Introduction

This report provides data on programs for adults in public library outlets,¹ based on a survey conducted in fall 2000 by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), U.S. Department of Education (ED). The survey—which defined "programs" as planned activities for groups or individuals that are offered by libraries to provide information, instruction, or cultural enrichment— obtained information on three areas of interest for adult programming in public library outlets:

• adult literacy programs, including adult basic literacy skills, pre-GED, GED, family literacy, and English as a second language instruction for adults;
• programs for adult lifelong learning, such as book or film discussions, cultural performances, recreational activities, employment and career guidance, college/continuing education guidance, financial planning/ investment information, parenting skills, citizenship preparation, and computer/Internet instruction; and
• provision of Internet access for adult independent use.²

These activities form part of numerous services that libraries may provide their users, and their emphasis in individual libraries may be related to the role that an individual library plays in its community.

The Public Library Association (PLA)³ identified eight major roles that libraries can play in their communities: community activities center, community information center, formal education support center, independent learning center, popular materials library, preschoolers' door to learning, reference library, and research center (McClure et al. 1987). Libraries offer a variety of services, including collections, reference and referral, and programming. The roles identified by PLA help a library make decisions about priorities in these areas. Depending on the type of community in which the library is located, the library may emphasize programs and other types of services for particular segments of the population (e.g., children, senior citizens, or community members with limited skills in English or reading), or may emphasize particular types of services (e.g., collections of various kinds, extensive reference assistance, or recreational and cultural activities).

Many of the roles outlined by PLA relate to the ways in which a library supports the educational goals and needs of the community it serves. A study of the various roles of the library and their importance to their community (D'Elia 1993) found that people consider the public library's most important role to be supporting the educational needs of the community. According to D'Elia, the roles receiving the largest percentages of "very important" responses were the library as an educational support center for students of all ages (88 percent), a learning center for adult independent learners (85 percent), a discovery and learning center for preschool children (83 percent), a research center for scholars and researchers (68 percent), and a center for community information (66 percent).

PLA also developed 13 "service responses" that provide library planners with a way to link identified community needs with specific library services and programs. In particular, "a service response is what a library does for, or offers to, the public in an effort to meet a set of well-defined community needs….Service responses…are very distinct ways that libraries serve the public" (Nelson 2001, p. 146). The 13 "service responses" are basic literacy, business and career information, commons,⁴ community referral, consumer information, cultural awareness, current topics and titles, formal learning support, general information, government information, information literacy, lifelong learning, and local history and genealogy (many of which are included in this report). The planning process using these "service responses" stresses the importance of the connection between the needs of the community and the development of library services. One of the basic assumptions of PLA is that "excellence must be defined locally—it results when library services match community needs, interests, and priorities" (Nelson 2001, p. 1). Thus, in the view of PLA, the types of services (including programming) that libraries offer should reflect the needs of the communities they serve.

Although programming for adults has been recognized as important to libraries, there were no national data about what public libraries were doing to provide this programming. Consequently, three groups within ED requested that NCES conduct a national survey through its Fast Response Survey System (FRSS). The three data requesters were the Elementary, Secondary, and Library Studies Division of NCES; the National Institute on Postsecondary Education, Libraries, and Lifelong Learning; and the National Library of Education. This report provides national data from this survey about three areas of interest for adult programming in public library outlets:⁵ adult literacy programs, programs for adult lifelong learning, and Internet access for adult independent use. Particular attention is paid to adult literacy issues, and to programs that may be provided for adults with learning and/or physical disabilities, adults who have limited English proficiency and/or are recent immigrants, and parents.

Programming for adults in public library outlets has a potentially wide audience in the United States. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were 209.1 million adults age 18 and over in the country in 2000 (Meyer 2001). Adults constituted 74 percent of the U.S. population in 2000, and the median age of the U.S. population continued to rise, increasing from 32.9 in 1990 to 35.3 in 2000. Further, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated in the mid-1990s that about 1 in 5 Americans had some kind of disability, and 1 in 10 had a severe disability (U.S. Department of Commerce 1997).⁶ The likelihood of having a disability increased with age, with half of those 65 years old and older reporting a disability.

