Showing posts with label Reports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Reports. Show all posts

Monday, April 20, 2020

22 Creative Ways Kids Can Respond to Books ◯ WeAreTeachers

22 Creative Ways Kids Can Respond to Books
From mint tins to cereal boxes to T-shirts.
We Are Teachers: 2.25.2020 by Elizabeth Mulvahill

Reading about other people and perspectives helps kids learn beyond their own experiences. Students don’t need to dive deeply into every single book they read, but occasionally showing them how to dive in can help them view reading in different ways. Digging into characters (or settings or themes) from the books they read can really help them learn how to look beyond the prose. Here are 22 creative book report ideas designed to make reading more meaningful:

Fictional Yearbook Entries
Ask your students to create a yearbook based on the characters and setting in the book. What do they look like?

Current Events Comparison
Have students locate 3-5 current event articles a character in their book might be interested in.

Book Alphabet
Choose 15-20 alphabet books to help give your students examples of how they work around themes. Then ask your students to create their own Book Alphabet based on the book they read.

Reading Lists for Characters
Ask your students to think about a character in their book. What kinds of books might that character like to read?

Create a PSA
If a student has read a book about a cause that affects people, animals, or the environment, teach them about Public Service Announcements.

Be a Character Therapist
Therapists work to uncover their clients’ fears based on their words and actions.  READ MORE  ➤➤

Based on (7) readability formulas:
Grade Level: 10
Reading Level: standard / average.
Reader's Age: 14-15 yrs. old
(Ninth to Tenth graders)

Thursday, April 16, 2020

California :: U.S. Skills Map: State and County Indicators of Adult Literacy and Numeracy :: NCES

NCES: April 2020


The National Center for Education Statistics surveyed 12,330 U.S. adults ages 16 to 74 living in households during 2012 to 2017 for the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), an international study involving over 35 countries. Using small area estimation models, indirect estimates of literacy and numeracy proficiency have been produced for all U.S. states and counties. By using PIAAC survey data in conjunction with data from the American Community Survey, the Skills Map provides reliable estimates of adult literacy and numeracy skills in all 50 states, all 3,141 counties, and the District of Columbia.

At or below Level 1:   22% National est.
read short digital or print texts to locate a single piece of information

At Level 2:   32% National est.
make matches between the text, either digital or printed, and information, and may require paraphrasing or low-level inferences

At or above Level 3:   46% National est.
often dense or lengthy. Understanding text and rhetorical structures is often required, as is navigating complex digital texts

National Average Scale Score:   264 (between 1-500)

Top 10 States – At or below Level 1: 22%
11: NH
13: AK ME MN MT ND VT
14: WY
15: IA WI

Bottom 10 States – At or below Level 1
29: NM
28: CA MS TX
27: LA
25: NV
24: AL FL GA NY

States above National Average Scale Score: 264
279: MN NH
277: AK DC VT
276: ND
275: WA
274: UT

States below National Average Scale Score
252: LA MS NM
254: TX
255: NV
256: AR
257: CA
259: AL FL



Adult
2020: US Skills Map: State & County Indicators of Adult Literacy & Numeracy, NCES
2019: Adult Literacy in the United States, NCES 2019-179
2013: OECD Skills Outlook 2013: First Results from the Survey of Adult Skills, OECD
2009: Literacy of America's Least Literate Adults, NAAL 2003
2006: Literacy of America's College Students, AIR
2007: Literacy in Everyday Life, NAAL 2003
2003: National Assessment of Adult Literacy, NAAL
2000: Programs for Adults in Public Library Outlets, USDE, NCES
1992: National Adult Literacy Survey, NALS

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Literacy Gap Map :: Adult Illiteracy May Drive $1.4T Loss In GDP via Politico


Adult Illiteracy May Drive $1.4T Loss In GDP
Politico: 11.14.2019

The nation could counter those costs with the eradication of illiteracy — bringing all adults up to a level where they can interpret and infer information from complex texts — said Jonathan Rothwell, Gallup’s principal economist.

Rothwell said his findings help quantify a well-known relationship between literacy and earnings performance at the individual level and GDP at the macroeconomic level.

