News & Announcements

News

Announcing:

Dr. Eugene Owen Scholarship for Research on the International Assessment of Student Achievement

This scholarship honors the memory of Dr. Eugene Owen, who devoted his career to understanding international differences in student educational achievement. During his 30 years at the National Center for Education Statistics, he made seminal contributions to the development of cross-national surveys, such as the Program for International Student Assessment. APPLICANTS The Owen Scholarship will be awarded to senior graduate students or outstanding pre-tenure scholars (less than five years since award of the PhD). Applicants can come from any academic discipline, but they should have professional interests in one or more of the following areas of research: • Advancing cross-national research on K-12 student achievement • Advancing cross-national research on college- or university-level achievement • Understanding the role of teaching from a cross-national perspective AWARD The Owen Scholarship provides a waiver of ICPSR Summer Program registration fees for one (1) four-week session or a single 3- to 5-day workshop. Recipients who choose to attend a 3- to 5-day workshop will also receive a travel stipend. The stipend is not available to attendees of a four-week session. APPLICATION MATERIALS Applicants must sign up for the courses they wish to take through the ICPSR Summer Program registration portal at icpsr.umich.edu/SummerProgram and send the following materials to [email protected]: 1. A current curriculum vita 2. A cover letter detailing scholarly interests, background, research plans, and how participation in the ICPSR Summer Program will contribute toward achievement of professional objectives 3. Two letters of recommendation 4. An official course transcript (for graduate student applicants only) APPLICATION DEADLINE: April 30, 2016 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Visit icpsr.umich.edu/sumprog or contact the ICPSR Summer Program at [email protected] for additional criteria regarding application materials, as well as a list of courses.

Congratulations to our AERA ALAE SIG 2015 Awardees!

EARLY SCHOLAR AWARD WINNERS: Allyson Kruper & Renata Horratek, Pennsylvania State University

Congratulations to co-authors Allyson Krupar and Renata Horratek (Pennsylvania State University) on their Award for Outstanding Paper by Early Career Scholars for their paper "Does Adult Education Increase Skills? Literacy and Numeracy Outcomes of Adult Learners in Canada, Data from the Adult Literacy and Life Skills Survey."

EXEMPLARY PAPER AWARD WINNER: Elizabeth Withers, Portland State University

Congratulations to author Elizabeth Withers (Portland State University) on her Award for Exemplary Paper by an Early Career Scholar for her paper "Operationalizing Success in a Digital Learning Environment Designed to Support Vulnerable Adults."

Congratulations to Dr. Marguerite Lukes on the publication of her book (to be released in March)!

Latino Immigrant Youth and Interrupted Schooling Dropouts, Dreamers and Alternative Pathways to College

Author: Marguerite Lukes

Summary

This book offers an innovative look at the pre- and post-migration educational experiences of immigrant young adults with a particular focus on members of the Latino community. Combining quantitative data with original interviews, this book provides an engaging and nuanced look at a population that is both ubiquitous and overlooked, challenging existing assumptions about those categorized as 'dropouts' and closely examining the historical contexts for educational interruption in the chosen subgroup. The combination of accessible prose and compelling new statistical data appeals to a wide audience, particularly academic professionals, education practitioners and policy-makers.

Reviews

In this important new book Marguerite Lukes focuses on the educational needs and challenges faced by a population that is nearly invisible to the American mainstream: disenfranchised immigrant youth. Through her detailed analysis Lukes helps her readers to see beyond the one dimensional characterizations that typically appear in the media so that they can appreciate the grit and agency that many of them rely upon to survive. She also makes it clear why it is so important to their future and ours to address their educational needs.
- Pedro Noguera, New York University, USA

Wise and compassionate, Lukes provides unique insights into the dreams, aspirations, and resiliency of young adult Latinos who attempt to persevere through the US educational system despite all odds. A stellar contribution to the field!
- Carola Suarez-Orozco, University of California, Los Angeles, USA

Lukes offers compelling evidence that the barriers that Latino immigrant youth face in the United States have nothing to do with cultural deficiencies and everything to do with institutional neglect. She then offers a comprehensive blueprint for addressing this institutional neglect that is a must-read for anybody who is serious about improving the educational outcomes of Latino immigrant youth.
- Nelson Flores, University of Pennsylvania, USA

Author Biography

Marguerite Lukes is the Director of National Initiatives for the Internationals Network for Public Schools and Assistant Professor at City University of New York's LaGuardia Community College. She is also Co-Chair of the Adult Literacy and Adult Education Special Interest Group of the American Educational Research Association and an Executive Board Member for the New York State Association for Bilingual Education. With almost thirty years of experience in the field, the primary focus of her research is education policy, particularly concerning the experiences of immigrant language learners from high school level and beyond.

Readership Level

Postgraduate Research / Professional

Table of Contents
View Table of Contents (PDF)

Spring 2015 Penn State Family Literacy Certificate Course Offering

Introduction to Family Literacy (ADTED 456) will be offered in spring 2015 through Penn State’s World Campus. This 3-credit, online post-baccalaureate course from Penn State’s College of Education, Goodling Institute for Research in Family Literacy, explores the concept of family literacy and how it can contribute to the literacy growth of the parent (caregiver), children, and other family members. The course addresses serving diverse and vulnerable families, models of family literacy, the key components of family literacy (adult, early childhood, and parent education; interactive literacy), the role of case management and family support, professional development and program improvement, and advocacy.

ADTED 456 can be a valuable elective for graduate students in the World Campus Adult Education and Children’s Literature Master’s programs, as well as other postbaccalaureate programs.

For more information, contact Drucie Weirauch at 814 865-6686, [email protected].

