Survey: Growing number of U.S. adults lack literacy skills

The share of adults with literacy skills at the lowest measured levels increased substantially as the gap between the high-skilled and low-skilled in the U.S. expands, according to new data from the National Center for Education Statistics’ latest survey of adult skills.

The survey was previously administered in 2017, when 19% of U.S. adults ranked at the lowest levels of literacy. In 2023, that figure increased to 28%, a change that NCES Commissioner Peggy Carr called “substantial” in a news conference announcing the survey Monday.

“It is larger than what we would normally see in an international assessment, particularly literacy, which is a fairly stable construct,” she said.

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