A second teacher used stories from the local newspaper, endeavouring to balance the current interest of the stories with a reading level that was manageable, but still pushed their skill boundaries.
I go through the [newspaper] each week and I try to look for something that’s topical. So the reading level of that is sort of below the [other newspaper], so it’s a very functional reading level, but I read the articles and you noticed today I always try to push them a little bit past their comfort zone. I want to use material that’s at adult level and of interest, but I don’t want to use simple material. So the idea is that the cognitive level is adult level and experienced, but the skill level is below it.
The final findings section examines those elements that we consider to be specific to literacy, numeracy and language teaching, which represent the core skills of literacy, numeracy and language teachers.
All of the teachers interviewed had used some form of initial or diagnostic assessment of their learners’ literacy, numeracy and language skills, but their methods and processes varied considerably. In most cases, the teachers (or their organisations) had developed their own individual methods for carrying out the assessments.
This teacher outlines a fairly typical process for students entering an literacy, numeracy and language programme and also how on-going assessment of unit standards and course evaluations are built into the programme throughout.
| T: | Initially, when people come in to enrol there is an initial assessment which just highlights really why people want to come. It’s usually school has not worked for them or sometimes people have left school and realise that they do need a qualification as in units to get either on to further training or into a job. So that basically is what, is what this one is for. Any younger than 16, then with a school exemption. I then identify learning needs and also what they feel they want or need help in. So this is addressed at different stages throughout the course. Our courses are 24 weeks long, so we have two [courses] a year and people can join at any stage during the year. So, after an initial assessment, then our running of programmes, we have a look at an overall individual programme for some - there are some things, which we just can’t run in the whole group. Evaluations of the programme are done every month and the trainees do an evaluation of the program, so that is that is handed in and yes, the good the bad and everything else that that, I actually find that quite interesting. And unit standards are offered, but it is not structured so tightly that unit standards are done between say, weeks four and five … In this situation unit standards actually put things into a real perspective and the range of unit standards that are offered on this course are listed and each of each of the learners has a list and can just tick them off when they’ve done them. | |
| I: | So do you do formal written assessments after that? |