Assessing literacy in the USA

Literacy Tutorial

As a result of the lack of information regarding our population's literacy skills, Congress led the Department of Education in a study called the National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS) assessing this information. Starting in 1988, interviews of 26,000 people were conducted in 1992, and data were compiled in a report that was released in 1993. The information gathered from this report gave us information about the literacy of Americans. Participants were characterized by reading levels from low to high. These performance levels were revised in the 2003 NAAL study described in the next paragraph.

In 2003, a second assessment of adult literacy was conducted, with 19,714 adults participating in the survey. The National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL) provides an updated perspective of literacy issues in the United States. Prose, document, and quantitative literacy were examined in home, workplace and community settings. NAAL also included a health literacy component, examining the skills necessary for reading and understanding health-related information. Literacy ability was recategorized from the NAAL study to focus on prose, document, and quantiative abilities in the 'below basic', 'basic', intermediate', and 'proficient' ranges, using a bookmark (or range) method. Additionally, a 'nonliterate in English' category was introduced.

Performance Level	Typical tasks that can be completed at this level	2003 NAAL performance findings
Below Basic	locate information from a short, simple passage sign a form add a bank deposit slip	14% Prose 12% Document 22% Quantitative
Basic	find information within a pamphlet use a t.v. guide compare ticket prices for two events	29% Prose 22% Document 33% Quantitative
Intermediate	consult reference materials find a location on a map calculate the total from a catalog order	44% Prose 53% Document 33% Quantitative
Proficient	compare editorial viewpoints interpret a complex table compute and compare cost per ounce of food	13% Prose 13% Document 13% Quantitative

(Adapted from White & Dillow, 2005)

Hauser, R., Edley, C., Koenig, J., & Elliot, S. (2005). Measuring literacy: Performance levels for adults, Interim Report. National Research Council, Board on Testing and Assessment, Committee on Performance Levels for Adult Literacy. Washington DC: The National Academies Press.

National Reporting System for Adult Education. (2003). Educational Functioning Level Correlations. Retrieved on January 24, 2006 from http://www.literacynet.org/nevada/sdocs/nalstable.pdf

South Carolina Department of Education. (2005). The state of literacy in America: Estimates of the local, state, and national levels. Retrieved on January 25, 2006 from, http://www.sclrc.org/NalsNarrative.htm

Time to read. (2004). Retrieved Jan. 18, 2006, from, http://www.timetoread.com/index.html

White, S. & Dillow, S. (2005). Key concepts and features of the 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy. Washington DC: National Center for Education Statistics. NCES 2006471.