Supply and Demand for Literacy Instruction in the United States

The supply-demand equations for adult literacy instruction in the United States are complicated by (a) changing demands for basic skils in the workplace, (b) an increased in immigrants who have limited command of English, (c) changing federal welfare policies, and (d) limited awareness on the part of those with low reading and writing ability that their skills are not sufficient for everyday literacy needs. This paper reviews critical features of the supply of literacy instruction, drawing on recent state and national surveys of service providers and of technology; data on the demand for literacy instruction; the recent National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS); and studies of adult literacy participation. Attention is given especially to the types of data that are required for modeling of supply and demand. The paper concludes that the supply-demand characteristics in U.S. literacy policy have not been well understood, that supply and demand are often poorly equlibriated, and that recent national studies can provide useful guidance toward providing a better balance between supply and demand

Toward Defining Literacy

Literacy is a topic much on the public\u27s mind these days. It is one of those subjects on which all laypersons think they are experts. When it comes time, however, to establish measures of illiteracy rates or to set policies, it becomes apparent that we know less than we thought we did. It is small comfort to know that specialists also have their differences

DISCUSSION PAPER: REFLECTIONS ON TECHNOLOGY IN LEXICOGRAPHY

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/74810/1/j.1749-6632.1973.tb49508.x.pd

Are acronyms really irregular? : preserved acronym reading in a case of semantic dementia

This paper describes the progressive performance of JD, a patient with semantic dementia, on acronym categorisation, recognition and reading aloud over a period of 18 months. Most acronyms have orthographic and phonological configurations that are different from English words (BBC, DVD, HIV). While some acronyms, the majority, are regularly pronounced letter by letter, others are pronounced in a more holistic, and irregular, way (NASA, AWOL). Semantic dementia at its moderate stage shows deficits in irregular word reading while reading accuracy for regular words and novel words is preserved. Nothing is known about acronym comprehension and reading ability in semantic dementia. Thus, in this study we explore for the first time the impact that semantic decline has on acronym recognition and reading processes. The decline in JD's semantic system led to increasingly impaired semantic categorisation and lexical decision for acronyms relative to healthy controls. However, her accuracy for reading aloud regular acronyms (i.e. those pronounced letter by letter such as BBC) remained near ceiling while reading irregular acronyms (i.e. those pronounced as mainstream words such as NASA) demonstrated impairment. It is therefore argued that consequences of semantic impairment vary across acronym types, a finding that informs our understanding of any reading account of this growing class of words

Designing digital texts for beginner readers: performance, practice and process

This illustrated chapter describes the role of research in typography and graphic communication and in information design, that is relevant to the design and use of materials for children’s reading. By ‘design’ in this context we mean ‘typography’ (which is the visual organisation of type and pictures on paper or screen), and ‘process’ (the ways in which design is developed in order to make sure that what is designed works for its intended reader group). We summarise issues that designers consider when they are producing reading materials for beginning and emerging readers, including the constraints imposed by technology. We suggest ways of engaging with users of e-books so that their needs can be considered. We conclude by summarising the typographic parameters that are likely to benefit children’s reading

Rapid and slow: Varying magma ascent rates as a mechanism for Vulcanian explosions

Vulcanian explosions are one of the most common types of volcanic activity observed at silicic volcanoes. Magma ascent rates are often invoked as being the fundamental control on their explosivity, yet this factor is poorly constrained for low magnitude end-member Vulcanian explosions, which are particularly poorly understood, partly due to the rarity of ash samples and low gas fluxes. We describe ash generated by small Vulcanian explosions at Volcán de Colima in 2013, where we document for the first time marked differences in the vesicularity, crystal characteristics (volume fraction, size and shape) and glass compositions in juvenile material from discrete events. We interpret these variations as representing differing ascent styles and speeds of magma pulses within the conduit. Heterogeneous degassing during ascent leads to fast ascending, gas-rich magma pulses together with slow ascending gas-poor magma pulses within the same conduit. This inferred heterogeneity is complemented by SO2 flux data, which show transient episodes of both open and closed system degassing, indicating efficient shallow fracture sealing mechanisms, which allows for gas overpressure to generate small Vulcanian explosions

Geochemistry and mineralogy of the phonolite lava lake, Erebus volcano, Antarctica: 1972–2004 and comparison with older lavas

Author Posting. © Elsevier B.V., 2008. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Elsevier B.V. for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 177 (2008): 589-605, doi:10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2007.11.025.Mount Erebus, Antarctica, is a large (3794 m) alkaline open-conduit stratovolcano that hosts a vigorously convecting and persistently degassing lake of anorthoclase phonolite magma. The composition of the lake was investigated by analyzing glass and mineral compositions in lava bombs erupted between 1972 and 2004. Matrix glass, titanomagnetite, olivine, clinopyroxene, and fluor-apatite compositions are invariant and show that the magmatic temperature (~1000°C) and oxygen fugacity (ΔlogFMQ = -0.9) have been stable. Large temperature variations at the lake surface (ca. 400 - 500°C) are not reflected in mineral compositions. Anorthoclase phenocrysts up to 10 cm in length feature a restricted compositional range (An10.3-22.9Ab62.8-68.1Or11.4-27.2) with complex textural and compositional zoning. Anorthoclase textures and compositions indicate crystallization occurs at low degrees of effective undercooling. We propose shallow water exsolution causes crystallization to occur and shallow convection repeats this process multiple times, yielding extremely large anorthoclase crystals. Minor variations in eruptive activity from 1972 to 2004 are decoupled from magma compositions. The variations probably relate to changes in conduit geometry within the volcano and/or variable input of CO2-rich volatiles into the upper-level magma chamber from deeper in the system. Eleven bulk samples of phonolite lava from the summit plateau that range in age from 0 ± 4 ka to 17 ± 8 ka were analyzed for major and trace elements. Small compositional variations are controlled by anorthoclase content. The lavas are indistinguishable from modern bulk lava bomb compositions and demonstrate that Erebus volcano has been erupting lava and tephra from the summit region with the same bulk composition for ~17 ka.The work at Erebus volcano and the continued operation of the Mount Erebus Volcano Observatory is supported by grants (OPP-0229305, ANT-0538414) from the Office of Polar Programs, National Science Foundation