For more information about this course & the Family Literacy Certificate, click here.

PIAAC News
While it has been almost a year since the PIAAC 2012 data has been released, new data tools and resources have become available in recent months. Researchers, policymakers, and practitioners now have access to all of the PIAAC data, including the U.S.-specific background variables (such as those on race/ethnicity, English language ability, and preventive health practices).

PIAAC Research Wiki
Portland State University, in association with the American Institutes for Research (AIR), has developed a Wiki website to encourage communication and collaboration among researchers working with PIAAC data and tools. The website is private and participation is limited to researchers using or planning to use the PIAAC data sets. To apply to become a member, please click here.

Research Papers
AIR, through a contract with NCES, has commissioned seven research papers based on PIAAC data. The researchers represent the fields of education, labor economics, health literacy, and sociology. See the announcement for more information and the list of abstracts.

PIAAC Data Tools
National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)’ PIAAC Data Explorer
Use the PIAAC Data Explorer to produce custom PIAAC data tables. U.S.-specific background variables are available.

PIAAC Results Portal
With the PIAAC Results Portal, you can make pre-made data tables and graphs that are exportable into Microsoft Excel.

In addition, the U.S. National Public-Use File (which includes the U.S.-specific variables), the U.S. Restricted-Use File (which includes U.S.-specific variables and more details on age, occupation, and income), and the U.S. PIAAC Technical Report (which describes how the PIAAC data were collected) have been released. Click the links below for more information.

• U.S. National Public-Use File
• U.S. Restricted-Use File (requires a restricted-use license)
• U.S. PIAAC Technical Report

Stay up-to-date on all new PIAAC resources, tools, presentations and more by signing up for the PIAAC Buzz newsletter and visiting the PIAAC Gateway.

Improving the Lives of Adults and Families: Identifying Individual and Systems-level Factors Relating Education, Health, Civic Engagement, and Economic Well-being

The title is intended to convey a critical goal for the research, practice, and policy community. Enhancing the research evidence base for both practice and policy constitutes a key component of any such effort. We are pleased to announce a new PLOS Collection, which is part of a much broader step in this direction.

In partnership, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute for Child and Human Development (NICHD) and the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR)) and the U.S. Department of Education (Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE)) are encouraging new analyses and thinking with the long-term goal of increasing overall education levels and promoting public health for adults and their families particularly for those most at-risk for poor educational, economic and health outcomes. The PLOS Collection, or virtual journal special issue, capitalizes on the recently released Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development ‘s (OECD) cross-national, population representative data set measuring adult competencies in literacy, mathematics, and problem solving. By encouraging analyses of this dataset, in concert with complementary data at the local, state, regional, or national level, we hope to hone in on issues of core interest to the U.S. and international adult education community by examining the intersection of adult competencies, health, educational attainment, civic engagement, and economic well-being.

This collaboration between agencies reflects a shared commitment to increasing the evidence base for the work that these agencies perform and to making that evidence freely available for all.

Detailed information about the call for papers is available at PLOS Collections website.

Announcements

~ Online Summer Courses ~

Certificate in Family Literacy

Goodling Institute for Research in Family Literacy at Penn State

Looking for a fresh perspective, some new activities, or professional development credits? Pennsylvania State University’s College of Education is offering two online courses through the nationally recognized World Campus. These 3-credit post-baccalaureate courses will be offered from May 13 to August 12, 2015.

Interactive Literacy and Parent Involvement: Supporting Academic Success (ADTED 459) examines research and practice that focuses on parent involvement and building literacy and language interactions between parents and their young children (including English language learners).

Adult Literacy (ADTED 457) provides adult and or family literacy practitioners with an overview of adult literacy issues, research, theory, and instructional practices in the context of family literacy and how they pertain to the many roles of parents, workers, and community members.

These research-to-practice courses can enhance the work of educators, reading specialists, counselors, social workers, librarians, literacy volunteers, administrators, professional development specialists, medical workers, parents, and more.

Registration is now open. For World Campus admissions, call 800 252-3592 (toll free).

For information about the Certificate, contact Drucie Weirauch directly at [email protected] or 814 865-6686 or visit http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/degrees-and-certificates/family-literacy-certificate/

SENIOR RESEARCH ASSISTANT OPENING

The Goodling Institute for Research in Family Literacy and the Adult Education Program at Penn State-University Park invite applications for a Senior Research Assistant to begin July 1, 2015. Responsibilities include teaching ADTED 456 (Introduction to Family Literacy) online once per year; coordinating with Goodling Institute staff to implement and enhance the Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Family Literacy via the World Campus; assisting with qualitative and/or quantitative research/evaluation and designing research/evaluation tools and protocols; supporting Goodling Institute research and evaluation projects; and providing assistance and developing tools and curricula to help adult and family literacy programs collect, analyze, and use data for program improvement through Pennsylvania’s Management Information System.

Applicants should have at least a Master’s degree in Adult Education or a closely related field, teaching experience, knowledge of adult and/or family literacy scholarship, professional experience in adult and/or family literacy, and experience with conducting research and/or evaluation. Experience with online teaching, familiarity with family literacy practice, research, and policy, and experience with using data collection and analysis for program improvement (e.g., through action research) are also desirable.

Applicants should submit a letter of application documenting qualifications for the position, a current curriculum vitae/resume, and the names, mail and email addresses, and telephone numbers of three academic references. Applications received by April 17, 2015 are assured full consideration; however, applications will be received until the position is filled.

To apply, please visit https://psu.jobs and enter job number 56532 in the Keywords field.

Questions about the position may be directed to Dr. Carol Clymer (Chair, Search Committee): [email protected]; 814-865-5876.