Bureau of Statistics – We’re not really the clever country

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ Adult Literacy and Life Skills Survey

Of Australians aged 15 to 74 years

• 46% only got to the second level in the basic literacy test

  53% of surveyed Australians reached just the second of five levels in a practical numeracy test,

• 70%, the equivalent of 10.6 million people, only managed to progress to level 2 in a series of problem-solving exercises.

Level 3 is regarded by the survey developers as the minimum required for individuals to meet the complex demands of everyday life and work in the emerging knowledge-based economy.