ETS Study Warns of Growing Inequality in Income, Skills

The next generation of Americans will have lower literacy and math skills, on average, and experience greater income inequality than the current working-age population, a new report warns.

The study by the Princeton, N.J.-based Educational Testing Service draws on demographic projections, shifts in the labor market, and data on current gaps in educational attainment and skills to paint a sobering picture of America’s future.

If trends continue, the average literacy levels of the working-age population in the United States will decrease by about 5 percent by 2030, while the variability of the distribution will increase by about 7...