Adult Basic Education Overview

Module 1: Part 2 - Learner Needs

What is Adult Basic Education (ABE)?

Adult basic education (ABE) helps adults (most without a high school diploma) strengthen their basic literacy, numeracy, and problem-solving skills. While some of these adults have diagnosed and undiagnosed learning disabilities that make formal learning a struggle, others left school before graduating due to personal circumstances and hardships. These adults now seek to gain knowledge and skills needed to succeed in employment or postsecondary education and to become economically self-sufficient. Also, ABE also serves adults whose first language is not English. These adults, who make up 40% of the those served in U.S. adult education classes, are often immigrants seeking citizenship.

Please watch the following video (10:49 minutes) Links to an external site. that was produced by the American Institutes for Research (AIR) Links to an external site. in partnership with independent filmmaker Jeff Krulik. The video tells "The Adult Learner Story", and focuses on adult learners at Academy of Hope and the Carlos Rosario International Public Charter School, two schools with adult education programs in Washington, D.C.

 

(See Subtitled Video 10:49 minutes) Links to an external site.

Why might adults seek continuing education?

Starting in 2012, The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) conducted the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) Links to an external site., an adult skills assessment in the domains of literacy, numeracy, and problem-solving in technology-rich environments. U.S. citizens age 16+ who have dropped out of high school before completion often perform at the lowest proficiency level (or below) in literacy (38%), math (59%), and problem-solving in technology-rich environments (81%) (PIAAC First Report, 2016) Links to an external site.. Further, the PIAAC literacy and numeracy score gaps between adults with the lowest (did not graduate from high school) and highest (at least an associate’s degree) levels of education are the widest in the U.S. and France than in any other participating country, as summarized in a September 2017 publication prepared for the U.S. Department of Education National Center for Education Statistics ( Links to an external site.NCES) Links to an external site..

This basic skills gap is a significant problem preventing millions of U.S. adults from finding living wage employment and contributing to the nation’s economy. Educational attainment is closely tied with both unemployment and wages. An analysis of the relationship between educational attainment and wages over a 40-year work life highlighted in a 2011 U.S. Census Bureau report (p.13) Links to an external site. suggested a "clear and well-defined relationship between education and earnings, and that this relationship perseveres, even after considering a collection of other personal and geographic characteristics." 

In 2016, 4% of adults age 25+ in the U.S. were unemployed, but unemployment among those without high school credentials was 7.4% (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016 Links to an external site.).  Even when U.S. adults without a high school diploma find employment, their basic skills gap blocks them from higher paying jobs requiring more education. In 2016, the median weekly wage for adults without a high school diploma was $504, considerably lower than those with a bachelor's degree ($1,156), an associate’s degree ($819), or high school credentials ($692) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016 Links to an external site.).

What is typical of ABE coursework?

Many students enrolled in adult basic education courses are preparing for a high school diploma or high school equivalency exams, but coursework can vary depending on each student's goals. Independent, one-on-one, and small group study methods are frequently used, and some learners will develop a Personal Education Plan (PEP) designed to meet their own specific needs.

Adult basic education courses cover a range of topics, including: 

  • Preparation for high school equivalency exams, including reading and writing, mathematics, social studies, and science subjects.
  • English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction that provides literacy and language education to individuals whose primary language is not English.
  • Family literacy programs that bring together under-educated parents and their children to increase appreciation for education and facilitate the basic skills of both parents and children.
  • Workforce education that provides basic academic and literacy skills to students who are already employed by a specific business, industry or company.
  • Transition-to-employment and job seeking skills, such as resume development, interviewing skills, employability skills ("soft skills") and occupational specific skills training,
  • Transition-to-post-secondary education and training skills, such as study skills.
  • Basic computer literacy
  • U.S. citizenship preparation

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