Adult Literacy and Life Skills Survey: Public Use Microdata File

Governments and other stakeholders are increasingly interested in assessing the skills of their adult populations in order to monitor how well prepared they are for the challenges of the modern knowledge-based society. Adults are expected to use information in complex ways and to maintain and enhance their literacy skills to adapt to ever changing technologies. Literacy is important not only for personal development, but also for positive educational, social, and economic outcomes. Adult literacy, numeracy and problem-solving skills encompass a continuum of learning that enables individuals to achieve their goals, develop their knowledge and potential, and participate fully in their communities and society as a whole.
Canada has been participating in adult skills assessment surveys for several decades. The surveys are repeated every ten years, with the first in the series taking place in 1994. First there was the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS), then the International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey (IALSS) in 2003 and the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) cycles 1 and 2 in 2012 and 2022 respectively. Each of these surveys builds on the concepts of the previous surveys. Over the years, the framework has broadened the definition of literacy to adapt it to the information age, notably by including reading skills in digital environments.