He conducted the analysis of existing data for the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy and presented the findings on Wednesday at the foundation’s inaugural National Summit on Adult Literacy.

The foundation also released a map showing literacy levels by county and the impact of literacy on health and income. More than 36 million adults in the U.S. lack basic literacy skills, according to the foundation, and there are many clusters of low-literacy counties in the South, particularly along the Mississippi River, in western Alabama and from Georgia up through the Carolinas.



Adult
2019: Adult Literacy in the United States, NCES 2019-179
2013: OECD Skills Outlook 2013: First Results from the Survey of Adult Skills, OECD
2009: Literacy of America's Least Literate Adults, NAAL 2003
2006: Literacy of America's College Students, AIR
2007: Literacy in Everyday Life, NAAL 2003
2003: National Assessment of Adult Literacy, NAAL
2000: Programs for Adults in Public Library Outlets, USDE, NCES
1992: National Adult Literacy Survey, NALS


Saturday, July 6, 2019

Adult Literacy in the United States :: NCES 2019-179


Adult Literacy in the United States

What are the rates of literacy in the United States?

Four in five U.S. adults (79 percent) have English literacy skills sufficient to complete tasks that require comparing and contrasting information, paraphrasing, or making low-level inferences—literacy skills at level 2 or above in PIAAC (OECD 2013).

In contrast, one in five U.S. adults (21 percent) has difficulty completing these tasks (figure 1). This translates into 43.0 million U.S. adults who possess low literacy skills: 26.5 million at level 1 and 8.4 million below level 1, while 8.2 million could not participate in PIAAC’s background survey either because of a language barrier or a cognitive or physical inability to be interviewed.

These adults who were unable to participate are categorized as having low English literacy skills, as is done in international reports (OECD 2013), although no direct assessment of their skills is available.

Adults classified as below level 1 may be considered functionally illiterate in English: i.e., unable to successfully determine the meaning of sentences, read relatively short texts to locate a single piece of information, or complete simple forms (OECD 2013)

What is the make-up of adults with low English literacy skills by nativity status and race/ethnicity?

U.S.-born adults make up two-thirds of adults with low levels of English literacy skills in the United States. However, the non-U.S. born are over-represented among such low-skilled adults.

Non U.S.-born adults comprise 34 percent of the population with low literacy skills, compared to 15 percent of the total population (figure 2).

by nativity status: 2012 and 2014. FIGURE 2

White and Hispanic adults make up the largest percentage of U.S. adults with low levels of English literacy, 35 percent and 34 percent respectively (figure 3).

By race/ethnicity and nativity status, the largest percentage of those with low literacy skills are White U.S.-born adults, who represent one third of such low-skilled population. Hispanic adults born outside the United States make up about a quarter of such low-skilled adults in the United States (figure 3).

Using the data from the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC)this Data Point summarizes the number of U.S. adults with low levels of English literacy and describes how they differ by nativity status1 and race/ethnicity.

PIAAC is a large-scale international2 study of working-age adults (ages 16–65) that assesses adult skills in three domains (literacy, numeracy, and digital problem solving) and collects information on adults’ education, work experience, and other background characteristics. In the United States, when the study was conducted in 2011–12 and 2013–14, respondents were first asked questions about their background, with an option to be interviewed in English or Spanish, followed by a skills assessment in English. Because the skills assessment was conducted only in English, all U.S. PIAAC literacy results are for English literacy.  READ MORE >>


Adult
2019: Adult Literacy in the United States, NCES 2019-179
2013: OECD Skills Outlook 2013: First Results-Survey of Adult Skills, OECD
2009: Literacy of America's Least Literate Adults, NAAL 2003
2006: Literacy of America's College Students, AIR
2007: Literacy in Everyday Life, NAAL 2003
2003: National Assessment of Adult Literacy, NAAL
2000: Programs for Adults in Public Library Outlets, USDE, NCES
1992: National Adult Literacy Survey, NALS


Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Oceanside Library :: An Assessment of the Library's Adult Literacy Program

An Assessment of the Library's Adult Literacy Program

A Report for the Oceanside Public Library

The Oceanside Public Library worked with Library Consultant Joseph Matthews from February to August 2018, and is now proud to share the result of Joe's hard work. Our many thanks to Joe for his dedicated research and discussion with people in Oceanside and the literacy community.

