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CHAPTER NINE MAIN CONCLUSIONS
Our analysis of literacy and numeracy levels in Scotland using data from the 1970 British Cohort Study was the first of its kind and paints a picture of disadvantage associated with poor literacy and numeracy skills and educational under-achievement that affect employment prospects, housing, family formation, income, social and political participation, and health and well-being.
We found that poverty and its consequences are re-cycling poor literacy and numeracy skills from one generation to the next, with parents who themselves have low literacy or numeracy levels unable to support their children's learning.
However, if adults with poor literacy and numeracy skills are to take advantage of opportunities to learn they have to recognise the need to improve their literacy or numeracy. Levels of self-reported difficulty with reading, writing or numbers were lower in Scotland than in England and Wales. Further awareness-raising efforts are needed together with the development of learning opportunities that better match the specific needs identified by potential learners.
If economists are right to argue that investment in young children gives the best returns, parents need to build their own literacy and numeracy capabilities in order to help their children learn. High quality community-based adult literacy and numeracy provision directed towards parents is therefore key to success.
But the issue runs even deeper. The impact of low literacy and numeracy levels on virtually every aspect of individuals' lives also needs to be considered if social exclusion and its consequences are to be avoided. Many adults with low literacy and numeracy do, of course, manage their lives very well. But 'just getting by' is a poor substitute for raising capability. Here the Scottish approach to identifying need and providing educational opportunities through local community partnerships has considerable potential to raise skill levels.
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