Measuring Literacy: Performance Levels for Adults is now available. This report was authored by the Committee on Performance Levels for Adult Literacy at the National Research Council. You may purchase the report or view it free online. To view the report, go to: http://fermat.nap.edu/catalog/11267.html.

If you administer an adult education program, you face a wide variety of challenges:

• How can you help students make "level" gains?
• How can you help students gain the skills they need to reach their goals?
• How can you help students stay in programs long enough to meet their goals?
• How can you prepare and retain good teachers?
• How can you document the successes of your program?

The National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) conducted research relevant to these questions. The Program Administrators’ Sourcebook (December 2005) is designed to give you, as a program administrator, direct access to research that may help you address the challenges you face in your job.

Written by Jackie Taylor, Cristine Smith, and Beth Bingman in collaboration with five local program administrators, this sourcebook presents NCSALL’s research findings in short sections related to key challenges that program administrators face in their work as managers of adult education programs. It also presents the implications of these research findings for program structure and services, as well as some strategies for implementing change based on these implications.

To download the Program Administrators' Sourcebook, visit NCSALL's website: www.ncsall.net/?id=1035.

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Sixth Annual Youth Development Symposium Presentation Materials In cooperation with the National Association of Workforce Development Professionals, Great Lakes Employment and Training Association, the U.S. Department of Labor Region V Office, the National Youth Employment Coalition, the Event Connection, and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development is pleased to provide the workforce development community with an extensive collection of handouts, notes, and presentations offered during their three-day workshop. To view the materials, go to: www.deed.state.mn.us/youth/6th_YDS.htm.

A New Approach to Low-Wage Workers and Employers Launching the Work Advancement and Support Center Demonstration This report by Jacquelyn Anderson, Linda Yuriko Kato, and James A. Riccio with Susan Blank asks the question, "What does it take to help people who hold low-wage jobs climb the economic ladder while simultaneously meeting labor market demand and employer needs for more skilled workers?" MDRC's Work Advancement and Support Center (WASC) demonstration tests an innovative approach designed to achieve both these goals by fostering employment retention and career advancement for a broad range of low-earners, including reemployed dislocated workers (those who, because of industry restructuring, now work in significantly lower-paying jobs than they previously did). To read an overview of the report and get access to the full report, go to: www.mdrc.org/publications/424/overview.html.

Managing Non-Profits In Workforce Development: A Roadmap to Success Based on interviews and site visits with sixteen non-profit organizations to obtain information on factors that contributed to their organization's success, the report presents ten criteria as a framework for nonprofits conducting internal self evaluations of organizational effectiveness. The criteria are within the larger categories of service delivery strategy, external relationships, and internal management. To read the study, go to: www.cael.org/pdf/publication_pdf/managing%20
non-profits%20in%20workforce%20development.pdf.

Strengthening Transitions by Encouraging Career Pathways: A Look at State Policies and Practices This report identifies ways in which state policies can support students' academic and labor market success by creating coherent systems of preparation for students entering technical fields. To read the report, go to: http://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/Publication.asp?UID=380.

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Looking for ways to teach current events to your ESOL students? Sean Banville's website, BreakingNewsEnglish.com, may be just what you need. The lessons are free and a new lesson is uploaded each day at two different reading levels. All lessons are available as Word documents as well as in PDF. All listening files can be downloaded in mp3 format or accessed via a podcast. To learn more about this site, go to: www.breakingnewsenglish.com.

Teaching Reading to Adult English Language Learners: A Reading Instruction Staff Development Program is now available on the VALRC website. This 15-hour training will acquaint participants with the fundamental knowledge and skills required to teach reading effectively to adult, nonnative speakers of English. The content is based on research about the reading process in general, the process of learning to read as an adult, and learning to read in another language. The training is designed to be delivered by ESL instructional specialists at the local level or by trainers from the Virginia Adult Learning Resource Center, most typically in workshop settings with a practicum component, which involves participants applying what they have learned in the previous sessions to their own classroom instruction. To view, go to: www.valrc.org/publications/pdf/teachingreading.pdf.

The newest issue of CAELA Currents is available. This issue focuses on the activities and plans of the 24 states enrolled in the CAELA (Center for Adult English Language Acquisition) state capacity-building initiative, information about the National Assessment of Literacy (NAAL), an update on the CAELA research collection, and a summary of the National Summit for Action held at Georgetown University in November 2005. To view the issue, go to: www.cal.org/caela/esl_resources/ccjan06.html.

Involving Immigrant and Refugee Families in Their Children's Schools: Barriers, Challenges, and Successful Strategies is a report provided by the Adult Learner Resource Center in Illinois. The report synthesizes the suggestions of the ISBE Parent Outreach Focus Group. It is also based upon a survey of school and social service agency staff. To view the report, go to: www.isbe.state.il.us/bilingual/pdfs/involving_families.pdf.

CAELA announces its latest online brief, "English Literacy and Civics Education." This brief explains the purpose and content of the U.S. Department of Education's English Literacy and Civics (EL/Civics) Education program. The brief also describes some ways that teachers can develop EL/Civics classes appropriate for learners at beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels of English proficiency. To view the brief, go to: www.cal.org/caela/esl_resources/briefs/elcivics.html.

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