At the same time, the diversity of our population continues to increase. The Census Bureau reports that the foreign-born population of the United States numbered 31.1 million in 2000—the largest in U.S. history (U.S. Department of Commerce 2002). The number has climbed 57 percent since the 1990 census. The proportion of the U.S. population that was foreign born increased from 4.7 percent in 1970 to 11.6 percent in 2000. Approximately 52 percent of the foreign born residents were from Latin American countries, and approximately 26 percent were from Asian countries. The Census Bureau estimates that 17.6 percent of the population 5 years and over in the United States spoke a language other than English at home in 2000 (U.S. Department of Commerce 2001).

Adult Literacy

The need for a literate and skilled adult population was officially recognized a decade ago when Congress created the National Institute for Literacy (NIFL), an independent federal organization charged with leading the effort toward the United States becoming a fully literate nation in the 21st century. In the 1991 National Literacy Act, Congress defined literacy as "an individual's ability to read, write, and speak in English, and compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job and in society, to achieve one's goals, and develop one's knowledge and potential."⁷ NIFL estimates that nationally, fewer than 10 percent of adults who could benefit from literacy programs are currently being served.

The Division of Adult Education and Literacy (DAEL) in ED's Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE) supports a wide range of literacy activities. Among these are programs focused on family literacy, workplace education, and English literacy. OVAE also disseminates information about research, effective practices, and other resources in adult education and literacy through its Web site (http://www.ed.gov/offices/OVAE/AdultEd/).

The National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS) was funded by Congress and conducted by NCES in 1992. According to NCES, the aim of NALS was "to document the English literacy of adults in the United States based on their performance across a wide array of tasks that reflect the types of materials and demands they encounter in their daily lives" (Sum 1999, p. xiii). NALS found that among the 191.3 million adults in the survey population in 1992, 40.0 million, or 21 percent, were in level 1 (the lowest level of proficiency) on the prose literacy scale, and 8.2 million (4 percent) correctly answered none of the test questions (Sum 1999). Literacy skills were related to various educational and labor force characteristics. As reported by NCES, "the main finding that pervades the data on education in the National Adult Literacy Survey is that literacy proficiency is strongly related to levels of formal schooling. Each successive level of formal education is accompanied by a rise in average literacy proficiencies" (Kaestle et al. 2001, p. xxv). In general, literacy proficiency is lowest for individuals who have not graduated from high school, higher for high school graduates and GED holders, and highest for individuals who have attended postsecondary schooling. This is particularly important in light of reports from the U.S. Census Bureau that approximately 17 percent of the U.S. population 18 years of age and older have an educational attainment below the level of high school graduate (Newburger and Curry 2000). NALS also found that literacy is related to labor force characteristics, with individuals who demonstrate higher levels of literacy more likely to be employed, work more weeks in a year, and earn higher wages than individuals demonstrating lower proficiencies (Kirsch et al. 1993; Sum 1999). Thus, literacy skills are related to many aspects of adult lives.

Public libraries are one source of adult literacy programs. According to the PLA, a library that provides basic literacy service "addresses the need to read and to perform other essential daily tasks" (Nelson 2001, p. 65). Literacy programming includes direct literacy instruction, as well as activities such as providing funding, materials, or staff to support the literacy program of another literacy provider. Public libraries also support adult literacy activities in other ways not measured in this survey, such as developing and maintaining literacy collections, building coalitions with literacy groups, and providing space to outside groups to support literacy activities. The NCES state library agency survey defines literacy program support in public libraries as "organized efforts to assist individuals with limited language and mathematical skills in developing skills in reading, writing, and computation that enable them to function in society without assistance from others" (Kroe, Garner, and Sheckells 2001, p. 156). In Fiscal Year 2000, 44 out of 51 state library agencies provided literacy program support to public libraries in their state (Kroe, Garner, and Sheckells 2001). However, no nationally representative information has been available about adult literacy programs in public library outlets. This report provides information about the extent to which public library outlets offer adult literacy programs, the types of literacy programs offered (e.g., adult basic literacy skills, GED, English as a second language), and the groups for which literacy programs are specifically offered (e.g., high school dropouts, adults who are limited English speaking or recent immigrants). Information is also provided about reasons that library outlets do not offer adult literacy programs.

