preliminary results from the nationwide examination of basic learning ( naal ) , released 15 november 2005 by the usd state central for education estimates , measure differences and losses in literacy among minority adults between 1992 and 2003 . the nationally representative study among us males age 16 and older found the over - all average prose and parchment literacy remained relatively same , but written efficiency changed 8 points ( on a scale of 500 . ) conclusions about minorities were mixed , with caucasian and asian / pacific islander majority scores significantly higher than hispanic or negro ethnicities ; latin participants in particular had sharp decrease in prose and document literacy ( - 9 % and - 8 % , respectively ) and reporting illiteracy relatively unchanged with 50 % of subjects scoring at more than basic literacy elevations .
The National Assessment of Adult Literacy is a project held by the US National Center for Education Statistics.