ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the interconnections between learning, self-confi - dence, learner identities, and social capital. It draws from a two-phased study of over six hundred adult literacy and numeracy (ALN) learners in Scotland (comparable to adult basic education learners in the United States) that examined aspects of their learning experiences and the impact that learning had on their lives. The aim of the research was to evaluate the Scottish Adult Literacy and Numeracy (ALN) Strategy. Detailed fi ndings are reported in Tett, Hall, Maclachlan, Thorpe, Edwards, and Garside (2006). The sample drew from over one hundred different institutions in nine areas in Scotland, representing both the geographical diversity and full range of ALN provision including further education colleges, community, work, and prison-based tuition. Unlike its English equivalent, adult literacies policy in Scotland is nested in broader community learning and development policies. Its “Adult Literacy and Numeracy in Scotland” report (ALNIS) (2001) defi ned literacies as:
The ability to read, write and use numeracy, to handle information, to express ideas and opinions, to make decisions and solve problems, as family members, workers, citizens and lifelong learners (Scottish Executive, 2001: 7).
