| Jeremy Finn
State University of New York, Buffalo
School, work, and literacy
FINAL REPORT: This study examined relationships among schooling, work, and literacy using responses from 21,522 respondents, ages 16 and up, collected through the National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS). Two questions were addressed: (1) What are the characteristics of adults who attribute their literacy skills to school, to home, or to work? (2) How are employment and occupation related to literacy practices performed at work and to literacy proficiency? While most adults attribute their literacy skills to school, noteworthy numbers also say that they learned to read technical documents and to write at work. Among school noncompleters and high-school graduates, and to a lesser extent among adults with postsecondary schooling, proficiencies were equally high (or equally low) regardless of where they acquired their skills. The analysis of occupational classifications revealed wide variability in the literacy practices required. Moreover, job classification and occupational practices has significant relationships with literacy proficiency after educational attainment and demographic factors were controlled statistically. The study highlights the importance of literacy practices both for personal and work-related purposes and the value of the workplace as a learning environment that promotes and/or complements skills attained in school.
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