Research to Practice: Profiles of Client Characteristics

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Research to Practice: Profiles of Client Characteristics

National Evaluation of Adult Education Programs
A Summary of the Second Interim Report

In 1990 the U.S. Department of Education commissioned a large scale national evaluation of federally funded adult education programs. The study was based on data from a nationally representative sample of 139 local programs. Data were collected "on a sample of 21,059 clients who first enrolled in adult education between April 1991 and April 1992, and on the extent and type of instructional services all those clients received for up to 18 months from their time of entry" (p. 2).

Although this longitudinal study is still in progress, some clear trends are evident. Here are some significant preliminary findings on the characteristics of clients in adult education programs.

PRELIMINARY FINDINGS

Number of learners served

Programs serve about 4% of the estimated target population (1.8 million new clients each year out of a target population of 46.2 million).

Student attendance and persistence

Fifteen to 20% of people who go through the intake process never attend any classes.
An additional 19% leave before receiving 12 hours of instruction. In other words, a total of 34-39% of those who go through the intake process do not receive even 12 hours of instruction.
Peak months for new enrollments are September/October and January. "Nearly one-third of all clients enter during September and October" (p. 8).
"Of all new clients who started instruction in September or October (the peak months) over half were no longer active after 16 weeks" (p. ii).
"The median hours of instruction for those who started in September or October was 43" (p. ii). ABE students averaged 4.4 hours of instruction a week. ESL students averaged 5.9 hours of instruction a week (p. 60).
"Above-average persistence was observed for clients in ESL, women, older students, and recipients of public assistance" (p. ii).
ESL clients in nonmetro areas left programs before completing 16 hours of instruction at a rate three times greater than those in large city programs. ABE clients left large city programs twice as quickly as clients in nonmetro areas. Men in ABE and ESL drop out more often than women; women are more likely to continue for at least 96 hours.
Retention of clients increases with client age. Thirty percent of 16-21 year-olds leave before completing 16 hours of instruction, compared with 21% of clients over the age of 46.
ABE students who are employed leave programs earlier than those who are unemployed and at higher rates than ESL students.
In a comparison of clients who are enrolled in an adult education program because they are required by an employer or social agency and clients who are enrolled to satisfy family and personal goals, little difference was found in rates of persistence.

Types of learners served

"Although there is an overall youth bias in the program (39% are 16-21), an appropriate cross section of the target population in each age group is being served" (p. ii). However, in terms of literacy need, "persons 60 years or older with 8 or fewer years of school constitute approximately 55 percent of the target population but only 2 percent of the clients being served" (p. 50).
ESL students made up 42% of the new clients nationwide in one year.
"The dominant racial/ ethnic groups in the ESL population are Hispanics (67%) and Asians/Pacific Islanders (22%), whereas the dominant racial groups in the ABE population are non-Hispanic whites (61%) and non-Hispanic blacks (22%).

Placement

"Clients tend to be placed at levels lower than their test scores indicate..." (p. ii). For example, only 38% of ABE students were appropriately placed in Level I (Grade-Equiva-lent of 6.0 or below).

Economic indicators

                        ABE          ESL

Employed                40%         46%
Not in work force       33%         38%
Unemployed              27%         18%

Fourteen percent of ESL students receive public assistance or welfare; the rate for ABE students is 36%.

Prior education
"The typical ABE student dropped out of high school after completing 10 years of education" (p.26). New ESL students generally enter the federal adult education system with higher educational attainment than new ABE students. For example, 53% of ESL students are high school graduates; only 11% of ABE students have graduated from high school.

Motivation for enrollment
In a choice of reason for enrolling, employability ranked behind literacy, self-concept, and basic skills. However, 66% of new clients had no dominant motive for enrolling in adult education. They rated "more than half of the potential reasons for their taking instruction as very important." It appears that they have "multiple motives for seeking adult education services." Another possible explanation may be that "intake forms administered at the start of a client's adult education experience are not the best way of discovering motives for participation" (p. 34).

IMPLICATIONS FOR ADULT LITERACY PROGRAMS

Several issues are raised by this overview of the adult education client.

What can be done to the intake process to eliminate the high dropout at that point?
What are large city programs doing better in ESL?
How do we improve assessment and appropriate placement upon entry into a program?
What special needs do men and younger students have?
Why do so many students leave so quickly?
What are nonmetro area programs doing differently than large city programs to keep ABE students longer?
What improvements can be made in programming to increase retention?

Individual programs may want to use the information in this study to assist them in writing grants. For example, local data and national data can be compared to document local strengths or to argue need for a particular type of project. Moreover, programs can use this information to evaluate their own operations. The Ohio Literacy Resource Center can assist you in interpreting this material and its implications for your program.

The complete report, "National Evaluation of Adult Education Programs, Second Interim Report, Profiles of Client Characteristics" was prepared and can be ordered by sending $9.50 to the Development Associates, Inc., 1730 N. Lind Street, Arlington, VA 22209. Attn: Adult Education Orders.

This page http://literacy.kent.edu/Oasis/Pubs/0200-7.htm
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