1. Essential Skills Lecture
Aims:
To provide background into the Essential Skills for Living Strategy
To define functional, embedded, and contextualised literacy
To devise some strategies for embedding essential skills within your own teaching

2. Essential Skills Previously Basic Skills
Skills for Living in England/Wales
Literacy
Numeracy
ICT

3. International Adult Literacy Study(1996)
No. of adults unable to perform basic tasks:
Sweden 8%
N. Ireland 24%
RoI 23%
England %
19% of all young people not achieving 5 GCSEs (Kenway et al, 2006)

4. ** But they will have developed coping strategies**
Reasons
Undiagnosed condition (dyslexia, dyscalculia etc.)
Teaching methods
Large classes
Missed schooling
No family support
** But they will have developed coping strategies**

5. Implications Difficulties in getting and keeping employment
Low paid, transient jobs
Lack of training opportunities
Family literacy issues
Crime and anti-social behaviour
Difficulties in everyday life

6. Essential Skills Strategy
1999 A Fresh Start’ - Moser Working Group Report
2000 Skills for Living (England)
2002 Essential Skills (NI)
2004 FE Means Business – DEL
2005 Skills in the UK: Leitch
2006 FE means business implementation plan
2011 IALS

7. Actions Free provision Essential Skills Curriculum Targets set
New teacher qualifications
New student qualifications
Recognition of qualifications
Monitoring and inspection

8. BTEC First Certificate
Making sense of the levels
Essential Skills
NQF
Other qualifications
Entry Level 1
OCR Word Power
OCR Number Power
CLAIT
Below Level 1
Entry Level 2
Entry Level 3
NVQ Level 1
BTEC First Certificate
OCR Vocational Cert
Level 1
Level 1
GCSEs at A*-C
Key Skills Level 2
BTEC First Diploma
Level 2
Level 2

9. Speaking and Listening
Literacy Curriculum
Speaking and Listening
Writing
Reading
Listen & Respond
Engage in Discussion
Text
Sentence
Word
Speak to Communicate
Text
Sentence
Word
SLlr
SLc
SLd Rt Rs Wt Ws Rw Ww

10. Numeracy Curriculum Handling Data Measure, Shape & Space Number
Common Measures
Shape and Space
Data and Statistical Measure
Probability
Whole Numbers
Fractions, Decimals & Percentages N1 N2
MSS1
MSS2
HD1
HD2

11. Definitions Functional Literacy Contextualised Literacy
Embedded Literacy

12. Functional Literacy
‘Using printed information in order to function in society in order to achieve one’s goals, and to develop one’s knowledge and potential.’
OECD (1996)
Moser described ‘functional’ numeracy & literacy as;
‘’the ability to read, write and speak in English and use mathematics at a level necessary to function at work and in society in general’
Blunt and to the point. The term ‘functional’ is quite common in some definitions but what does it mean?

13. Contextualised literacy
Contextualised literacy and numeracy is primarily an essential skills programme, not a workplace skills/vocational programme

14. Embedded literacy
In embedded programmes, literacy and numeracy learning happens through a workplace skills/vocational programme

15. What is embedded learning?
Vocational skills and knowledge
Literacy, language and numeracy skills
Embedded
teaching
and learning

16. Research shows: Embedded approaches lead to ………
Higher retention and achievement rates on vocational courses
Achievement of literacy/language qualifications
Achievement of numeracy qualifications
Learners stating that they felt better prepared for work in the future
NRDC, 2006, ‘Embedding literacy, language and numeracy in post-16 vocational programmes – the impact on teaching and learning’

17. Using this in the classroom
Avoid dense text based resources
Consider your learner - Visual/Auditory/Kinaesthetic
Be careful with Powerpoint
Provide class-notes

18. Using this in the classroom
Provide lists of complicated words
Provide worked examples (numeracy)
Using technology
Provide methods for memorising
Liaison with Essential Skills tutor

19. Spelling test
Write down the words
Check your spelling

20. Diarrhoea
Accommodation
Separate
Rhythm
Necessary

21. Spelling test
How did you do?

22. Techniques Mneumonics Example of a mnemonic Acronyms
Look/cover/write/check
Cloze procedures
Words within words
Word/picture association Example
Rhyming
Eg. righty tighty/lefty loosey

23. Task Developing your own Resource
Think about a topic for a lesson taken from your own vocational area.
Identify the literacy and numeracy requirements for this topic.
Develop a resource or resources to support essential skills during the delivery of the lesson.