Ample evidence indicates that a person's human capital is important for success on the labor market in terms of both wages and employment prospects. However, unlike the efforts to identify the impact of school attainment on labor-market outcomes, the literature on returns to cognitive skills has not yet provided convincing evidence that the…

We examine the importance of adult functional literacy skills for individuals using a quantile regression methodology. The inclusion of the direct measure of basic skills reduces the return to schooling by 27%, equivalent to two additional years of schooling, while a one standard deviation increase in the score increases earnings by 20%. For those…

This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of the link between age and proficiency in information-processing skills, based on information drawn from the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC). The data reveal significant age-related differences in proficiencies, strongly suggesting that proficiency tends to "naturally" decline with age. Age…

The purpose of this literature review is to explore the relationship between literacy and poverty primarily using data from the series of related international literacy assessments, commonly referred to as the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS). IALS data provides extensive information about literacy and related factors such as employment,…

Younger workers, particularly those entering the workforce at ages 25-34 years, are more educated than ever before. The potential for these workers to be over-educated in their jobs might therefore be high. But does it follow that they are mismatched to the skill requirements of their jobs? This study examines the link between over-education and…

The 2019 edition of the "Digest of Education Statistics" is the 55th in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The purpose of the "Digest" is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field of American education from prekindergarten through graduate school. It contains data on a variety of…

Labor market outcomes of 25- to 64-year-olds were examined as a function of sex, prose proficiency level, and highest educational level attained. The data for 1992 confirmed that educational attainment and literacy level are both positively associated with higher annual earnings and lower unemployment rates and that literacy is positively…

The 2017 edition of the "Digest of Education Statistics" is the 53rd in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The "Digest" has been issued annually except for combined editions for the years 1977-78, 1983-84, and 1985-86. Its primary purpose is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field…

The 54th in a series of publications initiated in 1962, the purpose of the "Digest" is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field of education from prekindergarten through graduate school. It contains data on a variety of topics, including the number of schools and colleges, teachers, enrollments, and…

The 2016 edition of the "Digest of Education Statistics" is the 52nd in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The "Digest" has been issued annually except for combined editions for the years 1977-78, 1983-84, and 1985-86. Its primary purpose is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field…

The National Adult Literacy Survey profiled the literacy of U.S. adults based on their performance on tasks reflecting materials and demands of daily life. Data were gathered through interviews with a random sample of 13,600 people over 16, a survey of 1,000 adults in each of 12 states, and interviews with 1,100 prison inmates, making a total of…

This analysis addresses the role of car usage in employment outcomes such as employment status, average weekly wages, and weeks worked per year. It postulates that car ownership is an important employment tool for adults of low educational attainment in Portland, even in the context of other factors such as social networks/resources (social…

This document consists of 15 data tables, without accompanying text, for a National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools, and Teaching (NCREST) presentation on the education and economic condition of Hispanic Americans. Each table contains a source note. The following are the table titles: (1) "Resident Population of the United States,…

The scope and effects of employer-sponsored training in the United States were examined to determine the following: how economic and technological change interact with employers' responses to the new environment's demands; how employer-sponsored training affects the functional distribution of educational attainment, productivity, and earnings; and…

The question of whether inequality in skills explains inequality of earnings across advanced countries was examined through a review of data from the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS), which examined the prose, document, and quantitative literacy skills of adults in 12 member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and…