Reports and Data

Reading the Future

Planning to meet Canada’s future literacy need

Reading the future: Myth and Fact

What is Reading the Future about?

Report resources

Reading the Future is the first report of its kind in Canada. It provides:

  • Canada's first projections of adult literacy levels, through to 2031;

  • an unprecedented look—more detailed than ever before—at the “face” of low literacy; and

  • effective approaches to improve literacy among six identified groups.
Literacy projections
  
Success stories: Turning the page on low literacy
PALMM
Calculate adult literacy rates into the future using PALMM (Projections of Adult Literacy—Measuring Movement), an interactive online complement to Reading the Future.		   Francoise Cadieux
Video Series: the adults profiled in these videos explain what motivated them to improve their literacy skills and how that decision has changed their lives.

What is literacy?

Literacy is the ability to understand and employ printed information in daily activities at home, at work and in the community—to achieve one’s goals and to develop one’s knowledge and potential.

How are Canadian adults doing?

Not very well. Currently, 48%—almost half—of all Canadian adults aged 16 and older experience some degree of difficulty in their ability to read, write and understand effectively in English and/or French.

Now, new projections reveal that Canada is achieving literacy improvements at a rate much slower than population growth. By 2031, Canada will see more than 15 million adults with low literacy levels.

Chart 1: Projected proportions and numbers at each prose literacy level, Canada, 2001–2031

Chart 1

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How can there be a literacy problem in Canada, when most adults can read and write?

Many people misinterpret low literacy as illiteracy.

In fact, very few Canadian adults are truly illiterate (unable to read or write).

The main concern is regarding the millions who possess some literacy skills, yet who are below the internationally-accepted standard for coping in a modern society.

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Will the literacy problem remedy itself over time?

No. Despite the fact that more young adults are acquiring higher education, Canada’s overall literacy rates are not expected to improve. In fact, by 2031 the number of Canadians with low levels of literacy will increase significantly.

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What does the future hold for adult literacy in Canada?

The following projections for the period of 2001–2031, reflect population growth and demographic shifts:

  • The proportion of adults with low literacy skills will remain virtually unchanged. As a result of population growth, Canada will see a 25% increase in the number of adults with low literacy skills from almost 12 million, to a total of 15,029,000 adults.
  • The number of senior citizens (aged 66 and over) with low literacy skills will double to more than 6.2 million.
  • The number of immigrants with low-level literacy skills will increase by 61%, to a total of more than 5.7 million. However, those with higher literacy skills will more than double from 1.8 million to 3.7 million.
  • The number of young adults (aged 16 to 25) with low literacy skills will remain almost the same.


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