ADULT LITERACY AND BASIC EDUCATION POLICY IN NEW-ZEALAND - ONE-STEP FORWARD AND 2 BACK

Adult literacy and basic education (ALBE) is a recent, but growing, se ctor within the fourth sector - adult education. In keeping with its l ow status ALBE suffers from a lack of policy to guide its development and ensure a place in the educational sun. This article outlines attem pts over recent years by government agencies and ALBE practitioners to formulate such policy and the results of these efforts. The paper con cludes with a discussion of how factors how factors such as the lack o f national incidence research and the clash between the liberal humani sm of ALBE practitioners and the economic rationalism of government wh ich have hindered the development of ALBE policy.