Equipped For The Future Research Report

A report by the Equipped for the Future (EFF) Project of the National Institute for Literacy, which is working toward system reform for adult literacy and lifelong learning. Chapters: the EFF Process 1993-1997; the impetus for EFF; approaches to System Reform; EFF's approaches to research; concepts and theories in EFF; the foundation: purposes for learning; role maps for effective citizens, workers, parents; identifying skills and knowledge; integrating theory and practice; learning from the process; planning projects, 1995-1996; structured feedback process, 1996-97; Documentary Sources for Skills and Knowledge Database; and EFF Generative Skills Descriptions (revised 1999).

"Equipped for the Future" ("EFF") Standards have been developed to answer a complex question: What do adults need to know and be able to do in order to carry out their roles and responsibilities as workers, parents and family members, and citizens and community members? It is widely recognized that the demands of adult life changed dramatically in the last quarter of the 20th Century. In order to carry out daily responsibilities at home, in the community, and in the work-place, adults must now read critically, sifting through vast amounts of information before they can make decisions that affect the well-being of families, neighborhoods, and ultimately, this country. Research to identify the "EFF" Standards began by looking at these changes in what it takes to negotiate successfully the complexities of contemporary life. This paper discusses what the "EFF" Standards are, what the "EFF" can provide the workforce development system, and how these standards fit with SCANS (Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills) competencies and foundation skills.

The book provides a historical overview of adult literacy theory, policy, practice, and research from the mid-1980s to the present. The main focus is a descriptive analysis of three distinctive schools of literacy: the Freirean-based participatory literacy movement grounded in oppositional politics and grass-roots community activism; the British-based New Literacy Studies that focuses on the ways in which diverse students utilize various literacy practices in their daily lives; and the U.S. federal government's focus on functional literacy linked to a 45-year policy emphasis on workforce readiness. These three schools of thought lead to substantially different implications over such critical areas as curriculum, assessment and accountability, and the socio-cultural role of literacy, policy, and political culture, which are discussed throughout the chapters of the book. This discussion includes a chapter on research traditions that closely parallels these perspectives on literacy education. Demetrion argues that unless values grounded ultimately in political culture emerge, it is exceedingly unlikely that the adult literacy field will be able to move from its current marginalized status toward that of achieving the level of public and policy legitimacy many believe it needs for its long-term institutional flourishing. It is argued that any settlement of this issue must be accomplished in the field of practice rather than the ground of theory, even as theoretical insight can help to frame the issues. Conflicting Paradigms in Adult Literacy Education: In Quest of a U.S. Democratic Politics of Literacy speaks to a wide audience, including not only the adult literacy community, but anyone interested in educational theory, practice, policy, research traditions, or political culture, and more fundamentally, in their intersection. Given the breadth of the topics covered, as well as the broad scope of the argument, the book is also meant for those who would like to gain a useful perspective on contemporary U.S. culture, through the window of these conflicting tensions within the field of adult literacy education.