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ProLiteracy Research Briefs

About the Research Briefs

ProLiteracy has created a series of Research Briefs on adult literacy and education. They are 2,500- to 3,000-word summaries that offer a synthesis of research on a topic, implications for practice, and next steps in research.

Written by scholars who have demonstrated expertise on specific topics, ProLiteracy Research Briefs were developed to help adult literacy practitioners understand ideas that have emerged from research. They will also help researchers identify research needs by pointing to gaps in knowledge as part of an effort to respond to the needs of adult educators who are looking for relevant research to inform their work.

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Student Recruitment: A Review of the Research

Carol Clymer, Shannon Frey

ProLiteracy Research Brief - Recruitment

Learner recruitment is a particularly important activity because the population of potential adult learners is largely unreached, estimated to be near 90% (Patterson, 2018). This Research Brief describes findings drawn from the research base and highlights key practices and strategies that can be used to recruit ABE learners including recruitment resource guides and toolkits.

Carol Clymer, Co-Director, Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy and the Goodling Institute for Research in Family Literacy Shannon Frey, Guided Study Groups Coordinator, Penn State Learning Edited by Alisa Belzer, Rutgers University

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Digital Literacy and Technology Integration in Adult Basic Skills Education: A Review of the Research

Dr. Jen Vanek, Dr. Kathy Harris

Given the imperative to provide adult learners access to digital technologies and opportunities to support digital literacy skill development, our goal in this paper is to describe the relevant research on how to thoughtfully integrate digital technologies in ABE settings, and to highlight gaps in the research. Our intended audience is the many different stakeholders whose work impacts the provision of technology-rich instruction for ABE learners including teachers, program administrators, policymakers and funders, and researchers.

Dr. Jen Vanek, Director of Digital Learning and Research at the EdTech Center at World Education Dr. Kathy Harris, Director of the Literacy, Language, and Technology Research Group at Portland State University in the Department of Applied Linguistic
Edited by Alisa Belzer, Rutgers University

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Using Data in Practice: What Does It Look Like and What Does It Take?

Dr. Stephanie Cronen, GeMar Neloms

To understand the types of outcomes data that may be useful to practitioners and how they may be used effectively, we first review existing theory and research on using outcomes data in practice. We then suggest implications for practice but also highlight gaps in this research.

Dr. Stephanie Cronen, Managing Researcher, American Institutes for Research GeMar Neloms, Principal Technical Assistance Consultant, American Institutes for Research
Edited by Alisa Belzer, Rutgers University

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Contextualizing Adult Education: Learning from Six Decades of Experience and Research

Paul Jurmo, Judy Mortrude

ProLiteracy Research Brief - Contextualizing

The contextualized approach to adult education encourages practitioners to integrate academic topics with real-world interests of learners, and to integrate instruction with job training and placement or health services.

Paul Jurmo, Independent Consultant, Basic Skills for Development Judy Mortrude, Senior Technical Advisor, World Education, Inc
Edited by Alisa Belzer, Rutgers University