Literacy Issues

The government has not conducted any formal survey of literacy in the last nine years. Currently, the Provincial Department of Education recommends using educational attainment (which is closely correlated to literacy levels as it assumes a certain degree of literacy based on achieving certain educational levels) as a measure of adult literacy levels. Educational Attainment levels for Burgeo (as indicated above) are slightly lower than both the zonal and the provincial averages, indicating a lower than average literacy level. The trends for the future may be found by looking at the current high school enrollments and pass rates for the School District, as below.

Percentage of High School Enrollments that Graduate

^a Fourth year students are those who attended senior high school for at least three years. Figures include all schools located in the area, including francophone, private, first nation and other schools. Education Accounts, Enrollment, 1989-2002, Cormack Trail School District. Source: Compiled by the Community Accounts Unit based on information provided by the Department of Education, K-12 School Profile System.

Education Accounts, High School Pass Rates, June 2001, School Districts. Source: Compiled by the Community Accounts Unit based on information from the Department of Education.

Taking the total number of enrollees in Senior High School combined with the Pass Rates for 2001, we can determine that 1,451 of those will pass to their next year, and that 486 of those passing will be completing their senior year (or their 'fourth year') and receive their high school certificate. Thus the Cormack Trail School District graduates approximately 486 students per year.

By way of comparison, the table below presents the pass rates for all school boards in the province. The Cormack Trail School District is one of the highest with an 87.8% pass rate. The highest is Avalon West with a 91.2% pass rate.