Literacy, numeracy and non-verbal reasoning skills of South Australian young offenders

This study attempts to quantify the basic literacy and numeracy skill levels of detained young offenders in Australia. Subjects were 561 youths in secure care in South Australia. Comparative data were available for 136 local high school students. Compared with student peers, the young offenders performed poorly on measures of reading, spelling, mental arithmetic, analogue time telling and non-verbal reasoning. Among the sub-groups, male Aboriginal offenders had the highest proportion of low achievers. This could be a factor in their overrepresentation in the criminal justice system. Their results suggest that environmental variables play a significant role in their underachievement. Reasons for the young offenders' poorer performance are explored and the possible protective role of basic skills against criminogenic risks is considered. It is concluded that the broad range of offender needs should be met by a broad variety of programs, including remedial education.