The Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) is an ongoing large-scale study that measures, analyzes, and compares key cognitive and workplace skills of adults in over 30 countries. PIAAC assessments are scored on a 0-500 scale, which are divided into 5 proficiency levels. Here’s how the National Center for Education Statistics describes Level 1 for literacy and numeracy, which are foundational skills for the development of higher-level competencies.

Level 1 Literacy: Adults at this level can be considered at risk for difficulties using or comprehending print material. Adults at the upper end of this level can read short texts and understand the meaning enough to perform simple tasks. Adults below Level 1 may only be able to understand very basic vocabulary or find very specific information on a familiar topic. Some may struggle with this and may be functionally illiterate.

Level 1 Numeracy: Adults at this level can be considered at risk for difficulties with numeracy. Adults at the upper end of this level can understand how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide, and can perform basic one-step mathematical operations with given values or common spatial representations. Adults who are below Level 1 may only be able to count, sort, and do basic arithmetic operations with simple whole numbers and may be functionally innumerate.

Numerous studies have found PIAAC scores to be associated with earning capacity (Hanushek et al, 2013; Kankaraš et al, 2016; Smith & Fernandez, 2017; Rica et al, 2020). For example, an increase of around 40 points in the PIAAC numeracy score increases hourly wage as much as 28% in the United States. So if the reference wage was $15 an hour, a 28% raise would bring that up to $19.20 an hour, or an additional $168 a week for full-time (40 hr/wk) workers. And that would translate to an additional $8736 per year.

On the other hands, the earning prospects are pretty bleak for Level 1 individuals, including a good portion of incarcerated adults in the U.S.

Image from: Education and Training Opportunities in America’s Prisons by Dana Tofig/Communications Director, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. January 11, 2017 https://nces.ed.gov/blogs/nces/post/education-and-training-opportunities-in-america-s-prisons

What to do? A few ideas: expand education and training programs in jails and prisons, provide incentives for incarcerated individuals to participate in these programs, and provide plenty of post-release support.

I’ll end with an excerpt from Education Reduces Recidivism by Gregory Magee:

Choices about how to generate income are central to the link between wages and crime. Education and training increase skill levels and wage rates (Lochner, 1999). It is expected that these increases will reduce criminal participation. Education leads to employment. Employment provides offenders with responsibility, personal value, independence, dignity, a stake in society, offers income, structure, and routine, an opportunity to increase social networks, and enhance self-esteem and psychological health. Not only does the offender benefit from employment, but the community also profits from the decrease in costs associated with recidivism.

References:

Brunello, G., Rocco, L. The effects of vocational education on adult skills, employment and wages: What can we learn from PIAAC?. SERIEs 8, 315–343 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13209-017-0163-z

Hanushek, E., G. Schwerdt, S. Wiederhold and L. Woessman (2013), “Returns to skills around the world: Evidence from PIAAC”, European Economic Review, Vol. 73, pp. 103-130, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.euroecorev.2014.10.006 . 

Kankaraš, Miloš; Montt, Guillermo; Paccagnella, Marco; Quintini, Glenda; Thorn, William (2016), Skills Matter: Further Results from the Survey of Adult Skills, OECD Skills Studies, OECD Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264258051-en  

Lochner, Lance (1999) “Education, Work, and Crime: Theory and Evidence”. Rochester Center for Economic Research Working Paper No. 465, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=208291 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.208291

Magee, Gregory (2021) "Education Reduces Recidivism," Technium Social Sciences Journal, Technium Science, vol. 16(1), pages 175-182, February. DOI: https://doi.org/10.47577/tssj.v16i1.2668

Rica, Sara De La & Gortazar, Lucas & Lewandowski, Piotr, 2020. "Job Tasks and Wages in Developed Countries: Evidence from PIAAC," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).

Smith, W.C. and Fernandez, F. (2017), Education, Skills, and Wage Gaps in Canada and the United States. Int Migr, 55: 57-73. https://doi.org/10.1111/imig.12328