Many people who are illiterate find it embarrassing and don’t want anyone to find out about it. They find ways to get around in the world without facing the fact that they can’t read. Some ways include being disorderly in the classroom, pretending to be near or far sighted, or just by avoiding having to read all together. Like a man by the name of Jesse Mezo who kept his secret of illiteracy for 50 years. He avoided jobs where he would have to fill out paperwork. In an article entitled “A well-kept secret: After more than 50 years of hiding illiteracy, former Maytag employee learns to read”[2] Mezo states how he felt about being illiterate "It holds you back. I feel like I was left out of a lot of stuff. You feel down about yourself, like you're not as good as you should be. I can understand why kids join gangs. They want to feel a part of something and it doesn't even matter what it is, just a part of something where they belong," he said. Another man by the name of Chad Boynton suffered from illiteracy. He was featured in an article entitled “Kids can be brilliant at hiding illiteracy[3]”. In this article he stated “I Kind of like, disappeared. Went to the corner, I always kept my head down when we had to read… It put me in like a cocoon, until I started to realize that I had to get out of it. I had to break the little shield that I had made for myself and go out there”. As we learn, illiteracy not only can be devastating to a child’s education but can do just as much damage to their moral and feeling of self worth.
According to the NAAL 85 percent of all juveniles who interface with the juvenile court system are functionally illiterate, and more than 60 percent of all prison inmates are functionally illiterate¹. Obviously illiteracy and crime are intertwined somehow. When a child fails in the class room they will resort to other things that they are better at or as Mezo says “a place where they belong”. These outside influences could be positive, but in all honestly most of them are negative influences that lead to crime, delinquency and violence. Recent studies have found that crime is nearly doubled in the population of illiteracy. If we reduce the number of people who are illiterate, we reduce the rate of crime.
Illiteracy can also put those who suffer at risk. Something as simple as reading a medicine label can be a giant obstacle to those who cannot read. According to “‘Illiteracy’ Revisited: What Ortega and RodrÃguez Read in the Household Survey”, “the adult literacy rate in the United States is reported as 99 percent, and yet 20 percent of those same adults cannot read the simplest instructions off a medicine label.”[4] This is not only dangerous for the person but for their children as well. If a medicine label is read incorrectly that could lead to damaging consequences. In an article entitled “Ninety percent of Afghan army illiterate”[5], an Afghan soldier named Shahidullah Ahmadi explains the difficulties he finds with being illiterate “I face difficulties. If someone calls me and tells me to go somewhere, I can't read the street signs,". Not only would this be a problem for a soldier, but anyone who is illiterate. There are so many things that give us warning, directions, and information that need to be read. How can anyone make it in the world normally without being able to read?
Illiteracy is a problem that needs to be faced in the world today. So many people are suffering from what can be taken care of so simply if someone would just take the time to help. Illiteracy is damaging to not only the person it effects but to the world in general. Although it doesn’t seem like a major ordeal, its what starts the chain of a long unhappy and difficult life.
[1] http://www.begintoread.com/research/literacystatistics.html
[2] http://www.thesouthern.com/news/article_b6efe7f8-b0bc-5575-abaf-219d76451c54.html
[3] http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=resources&id=4865406
[4] http://www.scribd.com/doc/3034117/Illiteracy-Revisited-What-Ortega-and-Rodriguez-Read-in-the-Household-Survey
[5] http://www.dailymail.com/News/200909140319
Written by: Drew Thomas
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Illiteracy: A Global Problem
Fact: learning to read is the most important skill any child can acquire. Strangely, many societies and cultures do not stress the value of learning this important skill. Most people living in western societies assume that illiteracy is vacant from the civilized world because of the importance put on education and learning. Even America, the home of free education, falls culprit to illiteracy. According to the National Adult Literacy Survey, 42 million Americans are unable to read and 50 million Americans’ reading comprehension levels are so low that they are limited to a 4th or 5th grade reading level. Other studies show that illiteracy is closely related to unemployment, public assistance, crime and prison attendance.
So if illiteracy is so closely related to many other prominent social problems, why haven’t we tried to fix it? The answer to this question cannot be answered easily, but there are many possible solutions. First, we must change the way we teach children how to read. Secondly, we must encourage children to read at home, with their parents and by themselves. Finally, and maybe the most difficult, each society must reevaluate their values and norms that inhibit literacy. This basic formula for curing illiteracy can be adapted for most any country and society, ranging from the United States to struggling third world countries.
Since the 1930’s, schools in America having been teaching reading by ‘showing’ words then ‘telling’ the students the pronunciation of the word, giving this method the nickname, ‘show and tell’. The idea of this method is to build a large vocabulary of words the child knows. However, this method fails to effectively teach children the basic sounds and usages of each letter—phonics. Studies show that teaching intensive, systematic phonics proves more effective than the visual and memorization based ‘show and tell’ method, because students are able to dissect all sorts of words, even ones they do not know.
