John Comings EdD is Principal International Technical Advisor at the Education Development Center in Newton, MA. Prior to this, he was Director of the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) and a member of the faculty of the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
Dr. Comings’s research and writing focuses on the impact of adult literacy programs and factors that predict persistence of adult education students in the U.S. and Third World countries. In this podcast, he talks with Helen Osborne about:
- The literacy part of health literacy, including components of reading skills
- The health part of health literacy, including functional skills within health contexts
- Practical literacy strategies that health professionals can use today
- Ways the health system can collaborate with the adult literacy system
More Ways to Learn:
- You can reach John Comings directly by email at john.comings@gmail.com
- U.S. Federal government’s Division of Adult Education and Literacy: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ovae/pi/AdultEd/index.html
- To locate the state office of adult education: http://www.naepdc.org/Members/members_home.html
- In Canada, National Adult Literacy Database: www.nald.ca
- National Assessment of Adult Literacy: http://nces.ed.gov/naal/
- NCSALL’s research: www.ncsall.net
- National Institute for Literacy www.nifl.gov
Health Literacy from A to Z: Practical Ways to Communicate Your Health Message, Second Edition (Updated 2018), by Helen Osborne. Relevant chapters include: 1, 21, 27.
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