participants from diverse organizations was held in Kathmandu to develop questions for getting more reliable data and to explain how to use the literacy module of the LAMP in
future national household surveys. A new household survey using the new methodology was planned to be implemented in Nepal within 2010
24
and the results are not yet available to me.
2.3.7 The SmallerQuickerCheaper SQC Approach
In accordance with the launch of the UN Literacy Decade in 2003 and recently increased emphasis on monitoring and evaluation of adult literacy around the world,
Wagner 2003; 2008 proposes an alternative national household survey model, the SmallerQuickerCheaper SQC model, made for use in developing countries. The SQC
approach suggests that three main parameters – size, speed, and cost – should be
considered when new assessment tools are considered in developing countries. The attributes of these three parameters can be summarized as follows Wagner, 2003:305-
307: 1
Smaller and more focused • Focus on national and local interests avoid international comparability.
• Collect focusedstrategic demographic samples – reach the unreached and un-under-schooled gender, minorities.
• Just enough psychometric items to give operational andor policy guidance.
2 Quicker
• Speed of delivery is important for policy makers – Literacy assessments
24
This information comes from the web site of UNESCO, http:portal.unesco.orggeographyfrev.php- URL_ID=12285URL_DO=DO_TOPICURL_SECTION=201.html.
need to be completed in ―real time‖ so that results can affect policy and
spending in the ―lifetime‖ of current ministerial appointments andor programmatic needs.
• Shorter time horizons – months or weeks rather than years. • Rapid prototyping of simpler tests – by speeding up data collection and
analysis and reporting. • Frequency is important.
3 Cheaper
• Needs to be affordable – on a budget of only a fraction of what large-scale comparative studies spend.
• ―Shareability‖ of assessment tools across programs and contexts can produce economies of scale.
• Transparency and simplicity.
25
• Capacity building is easier. • Sustainability: lower cost means that replication is more affordable.
The foundation of this SQC model can be found in the Basic Learning
Competencies BLC assessment design which has been developed on the basis of the 1998 and 1999 expert seminars
26
organized by UNESCO-Paris and International Literacy Institute ILI in the light of the 1990 Jomtien goals
27
of the World Conference on EFA. According to Wagner et al. 1999:5, the BLCs assessment instrument is
―a low-cost and
25
Transparency and simplicity of the SQC means that fewer relatively expensive, external or international experts are required to interpret or reanalyze the data for a non-expert audience and the process of data
collection and analysis are more ―transparent‖ to local human resources Wagner, 2008:664-665.
26
In June 1998, a first expert seminar entitled ―Literacy Assessment in Out-of-School Youth and Adults‖ was held at UNESCO-
Paris. The focus of the seminar was on ―describing and analyzing the need for better assessment and monitoring of basic learning competencies BLCs, from the basic skills reading,
writing, math to ‗basic life skills‘, as well as describing methodologies for assessments at the national survey level and at the program level.‖ The following seminar was held on April 12-14, 1999, in
Philadelphia in collaboration with ILI and UNESCO- Paris. The focus was on ―the creation of a model for
BLC assessment, especially for out-of- school youth and young adults‖ Wagner et al., 1999:5.
27
The World Conference on EFA held in 1990 at Jomtien, Thailand, set a number of educational goals related to out-of-school youth and adults, including: 1 to reduce the number of adult illiterates to half of
the 1990 level by the year 2000; 2 to improve learning achievement to an agreed percentage of an appropriate age cohort; 3 to meet the need to monitor and evaluate the performance of individual
learners, the delivery mechanisms, and outcomes of literacy and other NFE education programs Wagner et al., 1999:5.
adaptable methodology for the assessment of basic learning competencies in diverse cultural contexts.
‖ It was designed to combine elements of household surveys e.g., using moderately sized samples with the use of relatively simple measurement tools
–both direct and indirect
– attuned to local and national needs ibid:8. The target population of the assessment was out-of-school youth and young adult in the age range of 12-20 years,
―those who have had limited or no opportunities to access or benefit from sustained learning in formal school settings, due to their gender, social, economic, geographical,
ethnic, or political circumstances‖ Wagner et al., 1999:7.