Libraries and Lifelong Learning

Libraries provide learning opportunities to many kinds of people with various educational needs and preferences through diverse kinds of library collections, reference and information services, and programming, including outreach services. According to Van Fleet (1995, p. 4), "Library services have essentially the same goals for all patrons—to enrich leisure, to gather and disseminate information for effective living, and to provide for continued growth and learning throughout the lifespan. The specific manner in which these goals are fulfilled will vary according to community need and demand." This reflects the same stance taken by the PLA—that library services must match community needs, interests, and priorities, and the ways in which communities implement a service response will therefore vary significantly. According to the PLA, a library that provides a lifelong learning service response "helps address the desire for self-directed personal growth and development opportunities" (Nelson 2001, p. 65). Examples of possible programming components of lifelong learning service include how-to programs on topics of general public interest, and various kinds of cultural performances.

The National Household Education Survey estimated in 1996 that 44 percent of U.S. households had used a public library in the month prior to the interview, and 65 percent had used a public library in the past year (Collins and Chandler 1997). The public library services for which the highest percentages of households reported library use in the past month were for enjoyment or hobbies, including borrowing books and tapes or attending activities (32 percent); getting information for personal use, such as consumer or health issues, investments, and so on (20 percent); and using library services or materials for a school or class assignment (19 percent). Fewer households reported using public library services for keeping up to date at a job (8 percent), getting information to help find a job (5 percent), attending a program for children (4 percent), or working with a tutor or taking a class to learn to read (1 percent).

This report provides information about the types of lifelong learning programs for adults offered by public library outlets, and groups for which lifelong learning programs are specifically offered (e.g., adults with disabilities, parents). Although libraries offer many types of lifelong learning programs, the survey focused on a subset of programs. Specifically, the lifelong learning programs included on the questionnaire are programs on citizenship preparation, college/ continuing education guidance, employment/ career guidance, financial planning/investment information, book/film discussions or presentations, cultural performances, recreational activities, parenting skills, and computer/Internet instruction.

Internet Access

The Internet has become a major source of information and a major means of communication for adults. In the August 2000 Current Population Survey, adults 18 years and over reported using the Internet from home for the following tasks: email (33 percent of adults), information searches (24 percent), checking on news, weather, or sports (20 percent), performing job-related tasks (12 percent), and school research or courses (9 percent). Forty-two percent of households had at least one member who used the Internet at home, and 37 percent of all adults reported using the Internet at home (Newburger 2001).

Public libraries are one source of Internet access, and thus may have the potential to substantially expand access to the Internet for the adult public. Just as schools may level the playing field by giving computer and Internet access to children who do not have such access at home (Newburger 2001), libraries have the potential to do the same for adults. Thus, it is important to know the extent to which public library outlets have Internet access for the adult public.

The U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) conducted a survey in spring 2000 on public library outlet connectivity to the Internet. The results of that survey indicate that 96 percent of public library outlets were connected to the Internet in some way in 2000, and 94 percent of outlets provided public access to the Internet (Bertot and McClure 2000). This is an increase from 1998, when NCLIS and the American Library Association conducted the first study on public library outlet connectivity to the Internet⁸ In 1998, 84 percent of public library outlets were connected to the Internet, and 73 percent of outlets provided public access to the Internet (NCLIS 1999). The results of the 2000 NCLIS survey also indicate that 55 percent of outlets offered Internet training services to the adult public.

This report provides information about the extent to which outlets provide access to the Internet to adults for their independent use, and perceived barriers to the outlet's ability to provide such Internet access.

Study Methodology

The information in this report is based on a survey conducted in fall 2000 by NCES using its Fast Response Survey System. FRSS is a survey system designed to collect small amounts of issue oriented data with minimal burden on respondents and within a relatively short timeframe.⁹ The results presented in this report are based on questionnaire data for 954 public library outlets in the United States. The questionnaire responses were weighted to produce national estimates that represent all public library outlets in the United States. As defined on this questionnaire, a public library outlet is a unit (usually a building) that provides direct public library service. An outlet may be a main or central library, a branch library, or a bookmobile.

The sample for this survey consisted of 1,011 public library outlets in the 50 states and the District of Columbia, comprising 461 central/main libraries, 485 branch libraries, and 65 bookmobiles. The sample was selected from the NCES Fiscal Year 1997 Public Libraries Survey (PLS) Public Library Outlet File. The sampling frame consisted of 16,918 public library outlets, of which 8,954 were central/main library outlets, 7,120 were branch outlets, and 844 were bookmobiles or books-by-mail only services.¹⁰

These outlets were components of 8,967 public library systems. These public library systems are referred to as administrative entities on NCES data files, and as public libraries in NCES publications. As defined by NCES, an administrative entity is "the agency that is legally established under local or state law to provide public library service to the population of a local jurisdiction. The Administrative Entity may have a single outlet, or it may have more than one outlet" (Chute and Kroe 2001, p. 105).¹¹ Eighty percent of public libraries (administrative entities) consisted of one single direct service outlet in 1997 (Chute and Kroe 2000).

