Glossary
Clarifying Key Terms for Better Understanding.
The Glossary helps instructors and learners understand important terms used throughout the Language for Success toolkit. It provides clear, simple definitions that support easier navigation, stronger comprehension, and more confident use of CLB and Skills for Success concepts in learning and workplace contexts.
Adaptability
Skills for Success defines adaptability as the ability to achieve or adjust goals and behaviours when expected or unexpected change occurs, by planning, staying focused, persisting, and overcoming setbacks.
Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB)
The CLB are recognized as the official Canadian standards for describing, measuring and recognizing the language proficiency of adult immigrants and prospective immigrants in both English and French.
Can Do Statements
Using examples from Language for Succes (LFS), learners are able to describe what they can do. The purpose of these statements is to make LFS user-friendly and accessible.
Collaboration
Skills for Success defines collaboration as the ability to contribute and support others to achieve a common goal.
Communication
Skills for Success defines communication as the ability to receive, understand, consider, and share information and ideas through speaking, listening, and interacting with others.
Communicative language ability
The ability to understand and communicate messages effectively and appropriately for different contexts. This ability requires an integration of language knowledge, skills and strategies.
Digital
Skills for Success defines digital as the ability to use digital technology and tools to find, manage, apply, create and share information and content.
EAL
English as an Additional Language
ESL
English as a Second Language
Essential Skills (ES)
These were the skills originally identified as the skills needed to work successfully in Canada. Skills for Success is an expanded and revised document based on national and international research.
Language for Success (LFS)
A framework that supports language, workforce, and workplace training design and instruction. It draws on the Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) to provide insight into the language needed to demonstrate the nine Skills for Success (SFS).
Language Skills
The core language skills of Communication, Reading and Writing in LFS. The framework shows the relationship between SFS and CLB levels.
Learning activities
Online self-directed learning activities designed for LFS. These activities demonstrate how LFS can be used by learners or instructors. They span a variety of skills and levels/stages.
Literacy learners
Learners in language programs or workplace training programs who have literacy needs. They may have interrupted education and may not be fully literate in any language.
National Occupation Classification (NOC)
Non-language Skills
The six “other” (non-language) skills of Adaptability, Collaboration, Creativity and Innovation, Digital, Numeracy and Problem Solving which are often used in combination with language skills.
Numeracy
Skills for Success defines numeracy as the ability to find, understand, use, and report mathematical information presented through words, numbers, symbols, and graphics.
Occupational Language Analysis (OLA)
An OLA defines the CLB levels required to perform tasks related to specific jobs as defined in the Essential Skills Profiles and additional information found in the National Occupational Classifications (NOC).
Pre-Essential Skills (Pre-ES)
This term was used with the old Essential Skills that were replaced by SFS. It meant that the CLB level fell below the ES scale. Features were extrapolated from the CLB to present characteristics of tasks to help learners build the abilities needed to eventually accomplish ES tasks.
Problem Solving
Skills for Success defines problem solving as the ability to identify, analyze, propose solutions, and make decisions. Problem solving helps the learner to address issues, monitor success, and learn from the experience.
Promising practices
A practice that shows potential for developing into a best practice. A promising practice is often found at the early stages of implementation and does not yet demonstrate the evidence for a best practice.
Reading
Skills for Success defines reading as the ability to find, understand, and use information presented through words, symbols, and images.
Self-assessments
Tools designed for LFS to help learners better understand their own language skills within a workplace context. The self-assessments are based on the CLB and Skills for Success (SFS), and they give the learner an approximate idea of their SFS level.
Skills for Success (SFS)
A national framework that identifies nine key skills needed for work, learning and life.
Tasks
Practical applications and demonstrations of language abilities; practical activities or actions that result from using language.
Test of Workplace Essential Skills (TOWES)
A suite of assessment and training products that use authentic Canadian work and life content to assess and improve critical skills for success in working, learning and life. These tools measure and build reading, document use and numeracy skills.
Transferable Skills
Competencies a person must have to be effective at work that can be applied across different jobs and industries. LFS helps identify and understand the transferable skills between CLB and SFS.
Writing
Skills for Success defines writing as the ability to share information using written words, symbols, and images.