LITERACY IN JAMAICA

Literacy and educational functionality remains a critical vehicle to enhancing Jamaica’s development. According to the 2008 Jamaica Survey of Living Conditions, produced by the Planning Institute of Jamaica, Jamaica’s Adult Literacy Rate (percentage of adults over 15 years who are literate) is 91.7%. However, functional literacy is just 78.3%, as 13.4% had only basic literacy.

The country continues to grapple with low educational levels of graduates from the formal educational system. In 2017, the pass rate for mathematics in the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Examination was 50.2% and 70.8% for English. Therefore, half of the students graduating from high school do not demonstrate the required competence in Math and just under a third – 30% - of these graduates lack the required competence in English.

Furthermore, students in a large number of schools fail to pass five CSEC subjects, which is normally the minimum requirement for entering the job market. Educate Jamaica, an education think tank, reported in 2015 that only 41% of 161 state-operated high schools had more than 50% of students in the exam cohort attaining 5 CSEC passes.

As a result of such poor outcomes from the school system, thousands of adult Jamaicans have minimal functional literacy skills and limited educational competence and qualifications. Low literacy levels dampen confidence and limit livelihood opportunities. Unemployment is related to low educational levels, as highlighted in the 2014 report on Labour Market Transitions of Young Men and Women, which reported that the unemployment rate decreased for youth as the level of education increased.