Question above is pretty blunt but was doing a study for a college course and came across that stat. How is that possible? My high school sucked but I was well equipped even with that sub standard level of education for college. Obviously income is a thing but to think 1 out of 5 American adults is categorized as illiterate is…astounding. Now poor media literacy I get, but not this. Edit: this was from a department of education report from 2022. Just incase people are curious where that comes from. It does also specify as literate in English so maybe not as grim as I thought.
Illiteracy in developed countries usually refers to functional illiteracy, not a complete unfamiliarity with letters and words.
Functional illiteracy means your ability to read and write is insufficient for you to function effectively in society. Functionally illiterate people may be able to read to some limited extent, but might read too poorly or slowly to process the types of written information they encounter on a day-to-day basis. These people would not be able to understand forms at the doctor’s office, the instructions on their taxes, the terms of credit card agreements, the contents of important mail, and other material that might be important for them to understand.