Skip navigation
Skills SAGovernment of South Australia - Department of Innovation and Skills
Training Provider Centre

Assessing literacy and numeracy

Information about literacy and numeracy assessments, CSPA interpretations and foundation skills

Assessing literacy and numeracy

Training providers must assess the reading and numeracy skills of students using either the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) Snapshot Reading and Numeracy Indicator (SRNI) or the Core Skills Profile for Adults (CSPA) assessment tool.

The Skills SA minimum literacy and numeracy Australian Core Skills Framework (ACSF) exit level is 2 for both reading and numeracy, assessed through either the SRNI or CSPA.

Training providers can choose to set a higher ACSF exit level for reading and numeracy.

Training providers can also choose to assess a student’s writing capabilities using the CSPA writing assessment.

SRNI assessment

The SRNI is a short static assessment tool that provides an indication of whether a student is at the required minimum of ACSF exit level 2 in reading and numeracy.

The SRNI does not assess above ACSF exit level 2 or assess writing.

The SRNI includes 15 reading and 15 numeracy questions and, on average, takes students 15-20 minutes to complete.

On completion of an SRNI, training providers will receive a simple report which identifies whether the student requires further assessment or not. A finding of further assessment means a student’s assessment result indicates they are not at ACSF exit level 2.

Training providers must require students who return an SRNI result of further assessment to undertake the CSPA for a more in-depth assessment of their reading and/or numeracy capabilities or both.

CSPA assessment

The CSPA assessment tool is made up of three assessments – reading, numeracy and writing.

  • The CSPA reading tool can identify whether a student is at ACSF exit level 1, 2, 3 or 4 (the tool does not assess beyond ACSF exit level 4).
  • The CSPA numeracy tool can identify whether a student is at ACSF exit level 1, 2, 3 or 4 (the tool does not assess beyond ACSF exit level 4).
  • The CSPA writing assessment can identify whether a student is at ACSF exit level 1, 2 or 3 (the tool does not assess beyond ACSF exit level 3).

The CSPA reading and numeracy assessments are computer adaptive, meaning each student response will prompt questions that are based on the capabilities the student is demonstrating.

Each CSPA assessment takes students, on average, 30 minutes to complete.

ACER Digital Literacy Assessment

From September 2025, subsided training providers will have access to the ACER digital literacy assessment tool under their Skills SA’s licence. Using this tool is optional.

Skills SA welcomes feedback on the Digital Literacy tool to UANAdvice@sa.gov.au

Steps in conducting the literacy and numeracy assessment

Funded foundation skills support for learners

Flexible delivery of accredited foundation skills bridging units

There are many flexible ways in which learners can access accredited foundation skills bridging units they have been assessed to need through a CSPA Interpretation Report. See the flexible delivery options and providers matrix for more information and contact details.

Foundation Skills Tutor Pilot

The Skills SA funded foundation skills tutor pilot is now available as a new option for supporting subsidised students who have been identified as needing foundation skills support through a CSPA Interpretation Report. Access will depend on whether the gaps the learner has in their reading, numeracy or writing capabilities are suited to this type of support.

Foundation skills tutor support is free, non-accredited and delivered one to one, or in very small groups, by tutors who have completed the nationally accredited Language, Literacy and Numeracy Tutor Skill Set. All tutors operate under the supervision of a specialist literacy and numeracy trainer and assessor.

Tutors can deliver non-accredited foundation skills support face to face, or virtually, at a time and place that suits the learner and the tutor. Tutors can help the learner to develop forgotten or missing skills they need and help them to apply these in the context of their course. There are no minimum or maximum limits on hours of support provided and will varying depending on the learners needs.

The pilot is operating until the end of June 2026. Training providers wanting their learners to have access to the foundation skills tutor pilot as an option must contact any or all pilot providers in the first instance, to get more information and to establish a service agreement.

Where a learner’s gaps are not suited to foundation skills tutor support, see more information above about flexible delivery of accredited foundation skills bridging units.

Foundation skills tutor pilot provider details:

Interskills: Sian Sauerwald
sian.sauerwald@interskills.edu.au
0437 414 812

SYC: Jo Skanes
jskanes@syc.net.au
0439 032 309

Tauondi Aboriginal College: Kelly Harrington or Tadashi Nakamura
fstutor@tauondi.sa.edu.au
08 8240 0300

ACER Reading and Numeracy Practice Assessment

Students can access an ACER reading and numeracy practice assessment.

Students can undertake this practice assessment at home without supervision.

This practice assessment gives students:

  • an idea of the questions they will be asked
  • how to navigate between questions
  • how to use the tool
  • what questions they answered correctly.

At the end of the 6 reading and 6 numeracy practice questions, students will be able to see what they answered correctly or incorrectly and can go back and re-read the question.

Training Providers have reported when students undertake a practice assessment before they start the UAN process, it helps them to put the assessment into perspective, perform better and feel less anxiety.

Practice assessment

Need help with numeracy and literacy?

Contact Skills SA