Introduction

Background:

The Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) and Essential Skills (ES) Comparative Framework (CF) is a comprehensive comparison of two national skill standards. It compares the domain descriptions represented in the CLB 2000 (CCLB, 2000) and in the Reader’s Guide to Essential Skills Profiles (HRSDC, 2003).

Development of the CF was initiated in 2002 by the BC Construction Industry Skills Improvement Council (SkillPlan) in consultation with the Centre for Canadian Language Benchmarks (CCLB). The work was informed by three key underpinning documents: Writing Skills: A Comparison of Canadian Language Benchmarks and HRDC’s Essential Skills (SkillPlan, 2004), Essential Skills and Canadian Language Benchmarks: Considerations in Comparing Conceptual Frameworks (Stewart, Geraci, Nagy, 2004), and CLB-ES Comparative Framework Report on Reponses from the Field (Nagy, Stewart, Geraci, 2005).

The alignments presented in the Comparative Framework have been based on the holistic judgements of a research team with a background in both CLB and ES and have been reviewed by a National Advisory Committee representing a range of expertise and stakeholder interests.

Overview of the Canadian Language Benchmarks^{Footnote 1}:

The main purpose of the Canadian Language Benchmarks is to provide a yardstick that can be used to describe communicative ability in English as a Second Language. The document is an attempt to introduce a standardized continuum of competency expressed in a common language that can be used and understood by practitioners across the country. The indicators and descriptors are intended to inform classroom placement, curriculum development and outcomes criteria.

The concept of the Canadian Language Benchmarks was developed and refined over a five-year period. The initiative began in 1995 with the creation of a draft document (Citizenship and Immigration Canada, 1995), which was field tested on a national basis. Revisions to this draft document were informed by results of the field testing, by the collaborative efforts of a national working group, and by research undertaken in the development of the first CLB-based assessment, the Canadian Language Benchmarks Assessment (CLBA) (Peirce & Stewart, 1997).

In 1996, the Canadian Language Benchmarks Working Document (Citizenship and Immigration Canada, 1996) was produced. This version of the benchmarks included more detailed descriptors of task requirements and performance criteria. For four years, this working document was used in the field, and subsequently, another revision was undertaken to produce the current version, the CLB 2000 (Centre for Canadian Language Benchmarks, 2000a). The comparative discussion in this report is based on an examination of the CLB 2000, and unless otherwise noted, all commentary on the CLB from this point forward is made in reference to that version of the document.

The CLB 2000 addresses four language skills: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Each skill is organized into three stages - basic, intermediate, and advanced - and each stage comprises four levels of ability, or benchmarks, for a total of 12 benchmarks in each skill.

The information provided for each benchmark is categorized under the following headings: “Global Performance Descriptors” gives an overview of general characteristics of the target behaviour; “Performance Conditions” describes situations and limitations that apply; and “What the Person Can Do” affords a description of language functions compatible with the benchmark. These headings are rounded out by “Examples of Tasks and Texts”, which are samples of communicative tasks and of the language functions and forms that typify them, and by “Performance Indicators”, a list of criteria that describe successful performance.

The intent of the CLB 2000 is to describe communicative language proficiency. The communicative paradigm has been evolving since the unidimensional view of the language construct, which was so prevalent in the 1960s, and has given way to a theoretical model that acknowledges four skill areas and takes into account the functional and contextual aspects of communication. The underlying principle is a belief that language is intended for communication and that the ability to communicate successfully is best described in terms of meaningful task performance within relevant situations and under specific performance conditions. The target construct is defined as “communicative proficiency” or “a person’s ability to accomplish communication tasks” (CCLB 2000a, VIII). The approach is said to be learner-centred, task-based, and competency-based, a competency being defined as “demonstrable application of knowledge and skills” (CCLB 2000a, VIII).