MANY ILLITERATES

Grey River Argus, 4 July 1944, Page 4

MANY ILLITERATES

IN AUSTRALIAN FORCES (Special to N.Z. Press Assn.) SYDNEY, July 3. About fifteen thousand of the men in the Australian armed forces can barely read or write. According to an Army Education Journal, “Salt.” at least three out of every ten men in the Army have not enough education to start any trade course for which an apprenticeship is necessary. “We suffer from the social disease of illiteracy,” says the “Sydney Telegraph” editorially. “Our education system is obviously at fault. The sooner we recognise that education must be given nriority in post-war planning, and acknowledge not only our duty, but our willingness to dig deep into our pockets to pay for it, the better it will be for Australia s future as a nation.”