Module Components

• Overview
• Assignments

Topics

• Roles
• Teacher Competencies
• Learning Environments & Settings
• Health Literacy

NURS 787 - Theoretical Foundations of Teaching and Learning

Module 7: Roles and Environments

Health Literacy

The extent to which an individual is capable of accessing, reading, and using information related to their health in a way to maintain it at a reasonably good level for them and make appropriate health decisions is referred to as health literacy. Given the pervasiveness of low literacy in the United States, health literacy is a major public health concern.

Health Literacy Resources
Description of Source	Website
The seriousness of this problem received national attention in a report released in early 2004 by the Institute of Medicine	90 Million Americans are Burdened with Inadequate Health Literacy - IOM Report Calls for National Effort to Improve Health Literacy
IHA Institute for Healthcare Advancement-Advancing Health Literacy offers valuable information on this topic.	IHA Institute for Healthcare Advancement- Advancing Health Literacy Toward Health Equity
The pharmaceutical industry has additional resources that are helpful in capturing issues related to health literacy.
Pfizer	Pfizer and Literacy
American Medical Association Foundation (AMA)	Health Literacy: the video below includes compelling stories of the challenges people face with low health literacy/literacy. Health literacy video
UMMC	UMMC released a video highlighting the challenges people with low health literacy commonly face in health care: UMMC Health Literacy Video
The Federal Government also has additional resources that are helpful in capturing issues related to health literacy.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HRSA)	Quick Guide to Health Literacy

You may be surprised at the scope of adult illiteracy described in your reading. Now review the fact sheet from the National Coalition for Literacy for more information.

Definitions of literacy are important and, as you have learned in your reading, extend beyond mere ability to read and write. Commonly accepted literacy levels in contemporary society is at a grade 8 or above. Low literacy relates to grades 5-8 and functional illiteracy refers to abilities below grade 5.

Learner problems with literacy are typically not easy to recognize due to the practiced performance that such learners may have developed over time to mask this shortcoming. Being alert for subtle learner clues such as “not having my glasses” or having difficulty following simple written instructions or signs is essential when planning learning experiences.

Watch this video from ABC News showing the impact of hiding one’s inability to read for many years, and the beauty of overcoming this challenge.

Tailoring the Level of Written Materials

Please give careful consideration to the strategies described on pp. 289-296 (Bastable, 2014) to tailor the level of written materials as well as to the teaching strategies recommended for working with learners with low literacy. You will need this information in working with some learners as well as for communicating effectively!

Tests of Written Materials

Since written materials are a primary tool of learning experiences, their level, or ease of reading, should be “matched” to that of the learner. Readability levels and text readability can be assessed using a number of formulas that rely on elements such as number of syllables in a word or number of words in a sentence.

Another quick way to estimate the readability level of electronic text is by using the readability statistics in Microsoft Word.

Do you know how to do this? It will depend on the version of Microsoft Word you are using but for Microsoft Word 2010 or 2016 here are the directions:

• Click the “File” tab, and then click “Options”.
• Click “Proofing”.
• Under “When correcting spelling and grammar in Word”, make sure the “Check grammar with spelling” check box is selected.
• Select “Show readability statistics”.

If using another version of Word, you can easily find the directions on the Internet. Then, you will be able to get two results:

• Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level Score
• Flesch Reading Ease Score

  

Learner Tests

While these formulas are helpful, using them does not ensure that the learner will comprehend! Thus, there are also ways to assess learner comprehension such as the Cloze Procedure or listening test. Another related perspective are tests to test reading skills such as the REALM, a new measure targeted to health care information.

Reflection Activity:

Think about a time when you have worked with an individual who may have had literacy challenges. How did you assess the learning need? What might you do differently now, knowing how common the issue is? What creative strategies could you have used?