CSDA

Opening

Opening

Is it worth it? As a society, there are lots of areas where we debate whether something has value. 

Often this is as simple as reacting to the cost of something, sometimes emotionally, as can be seen for example in our never-ending coverage of rising house prices. 

But when we ask “Is it worth it”, we are thinking about more than just the cost. We are asking ourselves whether the benefits we derive from that cost are what we were looking for and whether they are good enough to justify the cost in the first place.

We are asking ourselves whether the benefits we derive from that cost are what we were looking for and whether they are good enough to justify the cost in the first place.

As a nation, there are certain big-ticket things we have generally agreed are worth investing in, for example, healthcare. In these areas, the question “Is it worth it” tends to only arise at the margins, when political parties are looking to differentiate their policies with voters, or in instances where there are large one-off items in the news, such as the proposed submarine programme with the US and UK.

instances where there are large one-off items in the news, such as the proposed submarine programme with the US and UK.

When it comes to education, it can seem as if the question “Is it worth it” is already answered, with a resounding ‘yes’. Everyone in this room instinctively understands that education is an important driver of our quality of life. It is the way that we get jobs and how we evolve as a society. Through education, we get new ideas which help lead to bigger and better things. Education is an investment, the more you put in the more you get out.

Education is an investment, the more you put in the more you get out.

Why then don't we educate adults in the same way?

As a country, we spend billions of dollars a year on schools, teachers and wider learning facilities, both in terms of tax-funded spending and also the enormous amounts of private spending making its way into school fees and state-of-the-art buildings across our private schools.

enormous amounts of private spending making its way into school fees and state-of-the-art buildings across our private schools.

But if we have all agreed education is so important, why is this investment so heavily weighted towards children, and why does our investment in education drop so significantly once we pass from childhood to adulthood?

drop so significantly once we pass from childhood to adulthood?

To be clear, I am not here to tell you that we are spending too much money on educating children. What I am advocating is that investment in education is also ‘worth it’ beyond our school years, not least because the reality for many is that school isn't enough.

reality for many is that school isn't enough.

For example, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 44% of all Australian adults don't have the functional literacy skills they need to cope with the demands of everyday life and work. That is a staggering number of Australian adults who can't read and write proficiently.  

That is a staggering number of Australian adults who can't read and write proficiently.  

For most of us, it is probably quite hard to imagine how hard this must be. It must be like waking up one day and finding that everything is now written using Hieroglyphics, a completely different character system and writing style and you have no easy means of translating anything. Suddenly you wouldn't be able to keep up your job, communicate with anyone over messages and email or even cook anything you don't know solely from memory. 

communicate with anyone over messages and email or even cook anything you don't know solely from memory. 

But this is not only about a language barrier,  and it would be a mistake to assume that the key driver of this is the proportion of Australian citizens who are first-generation immigrants. The same study by the Bureau of Statistics found that 68% of the people who struggled with functional literacy skills were native English speakers.  

68% of the people who struggled with functional literacy skills were native English speakers.  

So in all likelihood, these are Australian adults who have already been through the Australian education system but have not come out of it with the literacy skills they need. 

This can happen for a number of reasons, but the main causes tend to be either poverty -  which often leads to a lot of missed school and in some cases dropping out early - or where someone has sight or hearing difficulties that have made learning more challenging.

or where someone has sight or hearing difficulties that have made learning more challenging.

And so if our education system has not provided these skills through childhood, imagine how much harder it is to address that in adulthood. An adult seeking educational support often has to do this while also working for a living and perhaps juggling their own childcare commitments.

But why should we care? Is this a problem worth addressing?  

Well, I think it is worth it, not just because it is the right thing to do, but because I think it would be a good investment.

Well, I think it is worth it, not just because it is the right thing to do, but because I think it would be a good investment.

In Australia, we currently have a workforce shortage where we don't have enough people to fill certain jobs such as ICT workers, technicians and tradespeople. However we also have millions of people currently without jobs, many of whom are unemployed due to this lack of functional literacy. 

However we also have millions of people currently without jobs, many of whom are unemployed due to this lack of functional literacy. 

I think that we should be investing in adult education that focuses on the core skills to fill the gaps in our workforce. This would significantly help reduce the unemployment rate and would also drive the overall economic growth of Australia.

This would significantly help reduce the unemployment rate and would also drive the overall economic growth of Australia.

In reality, this also means focusing on what literacy means today. For example, functional literacy today often also means the ability to type, and use laptop systems, and for even some of the most intelligent people a lack of computer literacy can be career-limiting. In today's world we are rapidly evolving and the need for continuous skill development and education on technological literacy has never been more needed.

continuous skill development and education on technological literacy has never been more needed.

By integrating ongoing learning initiatives into our current systems, we allow individuals to continually develop their knowledge and remain literate within the current system.

individuals to continually develop their knowledge and remain literate within the current system.

I believe that education is invaluable to everyone for the role it plays in every aspect of our lives and I believe that it is worth it for everyone to be able to read and write. Because literacy doesn't only affect individuals it also impacts our overall growth and development as a country. Is it worth it? Absolutely.