Maybe you’re referring to “reading ar an eighth grade level” of the 60’s. Besides, the article is actually referencing athelets that “read”at a FIRST grade level,
The article mentions the illiterates but then goes on to provide supporting data with athletes who are reading at the fifth through eighth grade level.
I don't know who all these FReepers are who apparently spend their weekends reading Dostoevsky, but I don't do too much that requires more than a fifth grade level of reading. In fact, I can't think of a single thing. The last time I read something written at the level of Dostoevsky or Ulysses was high school and not so coincidentally, that's when I was actually reading Dostoevsky and Ulysses.
Here are the middle 50% of SAT scores at Clarion College, a third tier Pennsylvania State School:
•SAT Critical Reading: 400 / 510
•SAT Math: 400 / 520
•SAT Writing: 380 / 500
That means 25% of the kids who attend Clarion don't even get 400 on any one section of the SATs. Is it ridiculous that these kids are going to college? Maybe, but that's the system we have now in our country. These kids - who may end up x-ray technicians, and yes gym teachers and elementary ed teachers - aren't reading much above a fourth grade level either. But guess what? Most of them will go on to own homes and be otherwise productive members of society. Even if they spend their spare time reading Dondi and the Family Circus.
In short, this article is long on scare examples and short on actual scary data. In fact, I would say a well supported Division 1 athlete - who can read on the fifth through eighth grade level - will likely be much better off than a run of the mill Clarion grad.