Adult Literacy in Rural Pennsylvania [electronic resource] / Eunice N. Askov.
The rural work force has lower basic skills to supply labor for new jobs with higher literacy demands. At all levels of education the rural population is at a disadvantage compared with the urban population. One out of five rural adults in Pennsylvania has not continued education past the eighth gra...
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| Format: | Electronic eBook |
| Language: | English |
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1989.
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| Summary: | The rural work force has lower basic skills to supply labor for new jobs with higher literacy demands. At all levels of education the rural population is at a disadvantage compared with the urban population. One out of five rural adults in Pennsylvania has not continued education past the eighth grade. Among the costs to businesses from employee illiteracy are costly mistakes made by employees who lack adequate basic skills, lost productivity and efficiency, decreased product quality, increased need for supervision, increased cost of training, problems in the relationship of workers with supervisors and coworkers, and accidents due to inability to follow safety directions. In 1986, 25 of the 41 Pennsylvania counties designated nonmetropolitan had no literacy programs funded under State Act 143. The minority group funding priority of the act may discourage literacy programs in rural areas. These factors should be considered in the design of rural programs: geographic isolation means higher costs to deliver services, lower population density results in fewer students per class, the sociodemographic makeup of rural populations must be recognized in program allocation criteria, rural areas have fewer organizations that could provide literacy programs, isolation can lead to low self-esteem and affect motivation to participate in literacy programs, existing rural networks must be used to recruit students, and technologies that can deliver programs over distances are particularly important in rural areas. A set of policies for delivering literacy programs to rural adults in Pennsylvania should be developed. (21 references) (CML) |
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| Item Description: | ERIC Document Number: ED321090. ERIC Note: Photograph will reproduce marginally. |
| Physical Description: | 15 pages. |