Proposal On Adult Literacy

In the essay ‘What is literacy?’, James Paul Gee, presents to us a very detailed examination, of concepts that are rather deemed to be similar by most. He explores the definition and meaning of “literacy” by taking into account other related ideas such as “learning”, “discourse” and “acquisition”.

This critique will be of chapter one of the book Literacy in American Lives. The author of this book is Dr. Deborah Brandt, a professor of English at Wisconsin Madison University and her main focus in Literacy in American Lives is to study about how people have learned to read, how they use their ability to read, and how literacy learning changes with time. In this first chapter “Literacy, Opportunity, and Economic Change”, Brandt focuses on how economic change can affect the value of literacy, and the impact that this change in the value of literacy has in the lives of two farm women from Wisconsin.

In “Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics: Introduction,” James Paul Gee introduces a new approach for thinking about Literacy. Rather than think of literacy in terms of language (grammar), Gee suggests that we think of it in terms of social practice (5). Gee claims that this approach has important and interesting consequences.

The benefits English language learners (ELLs) receive from Guided Reading are the same as all other students. However, when a modified approach is used ELLs benefit the most. Language learning opportunities gained by ELLs are those that native speakers acquire implicitly. Language and literacy learning opportunities including detailed vocabulary instruction, variables concerning second language (L2) text structure, such as semantics, syntax, and morphology are enhanced and enriched by modification. Some researchers have determined that ELLs are not generally ready for English reading instruction until they are intermediate stage of English language acquisition, while others advocate that reading and a second language are best acquired simultaneously (Avalos, Plasencia, Chavez, & Rascon, 2007, 319). In working with ELLs at

Summary of chapters: Tompkins, E Gail. (2014). Literacy for the 21st Century A Balanced Approach

Our view of literacy upon commencing this course, was that it is the ability to read and write. Our understanding of it however was partially true because, reading and writing are essential of any person’s literacy, but reading and

Since good language promotes strong literacy, then it is only logical for language deficiencies to cause problems with literacy. This paper will discuss some key factors that influence literacy development. When properly obtained the skills can lead to successful literacy abilities. When not properly depicted, these same skills can cause a negative impact, or deficiencies in literacy development.

Since a child going up, literacy was not my strong suit. Literacy throughout my life seem not to cope with me. Later as I grew up, literacy meant to me that it is one’s ability to read, write, and speak. More importantly there is a more meaning of literacy, meaning that not only writing, reading, and speaking, but able to understand, analyze, and communicate with other peoples’ ideas. Soon enough literacy has made an impact on my life, it has been and will be a lifelong process. Literacy will always be with me, starting from my past and ending in my future.

Literacy embraces reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Integrating all of these into a literacy program is key. Teachers must provide endless and ongoing opportunities for their student to read, write, listen, and speak.

In American society, literacy, or the ability to read and write, is taken for granted. In many areas around the world, and even America before public schooling, the power you carried with literacy was priceless. Deborah Brandt, an English professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison said “Literacy like land, is a valued commodity in this economy, a key resource in gaining profit and edge. This value helps to explain, of course, the lengths people will go to secure literacy for them- selves or their children. But it also explains why the powerful work so persistently to conscript and ration the powers of literacy” (Brandt 169). This quote from her publication, Sponsors of Literacy, shows how literacy is power and the people who are in control of it need to influence, or as Brandt would say “Sponsor” (167) those who are illiterate.

Literacy plays a huge role in many people’s lives everyday, whether it is learning how to read and write for the first time or writing a five-page essay for the hundredth time. We experience literacy differently and have our very own unique stories on how it has impacted our lives and had made us who we are today. It is an essential aspect that I use in my everyday life, such as in relationships, daily interactions with others, and learning. It has become such a powerful aspect and human right in which it allows one to speak his/her mind and in some cases express their opinion to the world. My personal literacy history has shaped me into who I am today because without my experiences I would not have been able to gain the confidence and

“The more you read, the more things you know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” This is how Dr. Seuss thought of reading, and I think of it in much the same way. Literacy is everywhere and influences us every day, therefore, it plays a major part in each of our lives. I believe that reading is an interactive activity in which learning happens, or as Clay (2001) defines it, “…a message-getting, problem-solving activity” (p. 1). Reading is the process through which one reads information and from doing so, constructs meaning about the material. The more exposure and practice one has with reading, the more knowledge one gains. In this paper, I will begin by discussing my own personal educational philosophy, then continue by stating and explaining four of my beliefs about the reading process and the research that is found to support each of them before sharing the remaining questions I have about literacy. I am an existentialist, and a strong supporter of a balanced literacy approach. My beliefs about literacy come from these foundations and perspectives that I embrace. For students to be successful in their literacy development, I believe that identity acceptance in the classroom is crucial, instruction for all students must be differentiated, direct and explicit instruction is at times necessary, and vocabulary is a significant component in the ‘Big Five’ of children’s literacy development.

Literacy is defined as being literate, that is, being able to read and write in a language. My personal experience with literacy began at an early age, at the age of 4 when I began to sit and read words and letters in the back of my mother’s car. Soon enough, she would bring me a magazine called “Majed” which, in the 90’s, was a popular magazine. With this, I began even more interested in reading and writing and reviewed every word in the magazine associated with each of the short pictured stories. It was the first memory I deeply recall of literacy and it was what laid the foundation for my personal love of reading and writing. The methodology used for this is an interview. There are three interviews which are analyzed and brought together in the form of a narrative. This narrative serves to better explain the emotions and thoughts that the interviewees had about the idea of literacy.

Literacy is the cornerstone to all learning; it is imperative to future academic success. (Tracey and Morrow, 2012). Due to the significance of literacy instruction, there are a myriad of ways to teach literacy. Literacy is a complex subject, honing in on balancing reading, writing, speaking, and listening. As a result of the complexity of literacy instruction, we arrive at the age-old debate of what is the best literacy instruction. My philosophy of literacy instruction centralizes around the Whole Language Theory and Balanced Literacy; however, I also blend in additional theories/approaches to teach effective literacy.

“It is not enough to simply teach children to read; we have to give them something worth reading. Something that will stretch their imaginations-something that will help them make sense of their own lives and encourage them to reach out toward people whose lives are quite different from their own.” - Katherine Patterson. Literacy is a right. It is implicit in the right to education. It is recognized as a right, explicitly for both children and adults, in certain international conventions. Literacy is the ability to read and write, and also refers to having enough reading and writing ability to function in society. People who cannot read and write are called illiterate. People are called functionally illiterate if they cannot read or write well enough to do activities that are common in social settings they encounter. Such activities may include employment, schoolwork, voting, or worship. The power of literacy is something that can change the world. How far has literacy come since the beginning and what is its history; what are the causes of a lower literacy rate; what effects can lower literacy rates have; what about higher rates; what are some ways to improve the literacy rates and; what are some of the benefits to a higher literacy rate?