Survey of Adult Skills – Reader's Companion

Annex A. Characteristics of all items used in the 2023 Survey of Adult Skills

Table A A.1. Literacy item map

Difficulty score	Level	Unit name	Item ID	Status	Cognitive processes	Source	Format	Context
75	Below 1	SGIH	C301C05	Trend	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	CC
260	2	TMN Antitheft	C305215	Trend	Accessing text	Single	Continuous	CC
309	3	TMN Antitheft	C305218	Trend	Understanding	Single	Continuous	CC
244	2	CANCO	D306110	Trend	Accessing text	Single	Continuous	WO
372	4	CANCO	D306111	Trend	Understanding	Single	Continuous	WO
169	Below 1	MEDCO	D307401	Trend	Understanding	Single	Continuous	P
288	3	MEDCO	D307402	Trend	Accessing text	Single	Continuous	P
272	2	Memory Training	C310406	Trend	Accessing text	Single	Continuous	P
312	3	Memory Training	C310407	Trend	Understanding	Single	Continuous	P
303	3	Civil Engineering	E318001	Trend	Understanding	Single	Continuous	ET
316	3	Civil Engineering	E318003	Trend	Understanding	Single	Continuous	ET
281	3	Discussion Forum	E320001	Trend	Understanding	Multiple	Continuous	WO
286	3	Discussion Forum	E320003	Trend	Evaluating	Multiple	Continuous	WO
285	3	Discussion Forum	E320004	Trend	Evaluating	Multiple	Continuous	WO
251	2	Internet Poll	E321001	Trend	Accessing text	Multiple	Mixed	CC
238	2	Internet Poll	E321002	Trend	Understanding	Multiple	Mixed	CC
283	3	Lakeside Fun Run	E322001	Trend	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	P
240	2	Lakeside Fun Run	E322002	Trend	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	P
294	3	Lakeside Fun Run	E322003	Trend	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	P
293	3	Lakeside Fun Run	E322004	Trend	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	P
244	2	Lakeside Fun Run	E322005	Trend	Evaluating	Single	Non-continuous	P
348	4	Library Search	E323002	Trend	Understanding	Multiple	Non-continuous	P
289	3	Library Search	E323003	Trend	Accessing text	Multiple	Non-continuous	P
329	4	Library Search	E323004	Trend	Evaluating	Multiple	Non-continuous	P
324	3	Library Search	E323005	Trend	Evaluating	Multiple	Non-continuous	P
298	3	Summer Streets	E327001	Trend	Evaluating	Single	Continuous	CC
211	1	Hiccups	C501P001	New	Accessing text	Multiple	Non-continuous	P
217	1	Hiccups	C501P002	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	P
231	2	Hiccups	C501P003	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	P
241	2	Shades	C502P001	New	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	P
239	2	Shades	C502P002	New	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	P
161	Below 1	Banking	C503P001	New	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	P
198	1	Crayons	C504P001	New	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	P
200	1	Eye Protection	C505P001	New	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	WO
196	1	Photography Class	C507P001	New	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	P
251	2	Photography Class	C507P002	New	Accessing text	Single	Non-continuous	P
208	1	Restaurants	C508P001	New	Accessing text	Multiple	Non-continuous	P
