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FAQs

  1. What is TOWES?
  2. Why is it needed?
  3. Who uses TOWES?
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1.  What is TOWES?

TOWES (Test of Workplace Essential Skills) is a new test of workplace essential skills which has been developed in Canada. The TOWES bank of test items collectively form an assessment tool to measure essential skills in workplace settings.

This assessment tool is significantly different from other tests of literacy skills. It has sufficient items to discriminate across the full range of skill levels demanded by jobs in Canadian work-places. The test content is based on work-place documents and item responses mimic workplace tasks.

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2.  Why is it needed?

TOWES allows workplace practitioners to give employers useful information about how the skills of the workforce fit with job requirements. The methodology and scales developed for the Essential Skills Research Project allow the skill content of jobs to be described and rated in a uniform way.

TOWES provides complementary information about the skills which the workforce bring to the job, and highlight the 'fit' between skills needed and skills available. The test results are delivered in a framework based on the IALS levels and are consistent from one practitioner to another and from one workplace to another across Canada. It fits well with the development of national standards and performance-based assessments.

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3.  Who uses TOWES?

Several specific users and applications of the test are listed here. Others will evolve as TOWES takes its place in industry and education.

Entry-Level Assessment of Skills - TOWES gives employers a way to set reasonable and valid entry-level job requirements. Many employers have been using years-in-school or other credentials as proxies for ability. This is unfair to individuals, some of them foreign-born, who have the skills but not the educational credentials in Canada.

Educational Assessment - Instructors, trainers, and literacy tutors can use the information from TOWES to place workers in their programs and to design programs to meet individual educational needs.

Work/Worker Adjustment - Rapid changes in technology and work processes, together with plant closures and down-sizing, have created the need for effective adjustment programs. A wide-ranging test, keyed to essential skills descriptions for jobs listed in the National Occupational Classification gives workers and program developers a valid way to assess present skills and compare them to the requirements for a variety of possible jobs. Individual workers can use TOWES results to make decisions about future training.

School/Work Transition Programs - A valid and reliable test of the essential skills needed for work is useful to high-school teachers and administrators. TOWES provides a basis for certifying students' levels of competence, and a way to promote 'employability skills' to teachers and students alike.

Developing National Standards - An essential skills assessment tool may be used to set national standards and specify competence. It allows companies to assess workforce skills and make comparisons with other groups of workers.

Page Updated: Wednesday, October 25, 2006