Document Type

Article

Article Version

Publisher's PDF

Publication Date

2014

Abstract

The case study of this adult learning program for low-income women in an urban environment highlights the importance of a holistic approach to literacy programs, an approach that engages not just the learner but also the learner's family and community. In such a setting, women are able to focus on their own educational attainment and also build the life skills and self-esteem required for success in any academic program. In such a setting, women attain literacy and life skills that will enable them to achieve both economic and noneconomic successes that are important to them as individuals and to the communities in which they live, work, and raise the next generation. They come to this work from two distinct disciplinary perspectives: as a composition specialist with more than ten years of experience at Mercy Learning Center, and as a labor economist. As such, they are able to examine the interaction between literacy and economics in ways that previous studies of adult learners have not done, integrating interview data, participant observation, and census and economic data.

Comments

Copyright 2014 National Council of Teachers of English. Archived here with the permission of the copyright holder.

Publication Title

College English

Published Citation

Bowen, Betsy and Nantz, Kathryn. (2014) “What is the Value of the GED?” College English. Vol. 77, No. 1, p. 32-54.

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