{"id":8456,"date":"2026-05-04T14:51:16","date_gmt":"2026-05-04T17:51:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ponddeshpande.ca\/?p=8456"},"modified":"2026-05-07T15:11:36","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T18:11:36","slug":"the-sentence-is-unraveling-what-pisa-says-about-new-brunswicks-future-workforce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ponddeshpande.ca\/fr\/w4s\/the-sentence-is-unraveling-what-pisa-says-about-new-brunswicks-future-workforce\/","title":{"rendered":"The Sentence is Unraveling \u2013 What PISA says about New Brunswick\u2019s future workforce"},"content":{"rendered":"

Authors:<\/strong> Noam Kaplan-Myrth, Lucia Tramonte<\/p>\n

In New Brunswick, a significant portion of students are not reaching the minimum level of literacy required to function in modern society and are far behind their peers in provinces outside of Atlantic Canada in terms literacy and numeracy skills. Data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) shows that roughly one third of 15-year-olds in New Brunswick cannot read at a basic, functional level.<\/strong>\u00a0 These 15-year-olds face a future of poor employment and income prospects, and a higher risk of poverty. At a time when New Brunswick faces labour supply challenges to meet expected labour demand, the province cannot afford to allow so much potential human capital to go to waste. The PISA data suggest a poor state of the province\u2019s education system, and dwindling skills of the province\u2019s students paint a dire picture for the future of New Brunswick\u2019s job market.<\/p>\n

A global yardstick for readiness<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

PISA, the Programme for International Student Assessment, is a standardized internationally comparable test that measures how well 15-year-olds can apply their reading, math, and science skills to real world situations to assess how prepared those 15-year-olds are to transition to adult life after completing compulsory schooling. 15-year-olds are nearing the end of K-12 education system and are preparing to enter the next phase of their lives in many countries, whether that is higher education or the job market directly. PISA test scores can be categorized into descriptive levels of proficiency ranging from\u00a0 Level 1, where students have a hard time following instructions and can only engage with very simple texts, often struggling to extract clear meaning from them, to the other end of the scale at level 6, which describes an advanced proficiency and the ability to interpret complex texts, evaluate information critically, and draw nuanced conclusions.\u00a0 Two other categories of note are Level 2, which is considered to be the minimum level of proficiency required to function in society: the ability to understand basic texts, follow written instructions, and navigate everyday tasks. Students below this level are not just behind; they struggle to operate and interact independently with the world around themi<\/sup>. Level 3 is considered to be the minimum proficiency required for success in post-secondary education.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"reading-proficiency\"<\/p>\n

[i]<\/p>\n

What PISA is telling us about students in New Brunswick: <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

An alarming proportion of students in New Brunswick are not reaching the minimum literacy level required to function in everyday life. One in three students in New Brunswick are at a Level 1 proficiency (see figure 1); this means that they are below the threshold required to function in modern society. These students struggle with basic comprehension, simple written instructions, and everyday information. These students can be considered functionally illiterate. <\/strong>Less than 50 percent of 15-year-olds in New Brunswick have at least Level 3 proficiency, meaning less than half are prepared for college or university education after high school.<\/p>\n

PISA Literacy scores are the lowest in New Brunswick when compared to all other provinces in Canada. On average, 15-year-olds in New Brunswick perform at a level equivalent to roughly two years of schooling behind students in other provinces in both reading.<\/p>\n

A significant portion of New Brunswick\u2019s workforce is not reaching the minimum level of literacy required to complete everyday tasks. These students are not simply behind; they are entering adulthood without the ability to reliably read, understand, and act on basic information. This is what a failing foundation looks like. The consequences will impact workplaces, services, and everyday interactions across the province and beyond.\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

We need to understand how, in 2022, one-third of our young people are leaving the provincial education system without the knowledge and skills they need to build a strong future or to contribute fully to the labour market. Once we identify the causes of this gap, we must take decisive action to strengthen learning and better support the development of our youth\u2019s potential.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next in this series:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

These findings raise a broader set of questions that extend beyond this initial diagnosis.<\/p>\n