SINGAPORE: Acquired skills declining after people leave the formal education system or skills becoming obsolete at the workplace are likely factors behind the loss of literary proficiency among older adults in Singapore, Minister for Education Chan Chun Sing said on Wednesday (Jan 8).
A study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) released in December revealed that Singapore’s adult literacy proficiency is below the OECD average.
The PIAAC assesses a workforce's capacity to acquire further knowledge and new skills.
It has been conducted in two cycles so far, from 2014 to 2015 and 2022 to 2023.
In the latest cycle, about 5,000 Singaporean and permanent resident participants aged 16 to 65 were assessed on their literacy and numeracy proficiency, as well as adaptive problem skills.
Most countries that participated in the study saw a decline in literacy proficiency. In Singapore, literacy in adults declines sharply after 35 years old and the downward trend continues as adults age.
The trends observed could be due to a combination of several factors, Mr Chan said in parliament.
He cited the atrophy effect where skills decline after adults leave the formal education system and enter the workforce. This could be because the skills are not used as frequently or deliberately honed as compared with during formal schooling years.
He also pointed to the obsolescence effect - skills becoming less relevant or even obsolete at work due to rapidly changing market demands, technological advancement and enterprise transformation.
The cohort effect, where younger cohorts have benefitted from significantly improved educational opportunities compared with earlier cohorts, is likely another contributing factor.
Several Members of Parliament had filed questions on the results of the PIAAC study, asking if the Ministry of Education (MOE) has initiatives in place to help people in Singapore maintain literacy levels as they age, and whether the decline in literacy will affect the employability of workers above 35.
Mr Chan on Wednesday said that there is growing research interest in how technology has changed the way one consumes and processes information, with many people moving away from complex writing to shorter social media posts and videos.
"As cognitive outsourcing becomes more prevalent with AI, there is also a risk of erosion of deep thinking and reflection," he said.
Responding to questions on what the results mean for the competitiveness of Singapore's workforce, Mr Chan said that the skills assessed by OECD are not the only ones that affect the employability of local workers.
Other data points will also need to be considered such as whether workers have job-specific skills that are crucial to their competitiveness.
Mr Chan added that there are also other metrics that measure the competitiveness of a country or workforce, such as employment rate, the number of companies that continue to invest in good jobs in Singapore, and whether workers continue to command good wages.
"Nevertheless, to mitigate the atrophy and obsolescence effects, it is necessary for us to continuously upskill and reskill throughout life, beyond the first 15 years of formal education," he added.
"I always emphasise that while we have done well for the first 15 years of our students' achievement in school, we must also focus on the next 50 years of their time beyond school."
23:39 Min
Singapore’s improvements are encouraging over the two cycles of testing in the Survey of Adult Skills under the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC). Singapore takes part in PIAAC to help gauge its progress in adult continuous learning. However, the skills assessed are not the only ones that affect the employability of the local workforce. Education Minister Chan Chun Sing said this in reply to Parliamentary questions on Wednesday (Jan 8) on the recent results which indicate a decline in English literacy skills among older workers in Singapore. Mr Chan said there are other metrics that measure the competitiveness of the workforce, such as the employment rate, number of companies that continue to invest good jobs in Singapore, and whether workers continue to command higher wages. He said to mitigate the atrophy and obsolescence effects, it is necessary to continuously upskill and reskill throughout life beyond the first 15 years of formal education. The Government has been investing heavily in continuous education and training through SkillsFuture but individuals and employers also have key roles to play, said Mr Chan. Individuals must take ownership of their learning journeys throughout life while employers must stay nimble and transform their businesses and jobs to compete internationally, he added.
The education minister added that the government has been investing "heavily" in continuous education and training through SkillsFuture - a scheme that provides credits for workers to retrain or upskill by taking courses.
But individuals must also take ownership of their learning journeys throughout life and take steps to constantly upskill and reskill to push against the atrophy effect.
Employers too must invest in their employees' career health, such as by articulating their company’s skills needs and supporting their staff to undergo training to acquire the capabilities to successfully achieve business goals.
In a supplementary question, Nominated MP Usha Chandradas asked if MOE would consider collaborating more with local publishers and literacy charities such as Epigram Books and the Singapore Book Council to create a better reading culture and improve adult literacy skills.
Mr Chan responded that the ministry would like to work with the various institutions and that it was not just about encouraging people to read more but also widely.
"We are all conscious of today's media environment whereby there are so many different channels competing for the attention of our people," he said.
The government will have to keep up the effort to encourage people in Singapore to continue reading and learning even beyond their schooling years.
"We all have to be aware of this famous dictum: We either use it, hone it, or we lose it." This applies to all skillsets picked up from young, said Mr Chan.