288	3	BiciMAD	C509P001	New	Understanding	Single	Mixed	CC
235	2	BiciMAD	C509P002	New	Accessing text	Single	Mixed	CC
215	1	BiciMAD	C509P003	New	Accessing text	Single	Mixed	CC
265	2	Arts Center	C510P001	New	Accessing text	Single	Mixed	CC
359	4	Arts Center	C510P002	New	Understanding	Single	Mixed	CC
302	3	Arts Center	C510P003	New	Understanding	Single	Mixed	CC
296	3	Arts Center	C510P005	New	Accessing text	Single	Mixed	CC
278	3	Arts Center	C510P006	New	Understanding	Single	Mixed	CC
301	3	App Comparison	C511P001	New	Understanding	Single	Non-continuous	P
288	3	App Comparison	C511P002	New	Understanding	Single	Non-continuous	P
229	2	App Comparison	C511P003	New	Accessing text	Multiple	Non-continuous	P
230	2	App Comparison	C511P004	New	Evaluating	Multiple	Non-continuous	P
241	2	App Comparison	C511P005	New	Understanding	Multiple	Non-continuous	P
285	3	App Comparison	C511P007	New	Understanding	Multiple	Non-continuous	P
321	3	Accessibility	C512P001	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	ET
358	4	Accessibility	C512P002	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	ET
358	4	Accessibility	C512P004	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	ET
284	3	Candidate Forum	C513P001	New	Understanding	Multiple	Continuous	CC
310	3	Candidate Forum	C513P002	New	Understanding	Multiple	Continuous	CC
320	3	Candidate Forum	C513P003	New	Evaluating	Multiple	Continuous	CC
303	3	Candidate Forum	C513P004	New	Accessing text	Multiple	Continuous	CC
230	2	Desk Cycling	C514P001	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	WO
307	3	Desk Cycling	C514P002	New	Evaluating	Single	Continuous	WO
362	4	Desk Cycling	C514P004	New	Understanding	Multiple	Continuous	WO
245	2	Ink Stains	C515P001	New	Evaluating	Multiple	Continuous	P
309	3	Ink Stains	C515P002	New	Understanding	Multiple	Continuous	P
368	4	Ink Stains	C515P003	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	P
298	3	Ink Stains	C515P004	New	Accessing text	Multiple	Continuous	P
248	2	Online Learning	C516P001	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	ET
275	2	Online Learning	C516P002	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	ET
326	3	Online Learning	C516P004	New	Evaluating	Multiple	Continuous	ET
309	3	Online Learning	C516P005	New	Evaluating	Single	Continuous	ET
298	3	Online Learning	C516P006	New	Evaluating	Single	Continuous	ET
310	3	Recycling Guide	C517P001	New	Accessing text	Multiple	Mixed	CC
280	3	Recycling Guide	C517P003	New	Understanding	Multiple	Mixed	CC
270	2	Recycling Guide	C517P004	New	Accessing text	Multiple	Mixed	CC
280	3	Recycling Guide	C517P005	New	Understanding	Multiple	Mixed	CC
280	3	Recycling Guide	C517P007	New	Accessing text	Multiple	Mixed	CC
274	2	Scalds	C518P001	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	CC
292	3	Scalds	C518P002	New	Understanding	Single	Continuous	CC
302	3	Scalds	C518P003	New	Evaluating	Single	Continuous	CC
306	3	Summer Streets	E327002	Trend	Evaluating	Single	Continuous	CC
320	3	Summer Streets	E327003	Trend	Understanding	Single	Continuous	CC

