her seminal piece in
the Harvard Ed Review "Participatory Literacy Education Behind Bars:  AIDS
Opens the Door.," Harvard Educational Review, Vol. 63, number 2, Summer
1993. http://www.kathyboudin.com/harvard.htm).
 
 However, I do believe that one can bring a certain "stance" to teaching no
matter where it is done. I don't really describe our approach as
"student-centered" because I think that term has come to mean many things
and sometimes implies a mushy, unrigorous methodology - similar to the way
"empowerment" has lost any real meaning. I do believe that as teachers we
must start from the assumption that we and the students we work with walk
into the class as equals, each with things to teach and learn from each
other. I believe as well that students may learn as much from each other as
from me. Given those assumptions, the process will play out differently in
different contexts. But that stance would inform what I do, no matter where
I teach. I don't think centering your curriculum around the needs and
concerns of the students means that we don't teach "foundational skills",
but, again, I would say that it will inform how we go about teaching those
skills. Obviously, this is a much longer conversation, and from your
comments I think you might agree, but I welcome the opportunity to talk
about these things.
 
Students come to Fortune from a variety of places and for different reasons.
Some are coming back from doing serious time upstate.... they tend to be
pretty centered, with definite ideas about what they want. They're generally
a little older, a little further from the high school experience. Others are
on probation, one step from the street, and not really clear about where
they are going and why they are here, other than to satisfy a probation
officer. Still others are mandated into an alternative to incarceration
program and risk prison time if they don't attend regularly. This last group
is the youngest; they're often angry at having to be in school and a lot of
their feelings play out in the classroom. It's not an easy mix; for all the
problems, classes inside prison may simplify things. But the task is the
same:  to find some common ground, build trust and community within the
classroom, and find a way to begin exchanging ideas about things that are
important to the participants.
 
A comment for David who does such a wonderful job instigating and
facilitating these conversations. It would be great to do this in person
some time, some where. If you have ideas about that, I would welcome them.
 
best,
john

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From Christine.Christopherson at state.sd.us  Thu Sep 21 10:18:40 2006
From: Christine.Christopherson at state.sd.us (Christine.Christopherson at state.sd.us)
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2006 09:18:40 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 228] Re: college for inmates --
	correspondenceprograms
In-Reply-To: <BEBF16B91CE3AD4EBBC71AE4F114286203101AF5@wdcrobe2m02.ed.gov>
Message-ID: <3A173D594A966645B997D2194CE0507B03114C82@ESPR1EXC02.state.sd.local>

There are a few universities that still offer traditional paper/pencil correspondence courses that I recommend to the inmates in my facility.  I actually wrote my Master's paper last summer on this very topic.  There are not many options, and the OHIO program is expensive if the inmates does not have a funding source.

The University of Central Arkansas at Conway, AR offers many that are only $80 per credit hour.  This is the least expensive that I have been able to find and have had about 4 inmates take courses over the summer this year from this institution.  Good luck! 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Linton, John
Sent: Thursday, September 21, 2006 6:51 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 224] Re: college for inmates --
correspondenceprograms


Hi Eric

We're challenged to respond to a lot of inmate mail here also.  There are a
number of new distance learning initiatives out there -- I'm frankly having
trouble keeping up with them -- but one that has been around for a while and
seems to be solid is a distance learning program at the Ohio University
called "College Program for the Incarcerated."
http://www.ohiou.edu/adultlearning/incarc.htm  (There is an a mailing
address at this link where persons can send for an information packet.)  The
program is oriented toward prisons -- does not require phone or internet
access.  The only issue I've heard of with this program is the cost.   Few
incarcerated persons have the financial resources to afford this program --
but some do.

John Linton

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Eric Appleton
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2006 6:19 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 221] college for inmates


Hi everyone,

The Fortune Society corresponds with inmates all over the country. Many
receive our newsletter, the Fortune News, free of charge. I received the
following letter from an inmate in Clinton Correctional Facility in
Dannemora, New York:

"Would you send me all the information about what you have to offer? I
am in the middle of studying a college course on health. A source here
brought to my attention that you have some sort of college courses.

Please send me all the information on college courses you deal with. Is
it free? And/or connect me with other places who deal with a larger
variety of college courses.

Thank you."

Unfortunately, the Fortune Society doesn't have college courses and I
don't have any information to share. Does anyone have advice for this
inmate? How can inmates find college opportunities? How can people on
the outside help inmates find resources?

Cheers,
Eric

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From aburruss2 at cox.net  Thu Sep 21 09:15:16 2006
From: aburruss2 at cox.net (Ann Burruss)
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2006 09:15:16 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 229] Re: Community education for inmates who are
	released
References: <4F790135-E095-436B-B774-5CCEBD702A19@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <002c01c6dd7f$fb1c2a70$0202a8c0@D1WJ3821>

In response to the second question:
We, in Gloucester County, VA work in the local jail.  The educational program is carried out by the Literacy Volunteers of Gloucester.  The programs offered are ABE and preparation for the GED.
On some rare occasions, a counselor comes in from the nearest community college and gives placement test for those who are "short-timers" and who wish to pursue their education upon release.  One one visit, an inmate actually began her course of study prior to release and went into the community college classes for which she was enrolled.
In the past, we had to wait for extended periods for GED testing to take place.  We are now a test center, so are more successful with GED certificates being earned.
Even when an inmate lacked only one test for completion, we have had little success with that person continuing his or her studies "on the street".
We have had more success with those individuals who were enrolled in Basic Education classes - particularly those whose primary desire was to assist young school age children with reading and math.  They will continue until their level is about equivalent to grade 5 thru 8.  
On 2 occasions, in the 3 years that I have done this program, inmates have been very anxious to obtain the GED so that upon transferring to one of the State penitentiaries, college level classes could be pursed without delay.

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: David Rosen 
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
  Sent: Thursday, September 21, 2006 6:52 AM
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 223] Community education for inmates who are released


  Hello Colleagues,

  I would like our guests -- and others -- to explore some other  
  challenging questions:

  1. One of the characteristics of a successful prison education  
  program (Gerber and Fritsch,  and Luiden and Perry) is follow-up with  
  inmates after release.  Can you describe some models that do this  
  well, and that lead to released prisoners continuing their education  
  in the community?

  2.  Do you know of examples of prisons or jails that invite community  
  education programs to provide basic education inside so that when  
  inmates are released there is continuity with the community education  
  program outside? Can you tell us about how the model(s) works?

  3. Is there any way that a web-based learning system could be offered  
  to prisoners for self study inside that they could continue to use  
  outside in a library, community technology center or at a community  
  education program? I know that prisons and jails cannot offer  
  Internet access, but are there any examples of a version of a web  
  site being run on an internal server, in the prison, offering  
  (nearly) the same experience as the user would have with internet  
  access to the web site?

  I hope others will continue to post their questions and comments.   
  Steve Steurer plans to join us tomorrow or Monday, and the discussion  
  continues through Tuesday.

  Those who have just joined us, and others, the postings in this  
  discussion are archived at

  http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

  If you would like to know more about other National Institute for  
  Literacy-sponsored discussion lists, you will find information at

  http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html


  David J. Rosen
  Special Topics discussion Moderator
  djrosen at comcast.net





  -------------------------------
  National Institute for Literacy
  Special Topics mailing list
  SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
  To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
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From carole.a.scholl at co.multnomah.or.us  Thu Sep 21 14:28:07 2006
From: carole.a.scholl at co.multnomah.or.us (SCHOLL Carole A)
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2006 11:28:07 -0700
Subject: [SpecialTopics 230] Re: Community education for inmates who are
	released
Message-ID: <A8BC992059697640B54014809BF0D35206523318@mttabor.co.multnomah.or.us>

In Portland Oregon, the Londer Learning Center is a unit of  adult
community corrections (the Multnomah County Department of Community
Justice). Our GED/ABE/ESL program each year serves  500+  adults who are
released from jail, prison and who on probation and/or involved in
substance abuse treatment. Referrals come from POs, treatment centers,
courts and caseworkers. 

We are successful in academics, as well as in reducing recidivism. Some
reasons for our success:
1.  We only serve offenders who are at high- to medium-risk to reoffend.
These adults in "transition" who work toward positive goals with other
adults in transition. We also incorporate rehabilitation practices in
our adult education program. Teachers are all trained in motivational
interviewing, change theory (stages of change) and cognitive behavioral
change--evidenced based practices used in corrections.  We provide a
"holistic" approach--communicating often with POs, counselors and
caseworkers.
2. All staff is trained in working with adults with learning
disabilities/difficulties, and we keep classes small.

In sum: most of our students would not succeed if they went from
jail/prison to a community college. Upon release they face numerous
obstacles (housing, addictions rehab, etc). Just to make it onto a
campus which accepts students 2 or 3x a term is daunting. 

I certainly recommend community-based transitions education programs for
incarcerated adults, but also feel that success lies in partnership with
probation offices, an awareness of learning disabilities,  and training
in psycho-social factors than influence change. For more information
about the Londer Learning Center, please go to our website at:
http://www.co.multnomah.or.us/dcj/acjlonder.shtml 

Thanks--Carole Scholl, Manager, Londer Learning Center
Multnomah County Department of Community Justice
503-988-6828


-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Thursday, September 21, 2006 3:53 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 223] Community education for inmates who are
released


Hello Colleagues,

I would like our guests -- and others -- to explore some other  
challenging questions:

1. One of the characteristics of a successful prison education  
program (Gerber and Fritsch,  and Luiden and Perry) is follow-up with  
inmates after release.  Can you describe some models that do this  
well, and that lead to released prisoners continuing their education  
in the community?

2.  Do you know of examples of prisons or jails that invite community  
education programs to provide basic education inside so that when  
inmates are released there is continuity with the community education  
program outside? Can you tell us about how the model(s) works?

3. Is there any way that a web-based learning system could be offered  
to prisoners for self study inside that they could continue to use  
outside in a library, community technology center or at a community  
education program? I know that prisons and jails cannot offer  
Internet access, but are there any examples of a version of a web  
site being run on an internal server, in the prison, offering  
(nearly) the same experience as the user would have with internet  
access to the web site?

I hope others will continue to post their questions and comments.   
Steve Steurer plans to join us tomorrow or Monday, and the discussion  
continues through Tuesday.

Those who have just joined us, and others, the postings in this  
discussion are archived at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

If you would like to know more about other National Institute for  
Literacy-sponsored discussion lists, you will find information at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From wrmuth at vcu.edu  Thu Sep 21 20:17:40 2006
From: wrmuth at vcu.edu (William R Muth/FS/VCU)
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2006 20:17:40 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 231] Re: Community education for inmates who
	are	released
In-Reply-To: <A8BC992059697640B54014809BF0D35206523318@mttabor.co.multnomah.or.us>
Message-ID: <OF44B81AB0.638CFC63-ON852571F1.0001389E-852571F1.00019DD2@vcu.edu>

David -my responses to your questions are in bold below. - Bill



I would like our guests -- and others -- to explore some other 
challenging questions:

1. One of the characteristics of a successful prison education 
program (Gerber and Fritsch,  and Luiden and Perry) is follow-up with 
inmates after release.  Can you describe some models that do this 
well, and that lead to released prisoners continuing their education 
in the community? 

I am so impressed by the ?best practices? reported on by Carole Scholl in 
Oregon, Cay Buser in Maryland, Taylor Stoehr in Massachusetts & John 
Gordon in NYC. I mostly know programs based ?on the inside? (which of 
course reveals a key problem: the need for programs that span both sides 
of the fence.) The Federal Bureau of Prisons is working on a Re-entry 
partnership with Federal Probation and the US Department of Labor and 
piloting it in the St. Louis area. Sylvia McCollum at the FBOP has 
developed a broad network of community partnerships, mostly relating to 
job fairs. Also, the national Institute of Corrections has done a great 
deal of training in this area. See 
http://www.nicic.org/CommunityCorrections


2.  Do you know of examples of prisons or jails that invite community 
education programs to provide basic education inside so that when 
inmates are released there is continuity with the community education 
program outside? Can you tell us about how the model(s) works?

The best example of a community partnership related to pre and post 
release that I can give no longer exists (just one example of a powerful 
program that vaporized when Pell Grants were cut off): It was a program at 
Marist College, NY. They provided a full range of literacy and 
post-secondary programs. Marist also had a college coordinator (Benay 
Rubenstein, who continues to do extraordinary work through John Jay 
College) housed in the prison (Otisville) who arranged for learners to 
continue their education at Marist after release. 

Today, most federal prisons have strong partnerships with the community, 
including individual contractors, local colleges and trade unions, and 
faith based communities. But I suspect ? at least as it pertains to 
federal prisoners ? that few of these partnerships establish relationships 
with individuals on the inside and then nurture these relationships on the 
outside. (I know that some such programs exist, especially with 
faith-based groups, but not aware of any programs that provide education 
support to individuals on the inside and then support them through the 
transition to the outside. (If such inside/outside programs exist, I 
apologize for my ignorance and would love to know about them!) There is a 
huge problem in the federal system, since so many prisoners live 100s of 
miles from home... 

