Data indicates fundamental education levels descending in OECD states

(MENAFN) A recent OECD survey has revealed a concerning decline in essential skills such as literacy and numeracy among adults over the past decade in most developed nations. The Survey of Adult Skills, which tested 160,000 individuals aged 16 to 65 across 31 countries, found the most significant declines among adults with lower educational levels.

The survey assessed reading comprehension, numeracy, and problem-solving abilities, highlighting how proficiency in these areas can enhance employment opportunities, quality of life, and contribute to economic growth. Despite various government initiatives aimed at improving education, the report showed that literacy levels have stagnated or decreased in most OECD countries, including 22 EU members, the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, Japan, and South Korea. Only Denmark and Finland reported improvements in literacy over the last decade.

OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann stressed the need for a thorough review of how nations foster foundational skills, particularly as technological changes reshape the workforce. The study also pointed out that the decline in skills has contributed to increasing inequality, with the lowest-performing adults seeing the sharpest drops in literacy. On average, one in five adults in these countries can only understand simple texts or perform basic arithmetic. Additionally, the survey highlighted a worrying stagnation or decline in reading comprehension across most participating nations.

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