The BLC assessment model employs four types of skills reading, writing, numeracy, and life skills
28
, three skill domains prose text, documents, and decontextualized print
29
, and four skill levels noninadequateno ability, prerequisite, basic, and advanced levels. More details are described in Table 8:
Table 8: Type of skills and skill levels of the BLC assessment model
Type of skills Example of skills
Skill level Literacy
Reading • Ability to name letters or
smallest script unit • Ability to understand the
relationship between text and images
• Sight word recognition of common words in
contextual print road signs, package labels
1 None or non-reader level: refers to those individuals who, for all practical purposes, do not
possess even the rudiments of reading skills, and cannot, for example, recognize more than a few
letters of the alphabet at most. 2 Prerequisite level: includes letter recognition,
decoding, and
―sounding out‖ of short texts. 3 Basic level: refers to skills in
―reading to learn‖ and
―reading to do.‖ Individuals at this level would
28
According to Wagner et al. 1999:17, life skills relates to the diverse knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes that together enable children, youth, and adults
―to prevent or cope with situations in which their own physical or psychological well-being or safety may be at risk, achieve their personal goals, function
effectively in their social environment, and enhance their quality of life. ‖
29
Decontexualized print refers to letters, sub-lexical units such as syllables, words, phrases, and sentences, without any given context. In contrast, prose text can be referred to as contexualized print Wagner et al.,
1999:24.
Type of skills Example of skills
Skill level • Decoding skills – the
knowledge and skills to apply decoding in
recognizing and pronouncing written words
• Comprehension of simple phrases and sentences
• Ability to locate, comprehend, and use
information embedded in prose text or in documents
be able to: • Answer literal comprehension question about
brief, continuous texts sentences and paragraph in length,
• Locate or apply information in simple but authentic prose pieces or documents, and
• Form judgments relating text information to background knowledge.
4 Advanced level: refers to a level of skill equivalent to that normally achieved upon
successfully completing a secondary school curriculum. Advanced skills are build on those used
in basic level tasks, but are applied to more complex tasks and print domains.
Writing • Ability to form letters and
words using common writing implements e.g.,
pencil and paper • Awareness of print
conventions directionality of script; top and bottom of
documents; naming of punctuation
• Ability to copy a written text
• Ability to write a text from dictation
• Ability to compose a message, or to fill out a
form 1 None or non-writer level: refers to those
individuals who, for all practical purposes, do not possess even the rudiments of writing skills, and
cannot, for example, write more than a few letters of the alphabet at most.
2 Prerequisite level: refers to specific motor skills the use of writing implements of
―technologies‖ relevant to producing written language and
knowledge of print conventions. Individuals at this level would be able to write individual letters or
characters of the alphabet or script and common words that appear in their written form in functional
contexts. 3 Basic level: refers to skills in
―composing‖ – especially focusing on writing as a means for
communicating with others – and ―applying‖ print
such as filling out forms, writing directions, making lists, etc. by hand or machine such that a skilled
reader could understand it. Individuals at this level would be able to :
Write a brief message to a literate peer, Write a brief description or story of an event or
image, Fill out a simple form,
Make a list of items from a familiar category, and Make a judgment of the functional quality that is,
interpretability of a composed text. 4 Advanced level: refers to skills constituting the
same as those used in basic level writing tasks, but are applied to more complex writing tasks.
Numeracy • Ability to count, sort, and
perform simple comparisons of quantities
of concrete objects e.g., bottles, cattle, coins
• Decoding the meaning of 1 None or non-numerate level: refers to those
individuals who have relatively few mental calculation skills beyond counting of simple
quantities and who also cannot recognize the meaning of written digits.
