Re:Stupider Than You Realize
by djb_hackernews on Sunday July 05, 2009 @09:54PM
(#688970)
I was a volunteer tutor for a 5th grader for few months. He had the reading ability supposedly of about a 3rd grader I was told. He could pretty much read any word, but we'd crack a book, he'd point at the word, say it, then continue to the next word. Punctuation meant nothing. He could have probably done it for days. Part of my job was to stop him and ask him questions about what was going on. Blank stares. I moved and couldn't tutor him any longer, but I don't think I helped, which was frustrating. The thing is, he had been in the program for years. And was undoubtedly going to passed to 6th grade, and probably won't break out of illiteracy without an intensive program.
Point being, I don't think his situation is all that unique.
Wow, that is a little depressing.
Just out of idle curiosity - are you the djb (qmail, cdb, etc)?
Over 20% of American adults are 'quantitatively illiterate'. They are unable to add two small numbers together - or parse a simple chart or table that has numbers.
Only 13% of the adult population is proficient in reading, writing, math - where proficient means being able to do simple things like compare viewpoints in two editorials or compare the cost per ounce of food items.
That means ~9 out of 10 American adults are seriously lacking in their ability to read, write, or interpret numbers.
http://nces.ed.gov/NAAL/datafiles.asp