The proposal was requested to: "...review all aspects of the Library’s provision of literacy services for English-speaking adults... The Consultant’s recommendations may be applied to the Oceanside READS Literacy Program, or to any Adult Literacy services the Library may provide or coordinate.  The consultant will be expected to address the following areas and make recommendations:  --Community adult literacy needs and outcomes analysis --Progress and status tracking for adult learners --Resource management to meet objectives and service level needs --Tools and materials --Marketing and collaboration."

Executive Summary
The Oceanside Public Library (“the Library”) asked the consultant to review its operations related to the Oceanside READS Adult Literacy service (“READS”), and provide a set of recommendations based on the best practices from adult literacy services in other public libraries.

⬧ The Library management team, together with the READS Literacy Coordinator, should, on an annual basis, review its goals and track the overall performance of the program, to determine whether any changes need to be made.

⬧ If the READS program is to expand its reach, and grow to accommodate 50 or so learner/tutor pairs, then the Literacy Coordinator position will need to become a full-time position, and more space will need to be found to accommodate more learner/tutor pairs working together simultaneously.

⬧The Library should prepare a presentation that explains the availability and accomplishments of the READS program. The Library’s management team should ask to speak at civic clubs, churches and school PTA meetings, as a way to both promote the program and also to ask for people to encourage family members, friends and neighbors to visit the Library and become a learner or volunteer tutor.

⬧ The Library should ask staff members to make periodic visits to barber shops, beauty salons, laundromats, homeless shelters, soup kitchens, coffeehouses, ethnic grocery stores, doctors’ and dentists’ offices, and fast food restaurants, to deliver READS bookmarks and posters.

⬧ Bookmarks and posters should be visually appealing (use more pictures and less text), have a simple, targeted message; use few words (after all, the target audience for these marketing materials has difficulty reading); and use the language of the target audience.

⬧ The Library should add web links for tutor and learner resources to its website.

⬧ Part of the responsibilities of the Literacy Coordinator position should be to spend time in the community, to raise the visibility and awareness of the accomplishments of the READS program.

⬧ Even if the total number of learners were not increasing, the Library should begin discussions with the City of Oceanside to seek additional space for the READS program, and/or to remodel the space so that small study rooms, complete with sliding glass doors, and a ceiling made of sound-absorbing materials, are provided for each learner/tutor pair. Alternatively, the City could provide space for the READS program at another location, either as an addition to the existing location, or by relocating to one larger space altogether.

⬧ The READS program should continue to provide just-in-time assistance and coaching as needed by the tutors at the quarterly meetings. The READS program should consider developing a refresher course for tutors that is offered annually, and/ or encouraging more tutors to retake the initial training course.

 As part of the tutor orientation process, the Library should provide a tour of the Civic Center or Mission Branch Library to highlight the location of various collections, resources and services that might be of interest to the new learner, as well as encouraging frequent use of their Library card.

⬧ The READS program should seek to strengthen the existing partnerships as well as develop new partnerships.

⬧ The Library should report to its key stakeholders (Library Board, City Council, City Manager and the community itself) using a set of performance measures.  READ MORE >>

Thursday, February 8, 2018

IMLS Report: State Library Funding Still Suffering :: California :: Last - $1.05 per capita


IMLS Report: State Library Funding Still Suffering
Library Journal: 1.23.2018 by Lisa Peet

State Library Administrative Agencies (SLAA) across the country have largely still not recovered from the major decreases in revenue and staffing they experienced during the economic recession, according to the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) biennial State Library Administrative Agencies (SLAA) Survey, conducted in FY16.

California :: Long-Term Decline

“The SLAA report shows how many of the nation’s libraries continue to be financially challenged by the effects of the recession as they strive to maintain valued community services,” IMLS director Kathryn K. Matthew told LJ.

The report, the eighth such cooperative effort of the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA), IMLS, and American Institutes for Research, offers a look at long-term trends across the country, as well as contrasting the ways that different agencies have responded to decreases in funding as their public-facing work has grown. It tracks three sets of indicators: revenues and expenditures; workforce; and services provided.

