Illiteracy : The Interior Demon

Elbow has some very good ideas on how to use writing to enhance our reading. The evidence that Elbow provides in his article does suggest that we as a society places more emphasis on reading than writing. Also, I agree with Elbow that neither of these concepts are more important that the other. We need to use writing to enhance our reading and reading to enhance our writing while teaching literacy. We as teachers need to use reading and writing to encourage our students to grow and

By this fact, it can be seen that there is a relation to the decline in America’s economy and the percentage of illiterate people. The ability to read affects our nations money spending as well as, “it costs an estimated $100-200 billion per year in unemployment, welfare, health care, and incarceration costs” (Sachwitz). This fact can be proven in Larry Roberts’ article saying that 44 million out of the 191 million adults in America do not have the ability to fill out a job

The power of literacy enables one to become self-aware and opens up new opportunities, leading to a better life. Not only does literacy have the capability to impact significant lives like those of Malcolm X and Frederick Douglass but also a mere individual like myself. Learning how to read and write allowed me to gain knowledge and opened up the opportunity to be able to attend college where I was able to gain even more knowledge. With that knowledge, I became more aware of the opportunities I had and how an individual like myself could contribute to society. I was able to forge my own path that will lead to a successful

he most fundamental responsibility of schools is teaching students to read. Indeed, the future success of all students hinges upon their ability to become proficient readers. Recent scientific studies have allowed us to understand more than ever before how literacy develops, why some children have difficulty, and what constitutes best instructional practice. Scientists now estimate that fully 95 percent of all children can be taught to read. Yet, in spite of all our knowledge, statistics reveal an alarming prevalence of struggling and poor readers that is not limited to any one segment of society:

Writing have a lot of advantages that if the writer improved his writing these advantages will increase. Firstly, it is required in the daily life in a very wide range. For example, you need to write e-mails to your professors, applying for a job, writing a research and a lot of other stuff that needs to be tangible. Secondly, writing helps the writer to plan his goals perfectly. According to a research, most people who succeeded in

Statistically, based on reports from 2003, 99% of the total population ages 15 and over can read and write (CIA Library). Thus, one can conclude illiteracy is not a crisis. However, “The Human Cost of an Illiterate Society” by Jonathan Kozol, implies something different. Kozol emphasizes the hardship of an illiterate, and briefly explains the importance of helping an illiterate without providing much of a solution, while Kozol’s essay was ineffective overall because of the lack of factual evidence and flawed conclusions, his strategic use of tone, repetition and rhetorical questioning provided some strength to his argument.

In society today, people are judged by their level of education. Education is the key in society today. According to begintoread.com, today in the United States 1 out of 4 children grow up without learning how to read. Also at early stage of life the brain start developing and adjusting to the environment that they were raised in. In addition, books and education helps develop the brain especially in early age. According to the National Center for Education, Statistics shows that the majority of people who don’t complete high school have basic or below-basic literacy skills. 26% of prison inmates nationwide had parents who had not completed high school, and 37% of inmates had not completed high school themselves. Literacy is powerful in times of development because it leads to success in life and helps with solving a problem.

“Again, the predictability of reading for life success is so strong, that if you look at the proportion of middle schoolers who are not at the basic level, who are really behind in reading, it is a very strong predictor of problems with the law and the need for jails down the line.

Having the right writing skills sets a person up for success in life. Life, in terms of the business world, is based on two things: math and writing. Not being able to do both of those puts a person behind, and stops them from getting a job that is worth having. Both The Writing Revolution by Peg Tyre and A Hope in the Unseen by Ron Suskind emphasizes that without the right writing skills, an individual will be less successful. Writing should be taught in every class because it will be handy for any job they choose, and because it will be used everyday of their life.

In Jonathan Kozol’s “The Human Cost of an Illiterate Society” and Malcolm X’s “Literacy Behind Bars” they both talk about the advantages of being literate, as well as the hardships that those who are illiterate goes through. Using these articles, we can see that it’s important to be as literate as possible because, a literate person would be more confidant in interacting with others, they’re less likely to be cheated, they don’t have to rely on others, and ultimately their world view is much bigger.

The ability for the common person to write and read opens new worlds of possibilities while also influencing common writing materials. Increasing communication between all cultivates a unified and peaceful society. The written word is such a powerful tool, in fact, civilizations have chosen at times to limit the number and type of people who could comprehend it. Being able to read and write enabled shifts in the class system by accelerating the learning process and enabling speedy career training. For universal literacy, commoners must be able to access affordable and quick to use writing materials.

Reading and writing are two of the most important tools in my life, because without them I would not have an education. They form the basis of a class; for example, completing a lab in chemistry would not be possible without following a written lab procedure. These two skills are taught at such a young age, and as education advances students must continue to strive to reach a higher level. I can remember in elementary school, we were always pushed to reach the next reading level once we had successfully mastered the one we were on. It was always a competition for my sister and I to be at a higher level, I usually won. Even though I was excelling in reading it was the complete opposite for writing. It is something that has never come easy

Writing is one of the four basic skills to be taught for the students. It is a way for students to express their idea and opinion. The important of writing can be seen in daily activities when they need to write short texts such as memos, invitation letters, sympathy notes, brochure, article, business letters, applications letter and many others. Through writing students can transfer their experiences and knowledge to others. So, they should be able to produce sentences and develop it into paragraphs and essays. It is active thinking process of the students to plan, arrange and express idea in order the text could be understood by the readers. A good writing helps avoid misunderstanding between the writer’s idea and the reader’s opinion.

Reading and writing are necessary skills that were taught to me at a young age. From, creative writing classes, speed reading tests, countless English based classes, and research papers I have learned about myself as a reader and writer. My education from preschool, elementary, and high school were heavily based on reading and writing, which shaped my writing style and how I analyze information. Now that I am an experienced student, I have learned the value of having the important skills that were taught because it aids in the writing process and helps to eliminate fear the fear of writing. Jotting down ideas before getting started on a writing assignment, organization of thoughts, and proofreading were some of the important procedures that elevated my academic writing skills.

"Any kind of education is a matter of training the brain. When poor readers are learning to read, remedial instruction helps to shape that area up." Heineman (2009) stated that it’s not enough to say, “These kids can’t read.” Not being able to read can mean a variety of things and we need to be more specific in order to help each