Poor math literacy common among Canadian-born university grads Survey
finds that 23 per of these grads score poorly in math — and many of these
people have graduated from teaching programs.
[image: Math literacy]
Math literacy Metro Creative Connection
*Almost one-quarter of university graduates born in Canada have such
limited math skills they score no more than 2 on a scale of 0 to 5 — and 16
per cent are just as poor at literacy, according to a new report from
Statistics Canada.*
OurWindsor.Ca
By Louise Brown <mailTo:[email protected]>
Some 23 per cent of university graduates born in Canada have such limited
math skills they score no more than 2 on a scale of 0 to 5 — and 16 per
cent are just as poor at literacy, according to a new report from
Statistics Canada.
Among the worst performers are graduates of teaching programs, of whom 29
per cent scored low on numeracy — a field where teachers’ abilities have
drawn concern — followed by arts and humanities majors, said the report,
released Tuesday. Science and math students did much better. The results
came from an international survey of skills by the Organization for
Economic Co-operation and Development called the Programme for the
International Assessment of Adult Competencies
<http://www23.statcan.gc.ca/imdb/p2SV.pl?Function=getSurvey&SDDS=4406>.
The survey tested the ability of adults aged 25 to 65, with different
levels of education, to understand and work with texts of different length
and levels of difficulty, and to use math “to manage the demands of a range
of situations in everyday life” — both skills many jobs require.
Individuals at level 2 or below in numeracy are described as less likely to
be able to perform and understand complex mathematical information and use
problem-solving strategies. With literacy, individuals at level 2 or below
are likely to be able to undertake only tasks of limited complexity such as
locating single pieces of information in short sections of text.
When foreign-born Canadian university graduates are included, the number
with low numeracy rose to 35 per cent, and low literacy skills to 27 per
cent.
“In general we do very well, but we’d encourage post-secondary institutions
to take a look at what they’re doing, and maybe integrate more literacy and
numeracy and problem-solving into the curriculum,” said Daniel Munro,
principal research associate for the Conference Board of Canada, which also
released a study Tuesday noting literacy and problem-solving scores
<http://www.conferenceboard.ca/hcp/details/education/adult-literacy-rate-low-skills.aspx>
should be stronger for a country with such a highly educated population.
“And we should also look back at what’s happening from kindergarten to
Grade 12, because many universities say they’re doing the best with the
students they get,” said Munro. “Recent OECD studies of 15-year-olds show
our students have slipped a bit, and some universities say the ‘raw
material’ they get is not as good as it used to be.”
As Canadian universities open their doors wider to be more inclusive, they
may be “drawing from a pool of students with lower foundational skills from
the kindergarten to Grade 12 level,” added Munro.
Someone with low literacy skills “is less likely to understand or respond
appropriately to complex texts,” said Darcy Hango, author of the Stats
Canada report, which analyzed responses from 27,000 Canadians. “The
questions are real-world situations about coping with daily life and work …
and sometimes (those with lower skills) can’t take that extra step to
answer more complex questions.”
Yet Ontario employers haven’t complained a lot about graduates’ literacy
and numeracy skills,” said Josh Hjartarson, vice-president of policy and
government relations for the Ontario Chamber of Commerce
<http://www.occ.ca/ontario-business-success/essential-skills-ontario-discusses-the-skills-gap/>,
which represents 60,000 employers across 160 communities. “However many
have concerns about skills gaps, with not enough people who can, say, run
mining equipment or enough people in northern Ontario who can run large
infrastructure projects.
“But we’re generally regarded as having among the best education systems in
the world.”
Among other factors the Stats Can study found;
• The higher the parents’ education, the less likely the graduate to score
poorly;
• Canadian-born university graduates with poor skills were less likely to
work as professionals or managers;
• Nearly 27 per cent of female university grads born in Canada score poorly
on numeracy, compared to about 17 per cent of males;
• The oldest group of university grads — those 60 to 65 years old — scored
the worst in skills;
• Ontario university grads born in Canada performed relatively well; only
13 per cent had low scores in literacy (compared to 16 per cent across
Canada) and 20 per cent had low scores in numeracy (compared to 23 per cent
across Canada);
“All universities in Ontario are concerned about levels of literacy and
numeracy as part of our quality assurance framework,” said Donna Woolcott,
executive director of Ontario’s Quality Assurance Secretariat, which
oversees quality in Ontario’s colleges and universities. “The measurements
of graduates’ success go well beyond that. In fact, there are well
established minimum standards for undergraduate and graduate programs,” she
said, noting universities “rigorously review” their programs at least once
every eight years.
Daniel Munro of the Conference Board of Canada said as universities become
more inclusive, they may have to offer more remediation and help to
students.
“Not to say that Canadian universities are doing badly, but one of the
challenges in bringing in more students with a diverse range of learning
needs is that universities have had to adapt; university is a different
beast these days and maybe a little patience is in order.”
Here is an example of a Level 2 numeracy problem from the test:
“A gas gauge is shown that has three lines or ticks on it: one showing an
“F,” one showing an “E” and one in the middle of the others. A line on the
gauge, representing the gauge’s needle, shows a level that is roughly
halfway between the middle tick and the tick indicating “F,” suggesting
that the tank is about three-quarters full. The task states that the tank
holds 48 gallons and asks the respondent to determine “how many gallons
remain in the tank.” This task is drawn from an everyday context and
requires an adult to interpret a display that conveys quantitative
information but carries virtually no text or numbers. Adults must first
estimate the level of gas remaining in the tank by converting the placement
of the needle to a fraction. Then they need to determine how many gallons
this represents from the 48-gallon capacity stated in the question. Thus,
this task requires adults to apply multiple procedures to arrive at a
correct response.”
To sample the test, go to
oecd.org/site/piaac/educationandskillsonlineassessment.htm
<http://www.oecd.org/site/piaac/educationandskillsonlineassessment.htm>.
Toronto Star
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