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Adult Literacy Statistics
Did you know...?
According to "Reading the Future" fact sheet from the Canadian Council on Learning almost half (48%) of all Canadian adults have low literacy skills. Highlights from the Adult Literacy and Skills Survey of 2003 support this statement with the following information:
- About 42% of Canadians (age 16 - 65) surveyed had low literacy levels in 1993 and there is no significant change in the 2003 International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey
- 38% of the working age population in Nova Scotia were below the level needed to function in a job in the modern, knowledge-based economy
- In Atlantic Canada, the number of persons with low literacy rose slightly from 1.5 million in 1994 to 1.6 million in 2003. This is a reflection of the change in the population
- Nova Scotians have higher scores in prose literacy at every educational level than the Canadian averages
- Nova Scotia achieved higher average scores than the United States
- Half (50%) of Nova Scotians surveyed had a numeracy skill level below what they needed to function in a modern knowledge-based economy
- The majority of Nova Scotian seniors surveyed had low literacy skills
The above survey measured four skill areas: prose literacy ( using books, newspaper articles), document literacy (using graphs and charts), numeracy and problem solving.
The question that needs to be asked is what is literacy and why is it important?
Literacy is more than the ability to read and write. In order to succeed economically and socially in the information age adults need to be able to analyze information, understand abstract ideas and acquire other complex life skills.
Low literacy has been linked to poorer health outcomes and people with low literacy skills have experienced more mis-medication and die younger, (Reading the Future). Adult literacy levels have a profound impact on the economic success of a country. The 2004 International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey showed that a 1% increase in literacy would eventually lead to a 2.5% rise in labour productivity, a 1.5 % increase in output per capita and an $18.5 billion increase in the GDP of Canada.
There are more than 130 Learners at DLN alone. Our one-on-one program has proven successful, but it will take at least 130 volunteer Tutors to reach out and make a difference -- are YOU one?
