What is Math Literacy?
Math literacy (also referred to as numeracy) refers to the ability to understand and apply math concepts in real-life situations.
It is more than just calculating numbers and adding and subtracting; it involves reasoning, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills.
Math literacy empowers individuals to make informed decisions in daily life. Examples of how we might use numeracy in everyday life includes creating and managing a budget, measuring ingredients while cooking a recipe, and understanding distances to calculate travel time.
Programs
Facts & Statistics
Download literacy facts and infographic for use in your organization’s communications, as well as for personal use.
Just over half (51%) of adult Canadians score in the three lowest skill levels in numeracy, down from 54% in 2012. Only 15% sit in the highest two levels, while 34% sit in the middle, at a high school level.
Among Canadian adults, men tend to have higher numeracy skills than women. Men score, on average, 16 points higher in numeracy than women. Older cohorts tend to show more balanced numeracy scores, with men and women aged 55 to 65 scoring similarly, unlike the 35 to 44 age group, where men scored higher.
Canada is above the OECD average in numeracy, which is an increase from 2012, when Canada was below the OECD average. Canada’s average score of 271 places it above the OECD average of 262, alongside countries such as England, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. Only Newfoundland and Labrador scored below the OECD average in numeracy, with the other provinces falling between the Canadian and the OECD averages. British Columbia and Alberta both scored higher than the Canadian average.
55% of Canadians have unsuitable numeracy skills, which means that they may struggle with understanding written instructions that rely on charts, numbers and conditional statements (if-then statements).
Adults With Inadequate Numeracy Skills – Conference Board of Canada, 2010
