• General skills upgrading and pre-employment training, e.g., for recipients of social assistance and unemployment insurance. (This may be part of the requirement for receiving continued assistance.)
• ESL (English as a Second Language).
• Math instruction as part of a high school diploma (or its equivalent).

One feature of these programs is that there is a diversity of students, with a wide spectrum of experience, abilities, and goals.

Program Delivery

Programs and services are provided by or through:

Community Colleges

Community colleges have a range of programs, at different levels. As noted, one advantage of the community college programs is the comprehensive set of services which they can offer: assessment; counseling; learning centres; and other services. Such services are important for continuity in education: at the adult level, those who drop out of the programs typically do so because of events and conditions in their personal lives. The more that they are able to bring these other factors into balance, the more likely it is that they will be able to stay in the programs.

School Boards

School boards provide valuable education in numeracy and mathematics, as part of adult basic education and high school equivalency programs. In some places (such as Ottawa and Toronto) the school boards have developed innovative methods and materials, and have been able to employ specialists in numeracy. However, school board budgets have been under pressure in some provinces, and the tendency is to give priority to education for children, rather than adults, with the result that adult numeracy programs (along with other adult education programs) have been curtailed or jeopardized in recent years.

Community Based Organizations

Community-based organizations offer a wide range of literacy programs and services, on small budgets, making use of community resources such as volunteer tutors and community facilities (e.g., libraries and community centres). In larger centres, there may be several programs and services, between which there can be some co-ordination and some grouping of students - but in smaller centres, organizations will have to teach across the spectrum.