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30- to 45-minute conversation

Administered in person or online

Focuses on educational history and experience

Includes administration instructions

MTML Screening Tool Features

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MTML Screening Tool …continued

Purpose	What it isn’t
Used to decide whether the individual would benefit from a literacy assessment	A literacy assessment

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Screening Tool vs Literacy Assessment

	Screening Tool	Literacy Assessment
Definition	An interview or testing process that identifies areas which may warrant further examination	A tool or process that provides more in-depth evaluation of reading, writing and/or numeracy skills
Purpose	To determine if a literacy assessment is warranted	To identify literacy skill gaps
Target users	Anyone who has received orientation to the specific tool MTML’s Screening Tool is intended to be used by ES providers, OW caseworkers and LBS providers	Typically administered by literacy professionals, who may also require training on specific tools
Characteristics	Quick to administer, score and see results; not intended to be conclusive or diagnostic	Can be conclusive and used to inform skills programming; requires time to administer, score and produce results

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Pilot 2022-23 Overview & Findings

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Background

Literacy networks were funded to explore assessment services for potential or current Better Jobs Ontario (BJO) clients with funding through the Office of Skills for Success via the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development

Goal is to support BJO candidates to ensure they have the skills and support they need to be successful in their training program

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Activities & Timeline

The purpose of the pilot was to learn how the tool performs in order to produce a final product that is time efficient, easy to use and easy to score.

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Pilot Findings

Six pilot sites administered a total of 84 assessments
About 60% were administered in person and 40% online
About 60% of those assessed were considering applying for BJO and almost 40% were interested in BJO
Those assessed have varying levels of education
More than half took 30 to 45 minutes, and about one third took less than 30 minutes
Assessors determined that 63% of those assessed would benefit from a literacy assessment

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Pilot Findings …continued

Assessors found the tool helpful and easy to use

Provides a means of gathering information that might otherwise take weeks within a program context

Reflects the questions that LBS providers ask at intake, combined into one easy-to-use tool

Allows for a nice conversational flow

Enables assessors to establish an appropriate tone

Effectively elicits information needed to confidently determine whether a literacy assessment is warranted

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Pilot Findings …continued

Learners responded positively:

of respondents indicated that the conversation gave them a chance to reflect on their education and experience, and was helpful

of respondents indicated that the conversation helped them identify next steps

100%

99%

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Pilot Findings

It can be used with current and potential BJO candidates, individuals accessing Employment Ontario services, as well as OW recipients more generally
There is considerable interest in the screening tool amongst target users: LBS providers, ES providers and OW caseworkers
Use of the screening tool by ES providers and OW caseworkers can lead to increased referrals to LBS
While pilot constraints likely played into it, there was little uptake from ES providers to participate in the pilot last year

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MTML’s Plan for 2023-24

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In 2023-24, MTML plans to expand the use of the Screening Tool by:

Conducting outreach with ES providers and OW caseworkers
Offering training
Collecting and analyzing data on the use of Screening Tool and associated referral processes
Revising the Screening Tool, if required
Preparing recommendations on how to further enhance integration and alignment of LBS services and BJO

MTML Activities

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After this orientation, LBS providers can choose to:

Opportunities for LBS providers

Use the tool independently

Administer the tool as part of MTML’s 2023-24 project activities

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LBS providers who opt to administer the Screening Tool as part of MTML’s 2023-24 project activities are asked to:

Administer the tool with a set number of current or potential LBS learners
Keep a record of each administration

Opportunities cont’d

MTML will compensate providers $100 for each administration and allocate $25 for each individual who is screened.

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Administering the Screening Tool

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Purpose & Applicability

The screening tool is used to decide:

whether the individual would benefit from a literacy assessment

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Administering the Tool

Follow the instructions in the Screening Tool:

Introduce
Conduct the interview
Consider earlier interactions (optional)
Review and decide
Share results and conclude

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Introduce

Use the instructions on

page 1 to:

Thank the individual for their time
Tell the individual what to expect

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Conduct the interview

Use the questions and probes on pages 2-4 to guide a conversation.

Listen for indicators listed.

Ask additional questions if necessary to help decide whether the individual would benefit from a literacy assessment
Use probes as needed to determine whether the indicators apply

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Educational Background

Questions are consistent with those asked by LBS providers to understand learners and their needs

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Educational Experiences

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Reading and Writing Habits

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Future Learning

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Conduct the interview …continued

Make it conversational:

Reword questions to make them sound more like a natural part of the conversation
Ask the questions in whatever order keeps the conversation flowing
Acknowledge successes and challenges expressed by participant
Where we have provided more than one way to ask the same question, choose the one that sounds more natural

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Consider earlier interactions (optional)

If available, consider:

Earlier interactions with the participant
Written documentation and communications

Look for indicators listed

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Review and decide

Consider the combination of indicators to determine whether the individual would benefit from a literacy assessment.

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Share results and conclude

Share the results with the participant

If a literacy assessment is warranted, explain what will happen next, e.g.,

you will conduct the literacy assessment
you will schedule the assessment

Thank the individual for their time

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