What is Literacy?

More than just a book, literacy is all around you.

Literacy is the ability to recognize, acquire and apply knowledge. It constitutes the wide range of skills necessary for improving one's quality of life.

Both the IALS (1994) and the follow-up Adult Learning and Lifeskills Survey (ALLS-2003), found that almost half of all Canadians have difficulty with everyday literacy tasks.

Here are the 5 bodies of literacy that Rita will be highlighting in this year's contest:

Health Literacy is an individual's ability to read, understand and use healthcare information to make decisions and follow instructions for treatment. It involves both the context in which health literacy demands are made and the skills that people bring to that situation. Studies reveal that up to half of patients cannot understand basic healthcare information. Low health literacy reduces the success of treatment and increases the risk of medical error. Health literacy is of continued and increasing concern for health professionals, as it is a primary factor behind health disparities.

Digital literacy is the ability to locate, organize, understand, evaluate, and analyze information using digital technology. It involves a working knowledge of current high-technology, and an understanding of how it can be used. Digitally literate people can communicate and work more efficiently, especially with those who possess the same knowledge and skills.Research around digital literacy is concerned with wider aspects associated with learning how to effectively find, use, summarize, evaluate, create, and communicate information while using digital technologies, not just being literate at using a computer.

Informational Literacy is the ability to recognize when information is needed and to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information. It involves everything from learning how to access information to critical reflection on the nature of information itself, its technical infrastructure and its social, cultural, and philosophical context and impact.

Financial Literacy is the ability to understand finance. More specifically, it refers to the set of skills and knowledge that allows an individual to make informed and effective decisions through their understanding of finances.

Workplace Literacy is the core set of skills that employees need to do their jobs successfully. These skills are critical to high performance and the success of modern business. Gaining basic skills also has a positive impact on employees’ attitudes and behaviors. This is often just as valuable to employers as the skill gains themselves.

Ask us any literacy question!