Are Americans Literate?

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

Walking into a class room full of seniors, one might not suspect that some of the students can not read above a third grade reading level (Mcmaster). In fact one million teenagers from the ages of 12 and 17 do not have the reading ability of a third grader. Literacy among American people is important because it affects our economy greatly. Not only that but it also affects the lives of the American population. Illiteracy is a large problem within the United States that can be reasonably solved using different tactics.

More than most would imagine, illiteracy is a phenomenal crisis throughout the world. Today, there are approximately 800 million illiterates in the world. Ninety-three million of those are Americans who have basic or below basic literacy. Thirty million of the 93,000,000 are functionally illiterate. The other 63,000,000 read at a fifth to an eighth grade level and cannot understand a basic newspaper. According to Literacy Partners, a foundation which helps low-income parents with limited English proficiency transfer literacy

Literacy rates have declined at a rapid rate due to the neglect of available educational resources and opportunities. Our country has failed at preparing our youth and will continue to do so unless a change is made. A decline in literacy rates have been a result of many unnecessary changes that may lead our country into a literacy depression. Improper education, limited access to books, technology, and poor role models all has made literacy spiral downward. We should ask ourselves what we can do and not try to do in order to make literacy rates rise.

Ironically, this decline in reading shields young boys and holds them from molding into young men. Though, there is no surprise that the falling rates of political awareness coincides with declining levels of literacy reading. Advanced literacy is a intellectual skill that americans cannot afford to lose, if

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.

America, the most technologically advanced and affluent of all nations on the earth, seems to have an increasingly larger illiteracy rate every year. This has become and continues to be a critical problem throughout our society as we know it. According to the National Adult Literacy survey, 42 million adult Americans can't read; 50 million are limited to a 4th or 5th grade reading level; one in every four teenagers drops out of high school, and of the students who graduate, one in every four has around an 8th grade education. Why? You ask. This problem will never fix itself and will take quite a bit of time to overcome. We need to make sure that everyone is aware of the social problems, poverty and lack of family interaction that occurs

“Do you feel like you live in a nation of idiots?,” said Michael More in the article “Idiot Nation” (1). We live in the leading country in the world but yet we have a higher percentage of illiterate poeple than most countries. Due to the country’s poor education system not providing sufficient and equal education for all. The American public education system does more harm than good because it does not give the same educational opportunities to all students, teachers that are not motivated or trained to teach, kids are underestimated on their capacity to learn, and schools that care more about sponsorship from corporations then the education of the students.

The decline of reading by Americans isn´t by all Americans, Dana Gioia states that the “ declines have been most severe among younger adults ages 18-24.” (pg 1) Dana uses this fact from the 2002 survey to support her conclusion that the decline of reading will have a negative effect on society because it “ signifies deep transformations into a contemporary life.” (pg 1)

Alvin Toffler, American futurist and writer, redefines illiteracy, while simultaneously redefining literacy. Toffler states that “The illiterate of the 21s century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who can learn, relearn and unlearn.” He redefines illiteracy because the context has changed. A couple centuries ago, only the upper class had the luxury of being educated, while the lower class didn’t have the free time or funds to go to school. Now, with the widespread of public education, reading and writing are one of the most basic skills. Due to the commonness of literacy, being illiterate is a disability and it cripples the ability to express. Since widespread illiteracy is a thing of the past and literacy is a bare minimum,

Approximately 36 million adults in America are considered to be illiterate; about 14% of the entire adult population cannot read or is limited to reading at the basic or below basic proficiency levels.

Despite the fact that we are largely a literate society, too many adults in our country struggle with reading and writing. In fact, one out of five adults is considered functionally illiterate.

In this day and age it seems unfathomable that there are so many people that cannot pick up a cereal box and read its contents, or read the operating manual of a toaster oven. Why is it that so many Americans cannot fill out a simple employment application or write a check? Where is the reasonable judgment in electing a President or passing a proposition? Why is it that in a country like America, with free education, are there still many people unable to read, write, or think critically? There may be a slew of reasons for this epidemic of uneducated Americans across this nation based on both facts and opinion. In my opinion, a few contributing factors may be poverty, financial deficit within communities, and government and political contribution.

According to StaticBrain.com 50% of adults are unable to read a books written on an 8th grade level. Test scores are down, and we know that a lot of students are not graduating career and college ready. In fact, 19% of all high school graduates can't read. If you think that's bad, more than that 46% of people can't even read the label on their prescription drugs, and I am fairly certain even more don't understand their food labels.

The first reason of an illiterate society is the parents. A parent shows rather a child be successful or unsuccessful in the life. A child will only know what a parent have taught him or her as a child. Just as a child is learned how to say no, parents can teach a child how to read and write. In today society a lot of young parents have hardly any educational background. The question of whether parents bear most of the responsibility is not easy to determination. Parents need to effect the child before one go to school. William Kilpatrick quotations Martin Luther King by saying, "the human race is like a drunk who falls off one side of the horse and get back on, and promptly falls off again.