The second step in curing illiteracy involves persuading children to read inside and outside of the classroom, especially in their homes. Reading to a child throughout their early years is a proven way to help children learn to love to read. Establishing community based libraries, such as the ones created by Foundations for Learning, allows exposure to literature not found in the home and fosters life-long reading skills.
Finally, we must encourage change in our society’s values that inhibit learning to read. In America, we face a technology driven younger generation, but does this inhibit illiteracy? Yes and no. Most of today’s youth would probably say that playing video games offers more immediate entertainment than reading a book; some youth would probably say that they even prefer video games to books for this reason. At the same time, Amazon has produced the ‘Kindle’, which offers thousands of full-length books in the palm of your hand. So as for technology, we simply must be careful in how we use it and prevent it from replacing the valuable skill of reading. In other countries, reading education has been only extended to boys, leaving the girls, who will eventually rear the next generation, illiterate. This selective education does not benefit the society and leaves a remarkable gap between the value of female and male lives. Unfortunately, changing these values will take time and considerable effort.
Fact: the problem of illiteracy exists in all societies and it is up to us to change it, one step at a time.
Written by: Ami Benson
So if illiteracy is so closely related to many other prominent social problems, why haven’t we tried to fix it? The answer to this question cannot be answered easily, but there are many possible solutions. First, we must change the way we teach children how to read. Secondly, we must encourage children to read at home, with their parents and by themselves. Finally, and maybe the most difficult, each society must reevaluate their values and norms that inhibit literacy. This basic formula for curing illiteracy can be adapted for most any country and society, ranging from the United States to struggling third world countries.
Since the 1930’s, schools in America having been teaching reading by ‘showing’ words then ‘telling’ the students the pronunciation of the word, giving this method the nickname, ‘show and tell’. The idea of this method is to build a large vocabulary of words the child knows. However, this method fails to effectively teach children the basic sounds and usages of each letter—phonics. Studies show that teaching intensive, systematic phonics proves more effective than the visual and memorization based ‘show and tell’ method, because students are able to dissect all sorts of words, even ones they do not know.
The second step in curing illiteracy involves persuading children to read inside and outside of the classroom, especially in their homes. Reading to a child throughout their early years is a proven way to help children learn to love to read. Establishing community based libraries, such as the ones created by Foundations for Learning, allows exposure to literature not found in the home and fosters life-long reading skills.
Finally, we must encourage change in our society’s values that inhibit learning to read. In America, we face a technology driven younger generation, but does this inhibit illiteracy? Yes and no. Most of today’s youth would probably say that playing video games offers more immediate entertainment than reading a book; some youth would probably say that they even prefer video games to books for this reason. At the same time, Amazon has produced the ‘Kindle’, which offers thousands of full-length books in the palm of your hand. So as for technology, we simply must be careful in how we use it and prevent it from replacing the valuable skill of reading. In other countries, reading education has been only extended to boys, leaving the girls, who will eventually rear the next generation, illiterate. This selective education does not benefit the society and leaves a remarkable gap between the value of female and male lives. Unfortunately, changing these values will take time and considerable effort.
Fact: the problem of illiteracy exists in all societies and it is up to us to change it, one step at a time.
Written by: Ami Benson
What do you know about our country's social problems?
Illiteracy in America: A Remediable Problem
Have you ever been kept from traveling because you couldn't read the signs on a highway? Or, avoided going to the doctor so that you wouldn't have to fill out medical forms? Has you education been hindered because of your inability to read? Most likely, since you are reading this post, the answer to all of those questions is "No," but for millions of Americans these situations are part of their daily struggle as adults who cannot read. In the United States today, illiteracy affects 44 million adults (National Institute for Literacy). The reasons behind this high number are various- from learning disabilities to poverty to insufficient educational systems. As a developed country- and one of the wealthiest and most powerful in the world- it would seem that we should be beyond the problem of illiteracy, but it is that mentality that has kept the United States from doing something and decreasing illiteracy rates. Of all the problems that face the world today, it seems that illiteracy is one of the few that could be completely resolved with just a few changes.
I feel a little bit ashamed to admit it, but I really had no idea that illiteracy was such a huge problem in the United States until a class assignment got me looking into the problem. For those of us who are fortunate enough to grow up in middle class homes with good public school systems and parents who took active roles in our educations, the idea of people still being illiterate is hard to imagine. But the truth is that there are SO many people in the United States who are NOT in the middle class, who do NOT have access to good education, and especially who do NOT have parents who, for whatever reason- time, interest, ability- take an active role in their education. It is not the fault of any of these individuals that they were not given these opportunities, and it would only take a few interested people to step in and help a child learn to read. Such education could ultimately alter entirely the course of an individual's life. To illustrate the effects that learning to read would have on a child, let me share with you a few statistics from a study by the National Institute for Literacy:
From this data, it appears that an important factor in determining the likeliness that someone will end up in prison, juvie, or in poverty is what their literacy level is.
