Literacy Statistics
What is Literacy?
Literacy can be defined as “the ability to understand and use written information in everyday life – at home, at work and in society at large, in order to attain personal goals and widen one’s knowledge and capabilities”. Legendre, 2005: 841
Some Facts about Literacy
FACT: Literacy skills are no longer linked to a single threshold that separates the literate from the non-literate. The focus is now on how well adults can use printed and written information to function in society, to achieve their goals, and to develop their knowledge and potential.
FACT: About 22% of adult Canadians 16 years and over fall into the lowest level of literacy. They have serious difficulty dealing with printed materials and most likely identify themselves as people who have difficulties reading. In Brome-Missisquoi, 35% of adults are in Level 1.
FACT: Another 24-26% of adult Canadians fall in the second lowest level. Such people can deal only with material that is simple and clearly laid out, and material in which the tasks involved are not too complex. They read, but not well. In Brome-Missisquoi, about 30% of adults are in Level 2.
FACT: 46% of adult Canadians have some level of difficulty with the reading and writing skills needed in daily life. In Brome-Missisquoi, this figure is a shocking 65%.
FACT: Everyone has some level of literacy skill and proficiency.
FACT: Literacy skills are required every day – and daily practice of reading, writing, and calculating sustains and enhances them.
FACT: Only a minority of those persons with weak literacy skills, whether at work or at home, recognize a need to improve their levels.
FACT: Literacy is central to the well-being of both individuals and nations.
This information is drawn from the 1996 International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS) Report Reading the Future - A Portrait of Literacy in Canada.
Reference Websites
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in collaboration with Yamaska Literacy Council
