Literacy is...

Literacy, as I have come to understand it, is the ability to read, process what a text is saying, and comprehend the meaning of the words on the page. The more literate one is, the more capable they are of understanding the deeper messages in the words chosen by the writer. It is a form of communication in which a reader may analyze a given text and derive the same or perhaps even another meaning than that which the author originally intended. It is the ability to process these meanings that forms the depth of one’s literacy. A person that can read is not necessarily a literate person. If they cannot understand the message behind what they are reading, they are missing the point entirely. Literacy involves an interaction with the text that is more than just a recital of words; it is the ideas those words are intending to provoke.
A literary person is one who is actually moved by a text. For example, someone who can recall every line in a story and explain all of its technical aspects, but has never actually been emotionally moved by it, is not a literary person. Literacy is that emotional experience that is necessary to truly understand works of writing. It is a connection between the author and the reader that requires a comprehension on both sides. An author cannot expect literacy from all of their readers; different writing styles may not work for certain readers and therefore, the message that the author meant to convey may be lost in translation.
I have come to find that one can be literate in certain fields, and yet, though they can still read the material of other fields, they are completely illiterate in regards to the messages they could have found there. In my scholastic experiences, I must say there have been times in which I would reflect that I was illiterate in certain subjects. Since works of fiction seem to be the most prominent genre, it seems only natural that those are the works which spring readily to mind. In high school, my English teacher had us read “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck. To this day I still consider myself illiterate in this work. Despite the deeper meanings and lessons the teacher tried to explain to us, I could not get past the fact that I did not like the work. The writing style was boring to me and I have discovered I am in no way a fan of any of Steinbeck’s works that I have since been introduced to. My level of literacy does not encompass his writing style. There are, however, many other texts that have moved me to re-examine aspects of the world in a new light. Their messages were conveyed with startling clarity and my level of literacy has made it possible to understand how such things apply to more than just the tale being presented. The most recent example I can recall is reading Don DeLillo’s short story, “Videotape.” The tale documents an incident in which a young girl unintentionally records the highway murder of the driver in the car behind her. Though the focus is on the incident, there are many other underlying messages that relate to the almost constant presence of recording devices in our daily lives now. Literacy is what has allowed me to take in this message and have its ramifications stay with me, allowing me to see the world with a new perspective.

Hiking Through My Problems

Literacy is brought up often throughout the high school years, with teachers complaining in the classrooms at the students for not caring and at non-existent politicians because they don’t fund the California education system enough. After hearing the word “literacy” throughout K-12 years (and the years following) a student can’t help but see literacy as 1) reading, writing, comprehension 2) something that many Californian teenagers are struggling with and 3) something that is never mastered through and through. Literacy is like a lost hiker in the woods. The surroundings are fixed with an occasional fallen tree with the hiker trying to navigate their way about to the forest to their destination. The trees act as the individual rules of spelling, grammar, pronunciation, and such. Personally, I, as the hiker, have come across times where the ideas and words are on the paper (I’ve found the trail) however, in trying to reach the goal, I fall short, and my paper is only comprehensible to myself. Awkward sentences are very common in my paper, and of course, I only realize this after my paper has been graded. Along with awkward sentences there are other various problems such as spelling that curb my progress, and with the aid of dictionaries and self-correcting writing applications my ability is even further in reach.

Enrolled in the more “challenging” English classes in High School, I had hoped to learn the nitty-gritty of grammar, and though there were some lessons in grammar, the focus was and will continue to be on interpretation/involving yourself with the text. What I have learned in high school has helped tremendously in the college setting, however, grammar seems to have never been taught in the manner I had imagined I would have been. Teachers have said, “read more, and you’ll understand the language.” Paragraphs, pages, and novels go by for X amount of years and I still find myself putting commas whenever I feel like it, or not understanding the purpose of other mechanics (really why need so many punctuations for different lengths of pauses?). Up to now as an English Lit major, reading has not ceased in my life, and yet the struggle persists. In middle school, a teacher once lectured the class on the importance of peer-editing and revision. It works! However, sometimes it doesn’t. Peer-editing and revision isn’t the immunity to the red-ink-pen and path to overcome my problems: even with the help of fellow colleagues I’m still in the same forest. Awkward sentences and dangling punctuations marks will prevail and I can only ask for help and continue to read more with hope that practice really makes perfect.