3. Is there any way that a web-based learning system could be offered 
to prisoners for self study inside that they could continue to use 
outside in a library, community technology center or at a community 
education program? I know that prisons and jails cannot offer 
Internet access, but are there any examples of a version of a web 
site being run on an internal server, in the prison, offering 
(nearly) the same experience as the user would have with internet 
access to the web site?

I see some signs of hope here. Again the FBOP has been slowly 
experimenting with web-based applications. For example they are providing 
inmate law library services through an intra-net server that goes out to 
the web periodically, downloads files and distributes material via a 
closed system. They are also piloting e-mail systems at a few 
institutions, and, as I mentioned yesterday, they have begun some father 
?child video-conferencing. The federal prison systems is slowly rethinking 
safe ways to use technology. But it is a slow evolution. Ironically, as 
correspondence courses continue to proliferate via the internet, prisoners 
have access to fewer of them.   
 
I hope others will continue to post their questions and comments. 
Steve Steurer plans to join us tomorrow or Monday, and the discussion 
continues through Tuesday.

Those who have just joined us, and others, the postings in this 
discussion are archived at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

If you would like to know more about other National Institute for 
Literacy-sponsored discussion lists, you will find information at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html


David J. Rosen




"SCHOLL Carole A" <carole.a.scholl at co.multnomah.or.us> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
09/21/2006 02:28 PM
Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov


To
<specialtopics at nifl.gov>
cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 230] Re: Community education for inmates who are released






In Portland Oregon, the Londer Learning Center is a unit of  adult
community corrections (the Multnomah County Department of Community
Justice). Our GED/ABE/ESL program each year serves  500+  adults who are
released from jail, prison and who on probation and/or involved in
substance abuse treatment. Referrals come from POs, treatment centers,
courts and caseworkers. 

We are successful in academics, as well as in reducing recidivism. Some
reasons for our success:
1.  We only serve offenders who are at high- to medium-risk to reoffend.
These adults in "transition" who work toward positive goals with other
adults in transition. We also incorporate rehabilitation practices in
our adult education program. Teachers are all trained in motivational
interviewing, change theory (stages of change) and cognitive behavioral
change--evidenced based practices used in corrections.  We provide a
"holistic" approach--communicating often with POs, counselors and
caseworkers.
2. All staff is trained in working with adults with learning
disabilities/difficulties, and we keep classes small.

In sum: most of our students would not succeed if they went from
jail/prison to a community college. Upon release they face numerous
obstacles (housing, addictions rehab, etc). Just to make it onto a
campus which accepts students 2 or 3x a term is daunting. 

I certainly recommend community-based transitions education programs for
incarcerated adults, but also feel that success lies in partnership with
probation offices, an awareness of learning disabilities,  and training
in psycho-social factors than influence change. For more information
about the Londer Learning Center, please go to our website at:
http://www.co.multnomah.or.us/dcj/acjlonder.shtml 

Thanks--Carole Scholl, Manager, Londer Learning Center
Multnomah County Department of Community Justice
503-988-6828


-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Thursday, September 21, 2006 3:53 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 223] Community education for inmates who are
released


Hello Colleagues,

I would like our guests -- and others -- to explore some other 
challenging questions:

1. One of the characteristics of a successful prison education 
program (Gerber and Fritsch,  and Luiden and Perry) is follow-up with 
inmates after release.  Can you describe some models that do this 
well, and that lead to released prisoners continuing their education 
in the community?

2.  Do you know of examples of prisons or jails that invite community 
education programs to provide basic education inside so that when 
inmates are released there is continuity with the community education 
program outside? Can you tell us about how the model(s) works?

3. Is there any way that a web-based learning system could be offered 
to prisoners for self study inside that they could continue to use 
outside in a library, community technology center or at a community 
education program? I know that prisons and jails cannot offer 
Internet access, but are there any examples of a version of a web 
site being run on an internal server, in the prison, offering 
(nearly) the same experience as the user would have with internet 
access to the web site?

I hope others will continue to post their questions and comments. 
Steve Steurer plans to join us tomorrow or Monday, and the discussion 
continues through Tuesday.

Those who have just joined us, and others, the postings in this 
discussion are archived at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

If you would like to know more about other National Institute for 
Literacy-sponsored discussion lists, you will find information at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
-------------------------------
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Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

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From aburruss2 at cox.net  Fri Sep 22 04:24:18 2006
From: aburruss2 at cox.net (Ann Burruss)
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 04:24:18 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 232] Re: Posting your questions
References: <4F8145D8-8104-4D9C-BC43-72A486041F18@comcast.net>
	<A7439902C13D6C459A2217AB22A386FB0752BD@DOVERSCLS01N1.state.de.us>
Message-ID: <003101c6de20$7f830310$0202a8c0@D1WJ3821>

Gina,
I, too, work with unmotivated ABE students.  I believe that the key is showing how any amount of education is going to improve their lot in life; i.e., better job, family stability, etc.  Too often we cannot demonstrate that what we are asking is going to make a difference in life outside the institution.  Until we can integrate those skills with the hope and suitability of employment, think we are spinning our wheels.
Have you tried the Workkeys Assessments?  At least that steers you and the inmate in the direction of learning what's appropriate and needed for a job.
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Lobaccaro Gina (DOC) 
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
  Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 206] Re: Posting your questions


  Hello All,
  I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex Correctional Institution in Georgetown Delaware.  I work for the Delaware Department of Education Prison Education program.. I have corresponded with David and Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of conferences.
  I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area of motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.  We have so many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no progress over and extended time.  They appear to be coming to get off the tiers or to receive "good time".  In truth, they do not receive much "good time" for education.  Our education program is a classified program.  If a student does not have  GED or HS diploma they must attend school.  We have a long waiting list for the low level ABE students, but we also have students sitting in classes who appear to me totally unmotivated to improve their academic skills.
  Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating ABE low level learners in CE settings?
  Gina

  ________________________________

  From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
  Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
  To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
  Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions



  Colleagues,

  Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you 
  are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like 
  "What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education 
  program to a community education program?" or "What does family 
  literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions 
  like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's 
  reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion to be 
  introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All 
  questions are welcome.

  Send your questions to:

  specialtopics at nifl.gov

  David J. Rosen
  Special Topics Discussion Moderator
  djrosen at comcast.net



  -------------------------------
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  Special Topics mailing list
  SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
  To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics





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From John.Linton at ed.gov  Fri Sep 22 11:42:17 2006
From: John.Linton at ed.gov (Linton, John)
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 11:42:17 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 233] Re: Community education for inmates who are
	released
Message-ID: <BEBF16B91CE3AD4EBBC71AE4F114286203101AFC@wdcrobe2m02.ed.gov>

David and others

Yesterday the Senate Committee Judiciary Committee, Sub-committee on Crime
and Drugs, held a hearing on Prisoner Rehabilitation and Re-entry.  I was
sick not to be able to go, even though it was within walking distance of my
office. (I was "chained to my desk" with some end of fiscal year deadlines.)


The testimony presented is available on the Judiciary Committee's web site:
http://judiciary.senate.gov/hearing.cfm?id=2072  One witness was Diane
Williams from the Safer Foundation in Chicago.  She includes a description
of her organizations integrated efforts to provide education to offenders,
both during confinement and post release.  Her testimony concludes with a
success story of an individual who moved from homeless drop out to high
school graduate and college student.  

Diane is a "jobs program" person, so I was surprised by see the emphasis on
education in her testimony.  She even included a pitch for getting Pell
grants restored to inmates.  Obviously, getting to work is critical for
offenders leaving institutions -- so integrating education with efforts to
support success with employment is smart.  I also found the Department of
Labor testimony at yesterday's Senate hearings quite interesting.     

I'm pleased that I'll be working on a little project this coming year to
develop a resource guide for inmates focused on how they can access
educational programming once released.  David makes reference to the model
of having local providers -- typically adult education programs and
community colleges -- actually be the institutional education provider in
order to encourage continuity upon release.  I know that this model is
common in jail settings in New York State.  But too often inmates are held
in State facilities distant from their home neighborhoods -- and continuity
between service providers inside and outside is hardly an option.  We plan
to work with States to get this information in the hands of individuals who
have been "turned on" to education during incarceration -- to help them
understand their options to link up with appropriate program opportunities
post release.     

John Linton

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Thursday, September 21, 2006 6:53 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 223] Community education for inmates who are
released


Hello Colleagues,

I would like our guests -- and others -- to explore some other  
challenging questions:

1. One of the characteristics of a successful prison education  
program (Gerber and Fritsch,  and Luiden and Perry) is follow-up with  
inmates after release.  Can you describe some models that do this  
well, and that lead to released prisoners continuing their education  
in the community?

2.  Do you know of examples of prisons or jails that invite community  
education programs to provide basic education inside so that when  
inmates are released there is continuity with the community education  
program outside? Can you tell us about how the model(s) works?

3. Is there any way that a web-based learning system could be offered  
to prisoners for self study inside that they could continue to use  
outside in a library, community technology center or at a community  
education program? I know that prisons and jails cannot offer  
Internet access, but are there any examples of a version of a web  
site being run on an internal server, in the prison, offering  
(nearly) the same experience as the user would have with internet  
access to the web site?

I hope others will continue to post their questions and comments.   
Steve Steurer plans to join us tomorrow or Monday, and the discussion  
continues through Tuesday.

Those who have just joined us, and others, the postings in this  
discussion are archived at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

If you would like to know more about other National Institute for  
Literacy-sponsored discussion lists, you will find information at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us  Fri Sep 22 08:09:42 2006
From: Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us (Lobaccaro Gina (DOC))
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 08:09:42 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 234] Re: Posting your questions
Message-ID: <A7439902C13D6C459A2217AB22A386FBDF0BFB@DOVERSCLS01N1.state.de.us>

I will search for information about Workkeys... I do not know the program.  Please send a link in case I do not find it.... thank you, Ann.
Gina

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Ann Burruss
Sent: Friday, September 22, 2006 4:24 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 232] Re: Posting your questions


Gina,
I, too, work with unmotivated ABE students.  I believe that the key is showing how any amount of education is going to improve their lot in life; i.e., better job, family stability, etc.  Too often we cannot demonstrate that what we are asking is going to make a difference in life outside the institution.  Until we can integrate those skills with the hope and suitability of employment, think we are spinning our wheels.
Have you tried the Workkeys Assessments?  At least that steers you and the inmate in the direction of learning what's appropriate and needed for a job.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Lobaccaro Gina (DOC) <mailto:Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us>  
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 206] Re: Posting your questions

Hello All,
I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex Correctional Institution in Georgetown Delaware.  I work for the Delaware Department of Education Prison Education program.. I have corresponded with David and Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of conferences.
I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area of motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.  We have so many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no progress over and extended time.  They appear to be coming to get off the tiers or to receive "good time".  In truth, they do not receive much "good time" for education.  Our education program is a classified program.  If a student does not have  GED or HS diploma they must attend school.  We have a long waiting list for the low level ABE students, but we also have students sitting in classes who appear to me totally unmotivated to improve their academic skills.
Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating ABE low level learners in CE settings?
Gina

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions



Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you 
are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like 
"What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education 
program to a community education program?" or "What does family 
literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions 
like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's 
reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion to be 
introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All 
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics






  _____  




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From Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us  Fri Sep 22 08:19:02 2006
From: Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us (Lobaccaro Gina (DOC))
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 08:19:02 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 235]  Net Site Capturing ??
Message-ID: <A7439902C13D6C459A2217AB22A386FBDF0BFC@DOVERSCLS01N1.state.de.us>

Bill...
I enjoyed this post very much... perhaps I can find a job in the federal system when I can retire from here.  I keep hearing hints that there is something going on in Delaware with more Intranet based teaching/learning... but no one has told me the details.  One of the prison programs have been piloting it.  I think it is for GED students.  I heard that it only worked with very highly motivated students.  That is all I recall, but perhaps I need to ask!
 
A question for others----
Have you found ways to bring the Net to the students.  I use a Blue Squirrel product called Web Whacker that will copy a page and a number of layers behind it (1-3 perhaps but if you go farther it doesn't seem to work.. and you risk picking up some risky sites accidently in the grab).  I was also told about a Adobe program that would capture a site and layers on to a PDF file..  I don't remember the details.... I have permission now to bring in a jump drive. So I can bring the sites in from home and put them on student computers.  Right now I have two computers in my office.. one for the Internet provided by DOC.. and I cannot put any of my software on it.. the other is not connected yet, but I might be able to get connected without the state software (DOC software and Outlook)... but be able to use some of the programs to gather sites while at work... instead of on my time.
Gina

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of William R Muth/FS/VCU
Sent: Thursday, September 21, 2006 8:18 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 231] Re: Community education for inmates whoare released



David -my responses to your questions are in bold below. - Bill 



I would like our guests -- and others -- to explore some other   
challenging questions: 

1. One of the characteristics of a successful prison education   
program (Gerber and Fritsch,  and Luiden and Perry) is follow-up with   
inmates after release.  Can you describe some models that do this   
well, and that lead to released prisoners continuing their education   
in the community? 

