Accounts differ as to the state of adult literacy education in China. One scholar says that programs are contracting severely, whereas Chinese officials contend that programs are operating with more students and more efficiency. A true picture of literacy education in China depends on research and statistics that are being gathered. The overall tone of this emerging picture is optimistic. China today is conducting the world's largest and most promising experiment in using adult education for social change. However, some problems surface; for example, national aspirations for literacy promotion are now focusing only on the age group 15-40 and thereby making the illiteracy problem shrink to one-third its size. Lessons that can be learned from the Chinese experience include the following: (1) political commitment to social reform and adult education is necessary; (2) it is possible to bring development to rural areas concurrently with urban areas; (3) policy should be disseminated among the people by catchy slogans and phrases; (4) adult education should be institutionalized; (5) culture is likely to be neglected in societies in which economic deprivations are most acutely felt; and (6) special efforts are needed to bring literacy education to women and minorities. (KC)