1 Herp Derp

An illiterate society and the associated problems

What would your day consist of if you were not able to read or write? This is a question which most of us do not spend much time thinking about, the majority of adults are able to read and write (NCES 2007) at an above basic level, which means that they, possess more than the most simple and concrete literacy skills. These are new statistics from information conducted on people living in the worlds richest country, America (IMF). This paper will explain the reasons behind the illiteracy that exists in our society today, and methods to reduce it. It will also go through if there is a link between poverty and illiteracy. We are required to being able to both read and write in order to navigate our way through the city, and life. One must have the skill to read in order to obtain passing grades through school, and gain sufficient knowledge to get into college. One might ask themselves, why would I ever want to attend college, and one of the reasons for this, is that getting a college education will most likely give you a better paying job after school (US Census Bureau 2), and a longer (Meara, Richards, and Cutler 2) and happier life (Rheault and McGeeney). There is a clear connection between poverty and illiteracy (Epstein) about 70% of adult welfare recipients has lower level literacy skills (Levels 1 and 2 on the NALS). The main causes of illiteracy is poverty, which forces the children to work instead of attending school, lack of literacy within the family that will result in the child not being able to be taught to read at an early age by their parents, and learning disorders. The main reason for illiteracy is lack of money. All of the causes of illiteracy are treatable. Poverty exists because

2 of the scarcity of funds and resources, which often is because of illiteracy. Here we have a circle, where one who is born to poor and illiterate parents have a higher risk of becoming illiterate and then, becoming poor himself. Illiterate adults usually do not have well-paid jobs, therefore could not hire a tutor if they wanted to, because of their financial situation. In addition, most learning disorders can be treated or maintained so one can almost read and write at a normal level. Dyslexia is genetic, inherited and non-curable, but it is treatable. (Orton). What are the ways to reduce illiteracy in our society? With government funded tutors and government-funded doctors. The main thing here is, government funded. The majority of illiterates are living in poverty, they might therefore not have sufficient amount of money to pay for a tutor themselves, and the government needs to help them. We need to test children early, in order to see if they have any kind of learning disabilities or having trouble reading, and catch it when they are as young as possible. One could also make illiteracy a disease through medicalization, and thus raise the awareness of it. Not only is it wide-spread throughout the world, but it is also to the most part treatable and if it would be considered a disease, illiterates would not feel as ashamed towards others, and would be able to get the cure for it. In order to equalize our society and fight poverty we should focus more on the threat that illiteracy is and find the most effective solutions to it. Indirectly, curing illiteracy will also help poverty, which will raise the productivity of the nation in general. For the government to pay for tutors, that would be an investment for the future. Since a big part of the illiterate population are unemployed and collect welfare checks, the labor force would be increasing by many. Jonathan Kozol, the author of Illiterate America (1985) estimates that more than 35 million Americans read below the level needed to function in society (Kirszner and Mandell 248). This is a frighteningly high number, and especially for a society as developed

3 as the United States. In the beginning of the text, he put a warning label for Drano, which I believe sums up the importance of literacy. Not only would you not be able to get any kind of higher-level education, your life consists also of dangers throughout your day. You will not be able to figure out what the proper dose is when taking painkillers or any other medicine. You will not be able to navigate by car, and might end up on a one-way street like the man in the piece. Poverty is a big societal problem. It affects ones happiness and values. For people who have money, crime is despicable and animalistic in a modern society, but for men and women living in poverty, they do not have the same chance for a bright future. This is where criminality comes in. Crime is a way to gain a large amount of money, without having to work every day. You can also plan your own days, and do not have anything to attend. One puts in as much energy as one wants to make money, whether it is about selling drugs or robbing banks. Since there is a clear link between illiteracy and poverty, poverty and criminality there should also be one between illiteracy and criminality. Dr. Edward Greene, professor of instructional psychology at BYU, said that, After learning how to read, only 15 percent of those in penal institutions are ever arrested again as opposed to over 70 percent when they remain illiterate (McCoy). Another person involved in this subject is Louisa Moats, EdD, a nationally acclaimed reading specialist, who said, Two thirds of students who cannot read proficiently by the fourth grade will end up in jail or on welfare (McCoy). There is a well-known and clear connection between poverty, criminality, and illiteracy. These are all big problems in our society. You will not encounter illiteracy as much as crime and poverty, and therefore it will not gain the same attention and as much of a problem, even though it is one of the reasons for criminality and poverty. The visual problems are often the one that is being reacted upon, and get the attention of media, even though illiteracy might be the root of the both.

4 Illiteracy is a big problem in society today. It appears even in a civilized and developed society just as America, and there are connections between both illiteracy and poverty and illiteracy and criminality. In order to reduce all of these, we should try to find the root of them all, which according to research, when inmates have become literate the rate of them turning to crime again become much less. By medicalization of illiteracy as a disease, it would gain much more notability and illiterate people would not feel as ashamed, and might have an easier time to cure it. One could also get government funded tutors, in order to help with their literacy problem, it is a necessity it is government funded because of the poverty problems. We also need to test our children when they are young, because then there are enough time to cure it, and they have not fallen behind.

Works Cited

5 U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2007). The Condition of Education 2007 (NCES 2007064), Indicator 18. Meara, Ellen R, Richards, Seth and Cutler, David M.. The Gap Gets Bigger: Changes In Mortality And Life Expectancy, By Education, (1981-2000) Health Affairs, 27, no.2 (2008):350-360 Rheault, Magali and McGeeney, Kyley Education Is a Key Predictor of Emotional Health After 65 Aug 19, 2011. Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index. Dec 17, 2011. http://www.gallup.com/poll/149084/Education-Key-Predictor-Emotional-Health.aspx United States. Dept. of Commerce. Census Bureau. The Big Payoff: Educational Attainment and Synthetic Estimates of Work-Life Earnings, 1997-1999. Current Population Reports P23-210. Washington. July, 2002. Epstein, M., Adult Literacy Fact Sheet: Literacy and Dependency, Kent, OH: The Ohio Literacy Resource Center, 1997. Orton, Samuel T and His Legacy. Dyslexia . . .. (1999) Published by the International Dyslexia Association McCoy, Jim. Statistics link crime, drugs to illiteracy NewsNet Oct 22, 2003. Brigham Young University