I am so impressed by the "best practices" reported on by Carole Scholl in Oregon, Cay Buser in Maryland, Taylor Stoehr in Massachusetts & John Gordon in NYC. I mostly know programs based 'on the inside' (which of course reveals a key problem: the need for programs that span both sides of the fence.) The Federal Bureau of Prisons is working on a Re-entry partnership with Federal Probation and the US Department of Labor and piloting it in the St. Louis area. Sylvia McCollum at the FBOP has developed a broad network of community partnerships, mostly relating to job fairs. Also, the national Institute of Corrections has done a great deal of training in this area. See http://www.nicic.org/CommunityCorrections 


2.  Do you know of examples of prisons or jails that invite community   
education programs to provide basic education inside so that when   
inmates are released there is continuity with the community education   
program outside? Can you tell us about how the model(s) works? 

The best example of a community partnership related to pre and post release that I can give no longer exists (just one example of a powerful program that vaporized when Pell Grants were cut off): It was a program at Marist College, NY. They provided a full range of literacy and post-secondary programs. Marist also had a college coordinator (Benay Rubenstein, who continues to do extraordinary work through John Jay College) housed in the prison (Otisville) who arranged for learners to continue their education at Marist after release. 

Today, most federal prisons have strong partnerships with the community, including individual contractors, local colleges and trade unions, and faith based communities. But I suspect - at least as it pertains to federal prisoners - that few of these partnerships establish relationships with individuals on the inside and then nurture these relationships on the outside. (I know that some such programs exist, especially with faith-based groups, but not aware of any programs that provide education support to individuals on the inside and then support them through the transition to the outside. (If such inside/outside programs exist, I apologize for my ignorance and would love to know about them!) There is a huge problem in the federal system, since so many prisoners live 100s of miles from home... 

3. Is there any way that a web-based learning system could be offered   
to prisoners for self study inside that they could continue to use   
outside in a library, community technology center or at a community   
education program? I know that prisons and jails cannot offer   
Internet access, but are there any examples of a version of a web   
site being run on an internal server, in the prison, offering   
(nearly) the same experience as the user would have with internet   
access to the web site? 

I see some signs of hope here. Again the FBOP has been slowly experimenting with web-based applications. For example they are providing inmate law library services through an intra-net server that goes out to the web periodically, downloads files and distributes material via a closed system. They are also piloting e-mail systems at a few institutions, and, as I mentioned yesterday, they have begun some father -child video-conferencing. The federal prison systems is slowly rethinking safe ways to use technology. But it is a slow evolution. Ironically, as correspondence courses continue to proliferate via the internet, prisoners have access to fewer of them.       
    
I hope others will continue to post their questions and comments.   
Steve Steurer plans to join us tomorrow or Monday, and the discussion   
continues through Tuesday. 

Those who have just joined us, and others, the postings in this   
discussion are archived at 

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html 

If you would like to know more about other National Institute for   
Literacy-sponsored discussion lists, you will find information at 

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html 


David J. Rosen




"SCHOLL Carole A" <carole.a.scholl at co.multnomah.or.us> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 


09/21/2006 02:28 PM 


Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov



To
<specialtopics at nifl.gov> 

cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 230] Re: Community education for inmates who are        released

	




In Portland Oregon, the Londer Learning Center is a unit of  adult
community corrections (the Multnomah County Department of Community
Justice). Our GED/ABE/ESL program each year serves  500+  adults who are
released from jail, prison and who on probation and/or involved in
substance abuse treatment. Referrals come from POs, treatment centers,
courts and caseworkers. 

We are successful in academics, as well as in reducing recidivism. Some
reasons for our success:
1.  We only serve offenders who are at high- to medium-risk to reoffend.
These adults in "transition" who work toward positive goals with other
adults in transition. We also incorporate rehabilitation practices in
our adult education program. Teachers are all trained in motivational
interviewing, change theory (stages of change) and cognitive behavioral
change--evidenced based practices used in corrections.  We provide a
"holistic" approach--communicating often with POs, counselors and
caseworkers.
2. All staff is trained in working with adults with learning
disabilities/difficulties, and we keep classes small.

In sum: most of our students would not succeed if they went from
jail/prison to a community college. Upon release they face numerous
obstacles (housing, addictions rehab, etc). Just to make it onto a
campus which accepts students 2 or 3x a term is daunting. 

I certainly recommend community-based transitions education programs for
incarcerated adults, but also feel that success lies in partnership with
probation offices, an awareness of learning disabilities,  and training
in psycho-social factors than influence change. For more information
about the Londer Learning Center, please go to our website at:
http://www.co.multnomah.or.us/dcj/acjlonder.shtml 

Thanks--Carole Scholl, Manager, Londer Learning Center
Multnomah County Department of Community Justice
503-988-6828


-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Thursday, September 21, 2006 3:53 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 223] Community education for inmates who are
released


Hello Colleagues,

I would like our guests -- and others -- to explore some other  
challenging questions:

1. One of the characteristics of a successful prison education  
program (Gerber and Fritsch,  and Luiden and Perry) is follow-up with  
inmates after release.  Can you describe some models that do this  
well, and that lead to released prisoners continuing their education  
in the community?

2.  Do you know of examples of prisons or jails that invite community  
education programs to provide basic education inside so that when  
inmates are released there is continuity with the community education  
program outside? Can you tell us about how the model(s) works?

3. Is there any way that a web-based learning system could be offered  
to prisoners for self study inside that they could continue to use  
outside in a library, community technology center or at a community  
education program? I know that prisons and jails cannot offer  
Internet access, but are there any examples of a version of a web  
site being run on an internal server, in the prison, offering  
(nearly) the same experience as the user would have with internet  
access to the web site?

I hope others will continue to post their questions and comments.   
Steve Steurer plans to join us tomorrow or Monday, and the discussion  
continues through Tuesday.

Those who have just joined us, and others, the postings in this  
discussion are archived at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html

If you would like to know more about other National Institute for  
Literacy-sponsored discussion lists, you will find information at

http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/specialtopics/2006/date.html


David J. Rosen
Special Topics discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net





-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
-------------------------------
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SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



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From jcrawford at nifl.gov  Fri Sep 22 12:06:02 2006
From: jcrawford at nifl.gov (Crawford, June)
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 12:06:02 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 236] Re: Posting your questions
Message-ID: <9B35BF1886881547B5DFF88364AF31A3081E8B9E@wdcrobe2m03.ed.gov>

Many people who work in correctional education report a high incidence of
learning disabilities, a previous experience in special education
classrooms, and a lack of appropriate instruction for those who require
teaching techniques that are appropriate for the learner. My own research in
corrections indicated a high, high percentage of the inmates in the
correctional education programs either had been diagnosed in earlier schools
or exhibited many characteristics of those with learning disabilities...and
not just dyslexia.   
 
May I ask what screening or diagnosis is being done in the correctional
system in which Gina works?  What accommodations are provided for those with
a history of LD?  Is there a process to follow in the system for those who
exhibit the characteristics of learning disabilities?  Are the teachers in
the system trained in teaching techniques that benefit students with LD?
Sometimes it is not a matter of motivation, but a matter of being in an
appropriate system, and the assessment of student needs for learning must go
beyond a TABE or CASAS score and include the diagnosis of other things that
may be interfering.
 
I'd be interested in hearing about procedures that are followed in these
situations.
June Crawford

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Ann Burruss
Sent: Friday, September 22, 2006 4:24 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 232] Re: Posting your questions


Gina,
I, too, work with unmotivated ABE students.  I believe that the key is
showing how any amount of education is going to improve their lot in life;
i.e., better job, family stability, etc.  Too often we cannot demonstrate
that what we are asking is going to make a difference in life outside the
institution.  Until we can integrate those skills with the hope and
suitability of employment, think we are spinning our wheels.
Have you tried the Workkeys Assessments?  At least that steers you and the
inmate in the direction of learning what's appropriate and needed for a job.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Lobaccaro Gina (DOC) <mailto:Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us>  
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 206] Re: Posting your questions

Hello All,
I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex Correctional
Institution in Georgetown Delaware.  I work for the Delaware Department of
Education Prison Education program.. I have corresponded with David and
Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of conferences.
I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area of
motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.  We have so
many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no progress over
and extended time.  They appear to be coming to get off the tiers or to
receive "good time".  In truth, they do not receive much "good time" for
education.  Our education program is a classified program.  If a student
does not have  GED or HS diploma they must attend school.  We have a long
waiting list for the low level ABE students, but we also have students
sitting in classes who appear to me totally unmotivated to improve their
academic skills.
Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating ABE
low level learners in CE settings?
Gina

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions



Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you 
are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like 
"What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education 
program to a community education program?" or "What does family 
literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions 
like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's 
reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion to be 
introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All 
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics






  _____  




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From Steurer1 at aol.com  Fri Sep 22 15:29:52 2006
From: Steurer1 at aol.com (Steurer1 at aol.com)
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 15:29:52 EDT
Subject: [SpecialTopics 237]  Response
Message-ID: <409.26f3c600.324593b0@aol.com>

Hello David,
 
This is my response.  I could not find a way to click and respond  
automatically to all the responses.  So I would appreciate it if you post  my remarks.
 
 
 
I have been reading the messages from the last few days and wanted to put  my 
two cents in for whatever it is worth.  Sorry about not writing sooner  but I 
have been on travel and have had limited email capability.  There are  so 
many interesting questions and responses that I do not know where to  begin, so 
here goes.
 
There are actually a lot of post secondary programs going on across the  
country as noted in the recent Learning to Reduce Recidivism by  The Institute for 
Higher Education, funded by the Ford Foundation.  Go to  _www.ihep.org_ 
(http://www.ihep.org)  for a copy of the  report.  It was rather encouraging that 
many states are doing good  things with state funds and grants for youthful 
offenders out of John  Linton's office.  It is disappointing that, after setting 
up the  grants for youthful offenders with support from Senators Specter and  
Kennedy and a few others that we have not been able to extend the age limit 
for  these funds beyond age 25.  We thought that we could bump the limit up  to 
35 this year and found out recently that the amendments have been dropped at  
the insistence of House members in the conference committee.   What it means 
is that all of us need to get pro-active and carry the message  forward that 
education does reduce crime and post secondary is one of the most  
cost-effective tools to do so.  We have not been out there  enough getting the message 
around to all public officials.  CEA will  lead a new effort to do so and we hope 
to make a lots of noise and bring many  other associations and organizations 
along with us during the next congressional  session and expand post secondary 
and other educational opportunities for  the incarcerated, both youth and 
adult.  
 
One of the respondents  talked about having a strand for  parenting at the 
next CEA annual conference which will be in Atlanta in July,  2007.  Please see 
our website at _www.ceanational.org_ (http://www.ceanational.org) .   We 
currently have general information and will soon post how to  apply for 
presentations.  One of the strands we are going to  feature is parenting.  So please join 
us for this topics and many  others.  
 
I retired from Maryland adult corrections two years ago and was very  
interested and involved in parenting.  Cay Buser made some  comments about efforts 
being led by Glennor Shirley through the library,  particularly at the women's 
facility.  Up until recently there was also a  program at the Maryland 
Correctional Institution - Jessup for men.   Over the years some of the things they 
have done include  getting new or like new children's book donations from 
various sources  and setting up events in the visitor's room every other month.  The 
 wife, grandmother, significant other, whatever would come and  the father's 
would read with the children and other family  members.  There would be other 
educational and fun activities for the kids  as well.  The children would all 
go home with some brand new or like new  books.  I can't tell you how 
motivating that was for the fathers and the  children.  It was interesting because the 
men would have to learn to read  the children's books ahead of time.  There 
was no stigma for the men to  learn to read through children's literature.  It 
provided a great incentive  for the men and the atmosphere of the events 
always brought tears to your  eyes.  I would go there on Saturday mornings and come 
home all  energized.  
 
Ohio has creative beautiful reading areas in each visitors  room.  A trained 
inmate aide is responsible to assist the visiting  children to select and read 
books.  The normally drab visitors  rooms are made so much more comfortable 
with these colorful areas with rugs  and soft furniture, artwork, brochures, 
etc....  You can  contact Dr. Jerry McGlone's office for more information at  
614-752-0305.  I have been to a good number of prisons in Ohio in  recent years 
and this is a great program.
 
Ohio also has a very extensive post secondary education program which  
involved 15 colleges throughout the state.  CEA evaluates five programs per  year in 
accordance with Ohio state law.  The attendance and completion  rates are all 
above 90% and all the colleges accept each others courses as  inmates move 
through the various prisons or are released to continue on the  outside.  The 
accountability system that Ohio has put in place is the best  I have seen and 
the quality of the programs is exceptional.
 