Note: under “Status”, New items are those that have been newly developed for the second cycle of the Survey of Adult Skills, and Trend items are those that have been used also in the first cycle of the survey. Item context has been abbreviated as follows: CC stands for Community and citizenship, ET for Education and training, P for Personal, WO for Work and occupation.

Table A A.2. Numeracy item map

Difficulty score	Level	Unit name	Item ID	Status	Cognitive processes	Content	Context	Representation
129	Below 1	Bottles	C601C06	Trend	Act on	SS	Personal	IO
228	2	Gas Gauge	C604505	Trend	Act on	QN	Personal	IO
273	2	Solution	C606509	Trend	Access	SS	Work	IO
239	2	TV	C607510	Trend	Act on	CR	Personal	TS
261	2	Temp Scale	C611516	Trend	Act on	SS	Social	SI
296	3	Temp Scale	C611517	Trend	Act on	SS	Social	SI
185	1	Watch	C614601	Trend	Access	QN	Personal	TS
221	1	Candles	C615602	Trend	Act on	SS	Work	IO
231	2	Candles	C615603	Trend	Act on	QN	Work	IO
217	1	SixPack1	C618607	Trend	Act on	QN	Personal	TS
297	3	SixPack1	C618608	Trend	Act on	CR	Personal	TS
282	3	Tiles	C619609	Trend	Access	SS	Personal	SI
221	1	BMI	C624619	Trend	Access	DC	Personal	SI
320	3	BMI	C624620	Trend	Act on	CR	Personal	SI
354	4	Educational Level	C632P001	Trend	Access	DC	Social	SI
266	2	Educational Level	C632P002	Trend	Evaluate	DC	Social	SI
305	3	Peanuts	C634P001	Trend	Act on	CR	Personal	SI
318	3	Peanuts	C634P002	Trend	Act on	CR	Personal	SI
179	1	Parking Map	C635P001	Trend	Access	SS	Work	SI
294	3	Lab Report	C636P001	Trend	Evaluate	QN	Work	SI
317	3	NZ Exports	C644P002	Trend	Act on	DC	Social	SI
231	2	Airport Timetable	C645P001	Trend	Act on	SS	Personal	SI
256	2	Rug Production	C646P002	Trend	Act on	DC	Work	SI
260	2	Urban Population	C650P001	Trend	Act on	DC	Social	SI
314	3	Fertiliser	C651P002	Trend	Act on	CR	Work	TS
249	2	Path	C655P001	Trend	Act on	CR	Personal	TS
315	3	Package	C657P001	Trend	Evaluate	SS	Work	SI
308	3	Study fees	C661P001	Trend	Evaluate	DC	Social	SI
315	3	Study fees	C661P002	Trend	Evaluate	DC	Social	SI
307	3	Orchestra tickets	C664P001	Trend	Act on	CR	Work	SI
234	2	Cooper test	C665P001	Trend	Access	DC	Personal	SI
326	4	Cooper test	C665P002	Trend	Act on	CR	Personal	SI
198	1	Bike Tour	C801P001	New	Act on	QN	Personal	TS
295	3	Boxes	C802P001	New	Evaluate	SS	Work	IO
326	4	Boxes	C802P002	New	Evaluate	SS	Work	IO
291	3	Car routes	C804P002	New	Evaluate	SS	Personal	DA
