Illiteracy
Illiteracy is not caused by a lack of intelligence, rather a result of outside factors which can include poverty, learning disabilities, and technology. This review of the literature will answer the following questions:
1. What is illiteracy?
2. What effects does illiteracy have on the economy?
3. What are the different types of literacy?
4. How is illiteracy being addressed?
Illiteracy is a major issue throughout the world and its effects on the economy are being addressed through the different types of literacy.
What is Illiteracy?
Illiteracy is defined as a lack of ability to read and write or the lack of any or enough education. Illiteracy rates in the United States have sky-rocketed in the last 30 years, with the number of illiterate adults increasing by 2.25 million people each year. Forty-two million adult Americans cannot read. Approximately 50 percent of the nation’s unemployed youth ages 16-21 are illiterate and have almost no prospects of getting a good job. 44 million adults in the U.S. cannot read well enough to read a basic children’s story. More than 20 percent of adults read at or below a fifth-grade level. (MacGillivray, 2009).
What Causes Illiteracy?
Illiterate children with learning disabilities have phonological awareness difficulties, low verbal ability, behavior problems, and developmental delays. There are three main learning disabilities that cause illiteracy: dyslexia, Central Auditory Processing Disorders, and short term memory disabilities. Dyslexia can cause illiteracy because it is extremely difficult for children to read when they are dyslexic. Dyslexia is due to a simple signal-scrambling disturbance of the inner-ear organ and can be characterized by reversals of letters and numbers. Central Auditory Processing Disorders also cause illiteracy in children. This disorder is a disruption in the ability to interpret and store information that a child hears. It is a disorder of the brain and not a hearing problem. Short term memory is a disability in the brain that causes children to have a hard time remembering things that are not repeated enough to be remembered long term. Children with learning disabilities are more likely to drop out of school than those with no learning disability. (Al Otaiba, S. & Fuchs, D., 2002).
Technology causes illiteracy because it has consumed the lives of so many Americans in today’s society. Parents no longer sit down to read bedtime stories to their children or even encourage children to read by themselves. Parents work long days and come home to the television, computer, and cell phone ringing. Children have replaced books with technological devices such as gaming systems and music players. The first 2 years of life are considered a critical time for brain development and TV and other electronic media can get in the way of exploring, playing, and interacting with parents and others. Children 8 years and older spend nearly 4 hours a day in front of a TV screen and almost 2 additional hours on the computer and playing video games. This leaves little time for children to read and also causes other dangerous complications such as obesity, violent tendencies, and risky behavior. (Kid’s Health, 2010).
Illiteracy can cause problems that most people would not even imagine possible. Illiterate adults cannot even read a basic newspaper. They are not able to read simple street signs and can cause serious vehicular accidents. Adults who cannot read the prescription bottle their medicine comes in can accidently overdose on medication or not take enough medication for a condition they may have. Illiterate adults are more likely to have poor health because of their lack of education in health services. Illiteracy can also cause many problems with a person’s self-esteem. Those who are illiterate are very ashamed and try to keep it hidden from others. This can cause illiterate adults to go in to a depression, affecting their health even more. Illiterate adults are also more naïve. When they are told something, even if it is false, they are more likely to believe it than a literate person. This can cause illiterate adults to get in to trouble with law.
What Effects Does Illiteracy Have on the Economy?
Illiteracy affects all people. The more illiterate people there are in a country, the harder it is for a country to develop. Illiteracy means that human capital is underdeveloped or the labor force is not skilled. This scares away potential investors because they do not want to invest in an economy with unskilled workers. Unskilled workers generate lower levels of income and as a result, this causes unemployment and poverty. If the literacy rate is low in a country, it causes the country to have poor production of products. If the production is poor, then the demand for the product is not there. Lack of demand equals lack of income, causing poverty. The literacy rate of an area, state, or country affects the standard of living by raising it. The standard of living is higher because there are more and better paying jobs in areas that are more literate. The cost of illiteracy to taxpayers is 20 billion dollars a year. When a child drops out of school, it costs the nation over 240 billion dollars in lost earnings, forgone tax revenues, and expenditures for social services. 68% of those arrested are illiterate and a person who is illiterate is more likely to go to jail than a literate person. (The Literacy Company , 2010).
What are the Different Types of Literacy?
There are many different forms of literacy. Functional literacy is the level of literacy required to get along successfully on a day-to-day basis. Information literacy is the ability to know when there is a need for information. It is the ability to identify, locate, evaluate, and effectively use that information for the issue or problem at hand. Cultural literacy is the ability to understand and appreciate the similarities and the differences in the customs, values, and beliefs of one’s own culture and the cultures of others. Multicultural literacy is the knowledge of cultures in which text, sound, and graphics may introduce slant, perspective, and bias into language, subject matter, and visual content. Media literacy is an informed, critical understanding of the mass media. Bi-literacy is the ability to read in two or more languages. Visual literacy is the ability to understand and produce visual messages. Computer literacy is the ability to use a computer and its software to accomplish practical tasks. Mathematical literacy (also called numeracy) is the mastering of the basic symbols and processes of arithmetic. New media literacy is the ability to use the internet, to include hypertext, and multimedia and electronic forms of communication. Technology literacy is the ability to use the internet to access and communicate information effectively. Global literacy is the understanding of people and nations and the ability to interact and collaborate successfully across cultures. (SIL International, 2011). Functional literacy is the most important form of literacy because it enables people to function in everyday life.
