“The Number of American Adults who Are Functionally Illiterate Increases by 2.25 Million each Year.”
Does this frighten you?
It horrifies me.
You want to do something this week to change the world? Help someone learn how to read.
“Literacy is a bridge from misery to hope. It is a tool for daily life in modern society. It is a bulwark against poverty, and a building block of development, an essential complement to investments in roads, dams, clinics and factories. Literacy is a platform for democratization, and a vehicle for the promotion of cultural and national identity. Especially for girls and women, it is an agent of family health and nutrition. For everyone, everywhere, literacy is, along with education in general, a basic human right…. Literacy is, finally, the road to human progress and the means through which every man, woman and child can realize his or her full potential.”
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Kate Bartolotta is the strongest girl in the world. She is the love child of a pirate and a roller derby queen. She hails from the second star to the right. She doesn't know how to behave with all the apples and ibexes. She doesn't suffer from her eight million freckles, she loves them! Like a rolling stone, Kate gathers no moss. Kate loves kale, being barefoot, Dr. Seuss, singing too loudly, gallivanting, palindromes, blackberries and has far too many books for her own good. When she's not writing, you can find her practicing yoga, running in the woods, playing with her kids, devouring a book, planting dandelions, changing the world and doing her dishes. Kate does not play the accordion. She is a massage therapist, writer and a compassionate friend to all. This year Kate aspires to finally give up on learning to knit and will instead spend that time putting a little bit more of her heart on the page. Connect with Kate on Facebook and Twitter
This makes me sad but I'm not exactly sure where the blame goes.
I have a student that that I speak to occasionally on Google 0, or whatever that's called…and it is tough to read her writing at times. She has dreams of owning her own business and going to college; I want to encourage her.
Reading has to be instilled early on. Thanks for the reminder Kate!
Yes, I think there are multiple layers of problems here. The U.S. is highest WORLDWIDE when it comes to student self-esteem. Set aside our bullying issues and other things, students self-report a belief that they are much smarter than test scores and studies would indicate. I believe many teachers who are doing wonderful things, but something needs to changes for us as a society. We need to let go of arrogance and fall in love with learning again.
AMEN!
Sorry, I meant to write only one *that* >.<
We need to get back to the basics: Reading, Writing and Arithmetic. It really isn't difficult.
Howie…the reality is that kids are so steeped in the 3 R's that the fun of learning has diminished. We've become obsessively outcome based.
We should be striving for is how to keep young minds engaged so that they can be creative and industrious and giving.
I agree to a certain extent. It seems that many schools and school districts (at least at the administrative level—I know some wonderful teachers) are so outcome and score focused, that they have lost sight of their passion for true education. That coupled with the fact that excessive time is taken up with disciplinary issues in many schools leaves any mid-range students in the dust. High performing students with parental support (regardless of race, gender or economics) will do well. Low performing and "problem" students will get plenty of attention and support services. Anyone in the middle gets shuffled along.
I'm actually less pessimistic about it than it might sound. I am involved in local education initiatives and have been very involved in my children's school district.
I know I had a difficult time with math when I was in school. Mostly because I couldn't see how I would use it on a daily basis (beyond basic math). When I joined the Navy after high school, it was like an epiphany as I now suddenly had a use for something that seemed pointless at the time. Algebra, geometry and basic calculus became the norm for me (I never got past Algebra II in school). My point for the above is maybe letting students know that there is a use for these things and how they can apply it in their daily lives. Perhaps this would ignite the fires of creativity again.
Agreed that there is a huge disconnect between what is taught and the ability to apply it to real life situations. I think that's why there are such widely varying learning styles and teaching models.
I think I learned to read to avoid my sister. We would sit at breakfast and have the cereal boxes in front of us. Nothing like reading an ingredient label for Golden Crisps to get the brain going.