2 Prerequisite level: would include individuals who
Type of skills Example of skills
Skill level numerals e.g., how many
units of something are signified by the digit
―5‖ and of number-words in an
indigenous number system • Possession of number-
sense awareness of meaning of numbers, and of
magnitude of small and large numbers
• Ability to carry out the four arithmetical computations,
either mentally andor in writing using written
symbols, notations, and procedures
• Knowledge of measurement systems and procedures
telling time, using a scale, using a ruler or measuring
tape, using money, converting between unit
systems, reading dials
• Understanding of percents, averages, graphs, and other
means for summarizing and displaying data that are
often used in conveying information about groups or
about trends can engage in some possibly even advanced
mental calculations using indigenous number systems or measurement devicestechniques only.
However, they know few print-based or formal numeracy symbols and systems, though they may be
able to do very simple written math problems. 3 Basic level: would include mental and written
numeracy skill, including mathematical operations typically learned in school, as well as everyday math
such as estimates and graphs as might be employed in newspapers. The basic level would thus be
calibrated in terms of entry into employment training, economic, social, and health-related needs.
4 Advanced level: Individuals at this level would be able to accomplish, with little difficulty or few
errors, numeracy tasks such as performing various arithmetic functions in formal school-type and
everyday settings, locating and using quantitative information in different displays, solve multi-step
calculations, and use measuring devices.
Life skills • Knowledge of nutrition and
eating habits e.g., Is it safe to eat fish which is kept in a
refrigerator for 3 days? • Knowledge of prevention of
disease e.g., What are effective ways to prevent
getting HIV-AIDS? • Knowledge of substance
abuse e.g., In what ways is tobacco smoking dangerous
to your health? • Knowledge of personal
finances e.g., How much savings would be required
to accumulate enough to build or buy a house in your
village?
• Knowledge about civic rights
1 Inadequate or high risk level: refers to those individuals who, for all practical purposes, do not
possess effective mastery of knowledge, skills, or attitudes as a basis for adequate life survival. Such
individuals and their dependants are likely at high risk to become involve in life threatening situations.
2 Prerequisite level: Only in localized or constrained contexts, individuals at this level would
be able to show some examples of functional knowledge of high risk issues, behaviors, and
concepts. They would also be able to demonstrate some attitudes, behaviors, and actions that reduce
the risk of personal or social harm. 3 Basic level: refers to a competency in acting and
coping with critical life-risk domains, whether in health, everyday activities, and so on. Individuals at
this level would be able to:
• Knowunderstand safety signs and rules, warning symbols and nutritional food groups,
• Demonstrate attitudes and values to not engage in
Type of skills Example of skills
Skill level risky health and safety behaviors,
• Demonstrate avoidance of risky behaviors, such as recognizing poor nutritional items in an
infant ‘s life, and
• Acquire information on or communicate a critical awareness of how and why such behavior can
harm themselves, individuals, and society e.g., attending a parenting class; asking advice;
awareness high cholesterol foods and relation to health.
4 Advanced level: refers the same skills as those used in basic levels, but applied and integrated into
more complex tasks. Source: Wagner et al., 1999 and Wagner, 2004
Most of the direct assessment instruments have been developed by western scholars, thus they are often too sophisticated and too expensive to implement in
developing countries. In comparison with other assessment models mentioned above, the SQC model with the direct assessment instrument of the BLC approach is deemed to
provide the most applicable rationale and criteria for developing policy measures and devising a literacy assessment tool for the Eastern Tamang people as well as other
indigenous language groups in Nepal. Many adult learners in literacy programs in Nepal had never experienced such standardized tests and thus would not be able to deal with
such sophisticated test items. Meanwhile, the SQC model using the BLC measurement proposes much fewer and simpler test components and contents in consideration of the
test takers of a developing country like Nepal. The model focuses on local and national needs of literacy assessment rather than international comparability, and capacity-
building in local people rather than relying on external experts, emphasizing quicker and simpler data process. Evenif the SQC model is designed for literacy assessment through a
household survey it still provides a replicable method for developing literacy assessment in a classroom setting for adult learners from the Eatern Tamang and other indigenous
people groups in various literacy programs in Nepal.
2.4 Definitions of literacy
