Newsletter

For many adult learners, math carries a bit of frustration, anxiety, and sometimes even shame. Those sentiments don’t just end with students. Teaching math can feel just as daunting for instructors and tutors who have struggled with the subject themselves.  

However, numeracy is not optional. If literacy programs are only concerned with reading and writing, we leave a critical gap. Math is a fundamental skill that we must address as part of a well-rounded adult literacy program. 

To help adult learners grasp math concepts, they should be taught in ways that are relevant and practical for real-world applications. From understanding a paycheck to measuring medication, math is an essential part of everyday life. When learners build numeracy skills, they don’t just improve math scores, they also gain independence, confidence, and necessary life skills. Further, when we integrate financial literacy into math instruction, we equip learners to navigate banking and budgeting, and we help them pursue personal goals like home ownership. 

When literacy programs embrace math and numeracy as part of literacy instruction, we help adult learners open doors to more opportunities.