Adult literacy is defined as a person's reading and writing competencies. Simple arithmetic skills are sometimes included in the definition. Illiteracy refers to a person's inability to read or write for basic daily functioning. Within the field of sociology of education, adult literacy is well referenced in literacy studies, especially those that are designed and intended for improving the literacy skills of adult immigrants and native English-speaking adults who do not possess reading and writing skills for daily functioning. With reference to the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL) published in 2003, an estimate of 30 million adults who are age 16 and older in the United States are below basic (prose) literacy level, that is, their reading and writing competencies are insufficient for everyday ...