Literacy is a bridge...

Literacy can be literally, yet only roughly, defined as the ability to read, write, and communicate to another person in a given language. Though this simple definition may be sufficient as a dictionary definition, literacy can not be defined in such succinct terms. Literacy has several main facets which help to shape its core definition. Literacy is a bond between a person and a message. Literacy is a bridge that connects one person’s message to another person. Everyone has something, whether it be a feeling, an experience, or thought, that they want to share. Literacy, in the form of written, oral, or visual language is the vehicle for that person’s message to be successfully delivered to another person.

Literacy in the written language consists mainly of putting words into the correct syntax according to the rules of a particular language. This can not be the entirety of written literacy, however, because syntax and grammatical rules cannot account for the emotions that some novels can create for an individual. Therefore, there must be an intangible factor which ties the grammatical rules to the emotional response within our human intellect. This intangible factor is just as relevant in the definition of literacy as the words on the page. Some might argue that it is more important because the point of literacy and the exchange of ideas is the very fact that a message is transferred from one person to another.

Literacy has been a difficult subject for many of my teachers to explain. For the majority of my elementary years, I cannot recall any instruction on the concept of literacy. It is much easier, obviously, to teach a math problem. Math has a beginning and an end. An addition problem needs little explanation. Discussing an existential concept such as literacy, with many young children seems daunting indeed. I did, however, have my first experience with writing an oral expression in my fourth grade classroom. It was the first time, that I can remember, that any teacher had explained how to write an essay. She taught me to use three words to remember in what order my strongest points should be presented in an essay; bing, bang, bongo. I’ve never forgotten those three words that helped me to learn to put my best point in my third body paragraph.

On top of this writing instruction, my teacher also helped me to understand that there are many unspoken messages accompanying my verbal message. She assigned the class a project where every student was required to pick a topic of interest and write an informative essay. The class was then required to use our newly acquired verbal communication skills to present the essay to the class. I always remembered this assignment. I think I remember it mostly because I excelled at it. On top of my success, I remember it as my first taste of literacy as a concept. It was the first time I was asked to come prepared with a message and successfully translate that message to a group of people.

Literacy is Knowledge

Literacy is Knowledge

Literacy is like a fork, bifurcated. People live their lives one way or the other, separated. One side looks at what is observed through ordinary everyday life. Everyday life can entail the common routine of one’s day to day life. There is a saying; beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Beauty is generally observed as either inside or outside. For instance some people wake up at six A.M, and they leave for work at seven. They work from eight to five, and arrive home at six. They arrive home and prepare for their next day which consists of generally the same pattern. They live their lives in a constant daily routine. I do not mean to imply that this lifestyle is by any means irrelevant or unacceptable, but rather different from the latter.
The latter life could entail a different meaning or beauty. This life could be more abstract, that is to say the beauty is inside. By abstract, I mean not just living life as the routine that it is, but rather looking at life in the mind compared to the material life that is lived. While some people focus on the material aspect of work, home life, and its cycle, others focus on growth of the individual mind and society around them. That is not to say that this idea of life is less relevant, but rather to emphasis that everyone is different in some way. This abstract life could be less organized than other people. I am just pointing out that everyone has their own focus and priorities.
These two different lifestyles are used as extreme cases, but show an example of the different meanings literacy could mean to any individual. While one person lives a life of hard physical labor, their knowledge is completely relevant to them and their life. Their knowledge of laying bricks, landscape, tools, and cement are plentiful. While another person’s life revolves around solving the Greenhouse Effect, their knowledge is different regarding knowledge of the ozone, its layers, and chemical effects on the ozone is just as plentiful.
Literacy is knowledge. As we have seen here, knowledge is relevant to its own person. We are each our own person. I have my interests, and you have your interest. We are all individuals with unique ideas that define us as who we are. So, as a prospective teacher I think it is necessary remind others of individualism.
First and most important, I believe it is necessary to teach open mindedness. Secondly, I believe awareness of others individualism is what makes this country special and since we all live in this wonderful country that makes us all special. We are all equal in our own special way. To have an open mind is to put aside your judgments and really understand another person’s ideology. Ideology could be similar to literacy, like knowledge, is something that from birth to adulthood changes the way we view life. In our childhood years, we are limited to our family and our schooling. It is these views, that we are taught while we are young that mold our minds into the stigmas of society. Through further education, or literacy, do we come to realize the diversity in society, for example. While society is only one of the many institutions involved in our lives, my point is that no matter what the idea is we all must realize what it is that makes us different from each other. Different institutions could involve ideas of the family, church, work, pleasure, and so on. Not everyone can agree on every aspect of these issues. We all have our own ideas about every issue.
While everyone has their own ideas about society, I strongly believe it is important to acknowledge the history of knowledge, or rather philosophy, to bring about an understanding of why we think the way we do. Intertwined with the history the Americas, I could hopefully show the logic upon which this country was based. Thus, allowing the students to rationalize for themselves the logic (or illogical) ideas in which we could choose to live our own lives. If my students we introduced into important philosophers throughout history, this could widen their perceptions for a broader more meaningful life of happiness. Intertwined with the history of America to reflect the basis on which they could choose to life their lives, thus creating awareness.

