TV411, sponsored by The Adult Literacy Media Alliance, is an interactive website where adults can strengthen their literacy and math skills while reading about practical topics. The reading level is intermediate to advanced.

The learner first selects a general skill to work on. The choices are reading, writing, vocabulary, math or learning. For each of these main topics, there is a list of more specific skills. Some of the skills covered under reading are: scanning, reading maps, summarizing, and using context clues. The writing topic includes such skills as filling out a job application and writing a business e-mail, an autobiography, or a cover letter. The math section is largely money-related, dealing with budgets, using a calculator, figuring out interest and percentages. The learning section includes lessons on such diverse skills as preparing for the GED, how to use a library, time management, and using a table of contents. A slide show introduces each lesson. Flash version 6 is required to view the slides, but there’s an option to skip the slide show. Each lesson has several activities. These activities are introduced with written information and explanations, and are often supported by graphics and/or charts. The learners are asked to respond in many different formats. There may be a series of multiple choice questions, a drag and drop exercise for categorizing, or learners may be asked to type their own information. If there is only one correct answer, a feedback box provides immediate feedback. The learner can alsochoose to focus on one of four topics—health, parenting, people, and money. Each topic has several articles to read, but aside from some short polls, there aren’t any interactive exercises to accompany these readings.

One drawback to this site is that it’s quite high-end, so those with older computers may have difficulty using it. Otherwise, TV411 is an impressive site. It contains a large amount of useful information which is presented in an interesting, user-friendly manner.

The Study Place is a unique online tool designed specifically with adult learners in mind. This tool allows instructors to create online lessons made up of multiple activities that are grouped together in courses. An instructor can register learners and enroll them in any of the courses available at The Study Place.

Instructors are able to create the following types of online activities: Read Text, Multiple Choice Quiz, True/False Quiz, Cloze, Writing Assignment, View Picture, Visit a Website, and Listen to a Sound File. The range of activities is impressive. The only disappointment here is that the cloze activity is really just a variation of multiple choice. It isn’tnecessary to know anything about web design to create these activities. You follow a clearly outlined set of steps that involves defining the activity, creating the instructions and/ or the questions, recording the answers, reviewing your activity and then saving it. Each course is catalogued by Theme, Skill Area, Level and Activity Type. You have the option of making your course available to others. The collection of ready-made lessons is somewhat lacking at present but is worth a quick look.

Once learners start to try the activities, the instructor has the ability to track their progress. Remember when you register yourself or learners in The Study Place or similar resources on the Internet it is wise not to provide personal information. Generic names such as Student1 are always an option.

The final part of this website is the Resource section. Here you will find documentation related to the site along with information about Adult Learning Principles, Adult Learning Strategies and Assessment Types. This information is a testament to the credentials of the authors of this site.

The Study Place was produced by the Instructional Technology Learning Resources Division of the Sacramento County Office of Education. The Study Place is one of several projects created by the Cyberstep partners, a partnership of six literacy groups addressing the challenges of creating and distributing virtually cost-free multimedia learning materials for the hardest-to-serve adult learners. The Study Place is free to instructors and learners but you must register before you can fully access the site. Their online tour gives you a great overview of what this site has to offer.