Northern Alliance for Literacy and Essential Skills

This background paper was issued in anticipation of the release of the results of the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), an initiative of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), in October 2013. The authors note that while the PIAAC statistics vary across Canada’s three northern territories, they do tell a story of a significant labour market challenge facing Canada’s North.

Results from the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) demonstrate the diversity of populations, education levels, languages, and skill levels across Canada’s northern territories, and illustrate the challenges faced there, according to literacy practitioners in that region.