Posted on 03/03/2022 5:11:24 AM PST by EBH
A new study by Gallup on behalf of the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy finds that low levels of adult literacy could be costing the U.S. as much $2.2 trillion a year.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, 54% of U.S. adults 16-74 years old - about 130 million people - lack proficiency in literacy, reading below the equivalent of a sixth-grade level. That’s a shocking number for several reasons, and its dollars and cents implications are enormous because literacy is correlated with several important outcomes such as personal income, employment levels, health, and overall economic growth.
Commenting on the significance of the study, British A. Robinson, president and CEO of the Barbara Bush Foundation, said, “America’s low literacy crisis is largely ignored, historically underfunded and woefully under-researched, despite being one of the great solvable problems of our time. We’re proud to enrich the collective knowledge base with this first-of-its-kind study, documenting literacy’s key role in equity and economic mobility in families, communities and our nation as a whole.”
Adults who scored below Level 3 for literacy on the PIAAC were defined as at least partially illiterate. Adults below or at Level 1 may struggle to understand texts beyond filling out basic forms, and they find it difficult to make inferences from written material. Adults at Level 2 can read well enough to evaluate product reviews and perform other tasks requiring comparisons and simple inferences, but they’re unlikely to correctly evaluate the reliability of texts or draw sophisticated inferences. Adults at Level 3 and above were considered fully literate. They’re able to evaluate sources, as well as infer sophisticated meaning and complex ideas from written sources.
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
I taught high school English for a few years. I also took high school English for four years
The first thing I went into the classroom with was the idea that high school kids care more about the weave someone has and figuring out how to communicate that during class without the teacher knowing
That’s what you’re starting with. Kids do not care. We didn’t care about learning in the 70s and we didn’t have tik tok. But we wanted it.
They have a tremendous amount of fear.
Their parents are idiots who don’t care about their education. Until proven otherwise.
They come from a broken home until proven otherwise
The world is full of people who got educated in spite of such obstacles. I always tried to be someone who smiled away the adversity in their lives and encouraged them to realize education will set them free in adulthood. Who knows if it helped. I know it didn’t hurt.
Hint
When I made kids read a book I read it. Summer reading too. I introduced the main character and quizzed them on how all the other characters related to the main character. Now they’re engaged. If it’s a good book. And I only used classics. Everything else is boring crap until proven otherwise
If they’re getting a 64 then their reading level is not dictated by their age. But they can be brought up to it.
Just wait for the Dims’ education boondoggle spending program to “make up for losses from COVID.”
Also, 130 million - isn’t that half of the adult population? So, not a recent phenomenon (if anything in this story can be believed). Dubious about the lost earnings claim.
Am I supposed to believe the $25,000 lost earnings EACH figure? Where are there 130 million jobs that pay $25k more than minimum wage?
When Clinton was governor of Arkansas, they required school teachers to take a literacy test. If I remember correctly, it was being able to read at a 6th grade level. He got a lot of criticism for it because too many black teachers failed the test.
Why? Because teachers unions own the Democrat party.
Until JFK public employees (teachers, postal worker, etc) were for bitten by law to unionize. At the time USA ranked #1 in K12 education. Now with unionized skools we are at best in the lower half. We need to bring back that the law that forbade public sector workers from unionizing (collective bargaining).
How many o’s in Spaghetti o’s?
Spell check is your friend
Its like health care, Ukraine, the environment. The more radical, activist progressives try to “fix” it, the more it costs, and the worse it gets
If it’s bad to have 4 meat packers and not capitalist without competition, then it’s even worse for ONE teacher union to educate an entire country.
LOL, u r prolly corek cuz enny hoo kant reed gude gonna hev like a reel difcult rode a head.
ROFLAO
“...What are the the teachers and the schools doing about this?”
_______________________
Again not defending the education establishment but the teachers have to stick to the curriculum or find another job. The administration and the school boards set the curriculum.
Parents need skip their tattoo appointment and attend school board meetings and insist the schools do their jobs, join the PTA and marry the father of their kids. We need to insist that the boards of education and administrators get back to the task of teaching kids the basics. We need to stop pretending that we love our kids and make sacrifices for their benefit not do what entertains us.
Over 40 years ago, in my high school, we had to take a literature course. It was a required course to graduate and we read several books through the semester. Daily class was not about the previous section or required reading, it was the teacher reading it to us again. Now that I look back on it, I wonder how many students in my class never cracked the book open? The books were not even what would consider great works. The Scarlet Letter, The Outsiders, nothing to heady even at the time. It is funny the things we recall from the old years. I remember shocking a few guidance counselors when I tested into high school at a 13.1 level. College freshman level. Back in 2020 as I wrote my first book, I knew the grade level I needed to keep it in was the 7th-8th grade reading level or it wouldn't sell. Some reviews say it is too simplified and most like it is in "plain" language, easy to understand, a quick read. But, if this study is correct, 54% of the population would find my book a stretch to comprehend. This is truly an astounding figure if applied across the full ramifications of our society. Work, economy, politics, ability to intelligently vote, discern information. No wonder the political elite get away with what they do.
Who the hell needs to be literate when you’ve got a “smart” phone to do all of your thinking and everything else for you?
Most of the strippers I used to know back in the day, were very bright and all of them could read and write quite well.
Because stupid people vote democRAT.
That’s really the only reason that the schools fail so miserably.
Joe Rogan had a very fine rant about “inequality of outcome” and he said the real problem is “inequality of effort”.
People who are resistant to education, who do not try to succeed in school, who do not care about improving themselves, are going to be poor. It’s just one bad decision after another. Then they whine about “inequality of outcome”.
Positioning/use of commas notwithstanding, you are 100% correct.
Yout sentence is entirely grammatically correct and literate. You must now sit in the hallway; you don’t belong here. /s
BTW, eubonics is a difficult rhyming language. How many words rhyme with crack, hoe, and bigger?
Asinine
“ stick to the curriculum or find another job”
Here’s a big problem
Until people had been leveraged beyond independence people would have said, “change the curriculum, find a job that teaches or be responsible for not educating future generations.”
But now people pretend that everyone buys this argument. It is socialist
Get a home. Live within your means and take control.
And knew how to count money.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.