College And Literacy
According to one study, over 50% of college students who were close to graduation were tested on different literacy skills, and it was found they lacked the skills necessary to complete certain tasks, including understanding a newspaper editorial article. Of the students that attended four year programs, over 50% of them were unable to perform more complex tasks, such as summarizing the results of surveys on parental involvement in schools. Of the students attending a two year school program, over 75% of them were unable to compare credit cards with different fees and annual percentage rates.
The main areas of this particular study included analyzing stories in the news and other writings, comprehending documents and utilizing the math skills necessary for checkbooks and even restaurant tips. One of the researchers may have understated the feeling of most when he said that it was a “little disturbing” that at this level of higher education students could not perform basic tasks.
Most students attending four year universities and community college programs were able to show some intermediate skills, meaning they were able to perform moderately challenging tasks. Some of the tasks performed by the students included consulting some type of reference guide in order to see what foods contained certain vitamins, finding locations on a map and calculating the cost of ordering office supplies.
There is a brighter side; the overall average literacy level of university students is actually higher than the average level of adult literacy nationwide. However, even though it sounds encouraging, experts claim it is not exactly surprising given the fact that the group of adults tested included those who had significantly less education.
When compared with like levels of education, the college students demonstrated superior skills when it came to searching for and using information gathered from documents and texts. But, is it adequate enough for a population that is highly educated and an economy that is based on knowledge? Most experts say no because in those studies students performed worst on problems involving mathematics. Almost 20% of the students who were studying for a four year degree possessed only the basic amount of quantitative skills. For instance, they were unable to estimate whether or not a car had adequate fuel to make it to a gas station, and about 30% of the students following the two year path possessed only the basic mathematical skills.
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