Results: Illiteracy

Literacy is broken down into three types. Prose literacy is the ability to read and accurately interpret things such as news articles and instruction forms. Document literacy is the ability to accurately read payroll forms, maps and food and drug labels and fill out job applications. Quantitative literacy is the ability to correctly balance a checkbook and perform other basic numerical tasks. All three are considered to determine whether or not a person is literate. Before this survey, were you aware of the three types of literacy?

While illiteracy is the inability to read or write at all, functional illiteracy is far more common. A functional illiterate can read and write to a certain extent, they simply cannot do so well enough to manage in modern society as successfully as others. Had you heard of functional illiteracy before this survey??

Do you know someone who is either type of illiterate?

Have you ever or would you consider volunteering for an adult literacy group to help fight illiteracy in your community?