For this survey, library programs were defined to mean planned activities for groups or individuals that are offered by libraries to provide information, instruction, or cultural enrichment. Respondents were instructed that their library outlet should be considered as offering a program if the outlet provided funding, materials, or staff to support the program, or the library system ran the program within or on behalf of the library outlet. Programs offered by the library outlet could take place in the library or at offsite locations (e.g., at a senior citizens center). Programs that used library space rented from the library or made available to outside groups by the library, but with no other involvement of the library outlet or system, were not considered offerings of the library outlet.¹²

The characteristics of public library outlets used as analysis variables in this report are as follows:

• Number of library visits per week, measured by the number of persons who entered the library outlet in a typical week (less than 300, 300 to 1,499, 1,500 or more). This information, collected on the questionnaire, provides one measure of outlet size.¹³ For ease of discussion in the text of this report, outlets with less than 300 library visits per week are referred to as small outlets, those with 300 to 1,499 library visits per week are referred to as medium-sized outlets, and outlets with 1,500 or more library visits per week are referred to as large outlets.
• Metropolitan status (urban, suburban, and rural). This information was obtained from the metropolitan status variable on the NCES FY 1997 file of public library outlets. Urban libraries are located within the city limits of the central city of a Metropolitan Area. Suburban libraries are in a Metropolitan Area, but not within the central city limits, while rural libraries are not in a Metropolitan Area.

Additional information about these variables is provided in appendix A.¹⁴ The distributions of the analysis variables are shown in Figure 1 .¹⁵ Small and medium-sized outlets each constitute 37 percent of public library outlets, while large outlets constitute 26 percent of public library outlets. Fifty-five percent of public library outlets are located in rural areas, 29 percent in suburban areas, and 16 percent in urban areas.

Outlet size, as measured by the number of library visits per week, and metropolitan status are related to each other. For example, among small outlets, 76 percent are in rural areas and 5 percent are in urban areas, while 43 percent of large outlets are located in suburban areas (table 1). Among urban outlets, 12 percent are small and 48 percent are large (table 2). Rural outlets show the opposite pattern, with 51 percent being small and 12 percent being large. Because of these relationships, differences on survey items by these analysis variables often show similar patterns. That is, differences on survey items between small and large outlets also tend to be present between rural and urban outlets. Due to the relatively small sample size used in this study, it is difficult to separate the independent effects of these variables. The existence of these relationships between variables, however, should be considered in the interpretation of the data presented in this report.

All comparative statements¹⁶ made in the text of this report have been tested for statistical significance using t-tests adjusted for multiple comparisons using the Bonferroni adjustment and are significant at the 0.05 level. Throughout this report, differences between numbers shown in the tables that may appear large may not be statistically significant. This is due in part to the relatively large standard errors surrounding the estimates (because of the relatively small initial sample size and the subsetting of the data based on skip patterns in the questionnaire), and the use of the Bonferroni adjustment to control for multiple comparisons. Appendix A provides a detailed discussion of the sample and survey methodology.

Organization of This Report

The chapters that follow present information about programs for adults in public library outlets in 2000, as reported by outlet staff. Specifically, chapter 2 presents information about adult literacy program offerings at public library outlets, including the types of literacy programs offered and the groups for which adult literacy programs are specifically offered. Information is also provided about reasons library outlets do not offer adult literacy programs. Chapter 3 reports about the types of adult lifelong learning programs offered by public library outlets, the groups for which such programs are specifically offered, and barriers to providing lifelong learning programs for adults with learning and/or physical disabilities. Chapter 4 provides information about the extent of Internet access for adults in public library outlets and barriers to providing Internet access. The concluding chapter summarizes the findings of this study. Technical information, including a detailed study methodology discussion (appendix A) and tables of standard errors for all data presented in this report (appendix B), are included as technical appendices to the report. The questionnaire is presented in appendix C.

1 As defined in the questionnaire, a public library outlet is a unit (usually a building) that provides direct public library service. An outlet may be a main or central library, a branch library, or a bookmobile.

²Internet access for adult independent use is the availability of the Internet for adults to use without the participation of a library staff member in that use. For example, an adult would be able to log on to the Internet and search for information independently, rather than submitting a request for a library staff member to search for that information.

