Programs

Focus on Beginning Readers

RAN takes the position that a child’s ability to think, form relationships, and live up to his or her full potential is directly related to early childhood literacy interventions. Early reading programs prepare children for school, improving their performance and reducing the need for repetition.

By investing in early childhood initiatives, we prevent having to pour funding into remedial services later in life. We advocate program interventions for beginning readers because they lead to:

• Improved cognitive development and school achievement
• Higher school enrollment
• Better progress through school
• Better school attendance and fewer dropouts

As such, RAN offers a variety of resources to assist in developing intervention strategies for beginning readers and, to support practicing teachers in their ongoing professional development.

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Focus on Adolescent Readers

Adolescent literacy must be part of any society’s long term strategy for reducing poverty and inequality, increasing productivity, enabling the use of new technologies, and creating and spreading knowledge.

The importance of primary education for development has been highlighted by its declaration as Millennium Development Goal No. 2 by the United Nations. Aadolescent reading plays a critical role asadolescent reading can be considered an “upstream” pre-condition in the sense that it determines whether other learning initiatives can actually be exercised.

The progressive development of the young individual cannot be achived by that individual unless they have received a certain minimum education, without which their access to their inherent potential remains illusory and theoretical.

As such, RAN offers a variety of resources to assist in developing intervention strategies for adolescent readers and, to support practicing teachers in their ongoing professional development.

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Focus on Adult Readers

RAN takes the position that adult literacy education is a critical element in improving a people’s livelihood, especially the poor. Adult literacy facilitates an “empowerment effect”—that learners acquire enhanced confidence which translates into social resources that help them take initiatives to improve their livelihoods. Facilitating the creation of adult readers also creates literacy and numeracy
skills that give a clear advantage in market transactions for both the formal and the informal economy. This is especially important for cultivating entrepreneurship.

RAN advocates that adult literacy must respect the context of adult learners so that adult literacy programs must provide strategies that incorporate “functional” knowledge such as income-generating projects.

As such, RAN offers a variety of resources to assist in developing adult literacy/education strategies and, to support practicing adult education teachers in their ongoing professional development.