[Reading-hall-of-fame] New Adult Literacy Stats in U.S.

[tsticht at znet.com]

RHF Colleagues: Many of you may remember those old U.S.literacy
statistics from 2003 in the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL).
In those days there were only about 60 percent of adults with adequate
literacy skills. Now the new report for the White House Conference on
Global Literacy (www.globalliteracy.gov)of September 18, 2006  presents a
footnote after the discussion of the U.S. program that gets pediatricians
to give books to children and advise their parents to read to their
children (assuming their parents can read). The foot note states that in
the U.S. the literacy rate
for women is 98 percent and for men 97 percent with a combined rate of 95
percent (a numeracy problem?). With this drastic increase in the literacy
rate it is now clear why the Bush administration asked for a two-thirds cut
in the funding for adult literacy education for FY 2006. Why spend it on
adult literacy to make adults smart, when $375 million will buy about 375
smart bombs? These bombs could then be used to help eradicate illiterates
in other nations and raise literacy rates there, too. As our British
friends would say, Brilliant!
Tom Sticht