America's Least Literate Cities (their location may surprise you!)

[KamaAina]

http://homes.yahoo.com/photos/america-s-least-literate-cities-1393899752-slideshow/

A recent study by Central Connecticut State University ranked the nation’s largest cities by their reading culture -- how literate they are -- based on six categories: bookstores, residents’ educational attainment, newspaper circulation, use of online resources, the library system, and periodical publishing resources.

Although the focus of the study was on reading culture, not test scores, cities that ranked as less literate were also less educated. The 10 cities with the poorest reading habits were also in the bottom 25 percent nationwide for people with a college degree and for people with a high school diploma.

Click on the photo above to see the nation's least literate cities. And to see its most literate cities, visit 247WallSt.com:

Methodology: Based on the report published by Central Connecticut State University, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the literacy ranking of 77 U.S. cities with populations of at least 250,000. The study reviewed city literacy based on six categories — library systems, bookstores, educational attainment, digital readership, and newspapers and other publications. Education metrics considered by Miller are from 2012, library system data is from fiscal year 2010, and circulation, publication, and bookstore figures are from 2013. To determine the availability of each reading material, the study measured circulation relative to the size of the population. 24/7 Wall St. also reviewed 2012 data from the Census Bureau, including income, and poverty.

10. Mesa, AZ
9. Aurora, CO
8. Fresno, CA
7. Chula Vista, CA
6. Anaheim, CA
5. San Antonio, TX
4. El Paso, TX
3. Stockton, CA
2. Corpus Christi, TX
1. Bakersfield, CA



I wonder if California would have dominated such a list pre-Ahh-nuld.

Note that none of these cities are in the South proper. Of the Texas cities, only Corpus could maybe be considered Southern.

[tularetom]

1. I think there's a language correlation here

All of these cities have a large Hispanic population with a substantial number of non-English speaking residents. Many of these people are able to read and write in their native tongue.

So I'm guessing the real issue isn't literacy but fluency in English.

[hlthe2b]

3. Beat me to it... Was just posting that...

[jsr]

4. +1

[Pretzel_Warrior]

10. Exactly. It jumps out at you. Flawed findings.

[hlthe2b]

2. Looking at this list, I have to wonder how much non-Native English speaker population may play in...

Looking at Aurora, CO (Adams's County) with a comparatively very large Hispanic population-- it may well be that Spanish as first language-- for more recent immigrant populations-- may play in. Why would one subscribe to English language newspapers, for instance, if one were not yet fluent in English....

Just a thought.

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/map_of_the_week/2012/07/map_of_america_s_hispanic_population_county_by_county.html

[joeybee12]

5. Anaheim is home to Disneyland...

I think that pretty much explains this city's inclusion here!

[KamaAina]

6. And many, many Latino immigrants

the two posters above have made an astute observation.

Note that all 10 cities are in or near the Southwest.

[joeybee12]

7. Also home to people making minimum wage...

And tourists who think going there is a vacation! Hah!

[KamaAina]

9. CA minimum wage is $8 an hour

so what's your point?

[joeybee12]

14. Yeah, but Disneyland is like the Vatican, it's own state...

Minimium wage there is $1.13! Can't afford even a paperback on that kind of salary!

[dawg]

8. But how many of you that sit and judge me ...

have ever walked the streets of Bakersfield?

[Pretzel_Warrior]

11. I have. It was friggin hot in January.

Would not want to be there in summer.

[tularetom]

15. Hey, the official Bakersfield anthem

&feature=kp

There's actually a better video than this with hundreds of people standing under the Bakersfield arch singing. But I can't find it.

[okaawhatever]

12. Wall St 24/7 us a joke. Sometimes they post polls or surveys from legitimate sources, but i've

also noticed they put out some full-on b.s. They never print their methods or data, only vague guidelines, and their ownership is somewhat hidden.

I see Wall St 24/7 and I smell astroturf.

[Rex]

13. San Antonio is south Texas.

That is beyond sad considering how many colleges SA has inside and around city limits.