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Scores for Adults Are Dropping on Tests of Basic Skills
As with kids' test scores, a crucial question is the role of knowledge
It's hard to draw firm conclusions from international tests, given the multitude of factors that can affect scores (which might include, for older adults, the fact that the 2023 administration didn’t provide the pencil-and-paper option offered in the past). The bread-and-crackers text uses a number of words and phrases that aren’t likely to crop up in ordinary conversation, like “exposed to the elements,” “crystallized,” and “retrogradation” (the last of which is explained as a process “in which the starch structure of the bread changes”). Most higher-paying jobs require facility with complex text, a fact that helps explain why the PIAAC data show that high-scorers earn more and are generally healthier and happier.
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