this post was submitted on 23 Aug 2024
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Europe

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cross-posted from: https://lemmy.wtf/post/10196709

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 4 months ago (2 children)

It is even worse:

Between 20-25% of the European population is functionally illiterate. In other words: at least one citizen in five does not have the reading and writing skills they need for functioning in society, with all its consequences for education, employment, health care, welfare, social integration and political participation. ‘More than 73 million adults in the EU… do not have sufficient literacy levels to cope with the daily requirements of personal, social, and economic life’

https://blogs.fasos.maastrichtuniversity.nl/EUS2516/lowliteracyineurope/

So they are not just not reading any books, they literally can't read books.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 4 months ago (1 children)

I could not find info on how they get to 20-25% functionally illiterate. That seems way too high. 17% for Germany. Do you know how they define illiterate?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 months ago (1 children)

It can vary depending on the context, but essentially it just means that you can only read/write at a fairly basic level.

For instance, imagine someone who reads at a 4th grade reading level. They can get through basic aspects of life, but get totally lost/overwhelmed if they are presented with anything more complex. For instance, they wouldn't be able to comprehend most official letters. (Thus is especially an issue in Germany since Amtsdeutsch seemingly tries to be intentionally complex....)

They are effectively locked out of most modern jobs, because they can't parse emails effectively or formulate a fitting reply.

It's also something that people are generally very self-conscious about and get pretty good at hiding.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 months ago

Interesting, thanks for clearing that up. Wouldn't have thought that this is so common but then again I'm living in a bubble where I mostly know well educated people.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 4 months ago

"Functionally Illiterate" doesn't mean that those people can't read or write. But it does mean that they don't understand what the words even mean.

Or in other words. Just because you know how to do something doesn't mean that you understand how it works. Lots of people drive cars or use computers but many of them have no real understanding on how they actually work.