Skills for Life: Fostering Creativity

As the global economy and workforce are constantly being diversified with a greater emphasis on technology, 21st Century citizens are required to acquire basic digital literacy competencies. In this brief, we examine the concept of literacy and digital literacy. Then, we review the latest digital literacy studies in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the European Commission, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Lastly, we provide suggestions by comparing digital literacy studies, including ICT studies, in South Korea with international literacy assessment metrics. This brief aims to contribute to developing digital literacy measurements applicable to ICT in education internationally and mitigate the digital divide.

Skills for Life: Digital Literacy

As the global economy and workforce are constantly being diversified with a greater emphasis on technology, 21st Century citizens are required to acquire basic digital literacy competencies. In this brief, we examine the concept of literacy and digital literacy. Then, we review the latest digital literacy studies in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the European Commission, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Lastly, we provide suggestions by comparing digital literacy studies, including ICT studies, in South Korea with international literacy assessment metrics. This brief aims to contribute to developing digital literacy measurements applicable to ICT in education internationally and mitigate the digital divide.

Assessing methodology of banks' ratings and their competitive positions: overview of main rating agencies

This paper analyzes methodologies of credit rating assessment of major rating agencies, with the focus on Fitch Ratings (Fitch). The methodology data were collected from Fitch Ratings. Also, the article review international literacy for factors and indicators adequacy in rating assessments. The purpose of this research is to overview literacy for the primary methodologies of banks' credit rating assessment. It was explained that ratios from financial indicators are most important for credit rating assessment. In some cases, in sovereign countries, support and macroeconomic factors are significant. We concluded that this area is still not enough researched and that in the future, the number of studies will appear with different methodological proposals and improvements.

The Joy of Having a Book in Your Own Language: Home Language Books in a Refugee Education Centre

In 2018, Aotearoa/New Zealand increased its annual refugee quota to 1000. When refugees arrive in Aotearoa/New Zealand they spend six weeks in a resettlement programme. During this time, children attend an introduction to schooling. First language (L1) literacy support for children experiencing education in a medium that is not their Home Language has been identified as essential for children’s educational success. This knowledge is reflected in Principle 4 of the International Literacy Association’s Children’s Rights to Read campaign, which states that “children have the right to read texts that mirror their experiences and languages...”. In 2018, the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY)-Yamada Foundation granted funding to IBBY in Aotearoa/New Zealand (IBBYNZ)/Storylines to supply books in the Home Languages of the refugee children in the introduction to school programme. Over 350 books were sourced in a range of languages including Farsi, Arabic, Tamil, Punjabi, Burmese, Karen, Chin, and Spanish. In this article, the sourcing of these books and their introduction to children in a refugee resettlement programme is described. Interviews with five teachers in the resettlement programme concerning the use of the books and how children and their families have been responding are reported. Future programme developments are outlined.

An analysis of the results of literacy assessments conducted in South African primary schools

Background: South African primary school learners have participated in several national and international literacy (reading and writing) studies that measure learners’ achievement in different grades and at different intervals. Numerous scholars have analysed the results of these assessments. We extended their analyses by investigating the grade coverage and the aspects of literacy that were included in these assessments, as well as whether the learners’ home language impacts their results.Aim: The authors aim to determine how reliable the results of these assessments are in improving and informing policies relating to literacy teaching in primary schools and to provide recommendations to improve the administration of literacy assessments.Method: Literature on various national and international literacy studies that were conducted in South African primary schools from 2000 to 2016 was identified and analysed according to grade, province, languages in which the assessments were conducted, aspects of literacy that were included in the assessments and the accuracy of the results.Results: The analysis provides evidence that suggests that most literacy assessments target learners in the Intermediate Phase (Grades 4–6) and are not available in all 11 South African official languages. Presently, there are no large-scale literacy assessments for Foundation Phase (Grades 1–3) learners. Moreover, the results of these assessments do not provide us with reliable information about literacy levels in the country because there are vast discrepancies in assessment scores.Conclusion: This article highlights the importance of obtaining reliable information in determining literacy levels in the country and in informing decisions regarding literacy-related policies.

Have you Heard? Newsworthy items from the field

A report from Grantmakers for Education sheds some light on the projects teachers are seeking to fund through DonorsChoose. A Fordham Institute study finds that students whose teachers are more rigorous graders perform better on end-of-course exams. And these effects persist into subsequent courses. A new report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development finds that teenagers’ career aspirations are increasingly narrow and do not necessarily align with labor market trends. The International Literacy Association has released its annual What’s Hot in Literacy report.

From Snowflakesto Avalanche: Meet Laura Purdie Salas, the Puzzle Poet

Laura Purdie Salas grew up in Florida, currently lives in Minnesota, is a former teacher, and is now a prolific poet and frequent presenter with more than 130 books to her credit. She has authored both poetry and nonfiction, as well as resource books for educators and aspiring writers. Her work has been recognized with multiple awards, including selection as a National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Notable book, an International Literacy Association Teachers’ Choice, and a Junior Library Guild Selection.