Adult Education: The Other End of the Spectrum


Cayanna Good, assistant commissioner of adult education for the Office of Adult Education at Technical College System of Georgia, says that while third-grade reading level is a strong predictor for high school graduation outcomes, another strong predictor is the reading level of the parents of Georgia’s 1.7 million students.

Good pointed out that 1.1 million Georgians lack a high school diploma or high school equivalency credential—and 46 percent are between the ages of 18 and 44. TCSG provides adult education classes (adult literacy, high school equivalency preparation, ESOL, and/or citizenship classes) in every county in Georgia.

Children of parents with low literacy skills have a 72 percent chance of being at the lowest reading levels themselves, and 21 percent of adults in the U.S. struggle with basic reading—which has a huge policy implication.

“The parent may be unable to register to vote, understand health information, help with homework, or read bedtime stories,” said Good. “If we can truly involve all of our parents and truly provide access, not only does that change that parent, that family, that community—it also changes the state. Truly, literacy changes lives.”

Get the full recap of the Beyond 2020 Get Georgia Reading Summit that brought together a unique cross-section of community leaders and statewide decision-makers to stimulate innovative, scalable solutions that will create the conditions essential for all children to become proficient readers by the end of third grade.

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