Previously I posted a tool to assess your knitting skills proficiency.  This is an update on the data collected. I also discuss how to read your personalized proficiency report.

Knitting Skills Proficiency Tool

Have you ever looked for a complete list of skills for knitters?  I have and wasn’t able to find one.  There are some basic lists of skills out there. None of them that are very useful.  So I put together the following:

1. A complete list of skills. It also includes techniques, resources and equipment that a knitter might want.
2. Groupings of all skills/techniques/resources/equipment in three ways.
   1. Level of Difficulty (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced).
   2. Type of Skill (Preparation, Execution, Technique, Fixing Errors, Resources, Finishing, and Design).
   3. Phase of learning.
      1. Basic skills needed early on in learning.
      2. More complex concepts/tools that aren’t immediately necessary in learning.
      3. Skills, equipment, resources that enhance knitting expertise but aren’t necessary to be a completely competent knitter.
3. An on-line self-assessment questionnaire that allows you to rate your proficiency in about 180 different areas and get an immediate proficiency score and level of proficiency
4. Your own personalized report detailing:
   1. your years-knitting to competency score compared to all other respondents (scatter graph and trend line)
   2. bar charts showing how much you’ve achieved (and is left to be achieved in each Level and Learning Phase
   3. lists of skills in each Learning Phase that can be improved

Download my PDF results Master Proficiency Report.

• QueerJoe as an example of what’s currently available

I’ve added one more piece to this knitting skills database…a downloadable CSV file so you can use the skill listing for any of your needs.

• Do you teach knitting? Would you want to provide a checklist for your students?
• Are you interested in starting a web app with tutorials in various skills?
• Do you know knitters who would want this kind of database?

What’s Next with Knitting Skills?

If you haven’t taken the assessment, click here to take the self-assessment.

For those who have taken the self-assessment and would like their personalized report, click here.

If you’d like to download the full list of 180 items (categorized by Level, Type and Learning Phase), click here.

Please let me know if you find a use for the list that you’d like me to promote by using the Contact QueerJoe page.

Feedback

So far we’ve gotten the following feedback about the list, the tool and the personalize report:

• My overall proficiency skill is reduced for items for which I have no interest (ie. lace knitting, entrelac, etc.)
  • The overall score and the associated proficiency designation are a competitive thing. Any item not “mastered” because of disinterest just means that your total skills in knitting may not be fully complete to meet the designation of Master Knitter.  No judgment.
• It’s a big time commitment to complete 180 self-assessment questions!
  • Yes, but we hope it’s useful.  You can save your answers for later if you can’t finish it all in one sitting.
• Scores are subjective based on how one self-assesses.
  • This is very true.  We provide specific definitions of each skill proficiency.  The more honest you are, the most useful  your report will be.
• Thank you for all the time and effort you’ve put into this project. Completing the survey has given me some ideas of what I can do to further my skills.  A great service to the knitting community.

Any other feedback you have is gratefully accepted, so please let me know.

Current Knitting

Continued to work on adding to the “hat inventory” for my upcoming craft show.

The key lime green of the Double-Layer Stocking Cap doesn’t show up so well in the photo (without me exaggerating the vibrant colors of the West Coast Watchcap in the photo).  But it’s really nice.

This West Coast Watchcap is one of my favorite color/texture combinations I think I’ve ever made.  We’ll see how the craft show crowd likes it (or not).