³The Public Library Association is one of the divisions of the American Library Association. The American Library Association is an organization of over 60,000 librarians, libraries, trustees, friends of libraries, and others interested in the educational, social, and cultural roles and responsibilities of libraries in society. It promotes and improves library service and librarianship through advocacy and by establishing standards of service, conducting research, and providing educational opportunities for library personnel.

⁴According to the PLA, "A library that provides a Commons environment helps address the need of people to meet and interact with others in their community and to participate in public discourse about community issues" (Nelson 2001, p. 65).

⁵Programming is provided by public libraries in many different ways, such as bringing in guest lecturers on various topics, providing individual or group instruction, and working with other organizations to offer a series of classes. In addition, programming may be provided by different library entities, including individual library outlets and administrative entities (more commonly known as library systems). Early in the development process of the survey, a decision was made to focus on information at the library outlet level, because it was thought that most programming actually took place at this level. As defined in the questionnaire, a public library outlet is a unit (usually a building) that provides direct public library service. An outlet may be a main or central library, a branch library, or a bookmobile. System-level data are not available for comparison with the outlet-level data collected in this FRSS survey.

⁶The Census Bureau collected this information as part of its Survey of Income and Program Participation for the October 1994 through January 1995 period.

⁷Information in this paragraph is from the Web site of the National Institute for Literacy (http://www.nifl.gov).

⁸From 1994 through 1997, NCLIS sponsored annual studies of Internet access in public library systems (administrative entities). In 1998 and 2000, the studies of library connectivity to the Internet were conducted at the outlet level rather than the system level.

⁹FRSS surveys are limited in scope. Therefore, this FRSS survey could not collect information about all the kinds of programs for adults in public libraries, or all the types of activities that libraries do to support these programs. This FRSS survey collected information about three topics that are areas in which libraries serve the educational needs of their communities: adult literacy programs, programs for adult lifelong learning, and Internet access for adult independent use. Libraries also support adult literacy activities in ways that are not measured in this survey, such as developing and maintaining literacy collections, building coalitions with literacy groups, and providing space to outside groups to support literacy activities. There are also other types of lifelong learning programs, such as health education/information, civic awareness and government issues, and genealogy information. The constraints of an FRSS questionnaire limited the number of such programs that could be included on this survey.

¹⁰FRSS surveys are limited in scope. Therefore, this FRSS survey could not collect information about all the kinds of programs for adults in public libraries, or all the types of activities that libraries do to support these programs. This FRSS survey collected information about three topics that are areas in which libraries serve the educational needs of their communities: adult literacy programs, programs for adult lifelong learning, and Internet access for adult independent use. Libraries also support adult literacy activities in ways that are not measured in this survey, such as developing and maintaining literacy collections, building coalitions with literacy groups, and providing space to outside groups to support literacy activities. There are also other types of lifelong learning programs, such as health education/information, civic awareness and government issues, and genealogy information. The constraints of an FRSS questionnaire limited the number of such programs that could be included on this survey.

¹¹The definition of administrative entity is from the glossary of the report for the FY 1998 public library data.

¹²A decision was made during survey development to focus on direct provision of programming, rather than including provision of space. Also see the discussion on pages 3-4 of literacy program support for public libraries.

¹³Reported number of library visits per week is used as a measure of library size because the NCES public library outlet file does not provide any information about the size of the outlet. Since outlet size is often related to the level of service provision, a proxy measure of size was created.

¹⁴Very few characteristics are available for analyzing outlet-level data. Characteristics such as funding, collections, and staffing are collected by NCES for library systems, and not for library outlets. Type of library outlet (central, branch, bookmobile) was not selected as an analysis variable because it is confounded with library system structure. For example, a central library can be the large main library of a multiple outlet system, or it can be a small library in a single outlet system; some library systems do not have a central library, and some have more than one central library. This reduces the likelihood that meaningful relationships will be found by type of library outlet. Outlet type was used as a stratification variable for sampling to ensure that all types of libraries were represented in the sample.

¹⁵These are weighted distributions based on the 954 outlets responding to this survey. Data presented in all tables and figures are weighted to produce national estimates that represent all public library outlets in the United States.

¹⁶An example of a comparative statement is outlets in urban areas offered literacy programs more often than outlets in rural areas (26 percent compared with 15 percent).

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