The National Reporting System for Adult Education (NRS) is an outcome-based reporting system for the state-administered, Federally funded adult education program. Developed with the support of the U.S. Department of Education’s Division of Adult Education and Literacy (DAEL), the NRS continues a cooperative process by state adult education directors and DAEL to identify appropriate learner outcomes for adult education. The project is being conducted by the American Institutes for Research (AIR) in Washington, DC.
The NRS established a national accountability system for adult education programs by identifying measures for national reporting and their definitions, establishing methods for data collection, developing software standards for reporting to the U.S. Department of Education and developing training materials and activities on NRS requirements and procedures. The NRS meets the accountability requirements for the adult education program in Title II of the Workforce Investment Act.
The National Reporting System will improve the public accountability of the adult education program by documenting its ability to meet Federal policy and programmatic goals. The collection of state outcome data will enable states to correlate practices and programs with successful outcomes, and will also assist states in assessing progress in meeting their adult education goals. For local providers, the NRS will help instructors and administrators plan instructional activities and services to enhance student outcomes and to relate effective practices and programs with successful outcomes.