The Office of Literacy and Essential Skills (OLES), Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC), commissioned a research project to help update the computer use element of its Essential Skills framework.

This audio file is part of a podcast describing the project. In it, the manager of OLES’s policy and research group talks about the part of the project that looked at tools and procedures currently used to assess people's proficiency with regard to digital skills.

The research identified three types of assessment: test-based assessment based on defined skills indicators; assessment based on self-reporting; and qualitative assessment. Research has shown that both self-reporting and qualitative methods like observational assessment are limited in their ability to provide solid, broad-based conclusions.

Test-based assessment methods can provide more solid information, as long as the tests are themselves broadly based and offer insights into cognitive proficiency as well as technical skills.