Literacy rates among Canadian adults in decline?

While more Canadians than ever before are furthering their education, literacy rates among adults are falling. A recent report from Statistics Canada used data from University of British Columbia economics professors between 1993 and 2003. While education levels were rising throughout those years, they found literacy rates were falling. In fact, the average literacy of a 35-year-old in 2003 was the equivalent to the literacy of a 25-year-old in that same year.

According to W. Craig Riddell, a co-author of the paper, the biggest changes in literacy skills are defined by those who are at the very top of the spectrum and at the very bottom. At the bottom of the spectrum, the changes are positive—more people who had lower literacy skills in 1993, had higher literacy skills in 2003. However, those at the top spectrum of literacy skills went down substantially in the 10-year span. Read more about the report in The Brock Press online.