"Otherwise the atrophy effect will set in regardless of our background."
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A study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) released in December revealed that Singapore’s adult literacy proficiency is below the OECD average.
The PIAAC assesses a workforce's capacity to acquire further knowledge and new skills.
It has been conducted in two cycles so far, from 2014 to 2015 and 2022 to 2023.
In the latest cycle, about 5,000 Singaporean and permanent resident participants aged 16 to 65 were assessed on their literacy and numeracy proficiency, as well as adaptive problem skills.
Most countries that participated in the study saw a decline in literacy proficiency. In Singapore, literacy in adults declines sharply after 35 years old and the downward trend continues as adults age.
The trends observed could be due to a combination of several factors, Mr Chan said in parliament.
He cited the atrophy effect where skills decline after adults leave the formal education system and enter the workforce. This could be because the skills are not used as frequently or deliberately honed as compared with during formal schooling years.
He also pointed to the obsolescence effect - skills becoming less relevant or even obsolete at work due to rapidly changing market demands, technological advancement and enterprise transformation.
The cohort effect, where younger cohorts have benefitted from significantly improved educational opportunities compared with earlier cohorts, is likely another contributing factor.
Several Members of Parliament had filed questions on the results of the PIAAC study, asking if the Ministry of Education (MOE) has initiatives in place to help people in Singapore maintain literacy levels as they age, and whether the decline in literacy will affect the employability of workers above 35.
Mr Chan on Wednesday said that there is growing research interest in how technology has changed the way one consumes and processes information, with many people moving away from complex writing to shorter social media posts and videos.
"As cognitive outsourcing becomes more prevalent with AI, there is also a risk of erosion of deep thinking and reflection," he said.
UPSKILLING BEYOND FIRST 15 YEARS OF FORMAL EDUCATION
Responding to questions on what the results mean for the competitiveness of Singapore's workforce, Mr Chan said that the skills assessed by OECD are not the only ones that affect the employability of local workers.
Other data points will also need to be considered such as whether workers have job-specific skills that are crucial to their competitiveness.
Mr Chan added that there are also other metrics that measure the competitiveness of a country or workforce, such as employment rate, the number of companies that continue to invest in good jobs in Singapore, and whether workers continue to command good wages.
"Nevertheless, to mitigate the atrophy and obsolescence effects, it is necessary for us to continuously upskill and reskill throughout life, beyond the first 15 years of formal education," he added.
"I always emphasise that while we have done well for the first 15 years of our students' achievement in school, we must also focus on the next 50 years of their time beyond school."
23:39 Min
Singapore’s improvements are encouraging over the two cycles of testing in the Survey of Adult Skills under the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC). Singapore takes part in PIAAC to help gauge its progress in adult continuous learning. However, the skills assessed are not the only ones that affect the employability of the local workforce. Education Minister Chan Chun Sing said this in reply to Parliamentary questions on Wednesday (Jan 8) on the recent results which indicate a decline in English literacy skills among older workers in Singapore. Mr Chan said there are other metrics that measure the competitiveness of the workforce, such as the employment rate, number of companies that continue to invest good jobs in Singapore, and whether workers continue to command higher wages. He said to mitigate the atrophy and obsolescence effects, it is necessary to continuously upskill and reskill throughout life beyond the first 15 years of formal education. The Government has been investing heavily in continuous education and training through SkillsFuture but individuals and employers also have key roles to play, said Mr Chan. Individuals must take ownership of their learning journeys throughout life while employers must stay nimble and transform their businesses and jobs to compete internationally, he added.
The education minister added that the government has been investing "heavily" in continuous education and training through SkillsFuture - a scheme that provides credits for workers to retrain or upskill by taking courses.
But individuals must also take ownership of their learning journeys throughout life and take steps to constantly upskill and reskill to push against the atrophy effect.
Employers too must invest in their employees' career health, such as by articulating their company’s skills needs and supporting their staff to undergo training to acquire the capabilities to successfully achieve business goals.
In a supplementary question, Nominated MP Usha Chandradas asked if MOE would consider collaborating more with local publishers and literacy charities such as Epigram Books and the Singapore Book Council to create a better reading culture and improve adult literacy skills.
Mr Chan responded that the ministry would like to work with the various institutions and that it was not just about encouraging people to read more but also widely.
"We are all conscious of today's media environment whereby there are so many different channels competing for the attention of our people," he said.
The government will have to keep up the effort to encourage people in Singapore to continue reading and learning even beyond their schooling years.
"We all have to be aware of this famous dictum: We either use it, hone it, or we lose it." This applies to all skillsets picked up from young, said Mr Chan.
"Otherwise the atrophy effect will set in regardless of our background."
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