PRIAK

The Pre-accredited Initial Assessment Kit (PRIAK) provides standardised assessment tools for determining the oracy, reading and writing skills of adults wishing to access pre-accredited language and/or literacy programs. Initial assessment is conducted before placing a new learner in a pre-accredited language and literacy class. It assesses their entry-level skills.

Recent research in the ACFE Southern Metropolitan Region in 2016 revealed a growing appreciation of the educational value of assessing skills levels of adults accessing language and literacy programs before placing them in pre-accredited classes. Moreover, Learn Local managers and pre-accredited language and literacy teachers considered that the development of a common approach to initial assessment and the development of a kit of assessment tasks to be used across the region would provide standardisation and improve learner outcomes (see Word for Word Implementation Report available on www.klckeys.com.au ).

Standardised assessment will:

• reduce the number of mixed-level classes, which can be highly stressful for teachers, make planning a very time-consuming process and are wasteful of in-class time

• provide the teacher with valuable initial information about the learners and their needs

• increase the effectiveness of planning, teaching and learning

• provide a common language across the region for talking about language and literacy skills levels

• provide a common understanding of what learners can do at each level.

The levels described in PRIAK relate to skills levels (performance) described in the Australian Core Skills Framework (ACSF). However:

PRIAK describes entry levels, i.e. what people can do before they start a class. It is used to determine which level they need to begin to study.

ACSF: describes exit levels of people who are already in a class, i.e. what they can do after they have received tuition, where both tuition and tasks have focussed mainly on workplace language and literacy.

Consequently, many other available assessment tasks are unsuitable for adults who have not yet experienced the Australian workplace or benefitted from instruction designed to develop the associated language and literacy skills.

PRIAK provides assessment tasks that are customised specifically for adults accessing pre-accredited language and literacy programs.

For queries, please contact Neil Cooper, General Manager of Keysborough Learning Centre and Project Manager on neil@klckeys.com.au