There are a lot of inmates, like Malcolm X did, who become interested in  
education and are self-motivated.   But I believe after all these  years of 
working in prisons and seeing programs that the prison and the school  in the 
prison sets the tone.  Hopefully, the entire correctional system has  strong 
policies to encourage inmates to go to school and do well.  That  makes things even 
better.  I used to think that you could not lead an  inmate to education 
anymore than it was possible to herd cats.  I no  longer believe that.  While the 
decision ultimately rests with the inmate,  the prison either sets up 
incentives and awards, and creates an atmosphere  that values programs or it doesn't.  
If it does lots of otherwise  unmotivated students become involved for one 
reason or another and many of  them get motivated as they become successful and 
overcome their years of  negative educational experiences.
 
Steve Steurer    
 
    
 
 
 
Stephen J.  Steurer, Ph.D., Executive Director
Correctional Education Association
8182  Lark Brown Road Suite 202
Elkridge, MD 21075
tel: 443-459-3081 
fax:  443-459-3088
www.ceanational.org
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From ropteacher at gmail.com  Fri Sep 22 18:18:16 2006
From: ropteacher at gmail.com (Gloria Fuentes)
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 15:18:16 -0700
Subject: [SpecialTopics 238] Re: Posting your questions
In-Reply-To: <9B35BF1886881547B5DFF88364AF31A3081E8B9E@wdcrobe2m03.ed.gov>
References: <9B35BF1886881547B5DFF88364AF31A3081E8B9E@wdcrobe2m03.ed.gov>
Message-ID: <38914de00609221518p6129e97g9168c22947d9db20@mail.gmail.com>

I too, would be interested in all of these things. I teach an ROP class to
at risk kids, most of my students need their GED still and are in my
classroom for that reason.  So many of my students are unmotivated to learn.
I used to work with juveniles in a placement and they were far more
motivated than my students. I know many of my students have LD but I have
found no way of getting them help.

I keep working with my students trying to offer them many different ways to
learn. Many of them get bored with the computer program that they work at
for their GED skills so I break it up and work with them at a table going
through each subject. But still at times I feel like I am just banging my
head against the wall. They get so easily discouraged or begin to think they
can't do it. I haven't and won't give up on any of them but many of them
just quit and settle for a dead end job. It can be discouraging at times. I
tell myself that maybe they just aren't ready for it right now. But just the
same it can be discouraging. I am open for ANY and ALL advice for them.

gloria

On 9/22/06, Crawford, June <jcrawford at nifl.gov> wrote:
>
>  Many people who work in correctional education report a high incidence of
> learning disabilities, a previous experience in special education
> classrooms, and a lack of appropriate instruction for those who require
> teaching techniques that are appropriate for the learner. My own research in
> corrections indicated a high, high percentage of the inmates in the
> correctional education programs either had been diagnosed in earlier schools
> or exhibited many characteristics of those with learning disabilities...and
> not just dyslexia.
>
> May I ask what screening or diagnosis is being done in the correctional
> system in which Gina works?  What accommodations are provided for those with
> a history of LD?  Is there a process to follow in the system for those who
> exhibit the characteristics of learning disabilities?  Are the teachers in
> the system trained in teaching techniques that benefit students with LD?
> Sometimes it is not a matter of motivation, but a matter of being in an
> appropriate system, and the assessment of student needs for learning must go
> beyond a TABE or CASAS score and include the diagnosis of other things that
> may be interfering.
>
> I'd be interested in hearing about procedures that are followed in these
> situations.
> June Crawford
>
> -----Original Message-----
> *From:* specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:
> specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]*On Behalf Of *Ann Burruss
> *Sent:* Friday, September 22, 2006 4:24 AM
> *To:* specialtopics at nifl.gov
> *Subject:* [SpecialTopics 232] Re: Posting your questions
>
> Gina,
> I, too, work with unmotivated ABE students.  I believe that the key is
> showing how any amount of education is going to improve their lot in life;
> i.e., better job, family stability, etc.  Too often we cannot demonstrate
> that what we are asking is going to make a difference in life outside the
> institution.  Until we can integrate those skills with the hope and
> suitability of employment, think we are spinning our wheels.
> Have you tried the Workkeys Assessments?  At least that steers you and the
> inmate in the direction of learning what's appropriate and needed for a job.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> *From:* Lobaccaro Gina (DOC) <Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us>
> *To:* specialtopics at nifl.gov
> *Sent:* Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM
> *Subject:* [SpecialTopics 206] Re: Posting your questions
>
> Hello All,
> I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex
> Correctional Institution in Georgetown Delaware.  I work for the Delaware
> Department of Education Prison Education program.. I have corresponded with
> David and Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of conferences.
> I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area of
> motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.  We have so
> many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no progress over
> and extended time.  They appear to be coming to get off the tiers or to
> receive "good time".  In truth, they do not receive much "good time" for
> education.  Our education program is a classified program.  If a student
> does not have  GED or HS diploma they must attend school.  We have a long
> waiting list for the low level ABE students, but we also have students
> sitting in classes who appear to me totally unmotivated to improve their
> academic skills.
> Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating ABE
> low level learners in CE settings?
> Gina
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
> Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
> Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions
>
>
>
> Colleagues,
>
> Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you
> are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like
> "What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education
> program to a community education program?" or "What does family
> literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions
> like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's
> reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion to be
> introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All
> questions are welcome.
>
> Send your questions to:
>
> specialtopics at nifl.gov
>
> David J. Rosen
> Special Topics Discussion Moderator
> djrosen at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
>
>  ------------------------------
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
>
> -------------------------------
> National Institute for Literacy
> Special Topics mailing list
> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
>
>


-- 
Gloria Fuentes
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From fiona at literacy.ca  Fri Sep 22 15:43:02 2006
From: fiona at literacy.ca (Fiona Murray)
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 15:43:02 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 239]  materials for prison libraries
Message-ID: <8EE5B3E2-4A72-11DB-927F-000393C652C4@literacy.ca>

This is for the librarian in a corrections institution that asked about 
possible reading materials for her collection. I'm sure you'll already 
have checked out American materials and other traditional literacy 
resources (ie. Laubach materials which are sold through New Readers 
Press in Canada) but I'd like to suggest some resources beyond your 
borders.

Grass Roots Press in Canada publishes a variety of excellent materials 
for practitioners and learners alike. Their Easy Reader collection goes 
from readability levels of grade 3 - 5. They are based in Edmonton, 
Alberta and can be accessed at:  http://www.literacyservices.com or 
call toll-free: 1-888-303-3213.

In Britain, they have developed a very successful series of high 
interest books written by best-selling authors in shorter, easier to 
read formats. Find out more about the First Choice series at: 
http://www.firstchoicebooks.org.uk/.  They have been created to 
interest and encourage those in the non-reading population but are 
being marketed broadly to the general public as popular and affordable 
literature. Canada is about to embark on a similar initiative called 
Reach a Reader but nothing is published yet.

Also, if your library would like to bookmark an interactive website 
with great learner materials, try the Learning Edge at: 
http://thewclc.ca/edge/index.html. There are several issues of this 
learner newsletter on a variety of topics. Often learners are 
contributors. The graphics and voice-along option make it quite dynamic.

Perhaps these may be of interest.
All the best,
Fiona
__

Fiona Murray
Communications/Liaison Coordinator
Movement for Canadian Literacy
Ottawa, Canada
tel: 613-563-2464
email: fiona at literacy.ca
website: http://www.literacy.ca



From djrosen at comcast.net  Sat Sep 23 06:18:31 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2006 06:18:31 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 240]  Community re-entry programs
Message-ID: <34184588-EBCA-4151-A26D-E993876DFED9@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

Here's a question for our guests, and for anyone in this discussion  
who may work with a prisoner community re-entry program:

In "Locked Up and Locked Out"  a community re-entry program in  
Massachusetts is described as follows:

"Re-entry projects around the country have been similar, or at least  
somewhat similar, to the Offender Re-entry Program (ORP) in Suffolk  
County, Massachu-
setts. The lead educational agency is Boston?s Bunker Hill Community  
College. The program is detailed in a case study found in a report of  
the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).37 ORP provides soon-to-be- 
released inmates with an intensive 6-hour-a-day course of study over  
a six-week period. After release, the inmates continue to receive  
support from caseworkers and mentors for a minimum of six months ?  
and many choose to continue beyond this six-month period. Drawing on  
different community resources and agencies, the program includes:
? education during the final six weeks of prison provided by Bunker  
Hill Community College
? job assistance at the one-stop career center called Workplace
? case management provided by Community Resources for Justice
? mentoring support from the faith-based Ella J. Baker House"

How prevalent are programs such as the ORP? Do they reduce  
recidivism? What are the key ingredients of success?

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net

From robinschwarz1 at aol.com  Sat Sep 23 17:37:20 2006
From: robinschwarz1 at aol.com (robinschwarz1 at aol.com)
Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2006 17:37:20 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 241] Re: Posting your questions
In-Reply-To: <9B35BF1886881547B5DFF88364AF31A3081E8B9E@wdcrobe2m03.ed.gov>
References: <9B35BF1886881547B5DFF88364AF31A3081E8B9E@wdcrobe2m03.ed.gov>
Message-ID: <8C8AD6F95438F91-C2C-9996@MBLK-M33.sysops.aol.com>

Laura Weisel, Alan Toops and I wrote an article for FOB a year ago ( 
August, 2005) addressing the wide range of causes of learning 
difficulties in the corrections population.   It isn't just LD, but 
vision, hearing, attention, and especially visual stress syndrome that 
have caused a lot of learning problems and hence a lifetime of poor 
results in school.  Helping adult learners know about these challenges 
and ways to help themselves manage their challenges has helped many 
inmates be successful.    Check out the article.  Robin Lovrien Schwarz

-----Original Message-----
From: jcrawford at nifl.gov
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Sent: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 9:06 AM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 236] Re: Posting your questions

Many people who work in correctional education report a high incidence 
of learning disabilities, a previous experience in special education 
classrooms, and a lack of appropriate instruction for those who require 
teaching techniques that are appropriate for the learner.?My own 
research in corrections indicated?a high, high percentage of the 
inmates in the correctional education programs?either had been 
diagnosed in?earlier schools or?exhibited many characteristics of those 
with learning disabilities...and not just dyslexia.???
?
May I ask what screening or diagnosis is being done in the correctional 
system in which Gina works?? What accommodations are provided for those 
with a history of LD?? Is there a process to follow in the system for 
those who exhibit the characteristics of learning disabilities?? Are 
the teachers in the system trained in teaching techniques that benefit 
students with LD?? Sometimes it is not a matter of motivation, but a 
matter of being in an appropriate system, and the assessment of student 
needs for learning must go beyond a TABE or CASAS score and include the 
diagnosis of other things that may be interfering.
?
I'd be interested in hearing about procedures that are followed in 
these situations.
June Crawford
-----Original Message-----
 From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Ann Burruss
Sent: Friday, September 22, 2006 4:24 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 232] Re: Posting your questions


Gina,
I, too, work with unmotivated ABE students.? I believe that the key is 
showing how any amount of education is going to improve their lot in 
life; i.e., better job, family stability, etc.? Too often we cannot 
demonstrate that what we are asking is going to make a difference in 
life outside the institution.? Until we can integrate those skills with 
the hope and suitability of employment, think we are spinning our 
wheels.
Have you tried the Workkeys Assessments?? At least that steers you and 
the inmate in the direction of learning what's appropriate and needed 
for a job.
----- Original Message -----
From: Lobaccaro Gina (DOC)
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 206] Re: Posting your questions


Hello All,
I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex 
Correctional Institution in Georgetown Delaware.? I work for the 
Delaware Department of Education Prison Education program.. I have 
corresponded with David and Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of 
conferences.
I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area 
of motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.? We 
have so many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no 
progress over and extended time.? They appear to be coming to get off 
the tiers or to receive "good time".? In truth, they do not receive 
much "good time" for education.? Our education program is a classified 
program.? If a student does not have? GED or HS diploma they must 
attend school.? We have a long waiting list for the low level ABE 
students, but we also have students sitting in classes who appear to me 
totally unmotivated to improve their academic skills.
Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating 
ABE low level learners in CE settings?
Gina

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions



Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you
are ready.? (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like
"What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education
program to a community education program?" or "What does family
literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions
like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's
reading skills?"? Some people have joined the discussion to be
introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.? All
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics




--------


-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

________________________________________________________________________
Check out the new AOL.  Most comprehensive set of free safety and 
security tools, free access to millions of high-quality videos from 
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From wrmuth at vcu.edu  Sun Sep 24 00:04:19 2006
From: wrmuth at vcu.edu (William R Muth/FS/VCU)
Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2006 00:04:19 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 242] Re: Community re-entry programs
In-Reply-To: <34184588-EBCA-4151-A26D-E993876DFED9@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <OF760515D2.C7A19F1E-ON852571F3.00133A95-852571F3.00165E13@vcu.edu>

Gina Lobaccaro and all, 

By way of addressing your excellent question about motivating low-literacy 
level learners, I?d like to return to what I believe is a hugely untapped 
potential in correctional education: the incarcerated learner?s personal 
needs and interests. Anita Wilson describes ?Third-spaces? in prisons in 
the UK where prisoners express themselves in ways deeply personal and 
loaded with their own sense of identity ? poetry, music, art; ways of 
expression that they would likely not be engaged in ?back home? or in 
?official? prison discourses (including prison classrooms, work 
assignments, etc.). 

