Literacy is an urgent issue that touches virtually every aspect of our lives. At work, at home, at play, in the car, in the doctor’s office, we are surrounded by information that we need to understand in order to make sense of the world around us.
Literacy is much more than reading and writing. It is the toolkit of skills and strategies that we use to decode information and create meaning. When we increase literacy, we increase our health and well-being, our parenting skills, our productivity. Crime decreases as opportunity increases. As individuals, as communities, and as a society, we become stronger and more resilient as our literacy increases.
Knowledge is the key to the future, and the more we learn, the more we unlock our potential. Literacy is a key strategy to help solve fundamental societal issues and economic challenges in BC. Find the facts and figures on literacy in BC here.
Literacy Fact Sheets
The Importance of Literacy for British Columbia
A Brighter Future for BC Communities Through Investments in Literacy
Family_Literacy Works for BC (PDF)
Literacy and Clear Language (PDF)
There are many sources for the information in these fact sheets, including Building on our Competencies, Statistics Canada’s analysis of the 2003 International Adult Literacy & Skills Survey.
For sources and other questions about literacy, contact our librarian at
For additional information, please see our Resources section, where you will find videos, searchable resource links, and our Decoda Literacy Library, which contains over 5,000 resources that anyone in BC can borrow.