Identifying, assessing, and instructing adult learners of English Functioning Levels (EFL) 1 and 2

Beginning ABE Literacy (English Functional Levels (EFL) 1) and Beginning Basic Education (EFL 2) learners experience foundational reading skill gaps. When confronted with literacy tasks, these gaps are sometimes masked by the learners’ ability to compensate with knowledge or inferential ability. Nonetheless, the learners’ needs are best addressed with direct instruction at the word, sentence, and passage levels. Addressing these needs requires assessment to identify the specific learning gaps, knowledge of the reading development, and knowledge of effective instructional practices and techniques. It also requires that educators have a sense of the different subpopulations of adults who most typically present with this low level of reading ability (that is, those just recently learning the English language or those with identified or un-identified reading impairments). From this presentation, you will learn how to identify learners at EF level, how different subpopulations might present, and how to use specific exercises, resources, and instructional tips for teaching adult learners at levels one and two. One resource you can access after this webinar is SARA. Currently named the ETS Reading Diagnostic on CaptiVoice. SARA is a reading assessment featuring six subtests to follow your students’ fundamental reading skills and their progress over time.