Literacy levels are declining. Students are no longer trying. Do we care?

Literacy. It’s a loaded word these days. Once upon a time the idea of literacy was solely concerned with the ability to read and write proficiently and in earlier years, we’ve largely associated literacy with being able to identify, comprehend, communicate and interpret written materials within different contexts.
But this idea of literacy is rapidly changing as we transcend through a new tech-centered era, with the likes of AI being a part of everyday life. And while the concept of reading, writing and speaking was once deemed of high importance in education, in 2024, we’ve found that the perceived value of traditional literacy skills is somewhat dwindling, in many cases.
The stats don’t lie – take a look at recent PISA (2022) results worldwide. Not only have reading test scores significantly declined between 2012 and 2022, but we’re also looking at an alarming low levels of literacy and a lower occurring frequency of reading taking place in the home. Now, while we know that high stakes exams and standardized tests aren’t the way forward, we must admit that if even Singapore (famously known for being the frontline winner in academic testing) shows a significant decrease in literacy levels, one has to question the reason. What’s missing?