The Concept and Measurement of Functional Literacy

Abstract

EXAMINES FUNCTIONAL LITERACY literature as it relates to the concept and its measurement. The concept is shown to be used in connection with measures which are assumed to yield information relating to functional reading skills, general cognitive competencies, and affective characteristics. Reviews measures of educational attainment, grade equivalency scores, and specifically designed tests of functional reading and competency; and specific shortcomings of such measures are presented. The lack of agreement as to what functional literacy is-and therefore the lack of agreement as to what should be measured-is shown to result in estimates of illiteracy ranging from I to 20 per cent. The authors propose that new measures be developed, that they exclude general literacy and functional competency, and that they be classified according to the practical information to be obtained and the decisions which are to be made from them. These might include determining listening, reading, writing, and calculating requirements of high school graduates; cognitive and affective information for use by potential employers; or abilities needed to obtain necessary information from various functional documents.