Over the past 12 years SLAA revenues declined by over a fifth, with expenditures falling by 22 percent, according to the report. SLAAs rebounded slightly in 2014 but that didn’t last—as of FY16, both metrics are at their lowest levels since 2004. Revenues and expenditures of funds through the Library Services Technology Act (LSTA) decreased by 20 percent from 2004­–16.

In FY16, SLAA revenues totaled more than $1 billion across federal, state, and other revenue sources; 82 percent from states and 15 percent from federal sources. Expenditures came in at only slightly less, with two-thirds spent on financial assistance to libraries and a third going to operations.  READ MORE >>

California :: Last @ $1.05 per capita


Friday, November 24, 2017

California Library Literacy Services Annual Report :: 2014-15

Report to the Legislature on the California Library Literacy & English Acquisition Services Program: 2014-15

Executive Summary


Several million adults in California are unable to fully participate in the social, political and economic life of our state because they cannot read or write English. Improved literacy skills open the door to better employment opportunities, self-education, and the joys of reading.

For the past 30 years, the state has helped open that door for nearly a quarter of a million adult learners through the California Library Literacy Services (CLLS) program. CLLS supports Californians by providing services to low-literacy adults and their families through California public libraries.

In addition to helping adults learn to read and write, literacy programs are providing assistance with other necessary life skill needs by teaching digital and health literacy, delivering job skill training, and helping adults obtain their high school diplomas and U.S. citizenship. CLLS programs provide a gateway to success for many in their communities.

During the fiscal year ending June 30, 2015, 18,388 adult Californians participating in CLLS improved their reading skills with the help of close to 10,000 volunteers.

Gov. Brown added $1 million in one-time funds in fiscal year 2014/2015, enabling a baseline increase of 50% to each local program. Gov. Brown then restored $2 million to the program in the 2015-2016 fiscal year, demonstrating the priority this state puts on an informed and educated California.

The total number of locations providing services in fiscal year 2014/15 is 805, and that number will grow in 2015/2016 due to the increase in committed state funding and the ability to add new programs for the first time in four years.

Literacy services provide an excellent return on investment, as participating programs contribute local funds to support literacy effects – in fiscal year local contributions totaled $16,846,187, ($4.41 for each state dollar spent).  READ MORE >>

Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Volunteers Provide America $184 Billion Dollars in Value 2015

How do you provide America $184 billion dollars in value?
Volunteering and Civic Life in America

National, State, City, and Demographic Information


This site is home to the most comprehensive look at volunteering and civic life in the 50 states and 51 cities across the country. Data includes volunteer rates and rankings, civic engagement trends, and analysis.

Overall, the volunteer rate remained steady as 62.6 million Americans volunteered 7.8 billion hours last year. Based on the Independent Sector's estimate of the average value of a volunteer hour ($23.56 in 2015), the estimated value of this volunteer service is nearly $184 billion.  READ MORE @

Top 10 States
1    Utah
2    Minnesota
3    Wisconsin
4    South Dakota
5    Idaho
6    Nebraska
7    Kansas
8    Vermont
9    Alaska
10  Iowa

California is 34th

Sunday, August 21, 2016

Literacy Matters @IFLA :: #WLIC2016 | Library | Adult | Family | Children | Health

Tweet – Tweeter – Tweetest
Superlatives from SCLLN

Good afternoon UK! Tweets on children's literacy



#188 Important key to remember per Relander






@WLIC2016  

Library of Congress Literacy Awards:
recognize US & international literacy projects





Literacy Libraries Reading!




Delighted to be representing





Wonderful message from @IFLA's
Literacy Matters! Campaign
--resonates with this school librarian!





@IFLA Guidelines
to promote literacy and reading in libraries, 2011 ifla.org/files/assets/h






#WLIC2016 reading and literacy in the IFLA strategic plan







#WLIC2016 literacy program goals








Intentional Focus Leading to
Intentional Connections on Health Literacy






#WLIC2016 foundations of literacy




Leave no one behind
- key vision for UN sustainable development 
2030 needs Universal