297	3	Car routes	C804P003	New	Act on	SS	Personal	DA
256	2	Child medication	C806P001	New	Act on	CR	Work	TS
351 (274)	4 (2)	Child medication	C806P002	New	Act on	CR	Work	TS
364	4	Child medication	C806P003	New	Evaluate	CR	Work	TS
280	3	Coupons	C807P001	New	Act on	QN	Personal	TS
331 (299)	4 (3)	Coupons	C807P002	New	Act on	QN	Personal	TS
355	4	E-bikes	C808P001	New	Access	DC	Social	SI
356	4	E-bikes	C808P002	New	Evaluate	DC	Social	SI
308	3	E-waste	C809P001	New	Evaluate	DC	Social	SI
306	3	E-waste	C809P002	New	Evaluate	DC	Social	SI
301	3	Electric cars	C810P001	New	Evaluate	CR	Social	SI
348	4	Electric cars	C810P002	New	Evaluate	CR	Social	SI
238	2	Expenses	C811P001	New	Access	DC	Personal	DA
229	2	Expenses	C811P002	New	Access	DC	Personal	DA
257	2	Flying Hours	C812P001	New	Act on	DC	Social	SI
351	4	Flying Hours	C812P002	New	Evaluate	DC	Social	DA
496	5	Flying Hours	C812P003	New	Access	DC	Social	DA
200	1	Holiday stay	C813P001	New	Act on	CR	Personal	TS
340	4	Inflation rate	C814P001	New	Act on	CR	Work	TS
138	Below 1	Moving	C815P001	New	Access	QN	Work	IO
174	Below 1	Moving	C815P002	New	Access	QN	Work	IO
192	1	Nutrition	C816P001	New	Access	DC	Social	SI
245	2	Nutrition	C816P002	New	Act on	DC	Social	SI
285	3	Running	C820P001	New	Act on	DC	Personal	SI
331	4	Running	C820P002	New	Act on	SS	Personal	TS
243 (237)	2 (2)	Sales Figures	C821P001	New	Access	QN	Work	SI
244 (240)	2 (2)	Sales Figures	C821P002	New	Access	QN	Work	SI
275	2	School Attendance	C823P001	New	Act on	QN	Social	DA
342	4	School Attendance	C823P002	New	Act on	QN	Social	DA
359	4	Stacking glasses	C824P001	New	Access	CR	Work	IO
276	3	Tile pattern	C825P001	New	Access	SS	Work	IO
287	3	Train	C827P001	New	Evaluate	QN	Personal	SI
269	2	Vaccines	C828P001	New	Access	DC	Social	DA
271	2	Vaccines	C828P002	New	Access	DC	Social	DA
422	5	Vaccines	C828P003	New	Evaluate	DC	Social	DA
262	2	Wood scraps	C830P001	New	Act on	SS	Social	DA
305 (302)	3 (3)	Wood scraps	C830P002	New	Act on	QN	Social	DA
304	3	Wood scraps	C830P003	New	Access	QN	Social	DA
225	1	Work hours	C831P001	New	Access	DC	Social	SI
264	2	Work hours	C831P002	New	Evaluate	DC	Social	SI
163	Below 1	Workplace accidents	C832P001	New	Access	DC	Work	SI
214	1	Workplace accidents	C832P002	New	Act on	DC	Work	DA
222	1	Zoo Visitors	C833P001	New	Act on	QN	Work	SI
280	3	Zoo Visitors	C833P002	New	Evaluate	QN	Work	SI