Text messaging has become this generation’s new form of literacy. While some people may feel that text messaging has become a detriment to literacy, researchers have found that it is actually helping young people to read and write better. Previous to text messaging, groups of adolescents would engage in face to face conversations and it did not matter if one of the people in the group knew how to read or write. Now, technology including text messaging, electronic mail, and social networking sites force a person to know how to read and write. This also helps some people express themselves better because a lot of people feel more comfortable writing their feelings rather than saying them out loud. (Baggot, 2006). In a study published in the Journal of Computer Assisted Living, researchers examined text messaging in teenagers. Forty-seven normally developed seventeen year olds and forty-seven language impaired seventeen year olds were assessed on cognitive, language, and literacy abilities, as well as their frequency of text messaging. They were also asked to reply to a text message sent by a researcher. The participants with the language impairments were less likely to respond to the researcher’s text message than those who were normally developed. Those with the language impairments composed shorter texts and used less text language. (Durkin, 2011). This research proves how important literacy is to text messaging and how far technology has come in the literacy realm.
How is Illiteracy Being Addressed?
Illiteracy is 100 percent preventable. It takes hard work, dedication from educators and parents, and funding to achieve this goal. International Literacy Day is celebrated each year on September 8th. This day is meant to raise awareness of the challenges involved with being illiterate. There are many programs that are trying to combat illiteracy, and Reading is Fundamental is the largest children’s literacy non-profit organization in the United States. Their mission is simple, yet powerful: motivate young children to read by working with them, their parents, and community members to make reading a fun and beneficial part of everyday life. They accomplish their mission by delivering free books and literacy resources to the children and families who need them most. Reading is Fundamental allows the children to choose their own books, which helps to establish a love for reading. Reading is Fundamental is always looking for new volunteers to help them accomplish their mission. (Reading is Fundamental, 2010).
Since its foundation in 1946, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) have been at the forefront of global literacy efforts. Its goal is to keep literacy a high priority on national, regional, and international agendas. UNESCO’s literacy programs try to create a literate world and promote literacy for all. UNESCO is the lead agency for the United Nations Literacy Decade (UNLD). The UNLD emphasizes the goal of literacy for all people of all ages in all areas of the world.
ProLiteracy speaks on a national and international level on behalf of adults who struggle with reading, writing, and math. They believe in the power of literacy to end poverty, injustice, discrimination, and violence. They do this by advocating for public policies and legislation that benefit the people by the programs that serve them. They also provide professional development and training, technical assistance, and credentialing services. ProLiteracy works internally with existing agencies to create programs that combine language literacy lessons with community programs. They also publish educational materials that address the learning needs and difficulties of adult readers to educate, which is meant to inform others. (ProLiteracy, 2011).
Methods
In a study conducted by the author at the University of Texas at El Paso, college students were asked basic questions about reading. Do you like to read, and if not, why? Would you like to read more in school? What would make reading more fun for you? What do you think schools could do to help children read better? Do you think that children who like to read make better grades in school?
Results
The results of the study were not surprising to the author of the survey. 75 percent of those surveyed stated that they liked to read. 100 percent of them said that they would not like to read more in school. The answers to the question of what would make reading more fun varied but the most common answer was that people would like to read more about subjects that interested them. The most common answer to get children to read better was to practice reading to them every day. 100 percent of those surveyed believed that children who like to read make better grades in school.
Conclusion
Illiteracy is a major problem in the world and there will always be room for improvement. Although factors such as poverty and learning disabilities will never go away, non-profit organizations are working as diligently as they can to decrease illiteracy rates. It will take hard work from volunteers and cooperation from parents but hopefully illiteracy will not be such a major problem in the upcoming years.
“References”
Baggot, K. (2006). Literacy and Text Messaging. Technology Review. Retrieved February 28, 2011, from http://www.technologyreview.com/printer_friendly_article.aspx?id=17927.
Durkin, K. K., Conti-Ramsden, G. G., & Walker, A. J. (2011). Txt lang: Texting, textism use and literacy abilities in adolescents with and without specific language impairment. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 27(1), 49-57. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2729.2010.00397.x
MacGillivray, L. (Ed.) (2009). Literacy in times of crisis: Practice and perspective. USA: Routledge.
UNESCO (2011). Literacy. Retrieved March 1, 2011 from http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/education-building-blocks/literacy/.
ProLiteracy (2011). About ProLiteracy. Retrieved March 1, 2011 from ProLiteracy.org.
Reading is Fundamental (2010). About RIF. Retrieved February 28, 2011, from http://rif.org/us/about-rif.htm.
SIL International (2011). Glossary of Literacy Terms. Retrieved February 28, 2011, from http://www.sil.org/lingualinks/literacy/referencematerials/glossaryofliteracyterms/Index.htm.
TD Waterhouse Investor Services Inc. Illiteracy threatens kids’ future. School Library Journal. Issue 10. Volume 50 (October 2004): page 17.
The Literacy Company (2010). Reading, Literacy, and Education Statistics. Retrieved February 28, 2011, from http://www.readfaster.com/education_stats.asp.
Yates, B. L. (2002). Media education's present and future: A survey of teachers. Simile, 2(3), N.PAG. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
