When staff members at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) needed to figure out how to help readers with limited literacy avoid fraud, they turned to the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL) for help. Through training workshops on content and design, ongoing mentoring, and a refresher workshop, CAL helped FTC staff focus on presenting the key information that people need—nothing more.

The result of this collaboration is consumer.gov (in English) and consumidor.gov (in Spanish). Both sites present financial literacy material in language that is accessible to readers with limited literacy skills. The sites are structured into three main topic areas: Managing Your Money; Credit, Loans, and Debt; and Scams and Identity Theft. Within each area, there are multiple topic pages. For example, the Scams and Identity Theft section includes Avoiding Identity Theft, Recovering From Identity Theft, Scams Against Immigrants, Job Scams, and Money Wiring Scams. There are currently 17 life skills and financial literacy topics in all, and FTC staff plan to add more over time.

The content of the sites focuses specifically on prevention of financial fraud, in alignment with the FTC’s mandate. The sites are thus resources for teachers who are seeking authentic materials to use in financial literacy instruction for adults. The importance of such instruction is widely recognized in the financial industry. As the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) notes, “The more people know about credit and banking services, the more likely they are to increase savings, buy homes, and improve their financial health and well being” (FDIC, 2013).

Learners of English as a second language often do not have the vocabulary in English that native speakers have (Eskey, 2005). For this reason, the language of the English site is designed for adult readers with vocabularies of 3,000–6,000 words and the ability to understand simple and some complex sentences. Technical terms and idioms are defined in context in the “What it is” section for each topic. For identity theft, for example, the “What it is” section states that “Identity theft happens when someone uses information about you without your permission.”

Users can interact with consumer.gov in several ways. Each page has an audio track that “reads” the text aloud word for word to provide support for those who desire it. Many topics also have an animated video that illustrates essential points. You can find all the videos here. The site also provides worksheets, including one that helps students create a budget; this fillable worksheet (PDF) can be printed and completed in hard copy.

At TESOL, we presented a lesson plan for “Making a Budget” that included content, language, and site navigation objectives. We described whole group activities such as exploring the idea of a budget, reviewing key vocabulary, and previewing the webpage. We then discussed pair activities that would encourage students to explore the site, such as listing unfamiliar words and thinking about the elements of a budget. Finally, we discussed small group activities, including reviewing the vocabulary and format of the budget worksheet and creating a hypothetical budget that is then presented to the class. Attendees were enthusiastic about the usefulness of the site and the model lesson plan; some even told us that they had linked to the site during our presentation to explore it for themselves. Please contact Miriam or Deborah at CAL to obtain the PowerPoint from this presentation.

If you use the sites with your adult students, we would like to hear from you! Please tell us what you know about your students’ reading ability, how you used the site(s), and how it worked. You are also welcome to share this article on social media.

References

Eskey, D. (2005). Reading in a second language. In E. Hinkel (Ed.), Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning (pp. 563–580). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). (2013). Money Smart: A financial education program. Retrieved from http://www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/moneysmart/index.html.

Miriam Burt works at the Center for Applied Linguistics where she provides technical assistance to projects, programs, and people working with adult English language learners both in the United States and internationally.

Deborah Kennedy is associate vice president, adult English language education at the Center for Applied Linguistics. A specialist in English for specific purposes, she designs, manages, and evaluates programs for adults who speak English as an additional language at all levels of proficiency.

Jennifer Leach is a consumer education specialist at the Federal Trade Commission, where she manages and promotes the agency’s programs to educate underserved audiences. She received training from the Center for Applied Linguistics in writing for adult English language learners.