When I recently interviewed literacy learners on their views of prison 
literacy programs, I was taken back by their need to talk about families 
and loved ones back home. Most of the prisoners thought about their 
mothers, fathers, spouses, sisters, sons, daughters, and grandparents 
almost constantly, when they were not ?pulled back? into the reality of 
prison by another inmate or staff member. Based on Anita?s work I began 
seeing the reality of prison as the learners? ?First- space? and their 
personal thoughts of home as the hidden ?Second-spaces.? 

I wondered how this enormous emotional resource (Second-space) could be 
(respectfully) ?invited? into the classroom by teachers. Gina asked about 
motivating low-level literacy students. One possible solution ? though not 
necessarily an easy one ? is through Language Experience Approach lessons. 
An example: A student of mine ? 18 yrs old, doing time for murder, ADD big 
time and, weirdly, likeable -- was a profoundly disabled reader, barely 
knew the names of the letters. But he was convinced he did not need to 
study such ?childish? things as phonics. Because he was highly fascinated 
with himself (!) I put a tape recorder in front of him and let him talk. 
His early stories made me queasy ? how, once he got out, he was going to 
set up his own gas station and hire a team of his buddies to work for 
him?totally out of touch with reality! More than once I doubted my own 
judgment, but continued to transcribe the stories. They became his reading 
materials and he loved to read them. We made flash cards out of the words 
he most wanted to learn to read and spell, reread his stories to improve 
his fluency, and dread! even created daily phonics lessons based on his 
words.  In addition to rapid growth in his reading, he began writing 
letters home, and this sparked a dialogue with his estranged mother.  As 
time went by, his stories became much less fantastic, and much more real ? 
about facing his mother when she came to visit, etc. 

Language Experience Approach (LEA) can be time consuming, and some prisons 
don?t even allow tape recorders in the classroom. There is, also, a down 
side to this idea - that staff can get "too close" to their students -- 
and that can lead to disastrous results, and lead to harsh staff policies 
about keeping one's distance. (But, for example, if there were trustworthy 
tutors around, they could do the transcribing. Or discussion groups, 
instead of LEA, could be used to get learners engaged. Also, many staff 
have found ways to support students' personal needs and still maintain 
boundaries.) The point is that there are ways to motivate low-literacy 
adults -- Language Experience, Third-spaces, discussion groups, etc. -- 
but whether or not correctional educators are permitted to use them is 
another story. 

My guess is that if prisoners? ?Second spaces? were "invited" into the 
classroom (they should never be coerced into the classroom!), we?d have a 
lot more family and intergenerational literacy programs flourishing: 
support for letter writing, peer support for family crises (see my note 
about the Allenwood Father?s Group, few days back), and powerful and 
empowering purposes for literacy learning. I know that many prison 
classrooms do not engender the trust it would take to pull this off, but I 
also bet that those who care enough to participate in this discussion 
struggle everyday to sustain just such environments. 

A few related notes:
John Linton, thank you for bringing to our attention the Senate Judiciary 
Sub-Committee hearing, and the inside/outside work that Safer is doing. 
David ? Safer Foundation program may be the best example of the kind of 
programs you were asking about. Diane Williams reported that the Safer 
?model prison to community initiative?show[ed] a 50 % decline in 
recidivism and a 50% increase in job placement. Our most recent statistics 
show that 77% of the participants who are active in Safer?s services are 
currently working.?

About the testimony of the Senate Judiciary Sub-Committee hearing on 
Reentry: Numerous experts talked about the need for support for families 
and children of prisoners, and the importance of family ties. But only 
once did a witness ? Roger Werholtz from Kansas ? mentioned a reentry 
program that involved ?maintaining family ties.? Why is it that this need, 
though recognized by Urban Institute and others as one of the major 
contributors to reentry success, is overshadowed by jobs, drug treatment, 
sex offender, and other (worthy) needs? Are these programs too messy? Too 
threatening? To personal? Again, at the risk of broke-record syndrome, I 
argue that family and intergenerational literacy programs could reach some 
of the least communicative parents in prison, and thus some of the most 
vulnerable children and families. 

Gina Lobaccaro is too modest to mention this, but she is the wiki-master!! 
Gina maintains the correctional education component of the Adult Literacy 
Education Wiki hosted by NIFL and supported by David Rosen, Erik Jacobsen 
and others (see: 
http://wiki.literacytent.org/index.php/Corrections_Education ). This is a 
great resource for our community of practice. Thank you, Gina. My guess is 
much of our conversation will find its way to this wiki, yes?

June Crawford: As you know well, one alternative way to screen for reading 
disabilities in our classrooms is by assessing reading components in 
addition to reading comprehension.  Here is a link to John Strucker?s 
classic argument for the need for reading components testing: 
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=456

Sorry for such a long post!!!  -Bill




David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
09/23/2006 06:18 AM
Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov


To
specialtopics at nifl.gov
cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 240]  Community re-entry programs






Colleagues,

Here's a question for our guests, and for anyone in this discussion 
who may work with a prisoner community re-entry program:

In "Locked Up and Locked Out"  a community re-entry program in 
Massachusetts is described as follows:

"Re-entry projects around the country have been similar, or at least 
somewhat similar, to the Offender Re-entry Program (ORP) in Suffolk 
County, Massachu-
setts. The lead educational agency is Boston?s Bunker Hill Community 
College. The program is detailed in a case study found in a report of 
the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).37 ORP provides soon-to-be- 
released inmates with an intensive 6-hour-a-day course of study over 
a six-week period. After release, the inmates continue to receive 
support from caseworkers and mentors for a minimum of six months ? 
and many choose to continue beyond this six-month period. Drawing on 
different community resources and agencies, the program includes:
? education during the final six weeks of prison provided by Bunker 
Hill Community College
? job assistance at the one-stop career center called Workplace
? case management provided by Community Resources for Justice
? mentoring support from the faith-based Ella J. Baker House"

How prevalent are programs such as the ORP? Do they reduce 
recidivism? What are the key ingredients of success?

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

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From b.garner4 at verizon.net  Sun Sep 24 10:38:35 2006
From: b.garner4 at verizon.net (Barbara Garner)
Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2006 09:38:35 -0500 (CDT)
Subject: [SpecialTopics 243] Re: Posting your questions
Message-ID: <18031024.4844981159108715128.JavaMail.root@vms074.mailsrvcs.net>

The link to Understanding the Complexities of Offenders' Special Learning Needs, the article Robin mentions, is http://www.ncsall.net/?id=829

That article was in an issue of "Focus on Basics" on Corrections Education. Other articles include an excellent look at assessing learner's needs by Bill Muth, a history of the role of education in Corrections by Dominique Chlup, and many other articles. The PDF can be found at http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/fob/2005/fob_7d.pdf

Barb Garner
Editor, Focus on Basics

  =====================
From: robinschwarz1 at aol.com
Date: 2006/09/23 Sat PM 04:37:20 CDT
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 241] Re: Posting your questions

Laura Weisel, Alan Toops and I wrote an article for FOB a year ago ( 
August, 2005) addressing the wide range of causes of learning 
difficulties in the corrections population.   It isn't just LD, but 
vision, hearing, attention, and especially visual stress syndrome that 
have caused a lot of learning problems and hence a lifetime of poor 
results in school.  Helping adult learners know about these challenges 
and ways to help themselves manage their challenges has helped many 
inmates be successful.    Check out the article.  Robin Lovrien Schwarz

-----Original Message-----
From: jcrawford at nifl.gov
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Sent: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 9:06 AM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 236] Re: Posting your questions

Many people who work in correctional education report a high incidence 
of learning disabilities, a previous experience in special education 
classrooms, and a lack of appropriate instruction for those who require 
teaching techniques that are appropriate for the learner.?My own 
research in corrections indicated?a high, high percentage of the 
inmates in the correctional education programs?either had been 
diagnosed in?earlier schools or?exhibited many characteristics of those 
with learning disabilities...and not just dyslexia.???
?
May I ask what screening or diagnosis is being done in the correctional 
system in which Gina works?? What accommodations are provided for those 
with a history of LD?? Is there a process to follow in the system for 
those who exhibit the characteristics of learning disabilities?? Are 
the teachers in the system trained in teaching techniques that benefit 
students with LD?? Sometimes it is not a matter of motivation, but a 
matter of being in an appropriate system, and the assessment of student 
needs for learning must go beyond a TABE or CASAS score and include the 
diagnosis of other things that may be interfering.
?
I'd be interested in hearing about procedures that are followed in 
these situations.
June Crawford
-----Original Message-----
 From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Ann Burruss
Sent: Friday, September 22, 2006 4:24 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 232] Re: Posting your questions


Gina,
I, too, work with unmotivated ABE students.? I believe that the key is 
showing how any amount of education is going to improve their lot in 
life; i.e., better job, family stability, etc.? Too often we cannot 
demonstrate that what we are asking is going to make a difference in 
life outside the institution.? Until we can integrate those skills with 
the hope and suitability of employment, think we are spinning our 
wheels.
Have you tried the Workkeys Assessments?? At least that steers you and 
the inmate in the direction of learning what's appropriate and needed 
for a job.
----- Original Message -----
From: Lobaccaro Gina (DOC)
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 206] Re: Posting your questions


Hello All,
I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex 
Correctional Institution in Georgetown Delaware.? I work for the 
Delaware Department of Education Prison Education program.. I have 
corresponded with David and Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of 
conferences.
I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area 
of motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.? We 
have so many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no 
progress over and extended time.? They appear to be coming to get off 
the tiers or to receive "good time".? In truth, they do not receive 
much "good time" for education.? Our education program is a classified 
program.? If a student does not have? GED or HS diploma they must 
attend school.? We have a long waiting list for the low level ABE 
students, but we also have students sitting in classes who appear to me 
totally unmotivated to improve their academic skills.
Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating 
ABE low level learners in CE settings?
Gina

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions



Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you
are ready.? (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like
"What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education
program to a community education program?" or "What does family
literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions
like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's
reading skills?"? Some people have joined the discussion to be
introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.? All
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics




--------


-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
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From robinschwarz1 at aol.com  Sun Sep 24 15:13:13 2006
From: robinschwarz1 at aol.com (robinschwarz1 at aol.com)
Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2006 15:13:13 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 244] Re: Family Literacy and Corrections
In-Reply-To: <45CE0C5B-FF77-43CB-B532-EF576B656356@comcast.net>
References: <45CE0C5B-FF77-43CB-B532-EF576B656356@comcast.net>
Message-ID: <8C8AE249DCE9EC7-1738-437B@mblk-d26.sysops.aol.com>

David-- this reminds me of the work of Ross Greene, who, I believe, 
works with at-risk young people in Maine.  I heard him at an Institute 
sponsored by the Learning Lab @ Lesley in 2005 in Marlborough, MA.   He 
has written "The Explosive Child" and another about the family.  He 
maintains that punishment more often produces the opposite effect of 
what was intended and that usually it is about the worst response to 
outbursts and "bad behavior."    I was very moved by his stories about 
the young people he works with--many of whom are already incarcerated 
in juvenile institutions.   Robin Lovrien Schwarz

-----Original Message-----
From: djrosen at comcast.net
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Sent: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 1:55 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 215]  Family Literacy and Corrections

   Bill, John and Steve,

I have a question about family literacy.  "Locked Up and Locked Out"
points out that punishment ?is not appropriate for the more than 1.5
million children of prisoners? and that  ?Neglecting these unintended
victims will likely lead to these children replacing their parents in
the prisons of the future.?

What is being done about this? Can you give us some examples of
programs in prison settings that help inmates help their children to
read or with their homework, or with other education-related or
parenting issues?

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net






-------------------------------
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SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
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From Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us  Mon Sep 25 07:49:39 2006
From: Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us (Lobaccaro Gina (DOC))
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2006 07:49:39 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 245] Re: Posting your questions
In-Reply-To: <9B35BF1886881547B5DFF88364AF31A3081E8B9E@wdcrobe2m03.ed.gov>
Message-ID: <A7439902C13D6C459A2217AB22A386FBDF0C07@DOVERSCLS01N1.state.de.us>

June,
We provide the full range of special education services for all students under 21, but not so for the older inmates.  We will be doing more precise student learning plans in the future that look alot like an IEP, specific learning goals with follow-through on a 60 hour basis.  No, the teachers are not trained well to work with LD students, but it would be a great suggest for local professional development.  I am the media & technology specialist/teacher and I do not actually "teach" but I am a special educator and worked here as the special education teacher for the first 9 years I was here.  I have had lots of professional development background, so perhaps it is something I can offer.  
Thanks for your reply.
Gina

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Crawford, June
Sent: Friday, September 22, 2006 12:06 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 236] Re: Posting your questions


Many people who work in correctional education report a high incidence of learning disabilities, a previous experience in special education classrooms, and a lack of appropriate instruction for those who require teaching techniques that are appropriate for the learner. My own research in corrections indicated a high, high percentage of the inmates in the correctional education programs either had been diagnosed in earlier schools or exhibited many characteristics of those with learning disabilities...and not just dyslexia.   
 
