Diminishing Literacy and Match Skills Crisis

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THE NATION’S BASIC-SKILL MALAISE

_Americans’ literacy and math skills continue to diminish._

_Thomas Gallatin | Patriot Post | 12-19-24_

The 2006 movie “Idiocracy,” starring Luke Wilson and Maya Rudolph,
was intended as a science fiction comedy, not a prediction of future
America. However, a recent survey of our nation’s least-educated
workers has found that proficiency in basic life skills is
diminishing.

Among America’s least educated workers aged 16 to 65, basic skills
such as reading a thermometer, planning a trip, or finding information
on a website cannot be taken for granted. “According to a global
test of adult know-how, which measures job readiness and
problem-solving among workers in industrialized countries,” The Wall
Street Journal reports
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LEAST-EDUCATED AMERICAN WORKERS BETWEEN THE AGES OF 16 AND 65 ARE LESS
ABLE TO MAKE INFERENCES FROM A SECTION OF TEXT, MANIPULATE FRACTIONS,
OR APPLY SPATIAL REASONING — EVEN AS THE MOST-EDUCATED ARE GETTING
SMARTER.”

Furthermore, AMERICA IS FALLING BEHIND THE REST OF THE DEVELOPED
WORLD IN BASIC SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE. This problem was exacerbated by
the response to the COVID pandemic.

LITERACY AND MATH ARE WHERE THE SKILL LEVELS HAVE DROPPED
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IN 2017, 19% OF AMERICAN ADULTS SCORED AT THE LOWEST LITERACY LEVEL;
THAT TOTAL HAS NOW RISEN TO 28%. SIMILARLY, 29% OF ADULTS IN 2017
SCORED AT THE LOWEST MATH SKILL LEVEL; THAT PERCENTAGE IS NOW 34%.

Peggy Carr, commissioner of a statistical agency at the Department of
Education, observed
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“There’s a dwindling middle in the United States in terms of
skills. Over time we’ve seen more adults clustered at the bottom.”

Of the 31 industrialized nations that participated in the survey, THE
U.S. RANKED 14TH IN LITERACY, 15TH IN PROBLEM-SOLVING, AND 24TH IN
NUMERACY. Over the past few years, the U.S. has steadily slid behind
the rest of the industrialized world.

As noted earlier, the COVID pandemic significantly impacted these
scores, but the problem preceded the pandemic. The bigger culprit for
America’s sinking skills knowledge is our failing public school
system.

Too many Americans are simply not being educated well in our public
schools.

While there is no quick fix or easy solution to this problem, what
would help are actions designed to make education better. ADOPTING
SCHOOL CHOICE would likely be the biggest and even quickest avenue
toward instituting change.

THE BASIC-SKILL MALAISE ALSO RAISES QUESTIONS OVER THE VALUE OR
LIABILITY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION. Since its creation during
the Carter administration back in 1979, has American education gotten
better or worse? _Given the test results over the past couple of
decades, the answer is a resounding no._

This is why Donald Trump has floated the idea of eliminating that
department. Not only does it appear to be a waste of taxpayer dollars
given the educational results, but it also seemingly only exists to
push political agendas and buoy teachers unions, not empower parents
and students.

WHILE THIS NEWS IS DISCOURAGING, IT COULD MOTIVATE AMERICA TO CHANGE
HOW IT HAS HANDLED PUBLIC EDUCATION FOR THE PAST FEW DECADES. It also
offers an excellent incentive for more innovation in education,
including the burgeoning homeschooling movement
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It’s an exciting opportunity for real change.
[See www.publicschoolexit.com
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[Abolish the DoE]
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[School Choice for All]
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_All donations are tax-deductible._

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