Detailed Sample Task: EAL Literacy

CLB 2L - Reading
Getting Things Done

Employment - At the Workplace

Real-World Task

Read a simple pay stub to find your name, job position and net earnings.

Planning Context

Helpful Knowledge:

Basic vocabulary related to working, including pay, job and pay stub.
Basic formatted text including pay stubs.

Context:

It is important to be able to find information on your employment documents, including your pay stub. You are responsible for ensuring that you are paid for all the hours you worked. It is important to be able to understand how different amounts are taken from your pay cheque directly for different reasons.

Vocabulary and Grammar

Sample Vocabulary:

Sample Grammar:

Basic conventions of punctuation.
High frequency terms related to personal identity.
Basic syntax related to work order.

Knowledge and Strategies

Textual and Functional Knowledge:

Recognizing text types and genre.
Typical formats in sequencing and wording information for specific purposes.
Common written formats such as forms and pay stubs).

Sociolinguistic Knowledge:

Formal and informal language.

Activities and Tasks

Sample Skill-Building Activities:

Elicit learner stories about their work experiences and their basic knowledge of payroll deductions. Record these stories.
Listen to the instructor read aloud a simple description of how much someone is paid per hour and what deductions they pay each pay period.
Circle key words on a text as it is read aloud about how much someone is paid per hour and what deductions they pay each pay period.
Copy information into a pay stub template.
Listen to a simple description of a pay stub and then answer true/ false questions read aloud from the instructor.
Match vocabulary words related to pay and employment to visuals.
Match words about pay such as hourly rate and date of pay to corresponding numbers.
From a short, simple instructor-made story on the topic, have learners listen as the instructor reads, following with their finger. Have learners repeat after the instructor to match intonation and fluency. Finally, have learners read the story as a group, and then individually.

Sample Skill-Using Tasks:

Read a simple pay stub and tell your partner what the job is and what the net earnings are.
Read a simple pay stub and answer true/ false questions orally about the job position and net earnings, identifying your own pay stub from others.

Sample Assessment Tasks:

Read a simple pay stub to find your name, job position and net earnings. Responses may include underlining or highlighting the correct information.

Teaching Considerations

Cultural Considerations:

In most contexts in Canada, it is considered impolite to ask someone how much money they earn. However, it is important to understand information related to your own pay stub.
Many people have gendered expectations around work; however,  in Canada, people of all genders can do all work. Men and women should be paid the same amount for doing the same work.
Your employer expects you to check your pay stub to ensure you  were paid the correct amount for any pay period.

Digital Literacy Strategies:

Successful completion of some tasks may require some baseline digital knowledge and skills.

Learners may need to:

Scan online resources to find information.
Locate, navigate and use websites.

Instructors can:

Use digital tools such as translation or pronunciation tools to support language learning and foster autonomous learning.
Introduce websites that are relevant to the task(s).
Support learners in finding, navigating and using websites.

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Indigenization Strategies:

Instructors can:

Use diverse representations of people in all your learning resources and images, including people who are 2SLGBTQIA+, Indigenous, Francophone and of other cultures, and people who have disabilities or who are neurodivergent.
Recognize that people who identify as women may not have had independent access to employment and finances related to employment. Make sure these learners are aware of their rights in Canada and the resources that are available to them.

Trauma-informed Strategies:

Possible Trauma Triggers:

Filling in forms and dealing with authority can be triggering for learners who have experienced trauma, especially for learners who have been in unsafe situations or have been in a political regime.

Strategies

Make sure that learners are always aware of the purpose of the form and be ready to provide support if needed.

Resources

Outings, Guest Speaker Suggestions, Extension Activities:

Evaluate a work calendar and calculate how many hours the individual worked in the pay period.
Use a calculator to calculate the total gross pay for a pay period  based on hours worked x hourly rate.
Attend a free tax clinic for newcomers.

Realia:

Simplified pay stubs and other invoices
A word wall of sight word vocabulary related to pay and employment

Units and Modules:

Tutela. CLB 3 Job Basics. Printable Books. (adapt for the CLB 2L level).
Avenue Course Builder:
- Get Help at Work CLB 2

Lessons and Activities:

Multimedia:

Tutela. ESL Image Bank: Banking and Finance