The Australian Government considers that literacy and numeracy are the cornerstones of all learning and that it is crucial for children to develop these foundation skills at the earliest possible time in their school years. A key priority has been to focus on achieving real, sustained improvements in the literacy and numeracy skills of Australian children to better prepare them for their futures. Ensuring all students gain at least a minimum acceptable standard in literacy and numeracy is critical in overcoming educational disadvantage. This means that gaining literacy and numeracy skills is a central equity issue in education today.
The following list outlines the key areas, programmes and activities: