Low literacy rates a Canadian problem: Cleary


St. John’s – New Democrat Post-Secondary Education Critic Ryan Cleary is reacting to comments of a  Memorial University professor that students lack a basic knowledge of geography, saying that's reflective of a national problem and is not unique to Newfoundland and Labrador students.

“We should not be surprised that students are entering university with low literacy rates and a shaky educational foundation,” says Cleary, MP for St. John’s South-Mount Pearl. “Low literacy is a problem in every corner of the country.”

Judith Adler, a sociology professor at MUN, expressed concerns to CBC on Tuesday that some students don't basic knowledge of geography — identifying Africa on a map, for example.

Cleary, a member of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources Skills and Social Development (HUMA), points to a presentation made by the Canadian Literacy and Learning Network to the HUMA committee in June during its study on skills shortages across Canada. In the presentation, representatives stated that 43 per cent of Canadians have a low literacy rate.

“It is mind boggling that in Canada, a G8 country, and one of the most advanced nations in the world that 9.8 million people have trouble either reading a pill bottle or a training manual,” says Cleary.

The MP is calling on federal and provincial governments to come together to address low-literacy rates.
“Employers across Canada say the low-literacy rates are impacting productivity and Canadian competitiveness,” says Cleary. “Literacy is fundamental to Canadian society and this should be a wake-up call to both levels of government.”

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The story of Samantha Walsh

Image
Samantha Walsh, a 13-year-old, Grade 8 student from Fleur de Lys on the Baie Verte Peninsula, disappeared one Sunday evening when walking home from her Grandmother's house, and I traveled to the community to research her story. The following feature article was published in The Telegram in February 2000. ••• "Sam, who had stripped off her ski pants when she got to her grandmother’s house, didn’t bother to put them on for the three-minute walk to her house. She went home wearing her coat and hat and long johns covered by flannel pajama pants, pink with black and white lambs, bought the day before at Value Village. But Sam never made it home. 'Loves you, Mom,' were her last words to her mother." ••• Samantha’s story By Ryan Cleary, The Telegram FLEUR DE LYS — The voice is that of a child, rising with a soft and sweet delivery from a room of living hell. It’s a haunting sound, the words of  Salt Water Joys , sung by a very talented and pretty littl
Read more

Nov. 7th, Telegram letter to the editor

Making this a better place I applaud Ryan Cleary’s letter in the Oct. 31 Weekend Telegram (“Time to act, not talk”) touting teamwork as the key to forging a future for rural Newfoundland: it was eerily reflective of the premier’s front-page interview. It’s a prime example on how we all could, and should, put partisan politics and prejudices aside to perpetuate the one commonality that binds us — passion for the promise of this place. The power of that unified front is visible with the government’s prioritizing the H1N1 vaccination roll-outs this week, in light of the international crisis for Newfoundland and Labrador with changes proposed to the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) convention, and the national crisis with Quebec and the Lower Churchill quagmire. The people of this place must come first and we personified that this week. Thus, there is hope for the future. Rise to the occasion Having said that, like the tide, we need to rise to the swell of occasion as well,
Read more

'Where did all the f---ing money go?'

Image
Former offshore trawlermen demand investigation into what happened to millions of dollars generated from offshore crab quota meant to support them, and how it was sold without their knowledge for fraction of value to Conne River First Nation   The offshore trawler Katrina Charlene, best known as "the union boat," was sold in 2019. The Katrina Charlene and the crab quota it was built to fish have been in the news for almost 20 years for their connection to the FFAW. The story made national news in February when a Fishery Officer alleged DFO kept quiet a conviction against the trawler, so as to not embarrass the union. Today, there’s news the quota sold recently for $1 million, a fraction of its estimated value, to Conne River First Nation. The boat and quota have been sold, but questions remain. What happened to the tens of millions of dollars generated by the crab quota? Fisherman’s Road lays out the story as it’s never been told. Final of a three-part series.  By Ryan Cleary
Read more