Note: Numbers in parenthesis in the Difficulty score and Level columns indicate values related to partial credit. Under “Status”, New items are those that have been newly developed for the second cycle of the Survey of Adult Skills, and Trend items are those that have been used also in the first cycle of the survey. Cognitive processes have been abbreviated as follows: Access stands for Access and assess situations mathematically, Act on stands for Act on and use mathematics, Evaluate stands for Evaluate, critically reflect, make judgements. Item content has been abbreviated as follows: CR stands for Change and relationships, DC stands for Data and chance, QN stands for Quantity and number, SS stands for Space and shape. Under item context, Social is a shorthand for Social/community. Representation has been abbreviated as follows: DA stands for Dynamic applications, IO stands for Images of objects, SI stands for Structured information, TS stands for Text or symbols.

Table A A.3. Adaptive problem solving item map

Difficulty score	Level	Unit name	Item ID	Cognitive process	Metacognitive process	Information environment	Context
188	1	Transport	C101P001	Definition	None	Physical	Work
207	1	Transport	C101P002	Application	Definition	Physical	Work
217	1	Transport	C101P003	Searching	Searching	Physical	Work
280	3	Garden Time	C102P001	Definition	None	Digital	Personal
287	3	Garden Time	C102P002	Searching	None	Digital	Personal
274	2	Garden Time	C102P003	Searching	Searching	Digital	Personal
308	3	Garden Time	C102P004	Searching	Application	Digital	Personal
298	3	Garden Time	C102P005	Searching	Application	Digital	Personal
278	3	Shift Roster	C103P001	Definition	Searching	Digital	Work
325	3	Shift Roster	C103P002	Searching	Searching	Digital	Work
281	3	Shift Roster	C103P003	Searching	Definition	Digital	Work
271	2	Shift Roster	C103P004	Searching	Definition	Digital	Work
327	4	End of Year Party	C104P001	Searching	Searching	Digital	Work
319	3	End of Year Party	C104P002	Application	Definition	Digital	Work
313	3	End of Year Party	C104P003	Searching	Definition	Digital	Work
279	3	End of Year Party	C104P004	Definition	Searching	Digital	Work
198	1	Tickets	C105P001	Searching	Searching	Social	Social
268	2	Tickets	C105P002	Searching	Definition	Social	Social
277	3	Tickets	C105P003	Definition	Searching	Social	Social
231	2	TroubleShooting	C106P001	Searching	None	Digital	Personal
244	2	TroubleShooting	C106P002	Searching	Searching	Digital	Personal
219	1	TroubleShooting	C106P003	Definition	Searching	Digital	Personal
215	1	TroubleShooting	C106P004	Application	Definition	Digital	Personal
170	Below 1	Product Return	C107P001	Searching	None	Digital	Personal
181	1	Product Return	C107P002	Application	Definition	Digital	Personal
180	1	Product Return	C107P003	Application	Searching	Digital	Personal
238	2	Product Return	C107P004	Application	Searching	Digital	Personal
362	4	Power Plant	C108P001	Searching	Searching	Physical	Work
355	4	Power Plant	C108P002	Searching	Searching	Physical	Work
357	4	Power Plant	C108P003	Searching	Definition	Physical	Work
340	4	Power Plant	C108P004	Definition	Searching	Physical	Work
354	4	Power Plant	C108P005	Searching	Definition	Physical	Work
338	4	Travel Planning	C109P001	Searching	None	Digital	Social
309	3	Travel Planning	C109P002	Searching	Definition	Digital	Social
239	2	Travel Planning	C109P003	Application	Searching	Digital	Social
275	2	Travel Planning	C109P004	Searching	Definition	Digital	Social
284	3	Travel Planning	C109P005	Searching	Definition	Digital	Social
231	2	Renovation	C110P001	Definition	None	Digital	Personal
219	1	Renovation	C110P002	Searching	None	Digital	Personal
239	2	Renovation	C110P003	Searching	Definition	Digital	Personal
270	2	Post Office	C111P001	Searching	Searching	Digital	Personal
287	3	Post Office	C111P002	Searching	Searching	Digital	Personal
269	2	Post Office	C111P003	Application	Searching	Digital	Personal
265	2	Post Office	C111P004	Searching	Searching	Digital	Personal
266	2	Post Office	C111P005	Searching	Definition	Digital	Personal
326	4	Hiking	C112P001	Definition	Searching	Social	Social
311	3	Hiking	C112P002	Application	Definition	Social	Social
252	2	Hiking	C112P003	Searching	Definition	Social	Social
283	3	Hiking	C112P004	Searching	Definition	Social	Social
323 (273)	3 (2)	Plumbing	C113P001	Definition	Application	Physical	Work
304 (267)	3 (2)	Plumbing	C113P002	Definition	Application	Physical	Work
310	3	Plumbing	C113P003	Definition	Application	Physical	Work
216	1	Plumbing	C113P004	Definition	Application	Physical	Work
304	3	Plumbing	C113P005	Searching	Searching	Physical	Work
311	3	Ships Ahoy	C114P001	Definition	Definition	Physical	Personal
335	4	Ships Ahoy	C114P002	Definition	Definition	Physical	Personal
299	3	Ships Ahoy	C114P003	Definition	Definition	Physical	Personal
350 (266)	4 (2)	Ships Ahoy	C114P004	Application	Application	Physical	Personal
242 (171)	2 (Bel. 1)	Ships Ahoy	C114P005	Application	Application	Physical	Personal
288 (200)	3 (1)	Ships Ahoy	C114P006	Application	Application	Physical	Personal
332 (149)	4 (Bel. 1)	Traffic Control	C115P001	Definition	Application	Physical	Work
324 (192)	3 (1)	Traffic Control	C115P002	Definition	Application	Physical	Work
332 (194)	4 (1)	Traffic Control	C115P003	Definition	Application	Physical	Work
266	2	Traffic Control	C115P004	Application	Definition	Physical	Work
313	3	Traffic Control	C115P005	Searching	Definition	Physical	Work

Note: Numbers in parenthesis in the Difficulty score and Level columns indicate values related to partial credit. Under item context, Social is a shorthand for Social/community.