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| Business leaders issue stark warning following OECD education study | Business leaders issue stark warning following OECD education study |
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| Britain's business leaders have warned that the country risks an economic "car crash" as a respected international thinktank issued a stark warning that millions of English adults cannot read, write or add up better than primary school children. | Britain's business leaders have warned that the country risks an economic "car crash" as a respected international thinktank issued a stark warning that millions of English adults cannot read, write or add up better than primary school children. |
| An investigation by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development found that a quarter of adults in England have the maths skills no better than a 10-year-old, a conclusion that also prompted a political row in which the Conservatives attacked Labour's record in government. | |
| That means an estimated 8.5 million adults are only able to manage one-step tasks in arithmetic, sorting numbers or reading graphs. The same body also concluded that one in six adults could only just decipher sentences and read a paragraph of text – the literacy level of a child in their final year of primary education. | That means an estimated 8.5 million adults are only able to manage one-step tasks in arithmetic, sorting numbers or reading graphs. The same body also concluded that one in six adults could only just decipher sentences and read a paragraph of text – the literacy level of a child in their final year of primary education. |
| Young people in England, those aged between 16 and 24, also scored 22nd for literacy and 21st for numeracy out of 24 of the world's developed countries behind Estonia, Australia, Poland and Slovakia. The OECD survey did not include people from Scotland or Wales, where administrations declined to take part on the grounds of cost. | Young people in England, those aged between 16 and 24, also scored 22nd for literacy and 21st for numeracy out of 24 of the world's developed countries behind Estonia, Australia, Poland and Slovakia. The OECD survey did not include people from Scotland or Wales, where administrations declined to take part on the grounds of cost. |
| "It's a car crash in slow motion for the economy," said John Cridland, director general of the Confederation of British Industry. "You have about 30% of every year of 16-year-olds who have been failed by the education system. Not by teachers. After 11 years in full time education when they enter the labour force without adequate GCSE English or maths everyone loses out." | |
| Overall, English adults of all ages 16-65 rank 11th for literacy and 17th for numeracy. The consistently top performers were adults in Finland, Japan, Korea and the Netherlands. The OECD cautioned the "talent pool of highly skilled adults in England and Northern Ireland is likely to shrink relative to that of other countries". | Overall, English adults of all ages 16-65 rank 11th for literacy and 17th for numeracy. The consistently top performers were adults in Finland, Japan, Korea and the Netherlands. The OECD cautioned the "talent pool of highly skilled adults in England and Northern Ireland is likely to shrink relative to that of other countries". |
| But there was one positive set of figures: adults aged 55 to 65 perform better than 16- to 24-year-olds at foundation levels of literacy and numeracy. When the results within age groups are compared across participating countries, the cohort of older adults in England scored 3rd in literacy and 11th in numeracy compared to other members of the developed countries club. | But there was one positive set of figures: adults aged 55 to 65 perform better than 16- to 24-year-olds at foundation levels of literacy and numeracy. When the results within age groups are compared across participating countries, the cohort of older adults in England scored 3rd in literacy and 11th in numeracy compared to other members of the developed countries club. |
| Matthew Hancock, the minister for skills and enterprise, said young people covered by the survey "were educated almost entirely" under the last government, noting that "someone aged 18 when they took the OECD tests would have started school aged five in 1998 and finished compulsory education aged 16 in 2009". | Matthew Hancock, the minister for skills and enterprise, said young people covered by the survey "were educated almost entirely" under the last government, noting that "someone aged 18 when they took the OECD tests would have started school aged five in 1998 and finished compulsory education aged 16 in 2009". |
| He added that: "This shocking report shows England has some of the least literate and numerate young adults in the developed world. These are Labour's children, educated under a Labour government and force-fed a diet of dumbing down and low expectations." | He added that: "This shocking report shows England has some of the least literate and numerate young adults in the developed world. These are Labour's children, educated under a Labour government and force-fed a diet of dumbing down and low expectations." |
| However, David Blunkett, Tony Blair's first education secretary, who introduced both the literacy hour and numeracy hour into schools, questioned the methodology of the OECD, saying it "leaves a number of questions unanswered". | However, David Blunkett, Tony Blair's first education secretary, who introduced both the literacy hour and numeracy hour into schools, questioned the methodology of the OECD, saying it "leaves a number of questions unanswered". |
| "Some have even blamed massive youth unemployment on the lack of literacy and numeracy skills of the under-25s. This is a staggering reversal of responsibility at a time when instead of investing heavily in preparation for employment, youngsters are being offered piecemeal, short term bites of experience which do not equip them for the world of tomorrow." | "Some have even blamed massive youth unemployment on the lack of literacy and numeracy skills of the under-25s. This is a staggering reversal of responsibility at a time when instead of investing heavily in preparation for employment, youngsters are being offered piecemeal, short term bites of experience which do not equip them for the world of tomorrow." |
| The OECD research, the first of its kind, surveyed 166,000 people in 22 OECD member countries, as well as Russia and Cyprus, who sat through two hours of intense questioning about their skills and background. | The OECD research, the first of its kind, surveyed 166,000 people in 22 OECD member countries, as well as Russia and Cyprus, who sat through two hours of intense questioning about their skills and background. |
| One of the questions raised is how so many adults have been left behind when GCSE results were improving. Andreas Schleicher, the OECD's deputy director for education and skills, said that he could not prove there had been "grade inflation. But intuitively in the UK there appears some truth in this idea". | One of the questions raised is how so many adults have been left behind when GCSE results were improving. Andreas Schleicher, the OECD's deputy director for education and skills, said that he could not prove there had been "grade inflation. But intuitively in the UK there appears some truth in this idea". |
| Arguments over educational standards, look set to feature in the run up to the next general election. Last week Cameron called for young people under the age of 25 to be stripped of benefits so that they could "earn or learn" their way through life. | |
| At the time, Labour hit back, saying that while in government it "drove up standards in maths and English across our schools, evident in the huge improvements we saw in GCSE results between 1997 and 2010". | |
| The OECD report also revealed that there appears to be a distinct hollowing out of the workforce across the rich world, with jobs requiring highly educated workers rising by around a fifth and those needing a medium or low skills base dropping by about 10% each. | The OECD report also revealed that there appears to be a distinct hollowing out of the workforce across the rich world, with jobs requiring highly educated workers rising by around a fifth and those needing a medium or low skills base dropping by about 10% each. |
| "The implication for England and Northern Ireland is that the stock of skills available to them is bound to decline over the next decades unless significant action is taken to improve skills proficiency among young people," the OECD concluded. | "The implication for England and Northern Ireland is that the stock of skills available to them is bound to decline over the next decades unless significant action is taken to improve skills proficiency among young people," the OECD concluded. |
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