Transcript Slide 1
National Necessity Millions of adults need access to postsecondary education and training to advance their careers and support their families. Innovative Solutions Accelerating Opportunity transforms Adult Basic Education to ensure that more adults can access and succeed in postsecondary education and training. Lasting Impact States and colleges will scale and sustain programs so that many more adults have access to marketable credentials and family-sustaining careers A National Need for Pathways from ABE to Marketable Credentials 93 million adults with basic or below basic literacy 13% of adults ages 25-64 have less than a high school credential 29% have a high school credential but no college. By 2018, only 36 percent of total jobs will require workers with just a high school diploma or less Since 1979, investments in adult education and workforce development programs have declined in real terms by more than 70%. Postsecondary credentials are the gateway to family-supporting wages that those credentials are critical to breaking the intergenerational transmission of poverty in America. 88 Million Adults Have at Least One Education Barrier From Reach Higher, America The Report of the National Commission on Adult Literacy (2008) No High School Diploma High School Diploma No College 51,365,340 18,229,340 8,226,214 5,005,943 5,177,127 Speak English “Less Than Very Well” Adult Education Population (Age 18–64), 2006 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2006 American Community Survey (Public Use Microdata Samples); prepared by National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS). Unduplicated population = 88,003,964. Disconnected Educational Pathways Traditional ABE/GED Programs Lack of alignment with career/technical credential programs postsecondary entrance requirements Postsecondary Career Programs Developmental Education The “black hole” of developmental education: Low completion rates for underprepared students Remediation not customized to career pathway requirements Programs lack supports and are ill-equipped to meet the needs of nontraditional students Multiple Loss Points Low rates of program completion and credential attainment Accelerating Opportunity’s Solutions Streamlined Adult Education Pathways Accelerated and Integrated ABE and GED programs • Career exploration • Contextualized learning • Skill-building for postsecondary/career success • College and career counseling Stackable Credentials with Labor Market Value Articulated Career Pathways • Accelerated skill-building integrated with credit coursework • Comprehensive supplemental services • Support through gate-keeper courses • Flexible program options • Intensive transition counseling • Intensive counseling • Job placement More Adult Learners Succeeding in ABE to Credential Pathways Improving Student Experiences and Outcomes What low-skilled, non-traditional students typically face: Emerging Solutions: Confusing array of career programs Integrated instructional models, college prep & career pathways General education focus as the default for programs and services Programs and services specifically geared to career pathways Long remedial education sequences Acceleration, compression and dualenrollment strategies Inadequate or inaccessible support services Array of support services, including intrusive advising Programs not designed with career advancement in mind Programs designed around labor market opportunities and needs