WHAT STUDENTS KNOW AND CAN DO

FAIRFAX COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS MARCH 2013 WHAT STUDENTS KNOW AND CAN DO OECD Test for Schools (based on PISA)--Reading

Question #1 More than one –half (52%) of the world’s adult illiterate population lives in ______ .

FOUR CORNERS 1 2 3 4

FOUR CORNERS

Did You Know... More than one-half (52%) of the world's adult illiterate population lives in South and West Asia. UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) estimates that twenty percent of all adults, or 774 million, are not literate. Of those who aren’t literate, two-thirds are women. In addition, there are 75 million children who are not attending school and therefore not on the path to become literate.

Question # 2 According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, about __% of American adults have minimal literacy skills.

Did You Know... According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, about 22%of American adults have minimal literacy skills. Some are functionally illiterate in that they can read some words but not enough to understand simple forms or instructions. Nearly two-thirds of this group did not complete their education through high school. Many of this group are immigrants, others have visual difficulties, while others have other physical, mental, or psychological conditions. Adult with low literacy levels are more likely to be homeless or unemployed, or hold very low paying jobs.

Question # 3 In the United States alone, one in __ persons can barely read a job offer or utility bill.

In the United States alone, one in seven persons (i.e., over 40 million people) can barely read a job offer or utility bill, which arguably makes them functionally illiterate in a developed country such as the US. In 2003 the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL), conducted by the US Department of Education, found that fourteen percent of American adults scored at this “below basic” level in prose literacy. More than half of these persons did not have a high-school diploma or GED. Thirty-nine percent of persons at this level were Hispanic; twenty percent were Black; and thirty-seven percent were White.

FCPS PISA PILOT SCHOOLS FAIRFAX COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 1. CHANTILLY 2. FALLS CHURCH 3. HAYFIELD 4. HERNDON 5. MOUNT VERNON 6. OAKTON 7. LEE 8. JEFFERSON 9. WOODSON 10. LANGLEY

Six Levels of Reading Proficiency in PISA The reading part of the OECD Test for Schools focuses on students’ ability to use written information in situations they encounter in life. Reading literacy in the OECD Test for Schools is defined as: “understanding using, reflecting on and engaging with written texts, in order to achieve one’s knowledge and potential, and to participate in society.” This definition goes beyond the traditional notion of the decoding of information and literal interpretation of what is written, towards more applied tasks.

Performance-International Context Figure 5.2 FAIRFAX COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

JUST THE FACTS NEXT STEPS

IN CLOSING… FAIRFAX COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7nCfRDCcT4&list=PL9F53DAD60DBA92B7

WHAT STUDENTS KNOW AND CAN DO