May I ask what screening or diagnosis is being done in the correctional system in which Gina works?  What accommodations are provided for those with a history of LD?  Is there a process to follow in the system for those who exhibit the characteristics of learning disabilities?  Are the teachers in the system trained in teaching techniques that benefit students with LD?  Sometimes it is not a matter of motivation, but a matter of being in an appropriate system, and the assessment of student needs for learning must go beyond a TABE or CASAS score and include the diagnosis of other things that may be interfering.
 
I'd be interested in hearing about procedures that are followed in these situations.
June Crawford

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Ann Burruss
Sent: Friday, September 22, 2006 4:24 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 232] Re: Posting your questions


Gina,
I, too, work with unmotivated ABE students.  I believe that the key is showing how any amount of education is going to improve their lot in life; i.e., better job, family stability, etc.  Too often we cannot demonstrate that what we are asking is going to make a difference in life outside the institution.  Until we can integrate those skills with the hope and suitability of employment, think we are spinning our wheels.
Have you tried the Workkeys Assessments?  At least that steers you and the inmate in the direction of learning what's appropriate and needed for a job.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Lobaccaro Gina (DOC) <mailto:Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us>  
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM
Subject: [SpecialTopics 206] Re: Posting your questions

Hello All,
I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at Sussex Correctional Institution in Georgetown Delaware.  I work for the Delaware Department of Education Prison Education program.. I have corresponded with David and Bill, and I have met Steve at a couple of conferences.
I am asking if there is any research or a need for research in the area of motivation for low level ABE learners in correctional settings.  We have so many inmate/students who come to class but make little or no progress over and extended time.  They appear to be coming to get off the tiers or to receive "good time".  In truth, they do not receive much "good time" for education.  Our education program is a classified program.  If a student does not have  GED or HS diploma they must attend school.  We have a long waiting list for the low level ABE students, but we also have students sitting in classes who appear to me totally unmotivated to improve their academic skills.
Do you or the other list serve members have suggestions for motivating ABE low level learners in CE settings?
Gina

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen
Sent: Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions



Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as you 
are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions like 
"What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail education 
program to a community education program?" or "What does family 
literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific questions 
like "How does a prison family literacy program affect children's 
reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion to be 
introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All 
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net



-------------------------------
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SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
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  _____  




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From Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us  Mon Sep 25 08:53:39 2006
From: Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us (Lobaccaro Gina (DOC))
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2006 08:53:39 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 246] Re: Community re-entry programs
In-Reply-To: <OF760515D2.C7A19F1E-ON852571F3.00133A95-852571F3.00165E13@vcu.edu>
Message-ID: <A7439902C13D6C459A2217AB22A386FBDF0C0D@DOVERSCLS01N1.state.de.us>

Yes, Bill..
This morning I added the FOB article about Special Needs of Incarcerated Leaners and I will add this entire thread/conversation when it is complete... the Wiki at http://wiki.literacytent.org/index.php/Corrections_Education 
Gina

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of William R Muth/FS/VCU
Sent: Sunday, September 24, 2006 12:04 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 242] Re: Community re-entry programs



Gina Lobaccaro and all, 

By way of addressing your excellent question about motivating low-literacy level learners, I'd like to return to what I believe is a hugely untapped potential in correctional education: the incarcerated learner's personal needs and interests. Anita Wilson describes "Third-spaces" in prisons in the UK where prisoners express themselves in ways deeply personal and loaded with their own sense of identity - poetry, music, art; ways of expression that they would likely not be engaged in 'back home' or in 'official' prison discourses (including prison classrooms, work assignments, etc.).   

When I recently interviewed literacy learners on their views of prison literacy programs, I was taken back by their need to talk about families and loved ones back home. Most of the prisoners thought about their mothers, fathers, spouses, sisters, sons, daughters, and grandparents almost constantly, when they were not 'pulled back' into the reality of prison by another inmate or staff member. Based on Anita's work I began seeing the reality of prison as the learners' "First- space" and their personal thoughts of home as the hidden "Second-spaces."   

I wondered how this enormous emotional resource (Second-space) could be (respectfully) 'invited' into the classroom by teachers. Gina asked about motivating low-level literacy students. One possible solution - though not necessarily an easy one - is through Language Experience Approach lessons. An example: A student of mine - 18 yrs old, doing time for murder, ADD big time and, weirdly, likeable -- was a profoundly disabled reader, barely knew the names of the letters. But he was convinced he did not need to study such "childish" things as phonics. Because he was highly fascinated with himself (!) I put a tape recorder in front of him and let him talk. His early stories made me queasy - how, once he got out, he was going to set up his own gas station and hire a team of his buddies to work for him...totally out of touch with reality! More than once I doubted my own judgment, but continued to transcribe the stories. They became his reading materials and he loved to read them. We made flash cards out of the words he most wanted to learn to read and spell, reread his stories to improve his fluency, and dread! even created daily phonics lessons based on his words.  In addition to rapid growth in his reading, he began writing letters home, and this sparked a dialogue with his estranged mother.  As time went by, his stories became much less fantastic, and much more real - about facing his mother when she came to visit, etc. 

Language Experience Approach (LEA) can be time consuming, and some prisons don't even allow tape recorders in the classroom. There is, also, a down side to this idea - that staff can get "too close" to their students -- and that can lead to disastrous results, and lead to harsh staff policies about keeping one's distance. (But, for example, if there were trustworthy tutors around, they could do the transcribing. Or discussion groups, instead of LEA, could be used to get learners engaged. Also, many staff have found ways to support students' personal needs and still maintain boundaries.) The point is that there are ways to motivate low-literacy adults -- Language Experience, Third-spaces, discussion groups, etc. -- but whether or not correctional educators are permitted to use them is another story.   

My guess is that if prisoners' "Second spaces" were "invited" into the classroom (they should never be coerced into the classroom!), we'd have a lot more family and intergenerational literacy programs flourishing: support for letter writing, peer support for family crises (see my note about the Allenwood Father's Group, few days back), and powerful and empowering purposes for literacy learning. I know that many prison classrooms do not engender the trust it would take to pull this off, but I also bet that those who care enough to participate in this discussion struggle everyday to sustain just such environments. 

A few related notes: 
John Linton, thank you for bringing to our attention the Senate Judiciary Sub-Committee hearing, and the inside/outside work that Safer is doing. David - Safer Foundation program may be the best example of the kind of programs you were asking about. Diane Williams reported that the Safer "model prison to community initiative...show[ed] a 50 % decline in recidivism and a 50% increase in job placement. Our most recent statistics show that 77% of the participants who are active in Safer's services are currently working." 

About the testimony of the Senate Judiciary Sub-Committee hearing on Reentry: Numerous experts talked about the need for support for families and children of prisoners, and the importance of family ties. But only once did a witness - Roger Werholtz from Kansas - mentioned a reentry program that involved "maintaining family ties." Why is it that this need, though recognized by Urban Institute and others as one of the major contributors to reentry success, is overshadowed by jobs, drug treatment, sex offender, and other (worthy) needs? Are these programs too messy? Too threatening? To personal? Again, at the risk of broke-record syndrome, I argue that family and intergenerational literacy programs could reach some of the least communicative parents in prison, and thus some of the most vulnerable children and families. 

Gina Lobaccaro is too modest to mention this, but she is the wiki-master!! Gina maintains the correctional education component of the Adult Literacy Education Wiki hosted by NIFL and supported by David Rosen, Erik Jacobsen and others (see: http://wiki.literacytent.org/index.php/Corrections_Education ). This is a great resource for our community of practice. Thank you, Gina. My guess is much of our conversation will find its way to this wiki, yes? 

June Crawford: As you know well, one alternative way to screen for reading disabilities in our classrooms is by assessing reading components in addition to reading comprehension.  Here is a link to John Strucker's classic argument for the need for reading components testing:   http://www.ncsall.net/?id=456 

Sorry for such a long post!!!  -Bill 




David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 


09/23/2006 06:18 AM 


Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov



To
specialtopics at nifl.gov 

cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 240]  Community re-entry programs

	




Colleagues,

Here's a question for our guests, and for anyone in this discussion  
who may work with a prisoner community re-entry program:

In "Locked Up and Locked Out"  a community re-entry program in  
Massachusetts is described as follows:

"Re-entry projects around the country have been similar, or at least  
somewhat similar, to the Offender Re-entry Program (ORP) in Suffolk  
County, Massachu-
setts. The lead educational agency is Boston's Bunker Hill Community  
College. The program is detailed in a case study found in a report of  
the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).37 ORP provides soon-to-be- 
released inmates with an intensive 6-hour-a-day course of study over  
a six-week period. After release, the inmates continue to receive  
support from caseworkers and mentors for a minimum of six months -  
and many choose to continue beyond this six-month period. Drawing on  
different community resources and agencies, the program includes:
* education during the final six weeks of prison provided by Bunker  
Hill Community College
* job assistance at the one-stop career center called Workplace
* case management provided by Community Resources for Justice
* mentoring support from the faith-based Ella J. Baker House"

How prevalent are programs such as the ORP? Do they reduce  
recidivism? What are the key ingredients of success?

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
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SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
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From Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us  Mon Sep 25 08:02:27 2006
From: Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us (Lobaccaro Gina (DOC))
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2006 08:02:27 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 247] Re: Community re-entry programs
In-Reply-To: <OF760515D2.C7A19F1E-ON852571F3.00133A95-852571F3.00165E13@vcu.edu>
Message-ID: <A7439902C13D6C459A2217AB22A386FBDF0C09@DOVERSCLS01N1.state.de.us>

I will be honest here ... as I admit a bias that has beeing my undoing perhaps.  I am such a "phonics' person.... I nearly forgot how important it is to include whole language in with instruction.  I do not teach here now, but BUT.... I can make suggestions and I can do mini projects with ABE students as I please -- as a rule.  I have actually been thinking about getting permission to bring in digital tape recorders and interview incoming students about their education histories and "interest in education" while they are incarcerated.  In the pass, all placement in education at SCI has been based on a "first come first serve basis" as the student is placed on the "classified (mandated) to education list"/tested/ put on a waiting list.  I am preparing a strategy where the emphasis will be change to a "first come/most motivated" practice keeping the others on the list, but lower down on it.
Bills suggestions about audio taping and transribing life stories is the perfect complement to this process, and I -- will with all my enthusiam try.. to make it happen here at SCI.  I would like to do a small research project on it as well.... 
Thanks Bill .. keep in touch.  But.. I don't really think I am a Wike-master... but thank you very much.
 
I am happy to hear that the CEA Annual Conference is on the east coast this year, Steve.  I didn't know you had retired from the MD Corrections system... are you still the director of the CEA??? I am pretty sure that you are.  
 
Gina

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of William R Muth/FS/VCU
Sent: Sunday, September 24, 2006 12:04 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 242] Re: Community re-entry programs



Gina Lobaccaro and all, 

By way of addressing your excellent question about motivating low-literacy level learners, I'd like to return to what I believe is a hugely untapped potential in correctional education: the incarcerated learner's personal needs and interests. Anita Wilson describes "Third-spaces" in prisons in the UK where prisoners express themselves in ways deeply personal and loaded with their own sense of identity - poetry, music, art; ways of expression that they would likely not be engaged in 'back home' or in 'official' prison discourses (including prison classrooms, work assignments, etc.).   

When I recently interviewed literacy learners on their views of prison literacy programs, I was taken back by their need to talk about families and loved ones back home. Most of the prisoners thought about their mothers, fathers, spouses, sisters, sons, daughters, and grandparents almost constantly, when they were not 'pulled back' into the reality of prison by another inmate or staff member. Based on Anita's work I began seeing the reality of prison as the learners' "First- space" and their personal thoughts of home as the hidden "Second-spaces."   

I wondered how this enormous emotional resource (Second-space) could be (respectfully) 'invited' into the classroom by teachers. Gina asked about motivating low-level literacy students. One possible solution - though not necessarily an easy one - is through Language Experience Approach lessons. An example: A student of mine - 18 yrs old, doing time for murder, ADD big time and, weirdly, likeable -- was a profoundly disabled reader, barely knew the names of the letters. But he was convinced he did not need to study such "childish" things as phonics. Because he was highly fascinated with himself (!) I put a tape recorder in front of him and let him talk. His early stories made me queasy - how, once he got out, he was going to set up his own gas station and hire a team of his buddies to work for him...totally out of touch with reality! More than once I doubted my own judgment, but continued to transcribe the stories. They became his reading materials and he loved to read them. We made flash cards out of the words he most wanted to learn to read and spell, reread his stories to improve his fluency, and dread! even created daily phonics lessons based on his words.  In addition to rapid growth in his reading, he began writing letters home, and this sparked a dialogue with his estranged mother.  As time went by, his stories became much less fantastic, and much more real - about facing his mother when she came to visit, etc. 

