Illiteracy declines in South Carolina

Thanks to programs like the ones held at the Dorcester Adult Education Department, the rate of illiterate South Carolinians has declined 25 percent.

Currently 15 percent of the state’s adult residents are illiterate or lack basic literary skills (gathered from data collected in 2003), conveying a vast improvement from the 1992 illiteracy rate of 20 percent. South Carolina also falls just short of the national adult illiteracy rate, which currently is at 14.5 percent.

The Post and Courier discussed the state’s achievement:
Stout said the improvements were largest in some of the state's poorest counties. For instance, Allendale County, the state's poorest, went from 43 percent of adults lacking basic literacy skills in 1992 to 29 percent in 2003.

Slowly but surely the state is shedding its illiterate reputation. To learn more about this topic, head over to the Post and Courier.