OECD: Literacy Crisis Reaches Universities as 8% of Students Read at Child Level

DID Press: A new report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) shows that a basic literacy crisis has reached higher education systems, with around 8% of university and college students across 38 member countries reading and writing at the level of a 10-year-old or below.

According to the OECD data, foundational literacy levels among higher education students have significantly declined, raising concerns about the quality of education systems in developed economies.

The report indicates that in Germany and France, about 5% of students fall into this category, while the figures rise sharply in other countries. In Poland, the rate reaches 21%, in Israel 20%, and in the United States 14%, highlighting significant disparities across education systems.

Experts warn that these figures reflect a broader deterioration in basic academic skills, suggesting that access to higher education is no longer necessarily aligned with strong literacy foundations in some countries.