LANGUAGE, LITERACY

AND NUMERACY
ASSESSMENT

Student first name: ____________________________________________________________________________

Student last name: ____________________________________________________________________________

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

www.arizonacollege.com.au | P: 1800 512 237 | info@arizonacollege.com.au
 LANGUAGE, LITERACY AND NUMERACY ASSESSMENT

All students are asked to complete this language, literacy and numeracy assessment prior to entry into a course.
The purpose of this test is to determine whether you may require additional support in order to complete the course
successfully. This way, we can tell you prior to your enrolment if we are able to provide the level of support you
require or if you might need to seek support from external agencies.
You may use a calculator, but it is not required. You may use additional paper and you can draft your responses
elsewhere if required. Completion of the test should be supervised.
Some questions are harder than others. Please answer all questions to the best of your ability. If you can’t answer a
question, don’t worry – just move to the next one.

Student name: _______________________________________________________________________________

Qualification: ________________________________________________________________________________

Delivery mode: _______________________________________________________________________________

Trainer/assessor: _____________________________________________________________________________

ORAL COMMUNICATION

1. Why do you want to do this course?

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

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2. How do you learn best?

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

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3. What have you learnt recently? How did you learn it? Did you:
 read instructions
 ask somebody to demonstrate it to you first
 research it on the internet
 find something similar to what you required and then adapt it
 ask an expert to help you?

4. Think of a problem/issue that you recently solved. How did you solve it? Did you:
 use diagrams to help understand the problem
 work backwards from the problem to find a possible solution
 get a group of people together to work it out
 research newspaper articles
 look for information online
 speak to an expert in that area
 brainstorm it?

READING AND WRITING

5. You are the Manager of Special Projects at a community services organisation. You have a Project Manger
reporting to you.

A project that you allocated to the Project Manager looks like it’s not going to be completed by the deadline.
The project manager takes actions to try to put it back on track. Later that week she calls a project meeting
of all supervisors and key players to create a strategy to keep the project running on schedule.

The week after the project meeting she is going to have a meeting with you. You have a concern that the
project is not going to be completed. You’re not clear what strategy she put in place with all the supervisors
and key players.

(Reference: Leadership Activities – www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/styles.html)

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

www.arizonacollege.com.au | P: 1800 512 237 | info@arizonacollege.com.au
What would you say to her during the meeting to address your concerns?

6. Please read the following article and answer the questions below.
In terms of definition, ‘prevention’ usually refers to activities aimed at stopping a problem from commencing.
‘Early intervention’ relates to activities targeted at problems that are already evident with the aim of
stopping their further development as early as possible. The distinction between the two terms is relevant to
the stage of problem development, rather than age of the young person or length of time the person has
been known to a particular agency.

Within the youth support sector, ‘prevention’ is also used to refer to activities which aim to avoid the need
for more intrusive or intensive interventions — for example, providing supervised activities for 13 to 15 year
olds as a diversion from risk taking behaviour.

These activities can be undertaken with young people already experiencing significant issues in other areas
of their life (i.e. those which have not been prevented), or in anticipation of issues that they may be at
future risk of developing (i.e. those which may still be prevented, such as unwanted pregnancy or sexually
transmitted infections). Identifying and responding to risk factors is intended as an early intervention
strategy to inhibit future problem development.

(Reference: Youth at Risk Initiative – Consultation Report Summary June 2011, Queensland Government:
Department of Communities)

a. What does the term ‘prevention’ mean and how is this applied in the youth support sector?

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

www.arizonacollege.com.au | P: 1800 512 237 | info@arizonacollege.com.au
 b. What is meant by the term ‘early intervention’?

c. The writer makes the distinction between ‘prevention’ and ‘early intervention’. In your own words, please
explain what you think the distinction is between these two approaches.

d. Under what circumstances do you think ‘prevention’ activities in the youth sector should be adopted?

e. Under what circumstances do you think ‘early intervention’ activities in the youth sector should be adopted?

7. Please read the following sections of the report and answer the questions below

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

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The annual Australian Community Sector Survey (ACSS) of community services across Australia has
reported a number of key findings. One of the focuses of this survey is the extent to which the GFC (Global
Financial Crisis) has impacted the community sector and the people who access the services offered by
community organisations. One of the key findings of the report is as follows:
‘Despite areas of increased spending to assist those worst affected by the GFC (Global Financial Crisis),
community welfare organisations struggled to meet the increased demand for assistance experienced
during and after the crisis. Welfare agencies reported increased demand for services across the board, with
emergency relief providers noting a marked increase in the numbers of people requesting assistance for
the first time, including employed people on low fixed incomes and those struggling to meet mortgage
repayments and other housing costs’.
Alongside the increase in the client numbers seeking services, there was also an increase in the complexity
of client needs.

As more complex needs typically require more time and resource-intensive services, this may have
contributed to fewer clients being serviced, while at the same time resulting in a heightening of demand and
increased number of people being turned away. This placed added stress on organisations, and
underscores the need for government programs and policies (including funding models) that better support
holistic service delivery and coordination.

