In the United States, policymakers at the national, state, and local levels recognize the growing potential for the use of technology to expand access to and improve the quality of learning. However, the lack of resources available to programs, combined with practitioners' lack of experience and staff development in using technology, contribute to the limited use of technology in the adult literacy field. Additionally, the research base on the impact of technology in programs is still very thin, and much of this research has been made obsolete by the fundamental changes in technologies themselves. A project such as LiteracyLink, which involves research and development of innovative technology-based products in a multi-year effort, promises to have important implications for our understanding of technology's benefits and limitations in adult literacy contexts. Key research questions that LiteracyLink hopes to address include:

• What are the differences in literacy skill acquisition between those adult learners who use the LiteracyLink online system and those who do not?
  
• Does the use of online assessment make an overall difference in learning literacy skills?
  
• What are the differences in the effective use of the online resources by learners and practitioners that can be attributed to learning environments?
  
• What is the relationship of online resources and video to learning; or, how does the use of video in conjunction with online activities affect learning?

In the United States, the field of adult education faces multiple challenges, including increased demands on adult education programs and providers in the following areas:

• welfare reform and the emphasis on moving adults quickly into work;
  
• increasing skill requirements for employment;
  
• a shorter time frame in which to make learning gains; and
  
• an increasingly younger adult learning population, with different learning goals and interests requiring different instructional approaches.

The adult literacy field also faces structural limitations, particularly time and distance. Many adults in need of further education simply lack the time and mobility to attend classes in typical settings. Hence, distance education technologies offer tremendous potential for cost-effective methods of reaching a national audience. The following key policy questions are being raised and researched through the LiteracyLink project:

• What levels of technology training and professional development must be incorporated in the system? What levels of support must supplement the system?
  
• What policies at the state and local level can support adoption of such systems? Is LiteracyLink consistent with federal, state, and local guidelines for recruiting, retaining, and demonstrating learning progress?
  
• What is the practical value of the assessment strategy underlying the online instruction and what teacher and learner abilities does it presume?
  
• How can programs be structured to support students learning from a combination of classroom and independent study using online support? Are programs ready for such an open learning structure?

As LiteracyLink progresses, the project seeks to make major contributions to our knowledge and understanding of the ways in which technology can facilitate adult literacy learning and teaching.

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