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Chapter 2:

Reading Ability

Because reading requirements for many military occupations are substantial, reading ability of recruits is important. The reading grade level (RGL) is estimated by converting the ASVAB verbal composite score to its RGL equivalent.[Footnote 37] Table 2.9 shows that the mean RGL for FY 2001 recruits was at a level that would be expected of an 11th grade student, compared to 10th grade level for the average FY 1984 accession.

Table 2.9.  Mean Reading Grade Level of FY 1984-2001 Active Component NPS Accessions, By Service, and 1980 Civilians 18-23 Years Old
Fiscal Year
Army
Navy
Marine Corps
Air Force
DoD
1980 Civilian Youth Population
1984
10.0
10.2
9.8
10.5
10.1

10.3

1985
10.6
10.5
10.1
10.8
10.6
1986
11.2
11.0
11.1
11.4
11.1
1987
11.2
11.1
11.2
11.6
11.2
1988
11.2
11.1
11.2
11.5
11.2
1989
11.1
11.0
11.2
11.4
11.2
1990
11.2
11.1
11.2
11.7
11.3
1991
11.4
11.0
11.3
11.7
11.3
1992
11.5
11.4
11.3
11.7
11.5
1993
11.5
11.5
11.2
11.8
11.5
1994
11.4
11.3
11.2
11.7
11.4
1995
11.3
11.3
11.2
11.7
11.4
1996
11.3
11.3
11.1
11.7
11.4
1997
11.2
11.2
11.1
11.6
11.3
1998
11.2
11.2
11.1
11.5
11.2
1999
11.0
11.1
11.1
11.2
11.1
2000
11.1
11.0
11.0
11.2
11.1
2001
11.1
11.1
11.1
11.3
11.1

Source: 1980 civilian youth population data from the Profile of American Youth (Washington, DC: Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense [Manpower, Reserve Affairs, and Logistics], March 1982); and Waters, et al., Estimating the Reading Skills of Military Applicants: The Development of an ASVAB to RGL Conversion Table (Alexandria, VA: Human Resources Research Organization, October 1988).

Differences in RGL were relatively small in FY 2001, with mean RGLs ranging from 11.1 for the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps to 11.3 for the Air Force. The 1980 nationally representative sample of 18- to 23-year-olds, on whom ASVAB scores are based, read at a mean 10th grade level.

[Footnote 37]   See Waters, B.K., Barnes, J.D., Foley, P., Steinhaus, S.D., and Brown, D.C., Estimating the Reading Skills of Military Applicants: The Development of an ASVAB to RGL Conversion Table (Alexandria, VA: Human Resources Research Organization, October 1988). [back to paragraph]

 

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