Language Experience Approach (LEA) can be time consuming, and some prisons don't even allow tape recorders in the classroom. There is, also, a down side to this idea - that staff can get "too close" to their students -- and that can lead to disastrous results, and lead to harsh staff policies about keeping one's distance. (But, for example, if there were trustworthy tutors around, they could do the transcribing. Or discussion groups, instead of LEA, could be used to get learners engaged. Also, many staff have found ways to support students' personal needs and still maintain boundaries.) The point is that there are ways to motivate low-literacy adults -- Language Experience, Third-spaces, discussion groups, etc. -- but whether or not correctional educators are permitted to use them is another story.   

My guess is that if prisoners' "Second spaces" were "invited" into the classroom (they should never be coerced into the classroom!), we'd have a lot more family and intergenerational literacy programs flourishing: support for letter writing, peer support for family crises (see my note about the Allenwood Father's Group, few days back), and powerful and empowering purposes for literacy learning. I know that many prison classrooms do not engender the trust it would take to pull this off, but I also bet that those who care enough to participate in this discussion struggle everyday to sustain just such environments. 

A few related notes: 
John Linton, thank you for bringing to our attention the Senate Judiciary Sub-Committee hearing, and the inside/outside work that Safer is doing. David - Safer Foundation program may be the best example of the kind of programs you were asking about. Diane Williams reported that the Safer "model prison to community initiative...show[ed] a 50 % decline in recidivism and a 50% increase in job placement. Our most recent statistics show that 77% of the participants who are active in Safer's services are currently working." 

About the testimony of the Senate Judiciary Sub-Committee hearing on Reentry: Numerous experts talked about the need for support for families and children of prisoners, and the importance of family ties. But only once did a witness - Roger Werholtz from Kansas - mentioned a reentry program that involved "maintaining family ties." Why is it that this need, though recognized by Urban Institute and others as one of the major contributors to reentry success, is overshadowed by jobs, drug treatment, sex offender, and other (worthy) needs? Are these programs too messy? Too threatening? To personal? Again, at the risk of broke-record syndrome, I argue that family and intergenerational literacy programs could reach some of the least communicative parents in prison, and thus some of the most vulnerable children and families. 

Gina Lobaccaro is too modest to mention this, but she is the wiki-master!! Gina maintains the correctional education component of the Adult Literacy Education Wiki hosted by NIFL and supported by David Rosen, Erik Jacobsen and others (see: http://wiki.literacytent.org/index.php/Corrections_Education ). This is a great resource for our community of practice. Thank you, Gina. My guess is much of our conversation will find its way to this wiki, yes? 

June Crawford: As you know well, one alternative way to screen for reading disabilities in our classrooms is by assessing reading components in addition to reading comprehension.  Here is a link to John Strucker's classic argument for the need for reading components testing:   http://www.ncsall.net/?id=456 

Sorry for such a long post!!!  -Bill 




David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 


09/23/2006 06:18 AM 


Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov



To
specialtopics at nifl.gov 

cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 240]  Community re-entry programs

	




Colleagues,

Here's a question for our guests, and for anyone in this discussion  
who may work with a prisoner community re-entry program:

In "Locked Up and Locked Out"  a community re-entry program in  
Massachusetts is described as follows:

"Re-entry projects around the country have been similar, or at least  
somewhat similar, to the Offender Re-entry Program (ORP) in Suffolk  
County, Massachu-
setts. The lead educational agency is Boston's Bunker Hill Community  
College. The program is detailed in a case study found in a report of  
the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).37 ORP provides soon-to-be- 
released inmates with an intensive 6-hour-a-day course of study over  
a six-week period. After release, the inmates continue to receive  
support from caseworkers and mentors for a minimum of six months -  
and many choose to continue beyond this six-month period. Drawing on  
different community resources and agencies, the program includes:
* education during the final six weeks of prison provided by Bunker  
Hill Community College
* job assistance at the one-stop career center called Workplace
* case management provided by Community Resources for Justice
* mentoring support from the faith-based Ella J. Baker House"

How prevalent are programs such as the ORP? Do they reduce  
recidivism? What are the key ingredients of success?

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics



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From Tiffany.Johnson at victoriacollege.edu  Mon Sep 25 12:40:23 2006
From: Tiffany.Johnson at victoriacollege.edu (JOHNSON, Tiffany)
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2006 11:40:23 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 248]  Our Education Program
References: <OF44B81AB0.638CFC63-ON852571F1.0001389E-852571F1.00019DD2@vcu.edu>
Message-ID: <A94D9369966A7E46B705982150E2D7DB0135C2B3@mail.victoriacollege.edu>

First of all, this discussion is an excellent spotlight on correctional education. It is always positive when there are others who can relate to your issues.  Since our program is a correctional program and not really a prison program, there are few people who can understand some of our unique problems.  
 
We are a small county jail program in Texas that is sponsored by the adult education grant at the local community college.  We service the students who have a below 12.9 reading, writing, and/or mathematics score on a standardized test; however, the program is voluntary and we have certain restrictions.  They stay with our program until they are either released to the local area or sent to the prison system.  We have a statewide education system here in Texas at the prison level that will continue their education.  Our problems are usually dealing with the unpredictable time they will stay in our classes (average stay is 3-6 months), officer relationships with inmates and instructors, and the image that correctional education has with the public. 
 
However, in my years working with the incarcerated, the most positive aspect is the flexibility.  We can arrange classes and offer any types of additional programs we can come up with.  The students are always the focus and the classes being taught are always catered to their needs.  We offer English as a Second Language, basic ed, GED, and workforce skills.  However, it is the extra classes that the students request that keeps them motivated and maintain our positive image with the inmates.  I realize we are small (our county jail holds 500) and it is easy to handle such a small population; however, I'm sure there are things that can be duplicated at a larger level.
 
Some comments on the discussion topics:  it does take a motivating teacher to make your program work.  Not only motivating, but excellent in teaching as well as people relationships!  Maryland has had some fantastic programs that I have read about and I agree with the comments on self-education.  However, I must add that peer education is also a very effective route.  Our community also eliminated the newspapers when they put in televisions and ironically, the inmates are petitioning to get rid of the TVs because they never turn them off!  Finally, I heard the presentation referred to by Robin Schwarz and the probability that our students are suffering from a physical limitation (poor eyesight, hearing problems, etc) and it is being neglected, is very likely.  I hope the programs will begin to address that first.  
 
There are a couple of things that I wanted to share that may be of some interest.  We have Internet access for our students to use.  It is strictly limited and monitored at all times.  The classroom has 6 computers and all screens are visible.  The students are allowed to use them while the instructor is present and monitoring.  The rules do not allow email, chat, etc.  All downloading and printing is monitored.  It is a very small operation, but effective.  We began a college online course pilot program last week with three students.  They are taking a Web Page Design class. Hopefully, this will be a precedent for others to follow.  We will see.
 
 
Tiffany Johnson
Victoria College Adult Education --- Corrections
 
Changing the world... one inmate at a time!

________________________________

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From familyed at logantele.com  Mon Sep 25 16:36:35 2006
From: familyed at logantele.com (Marie Reeves)
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2006 15:36:35 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 249] Re: Posting your questions
Message-ID: <200609252036.k8PKaZZv010922@bn4.blue.net>


Hi,
My name is Marie Reeves and I am a Family Literacy coordinator. I 
work for Kentucky Adult Education in Logan County, Ky. We are 
currently setting up to use Work Keys in our local detention center. 
The web address is http://www.act.org/workkeys/



-------- Original Message --------

==> From: "Lobaccaro Gina \(DOC\)" <Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us>
==> Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 08:09:42 -0400

I will search for information about Workkeys... I do not know the 
program.  Please send a link in case I do not find it.... thank you, 
Ann. Gina

-----Original Message----- From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov 
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Ann Burruss 
Sent: Friday, September 22, 2006 4:24 AM To: specialtopics at nifl.gov 
Subject: [SpecialTopics 232] Re: Posting your questions

 Gina, I, too, work with unmotivated ABE students.  I believe that 
the key is showing how any amount of education is going to improve 
their lot in life; i.e., better job, family stability, etc.  Too 
often we cannot demonstrate that what we are asking is going to make 
a difference in life outside the institution.  Until we can 
integrate those skills with the hope and suitability of employment, 
think we are spinning our wheels. Have you tried the Workkeys 
Assessments?  At least that steers you and the inmate in the 
direction of learning what's appropriate and needed for a job.

----- Original Message ----- From: Lobaccaro Gina (DOC) 
<mailto:Gina.Lobaccaro at state.de.us> To: specialtopics at nifl.gov Sent: 
Monday, September 18, 2006 8:39 PM Subject: [SpecialTopics 206] Re: 
Posting your questions

Hello All, I am Gina Lobaccaro the Media & Technology Specialist at 
Sussex Correctional Institution in Georgetown Delaware.  I work for 
the Delaware Department of Education Prison Education program.. I 
have corresponded with David and Bill, and I have met Steve at a 
couple of conferences. I am asking if there is any research or a 
need for research in the area of motivation for low level ABE 
learners in correctional settings.  We have so many inmate/students 
who come to class but make little or no progress over and extended 
time.  They appear to be coming to get off the tiers or to 
receive "good time".  In truth, they do not receive much "good time" 
for education.  Our education program is a classified program.  If a 
student does not have  GED or HS diploma they must attend school.  
We have a long waiting list for the low level ABE students, but we 
also have students sitting in classes who appear to me totally 
unmotivated to improve their academic skills. Do you or the other 
list serve members have suggestions for motivating ABE low level 
learners in CE settings? Gina

________________________________

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of David Rosen Sent: 
Mon 9/18/2006 7:38 PM To: specialtopics at nifl.gov Subject: 
[SpecialTopics 204] Posting your questions



Colleagues,

Please post your questions and comments for our guests as soon as 
you are ready.  (Now would be good.) You can ask general questions 
like "What do we know about the transition from a prison or jail 
education program to a community education program?" or "What does 
family literacy mean in a prison setting?" Or you can ask specific 
questions like "How does a prison family literacy program affect 
children's reading skills?"  Some people have joined the discussion 
to be introduced to the topic; others are experts in this area.  All 
questions are welcome.

Send your questions to:

specialtopics at nifl.gov

David J. Rosen Special Topics Discussion Moderator 
djrosen at comcast.net



------------------------------- National Institute for Literacy 
Special Topics mailing list SpecialTopics at nifl.gov To unsubscribe or 
change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics





 _____  



 ------------------------------- National Institute for Literacy 
Special Topics mailing list SpecialTopics at nifl.gov To unsubscribe or 
change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From familyed at logantele.com  Mon Sep 25 16:46:59 2006
From: familyed at logantele.com (Marie Reeves)
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2006 15:46:59 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 250] Re: Family Literacy and Corrections
Message-ID: <200609252046.k8PKkx2Y019297@bn4.blue.net>



Hi,
I teach a parenting and PACT (Parent And Child Together) class in 
our local detention center. Incarcerated parents attend a one hour 
parenting class addressing different issues, then child care 
providers bring their children for PACT. We have had some wonderful 
success stories as a result of these classes.

Marie Reeves
Logan County Kentucky


-------- Original Message --------

==> From: David Rosen <djrosen at comcast.net>
==> Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 13:55:33 -0400

Bill, John and Steve,

I have a question about family literacy.  "Locked Up and Locked Out" 
points out that punishment ?is not appropriate for the more than 1.5 
million children of prisoners? and that  ?Neglecting these 
unintended victims will likely lead to these children replacing 
their parents in the prisons of the future.?

What is being done about this? Can you give us some examples of 
programs in prison settings that help inmates help their children to 
read or with their homework, or with other education-related or 
parenting issues?

David J. Rosen djrosen at comcast.net





 ------------------------------- National Institute for Literacy 
Special Topics mailing list SpecialTopics at nifl.gov To unsubscribe or 
change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From djrosen at comcast.net  Mon Sep 25 17:53:03 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David J. Rosen)
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2006 17:53:03 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 251] Corrections education discussion coming to a
	close
Message-ID: <45184FBF.4080104@comcast.net>

Colleagues,

Today is the last day of our discussion with our guests, Bill Muth, John 
Linton, and Steve Steurer.  I want to thank them -- and everyone who 
contributed -- for a rich and interesting discussion.  I would also like 
to invite our guests, if they would like, to give us any remaining 
replies and any end-of-discussion thoughts or additional comments.  For 
example, if there are other resources you would like us to know about 
that would be helpful in continuing this dialogue -- online, hard copy, 
or conferences for example -- please feel free to share them.