Short Paper Topic 1: Literacy

What is Literacy? As we discussed in class there are so many interpretations of what the term “literacy” means. As we each tried to convey our ideas of what exactly literacy was, it was evident that it’s an incredibly broad term that we could build on for hours. To me, literacy is the way a person can communicate the point they’re trying to make with relative ease in their own cultural context, as well as, understand clearly what another person or people are trying to convey to them in multiple forms of dialogue, such as: reading, writing, and speaking. Today “literacy” is a term that is very much connected with the ability to read, but I don’t necessarily believe that, that’s all it entails. The ability to read is only one factor in the many that make up literacy.
However, I still see my interpretation of literacy as one that is flawed and much in need of some formulation and growth. In class I mentioned how literacy is different things, to different people, in different places; sometimes there is a cultural “miscommunication”. For example, someone from suburban Rancho Cucamonga (my hometown) might think that someone from South Central L.A. is illiterate because of their use of language, their slang, and general everyday conversation skills. However, this would be wrong to assume. They’re ability to get their point across and function in society, especially their own, without difficulty would make them very literate. Just because we Rancho Cucamongan’s don’t understand their slang doesn’t make them illiterate it’s just a cultural difference. However, my definition lacks the ability to really explain what makes someone illiterate, because truthfully after our discussion on Thursday, I just don’t know!
As a future, highschool, English teacher literacy is something that I’ll have to instill in my students. I intend to make sure that they understand the basic function of grammatical structures and how to use them properly when writing, talking, and reading. I hope to address these issues in a fun and interesting way, however, until I fully understand what exactly literacy consists of I couldn’t truthfully say how that would look in my classroom. All I know is that in order to fully engage students you have to help them understand how the subject your teaching them affects them everyday and relate it to something that makes sense to them in the here and now.
A day in the life of me, as an English Teacher, looks like one of interaction, fun, laughter, passion, and equality with my students. I really, really love education and I know that when I was in highschool the classroom I got the most out of was the one that was enjoyable. It was the one where the teacher not only cared and had a passion for the subject they taught, but cared for me and my ability to understand that subject whether I liked it or not. When I play this movie of my future career in my head, I see students excited to be in my classroom, I see them engaged, I see a relationship between all of us as a classroom. There’s discussion, and interaction between everyone and there’s new ideas and understandings, of not only the material but of each other, being formulated. There are activities going on that are fun, but, serve the ultimate purpose of teaching my students the curriculum. And there’s equality. There’s a mutual relationship between the students and me that creates respect and allows us learn from each other. Now, I know this sounds idealized but I truly hope that I can succeed in making my classroom a fun and educationally sound atmosphere, so that’s how I picture my future classroom to be.