Hi all,
I really messed up on my cross-post from the Assessment list.  I went back 
in the Assessment list archives, as I suggested you might do below, to find 
out the name and affiliation of their guest speaker.  I went back too far 
in the list and pulled the wrong one.  Sorry for any confusion!


The current speaker and information about their discussion is as follows:

Topic:  The NRS at the Local Level and Upcoming Changes to the NRS
Guest: Larry Condelli, Managing Director, Adult Education Group, American 
Institutes of Research
Recommended preparations for this discussion: You can read about developing 
assessments at:
Developing Performance Assessments for Adult Literacy Learners: A Summary 
for NRS Guidelines <http://www.nrsweb.org/reports/PerformanceAssessments.pdf>

Donna

At 3/23/2005 -050011:41 AM, you wrote:

>Hi Workplace list,

>This is a cross-post from the Assessment Discussion List where they are 

>having a guest speaker, Mark Kutner on the National Assessments of Adult 

>Literacy.  I thought this post contained information you might be 

>interested in.  I will cross post Mark Kutner's answers to these questions 

>when they come out on the assessment list.

>

>You also could go to the archived messages from their discussion list to 

>follow the discussion.  Click on "Discussions" on the Workforce Ed page at 

><http://worklink.coe.utk.edu/>  , then click on "Assessment List" , then 

>click "Read Posted Messages -- 2005" .  The messages will be in order of 

>the date of posting with the most recent first.

>

>Donna

>

>Donna JG Brian

>Moderator, NIFL Workplace Literacy Discussion List, and

>Coordinator/Developer LINCS Workforce Education Special Collection at 

>http://worklink.coe.utk.edu/

>Center for Literacy Studies at The University of Tennessee

>600 Henley Street, Suite 312

>Knoxville, TN 37996-4135

>

>865-974-3420 (desk phone) FAX 865-974-3857

>djgbrian at utk.edu

>

>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>>Date: Mon, 21 Mar 2005 13:08:08 -0500 (EST)

>>From: Marie Cora <marie.cora at hotspurpartners.com>

>>Subject: [NIFL-ASSESSMENT:1000] Upcoming changes to the NRS

>>Sender: nifl-assessment at nifl.gov

>>To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-assessment at literacy.nifl.gov>

>>Reply-to: nifl-assessment at nifl.gov

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>>

>>Hi everyone,

>>

>>As promised, I'm pasting below the two short documents (which will be at

>>the NRS site soon) that outline the changes to the NRS, for this year,

>>and for 2006.

>>Now is your opportunity to ask Larry any questions you might have about

>>these changes.

>>

>>I notice that one of the changes for this year is to align better with

>>DOL's reporting procedures.

>>

>>Larry, can you explain the reasons for this change?  Folks who work in

>>workplace ed programs or work with DOL, or whose program focus is on the

>>employment pieces - how might these changes affect your program and your

>>reporting?

>>

>>I note that for 2006, there is emphasis on shifting ESOL levels - looks

>>interesting what little I know/understand.  Larry, can you give us a

>>little background for the shift?  What do ESOL workers think - looks

>>like there's a shift to focus a bit more on the lower levels.

>>

>>Thanks!

>>

>>marie cora

>>

>>

>>

>>

>>

>>

>>

>>Proposed Changes for Program Year 2005 (Beginning July 1, 2005)

>>1.   Change Reporting for Employment Measures to Align with WIA Title I

>>Reporting.

>>*         We will change our reporting period for the employment

>>measures to match the Department of Labor's reporting period for Title I

>>programs.  Adult education's PY 2005 reporting will remain the same, but

>>in PY2006 employment measures will be reported again and employment will

>>follow Title I.   Survey states will need to begin surveying retained

>>employment in all quarters.

>>2.   There will be a new required table to record number and types of

>>local grantees.

>>*         This table will be similar to one that had been used in years

>>prior to the NRS.

>>3.   Status of Optional Tables.

>>*         Optional Table 10 (correctional education) will become

>>required.

>>

>>

>>

>>Proposed Changes for Program Year 2006 (Beginning July 1, 2006)

>>1.   Revise ESL Educational Functioning Levels to Eliminate High

>>Advanced Level and Add a New Beginning Level.

>>*         The beginning ESL level has about 30 percent of all ESL

>>learners and is quite broad, covering 20 points on CASAS, for example,

>>which makes it harder for students to advance out of the beginning

>>level. The High Advanced ESL level has also been problematic since exit

>>criteria have been undefined, and there were only about 43,000 students

>>(about 3.6% of all ESL students) enrolled nationally at the High

>>Advanced level each year.

>>

>>ED will split the beginning ESL into two levels (Low Beginning and High

>>Beginning) and drop High Advanced ESL. Other levels would remain as they

>>are. The table below illustrates the proposed change.

>>

>>Proposed ESL Educational Levels

>>Entry Benchmark CASAS

>>Entry Benchmark SPL Speaking

>>

>>ESL Literacy

>>180 and below

>>SPL 0-1

>>

>>Low Beginning ESL

>>181-190

>>SPL 2

>>

>>High Beginning ESL

>>191-200

>>SPL 3

>>

>>Low Intermediate ESL

>>201-210

>>SPL 4

>>

>>High Intermediate ESL

>>211-220

>>SPL 5

>>

>>Advanced ESL Literacy

>>221-235

>>SPL 6

>>

>>2.   Reporting of Level Advancement for Pre- and Post-tested Students

>>and Multiple Advancements (Tables 4a and 4b)

>>*         Table 4 remains the same and will still be required.

>>*         Table 4a, which measures multiple advancements in educational

>>functioning levels, will be discontinued.

>>*         Table 4b will be required for reporting. This table is the

>>same as Table 4, except only students who were both pre- and post-tested

>>are included.

>

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