While this problem is startling and shocking, it should NOT be discouraging. It is a problem that CAN be fixed, unlike many social problems we face in the United States. For as advanced and education-focused as the United States is, we should have an illiteracy rate of ZERO. There should not be a child that isn't taught to read by a parent, guardian, brother or sister, teacher, neighbor, or friend. We can all do something to help this situation. We can turn off the TV or sign off the computer and encourage our children to read. We can donate books that we no longer need to be distributed to those who cannot afford to have many books in their home. We can volunteer at our local library to read to children or to participate in one of many adult-reading programs around that help adults who did not have the opportunity to learn to read as a child. While it is a hard reality to see the numbers and to learn that there are so many who do not have such a fundamental skill, we can take heart in the fact that there IS something we can do. Illiteracy is a major problem that can bring nothing good to those who suffer from it, but it is easily remedied if we just all work together to help. Go to your local library and ask about literacy volunteer programs available. Spend a few hours a week with someone helping them learn an indispensable skill that will forever bless his or her life. Or, if you are a parent, read to and with your child. And finally, spread the word. Let people know that illiteracy is still an active and destructive problem here in the United States that has been put on the back burner for too long. Now is the time to end it.
-Written by: Elizabeth Oliphant
Have you ever been kept from traveling because you couldn't read the signs on a highway? Or, avoided going to the doctor so that you wouldn't have to fill out medical forms? Has you education been hindered because of your inability to read? Most likely, since you are reading this post, the answer to all of those questions is "No," but for millions of Americans these situations are part of their daily struggle as adults who cannot read. In the United States today, illiteracy affects 44 million adults (National Institute for Literacy). The reasons behind this high number are various- from learning disabilities to poverty to insufficient educational systems. As a developed country- and one of the wealthiest and most powerful in the world- it would seem that we should be beyond the problem of illiteracy, but it is that mentality that has kept the United States from doing something and decreasing illiteracy rates. Of all the problems that face the world today, it seems that illiteracy is one of the few that could be completely resolved with just a few changes.
I feel a little bit ashamed to admit it, but I really had no idea that illiteracy was such a huge problem in the United States until a class assignment got me looking into the problem. For those of us who are fortunate enough to grow up in middle class homes with good public school systems and parents who took active roles in our educations, the idea of people still being illiterate is hard to imagine. But the truth is that there are SO many people in the United States who are NOT in the middle class, who do NOT have access to good education, and especially who do NOT have parents who, for whatever reason- time, interest, ability- take an active role in their education. It is not the fault of any of these individuals that they were not given these opportunities, and it would only take a few interested people to step in and help a child learn to read. Such education could ultimately alter entirely the course of an individual's life. To illustrate the effects that learning to read would have on a child, let me share with you a few statistics from a study by the National Institute for Literacy:
- 70 percent of prisoners in state and federal systems can be classified as illiterate.
- 85 percent of all juvenile offenders rate as functionally or marginally illiterate.
- 43 percent of those whose literacy skills are lowest live in poverty.
From this data, it appears that an important factor in determining the likeliness that someone will end up in prison, juvie, or in poverty is what their literacy level is.
While this problem is startling and shocking, it should NOT be discouraging. It is a problem that CAN be fixed, unlike many social problems we face in the United States. For as advanced and education-focused as the United States is, we should have an illiteracy rate of ZERO. There should not be a child that isn't taught to read by a parent, guardian, brother or sister, teacher, neighbor, or friend. We can all do something to help this situation. We can turn off the TV or sign off the computer and encourage our children to read. We can donate books that we no longer need to be distributed to those who cannot afford to have many books in their home. We can volunteer at our local library to read to children or to participate in one of many adult-reading programs around that help adults who did not have the opportunity to learn to read as a child. While it is a hard reality to see the numbers and to learn that there are so many who do not have such a fundamental skill, we can take heart in the fact that there IS something we can do. Illiteracy is a major problem that can bring nothing good to those who suffer from it, but it is easily remedied if we just all work together to help. Go to your local library and ask about literacy volunteer programs available. Spend a few hours a week with someone helping them learn an indispensable skill that will forever bless his or her life. Or, if you are a parent, read to and with your child. And finally, spread the word. Let people know that illiteracy is still an active and destructive problem here in the United States that has been put on the back burner for too long. Now is the time to end it.
-Written by: Elizabeth Oliphant
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