As a result of people being turned away, many people are unable to access essential social assistance or
support – a situation which ultimately risks reinforcing and compounding the extent and complexity of social
disadvantages

(Reference: Australian Community Sector Survey: ACOSS Paper 173, Volume 1 National)

a. What has been the impact of the GFC on community welfare organisations?

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

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b. What has been the impact of the GFC on people wanting to access the services of community welfare
organisations?

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

www.arizonacollege.com.au | P: 1800 512 237 | info@arizonacollege.com.au
 c. When the report refers to ‘complexity of client needs’, what do you think the writer is referring to?

d. How does the ‘complexity of client needs’ impact the extent to which other people can access community
services?

e. What is the report referring to when it states ‘a situation which ultimately risks reinforcing and compounding
the extent of complexity of social disadvantages’? What does this mean?

8. The profile of people of who used the services of welfare organisations in the survey included:
 young people between the ages of 15–24
 single parents
 people who were jobless
 people from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds.

Choose one of these community groups and answer the following questions.

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

www.arizonacollege.com.au | P: 1800 512 237 | info@arizonacollege.com.au
 a. Write down 3 reasons why you think your chosen community group used the services of community welfare
organisations during the GFC?

b. If you had the opportunity to make a difference to your chosen community group, what difference would
you make? Why?

NUMERACY
The annual Australian Community Sector Survey (ACSS) of community services across Australia was conducted
throughout November/December 2010 and covers the period from 1 July 2009–30 June 2010. A total of 745

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

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agencies completed the survey, responding on issues relating to service provision, income and expenditure,
operational, policy, and workforce issues for the community services sector.

9. The data in this chart represents the number of survey returns by state and territories. Using the data in the pie
chart, answer the questions below.

TAS, 45
NT, 40 WA, 95 VIC, 60

SA, 85

NSW, 218 QLD, 133

ACT, 70

a. Rank the states and territories from highest to lowest using the number of surveys returned by each state and
territory as the criteria.

b. Calculate what % (out of 745 surveys) each of the states and territories number of surveys represents.

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

www.arizonacollege.com.au | P: 1800 512 237 | info@arizonacollege.com.au
c. Calculate what fraction (out of the 745 surveys) each of the states and territories number of surveys
represents.

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

www.arizonacollege.com.au | P: 1800 512 237 | info@arizonacollege.com.au
10. Answer the following questions:

a. Find the total of 23.7, 43.1 and 89 b. Multiply 56.8 by 8

Answer Answer

c. Divide 56.2 by 0.2 d. Find the value of x:

31

Answer Answer

e. Find the perimeter of a rectangle f. Find the area of a rectangle

W = 23m W = 23m
L = 8m L = 8m

Answer Answer

STUDENT DECLARATION

I agree that I have completed this test to the best of my ability and am aware that the test results will be used to
determine my current level of language, literacy and numeracy skills. This information will be used to determine any
additional support I may require in order to complete the course successfully.

Student Signature:

Student Name: Date:

Your Trainer/Assessor will discuss the test with you prior to finalising your enrolment.

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

www.arizonacollege.com.au | P: 1800 512 237 | info@arizonacollege.com.au
ASSESSOR’S USE ONLY

Student Name:

Assessors: Consider the student’s responses to the questions in each of the indicator areas below. Use the tables
on pages 2–9 of the Assessor’s Guide to ACSF as indicators of each level, showing the characteristics of each
level. The range of answers and characteristics for each of question is provided in the Assessor’s Guide to this tool.
The scores are indicative only. It is up to the assessor to determine whether, based on the outcomes of this test,
they believe the student could complete the course successfully or whether they may need additional support with
some areas.
Students require an LLN level that meets or exceeds the following:

Oral communication Level 5

Learning Level 4

Writing Level 4

Reading Level 4

Numeracy Level 4

The use of this test does not remove the need to consult with a Language, Literacy and Numeracy specialist or
external networks and agencies if and when required.
Oral Communication level is to be assessed based on the discussions held in the initial interview/pre-training review
session and questions 1–3.

Area Related Level Notes

Questions

Learning Level 1–4

Reading Level 5–7

Writing Level 5–7, 8 (a, b,

c)

Oral Communication 1–4 & Review

Level

Numeracy Level 8–9

I have assessed the student’s performance of the test against the performance indicators. Based on the results
obtained, the student:

Has demonstrated they have the required level of LL&N to enable them to complete the course
successfully with minimal support in this area required.

Does not have a sufficient level of LL&N skills and may require extensive additional support to complete
this course successfully. I am referring this student to be further assessed to determine the level of support
that can be offered with possible referral to external agencies if and when required.

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

www.arizonacollege.com.au | P: 1800 512 237 | info@arizonacollege.com.au
 Has demonstrated they may require additional support with LL&N and I am able to provide this. The
student and I will develop a support plan to ensure they are given the opportunity to develop their language,
literacy and/or numeracy skills to enable them to complete the course successfully.

* Please outline the arrangements made for supporting the student through the course.

Trainer/Assessor
Signature:

Trainer/Assessor Name: Date:

Arizona College | ABN: 61812404389 | RTO Code: 1412

www.arizonacollege.com.au | P: 1800 512 237 | info@arizonacollege.com.au