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A. Rethinking the System
The Southport Institute report calls for a systematic rethinking of
all services for adults with limited English language and literacy
proficiency (LEP). How can we be sure that the needs of LEP adults are
taken into account when designing services aimed at --
| o |
facilitating the welfare-to-work transition, |
| o |
enhancing employability and upgrading the skills of workers, |
| o |
getting children ready for school, and |
| o |
building the skills and knowledge necessary for civic
participation? |
The concept of an "adult mobility continuum" is one way
for us to think about how adult needs for education and training
change over a lifetime. Meeting those needs at any given point in an
adult's life leads to enhanced mobility through moving on to a new or
better job in response to changes in the economy, the community or
their own situation.
| a. |
How can this concept help us in thinking about a system to meet
the diverse needs of LEP adults? |
| b. |
How can we place and define various LEP population groups on
this continuum? |
| c. |
How might we define optimal services at differing points on the
continuum for (1) welfare recipients; 2) working adults; 3) parents
of pre-school and school-age children ? |
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B. Enhancing LEP adults' employability, civic participation, and
involvement in their children's education:
| 1. |
Do we need special performance standards for
welfare-to-work and other employability programs for limited English
proficient adults? References. |
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| 2. |
What measures should we use for learner progress
and success for welfare-to-work programs? for skills enhancement
programs for those already working? For community and parent
involvement? |
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a. |
What skills, knowledge and abilities are important to develop
and measure? |
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b. |
Are there assessment approaches available to assess literacy
levels and measure progress in these areas for adults at every level
of literacy development? |
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c. |
What stakeholders should be involved in setting these
standards? |
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| 3. |
What do we know about effective
service delivery strategies to achieve these goals |
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a. |
for LEP adults on welfare? |
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b. |
for LEP adults already in the workforce? |
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| 4. |
How do these strategies differ from strategies for
native English speaking adults? |
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| 5. |
What do we know about the impact of learning
disabilities that can help us structure programs more effectively to
meet the needs of LEP adults with learning disabilities? |
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| 6. |
What recommendations should we make about program
quality for LEP adults? |
|
a. |
what variables do we need to take into account in defining
program quality? |
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b. |
do we know enough about what works to endorse a particular
approach to service delivery? |
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| 7. |
What kind of staff development do we need to assure
that welfare caseworkers, education providers, job developers and
other key individuals providing services to LEP adults are best able
to facilitate achievement of established goals? |
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C. Targeting and Resources
| 1. |
Given constrained state and federal
budgets, how do we make best use of the resources available for the
education and training of LEP adults? |
|
a. |
what strategies exist for effectively targeting existing basic
education resources from all sources? |
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b. |
Does it make sense to target a specific group or groups for
service? Who are the likely candidates? What are the pluses and
minuses of this strategy? |
|
c. |
Should we target specific geographic regions? |
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d. |
What are the trade-offs between serving a large number of
participants with less intensive services and serving a smaller
number with higher-cost, intensive services more likely to increase
participants' earning potential? |
|
e. |
What new approaches to service delivery might enable us to
expand program capacity without large infusions of funding? Eg. can
we use technology to expand the traditional classroom to include the
neighborhood and the community? Can we deliver functional
competency-based learning into homes, enabling us to overcome costs
and constraints like child care and transportation? |
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| 2. |
What resources and partnerships will
enable us to address other needs that are part of assuring that LEP
adults can participate in basic skills instruction? |
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| 3. |
What other resources are available for
meeting education and training needs? |
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a. |
What kind of partnerships with employers can
assure that learning and skill development continue once people find
employment? |
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b. |
What legislative and other strategies might
provide incentives to the private sector to support job specific
education and training on the job? |
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E. What are the policy and legislative implications of these
recommendations?
| 1. |
How do these recommendations affect proposals for Welfare
Reform? for the Reemployment Act? |
| 2. |
What impact do these proposals have in preparing for
reauthorization of the Adult Education Act? |
| 3. |
Are there other legislative or administrative actions that
might be affected by these proposals? |
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