HistoryBridges to Practice: A Research-based Guide for Literacy Practitioners Serving Adults with Learning Disabilities is the culmination of a five-year effort of many individuals and organizations in the adult literacy and learning disabilities fields. The Bridges to Practice series is intended for adult literacy program supervisors and professional development specialists. The goal of Bridges to Practice is to increase awareness among practitioners about learning disabilities (LD) and to help program leaders address the changes they might initiate to make their programs more responsive to the needs of adults with LD. Embedded in the history of a product's development are the many decisions made and forks in the road taken by the developers. These decisions are usually transparent to end-users, as they should be. However, Bridges to Practice trainers will find it useful to have knowledge of the history of the development of the product that currently enjoys wide distribution and use within the adult literacy field. In 1993, the National Institute for Literacy (NIFL) provided funding to the Academy for Educational Development (AED) to establish the National Adult Literacy and Learning Disabilities Center (National ALLD Center), in collaboration with the University of Kansas Institute for Research in Learning Disabilities (KU-IRLD). The NIFL had as one of its goals "to enhance the capacity of literacy services providers to identify, teach, and support adults with learning disabilities (LD)." The NIFL was especially interested in developing and disseminating strategies for systemic reform of literacy programs to improve services to persons with LD. Initially, the NIFL had requested that the National ALLD Center develop and field-test a test battery for literacy providers to use in screening for learning disabilities. It became apparent, however, that LD screening alone would not improve literacy instructional services, and a single screening tool could not meet the needs of many diverse literacy providers. Therefore, staff at NIFL and at the National ALLD Center decided to produce a "tool kit" for literacy providers to use in selecting screening tools and instructional materials. Staff at AED and KU-IRLD developed a service, research, and development agenda for the National ALLD Center. This agenda, designed to assist literacy practitioners in enhancing services to adults with LD, was developed in recognition of:
In the early years of the National ALLD Center, great effort was expended in increasing awareness about the link between low-level literacy and LD. Center activities included the development of publications (fact sheets, newsletters, bibliographies, and state resource sheets) as well as presentations on LD in adults at various state, regional, and national conferences. Publications from the former National ALLD Center may be accessed through LINCS Literacy & LD Special Collection. At the same time, criteria were developed for the "tool kit." First and foremost, the tool Kit would be researched-based. Research efforts in the fields of literacy, adult education, and learning disabilities in 1993 were only beginning to yield clear directions for instructional practice, and most of the research-based information on best practices had not yet found its way into adult literacy programs. Secondly, it was decided that the audience for the tool kit would be program supervisors, teacher-trainers, and professional development specialists. Finally, the purpose of the tool kit would be to encourage systemic reform of literacy programs. Therefore, the tool kit would not be a curriculum guide with lesson plans for teaching adults with LD; instead, it would be a training package for encouraging literacy programs to change their program services to be more responsive to adults with LD. The team at the National ALLD Center developed a three-phase research and development plan. Activities accomplished during each of the three phases are listed below. Phase 1: Gather Information from the Field (1993-1995) During the first phase of research and development, the National ALLD Center staff organized focus groups, sent out questionnaires, surveyed resource centers, and evaluated current screening practices and instructional materials for use with learners who may have LD. Eight focus groups were held across the nation. The groups were composed of literacy instructors, tutors, administrators, and counselors from local and state programs. Participants in the focus groups identified features of screening tools and instructional materials that they would find useful. Additional questionnaires and surveys were widely disseminated to literacy practitioners throughout the country, and respondents were asked to prioritize those features (or standards) that they felt were most important. Ultimately, from the hundreds of responses, a set of ten standards for selecting LD screening tools and eight standards for selecting instructional materials were developed. Through this research, the National ALLD Center was able to:
The last step in this phase was to develop and field-test procedures related to teaching literacy providers to apply the standards to screening practices and instructional materials. Phase 2: Integrate Research and Write Guidebooks (1996-1997) During the second phase of research and development, the National ALLD Center staff integrated the knowledge they had gathered during the first phase and used this information as a basis for the first four Bridges to Practice guidebooks. Following training of intended users at each field-test site, the guidebooks were field-tested in several programs in Maryland, Florida, Kansas, Minnesota, and Washington. The purpose of the field test was to determine the extent to which literacy service providers could use the information to improve services for adults with learning disabilities. Phase 3: Review and Refine Guidebooks (1997-1998) After the first four guidebooks were developed, the National ALLD Center sent them to approximately 30 external reviewers in the fields of adult literacy and learning disabilities. In addition, the Center's Advisory Board was asked to complete external reviews. Results of the field tests from Phase 2 and of the external reviews were used to revise and improve the guidebooks. Center staff selected a name for the tool kit, Bridges to Practice: A Research-based Guide for Literacy Practitioners Serving Adults with Learning Disabilities, and then developed the professional development guidebook (Guidebook 5) to enhance the dissemination of information contained with the Bridges to Practice series. In 1998, the NIFL awarded grants to establish four Learning Disabilities Training and Dissemination (LDTD) hubs for the purpose disseminating the tool kit. Center staff trained the staff of the four LDTD hubs in the use of Bridges to Practice. Dissemination Phase (1999) In recognition of the need for leadership in disseminating the Bridges to Practices materials, the NIFL extended the Center's grant for several months to allow Center staff to deliver training on Bridges to Practice to literacy providers across the nation. From January through April 1999, the Center's lead training team conducted training for teams from 27 states in four locations (Arlington, Virginia; Atlanta, Georgia; Chicago, Illinois; and San Francisco, California). In addition, the team was invited to conduct the training in Hawaii for literacy provider teams from Hawaii and U.S. territories in the Northern Pacific Rim. The Center training team trained more than 250 people in those first four months. The Center closed later that year, when the funding cycle ended. The LDTD Hubs also began to offer Bridges training in 1999. To date, thousands of literacy providers have received training in Bridges though the collective efforts of the National ALLD Center and the LDTD Hubs. The literacy field has begun to use a common vocabulary and to build more of a base of common knowledge about best practices for serving adults with LD. By setting forth guidelines for best practices and by stimulating discussions among program staff, Bridges to Practice has been the catalyst that has caused some literacy programs to rethink and restructure their delivery systems to be more effective in serving adults with learning disabilities. In recognition of the ongoing research and development in the fields of adult literacy and learning disabilities, additional information will be added to the Bridges guidebooks so that they continue to reflect the most current knowledge concerning adults with learning disabilities. Luncheon Speech, Alexandria, VA, March 2001, Bridges to Practice National Symposium By Mary Ann Corley, Ph.D., Former Director, NALLD Center |
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