I will post any comments through tomorrow, and then the discussion will 
close.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net




From Steurer1 at aol.com  Mon Sep 25 20:43:01 2006
From: Steurer1 at aol.com (Steurer1 at aol.com)
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2006 20:43:01 EDT
Subject: [SpecialTopics 252] Re: Corrections education discussion coming to
	a close
Message-ID: <413.cb9daeb.3249d195@aol.com>

David,
 
Thank you for hosting the special topics session.  I got a late start  due to 
a scheduling problem but have been fascinated by the comments and  
discussion.  Bill Muth and John Linton are two people I respect  tremendously for their 
brilliance and dedication to the field and contributions  over the years.  It 
is great to have such wonderful friends and  peers.  
 
For those folks whose great comments I have read during the last week thank  
you very much.  We should not end this dialogue today.  CEA has a  number of 
listserv discussion groups for topics such as special education and  parenting. 
 Please visit our website shown below and check it  out.  There are lots of 
other folks out there who need to hear your  remarks and who are anxious to 
talk to you.  We are so isolated in our work  and the Internet is such a great 
way to communicate.  
 
Once again, David, I appreciate your help and assistance, and  patience with 
me.  
 
Best to everyone,
 
Steve    
 
Stephen J.  Steurer, Ph.D., Executive Director
Correctional Education Association
8182  Lark Brown Road Suite 202
Elkridge, MD 21075
tel: 443-459-3081 
fax:  443-459-3088
www.ceanational.org
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From John.Linton at ed.gov  Tue Sep 26 07:43:14 2006
From: John.Linton at ed.gov (Linton, John)
Date: Tue, 26 Sep 2006 07:43:14 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 253] Re: Corrections education discussion coming to
	a close
Message-ID: <BEBF16B91CE3AD4EBBC71AE4F114286203101B0C@wdcrobe2m02.ed.gov>

David and all

Thanks for inviting me to participate.  This has been stimulating, and it
was my honor to be selected as an "expert" to serve with Steve Steurer and
Bill Muth -- two great people who are accomplished and well respected in
this field.    

As we have seen in this discussion, there are a lot of experts out there.
This is a great vehicle for us to tutor and learn from one another.  It has
long been my belief that one of the most insidious and destructive enemies
faced by correctional educators is simple professional isolation.  Any tool
that can be used against that foe should be valued.  Thanks for your work on
this, David.  

Steve has not paid me to say this, but I want to add that I've had great
opportunities for growth and affirmation through the Correctional Education
Association.  Many generous and dedicated individuals have lent a hand to
help make that organization prosper.  While it does have a strong
professional staff under Steve Steurer's leadership, it is still in essence
a volunteer organization -- and people tend to get out of it what they are
willing to invest.  So if you have not already done so, check it out!  A
good starting point is the web site:  http://www.ceanational.org/

Time is really short for me just now -- so please forgive me for not
offering up a more topical and substantial post in closing.  Fortunately,
there has been no shortage of expert offerings provided in this forum by a
rich variety of individuals doing interesting and important work.  Thanks
for letting me be part of your conversation.  

If I may be of service to you, my full contact information follows:

John Linton, Correctional Education
Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Room 3E334
Washington, DC 20202-6450
202-205-7942 (voice), 202-260-7767 (fax)

  

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David J. Rosen
Sent: Monday, September 25, 2006 5:53 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 251] Corrections education discussion coming to
aclose


Colleagues,

Today is the last day of our discussion with our guests, Bill Muth, John 
Linton, and Steve Steurer.  I want to thank them -- and everyone who 
contributed -- for a rich and interesting discussion.  I would also like 
to invite our guests, if they would like, to give us any remaining 
replies and any end-of-discussion thoughts or additional comments.  For 
example, if there are other resources you would like us to know about 
that would be helpful in continuing this dialogue -- online, hard copy, 
or conferences for example -- please feel free to share them.

I will post any comments through tomorrow, and then the discussion will 
close.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net


-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics


From wrmuth at vcu.edu  Tue Sep 26 12:21:17 2006
From: wrmuth at vcu.edu (William R Muth/FS/VCU)
Date: Tue, 26 Sep 2006 12:21:17 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 254] Re: Corrections education discussion coming
 to	a close
In-Reply-To: <BEBF16B91CE3AD4EBBC71AE4F114286203101B0C@wdcrobe2m02.ed.gov>
Message-ID: <OF3F9CA88D.C837A4BA-ON852571F5.005915B5-852571F5.0059D656@vcu.edu>

David,
Thank you for hosting this discussion. I feel like we just scratched the 
surface of this broad subject. If we continue the discussion in other 
formats (and I hope we do) we may need to narrow the focus a bit. 

One last thought concerning comments made by June Crawford (concerning 
learning disabilities) and Gina Lobaccaro (regarding ?whole language?). 
For some these phrases conjure up strong feelings either for or against 
authentic learning (or conversely, for or against, say, explicit phonics 
instruction). For me (and I?d dare say for most teachers looking to 
survive and succeed in the classroom) it is pointless to make absolute 
claims about either approach. The key is: in what context?  Does the 
practitioner have regular contact with the learner over 3 months? 1 year? 
5 years?  Is the learner motivated to learn? Is there a climate of trust 
between keeper and kept? 

One solution, for me, is what Dorothy Strickland calls ?Whole-Part-Whole.? 
We start a lesson with meaning and purpose, move on to skill instruction, 
then close with purpose. I like it because it embraces both world views, 
and suggests a way to go forward. But even this model does not work for 
everyone! As I have argued elsewhere, it is just as inhumane to ignore the 
explicit instructional needs of a learner with a severe reading disability 
as it is to ?impose? phonics on a mistrusting, resisting learner, or on a 
strong decoder who is interested in developing, say, a rich English 
vocabulary.

I?ll end here. I echo John Linton and Steve Steurer?s sentiments ? it has 
been a real honor to share the ?stage? with them and with all of the 
caring, forceful and wise respondents. Thank you David and all! 
Bill 




"Linton, John" <John.Linton at ed.gov> 
Sent by: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
09/26/2006 07:43 AM
Please respond to
specialtopics at nifl.gov


To
<specialtopics at nifl.gov>
cc

Subject
[SpecialTopics 253] Re: Corrections education discussion coming to      a 
close






David and all

Thanks for inviting me to participate.  This has been stimulating, and it
was my honor to be selected as an "expert" to serve with Steve Steurer and
Bill Muth -- two great people who are accomplished and well respected in
this field. 

As we have seen in this discussion, there are a lot of experts out there.
This is a great vehicle for us to tutor and learn from one another.  It 
has
long been my belief that one of the most insidious and destructive enemies
faced by correctional educators is simple professional isolation.  Any 
tool
that can be used against that foe should be valued.  Thanks for your work 
on
this, David. 

Steve has not paid me to say this, but I want to add that I've had great
opportunities for growth and affirmation through the Correctional 
Education
Association.  Many generous and dedicated individuals have lent a hand to
help make that organization prosper.  While it does have a strong
professional staff under Steve Steurer's leadership, it is still in 
essence
a volunteer organization -- and people tend to get out of it what they are
willing to invest.  So if you have not already done so, check it out!  A
good starting point is the web site:  http://www.ceanational.org/

Time is really short for me just now -- so please forgive me for not
offering up a more topical and substantial post in closing.  Fortunately,
there has been no shortage of expert offerings provided in this forum by a
rich variety of individuals doing interesting and important work.  Thanks
for letting me be part of your conversation. 

If I may be of service to you, my full contact information follows:

John Linton, Correctional Education
Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Room 3E334
Washington, DC 20202-6450
202-205-7942 (voice), 202-260-7767 (fax)

 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of David J. Rosen
Sent: Monday, September 25, 2006 5:53 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 251] Corrections education discussion coming to
aclose


Colleagues,

Today is the last day of our discussion with our guests, Bill Muth, John 
Linton, and Steve Steurer.  I want to thank them -- and everyone who 
contributed -- for a rich and interesting discussion.  I would also like 
to invite our guests, if they would like, to give us any remaining 
replies and any end-of-discussion thoughts or additional comments.  For 
example, if there are other resources you would like us to know about 
that would be helpful in continuing this dialogue -- online, hard copy, 
or conferences for example -- please feel free to share them.

I will post any comments through tomorrow, and then the discussion will 
close.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net


-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics
-------------------------------
National Institute for Literacy
Special Topics mailing list
SpecialTopics at nifl.gov
To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 
http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

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From Mylinh.Nguyen at ed.gov  Wed Oct 18 11:42:20 2006
From: Mylinh.Nguyen at ed.gov (Nguyen, My Linh)
Date: Wed, 18 Oct 2006 11:42:20 -0400
Subject: [SpecialTopics 255]  CROSSPOSTED: Update on Discussion Lists
Message-ID: <CB4082E7B582144084C72EC6C98D495911889A54@wdcrobe2m04.ed.gov>

			Dear Discussion List subscribers,

			As the National Institute for Literacy begins a new
fiscal year, we have taken steps to streamline the way we deliver
professional development to our discussion list members. We would like to
let you know about some changes ahead for some of the National Institute for
Literacy Discussion Lists. The changes affect the Women and Literacy List;
Poverty, Race, and Literacy List; Content Standards List; and Program
Leadership and Improvement List.

			First, effective October 30, 2006, we will be
closing the Content Standards and Program Leadership & Improvement lists. We
have chosen to close these two lists because we recognize that many of the
issues that impact Content Standards and Program Leadership & Improvement
carry across all the subject areas of our other Discussion Lists. 

			Second, effective November 6, 2006, we will be
merging of the Poverty, Race and Literacy List with the Women and Literacy
List. We have chosen to combine the two lists because we recognize that many
of the issues that impact one group also affect the other group, and believe
that many of the topics discussed on one list can benefit the other list.
Race and gender issues often intersect, and it is most both practical and
appropriate to have them intersect on one combined list.

			We will continue to provide access to discussion
archives on our website.

			Thank you for your active participation in the
Institute's lists. We invite you to explore all of our lists for to help you
further your own professional development.

			The Institute's lists include:

			Adult Literacy Professional Development 
			Assessment 
			Adult English Language Learners
			Family Literacy 
			Focus on Basics 
			Health & Literacy 
			Learning Disabilities 
			Poverty, Race, Women and Literacy
			Special Topics 
			Technology & Literacy 
			Workplace Literacy

			Descriptions and instructions on how to register for
the Institute's Discussion Lists can be found at
http://www.nifl.gov/lincs/discussions/discussions.html


My Linh Nguyen
Associate Director of Communications
National Institute for Literacy
(202) 233-2041
fax (202) 233-2050
mnguyen at nifl.gov



From djrosen at comcast.net  Sat Nov  4 14:07:39 2006
From: djrosen at comcast.net (David Rosen)
Date: Sat, 4 Nov 2006 14:07:39 -0500
Subject: [SpecialTopics 256]  New Discussion List: Poverty, Race, Women,
	and Literacy
References: <454A5531020000310000B3FF@mailsrv4.gsu.edu>
Message-ID: <2E213B62-DA3C-4E8B-9ABF-09DE312B9477@comcast.net>

Special Topics Colleagues,

For your information, below is a message about a new National  
Institute for Literacy discussion List, from its moderator, Daphne  
Greenberg.

David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net

============================

On November 6th, a new discussion list will be starting called:  
Poverty, Race, Women, and Literacy. If you are interested in  
subscribing, please to do so by going to:

http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/PovertyRaceWomen

The purpose of this discussion list is to provide an on-going  
professional development forum for providers, advocates, researchers,  
learners, policy makers, and all other persons who are interested in  
exploring the linkages between poverty, race, women and literacy.  
Examples of topics include: the relationships among poverty, race,  
women and literacy in the United States and in other countries;  
health as it pertains to women and poverty issues; the hidden rules  
of persons living with the effects of poverty, the intersection of  
these effects with gender and race, and the misunderstandings these  
can cause in the teaching/learning process; the role of women's  
literacy in family literacy programs, and the assumptions about race  
and poverty often made in these programs; domestic violence and its  
intersection with poverty, race, and literacy; women's literacy  
levels and its ties to economics and welfare of families; access to  
literacy in different cultures based on gender, racial, and economic  
status; connection between women's literacy, race, poverty and public  
policy; identification of supportive communication networks; and  
discussion of action steps addressing women, race, poverty and literacy.

If the above description interests you, please go to the following  
address to subscribe:

http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/PovertyRaceWomen . The list  
opens on November 6th.

Thanks,

Daphne

Daphne Greenberg
Assistant Professor
Educational Psych. & Special Ed.
Georgia State University
P.O. Box 3979
Atlanta, Georgia 30302-3979
phone: 404-651-0127
fax:404-651-4901
dgreenberg at gsu.edu

Daphne Greenberg
Associate Director
Center for the Study of Adult Literacy
Georgia State University
P.O. Box 3977
Atlanta, Georgia 30302-3977
phone: 404-651-0127
fax:404-651-4901
dgreenberg at gsu.edu