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From: "Crawford, June" <June_Crawford@ed.gov>
To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-ld@literacy.nifl.gov>
Subject: [NIFL-LD:3236] RE: What is Literacy?
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As an old reading teacher, I like the LVA description that Marsha suggested.
It still concentrates on the traditional method of describing literacy as
connected to being able to manage and use printed material in life, but it
leaves some room for use of technology.
For the sake of argument, however, here are some other ways to think about
it for today's adult.
Are the competencies described in the Equipped for the Future materials
the type of thing you are looking for in your quest for a list of things a
minimally literate person should be able to do?
What about assistive technology use? For instance, this morning I spent
quite a bit of time with the national distributor for the QuickLink Pen that
appears to be useful to many adults with learning disabilities who need
assistance with some vocabulary in their reading. Are you hoping to
establish some sort of formula about literacy? Math is not my forte, but
maybe something like:
Reading fluently at the Level 1 on the NALS
PLUS
Using an assistive device no more than five times
in a 100 word paragraph
EQUALS
Basic literacy competence
If we think about the adults with learning disabilities who can function
with speech recognition programs and software that can "read" to them, and
hold jobs and manage to earn a living and participate in the community, are
they less "literate" than someone who fits the above description?
June Justice Crawford
Learning Disabilities Program Associate
National Institute For Literacy
202-233-2064 Phone
202-233-2050 Fax
jcrawford@nifl.gov
-----Original Message-----
From: woods@ncia.net [mailto:woods@ncia.net]
Sent: Wednesday, November 08, 2000 12:03 AM
To: Multiple recipients of list
Subject: [NIFL-LD:3234] RE: What is Literacy?
Marsha Tait wrote:
> The ability to read, write, and speak English proficiently, to compute and
> solve problems, and to use technology in order to become a life-long
learner
> and to be effective in the family, in the workplace and in the community.
Thanks Marsha. A couple questions. How would you define "proficiently?" How
is it measured? What level of problem-solving might be expected for
literacy. I could think of a range from tieing a shoe to computing orbital
velocities. Surely, it's somewhere inbetween. Also, what sort of technology
do you refer to? Computers? Of course, a pencil is also a sort of
technology.
I have been trying to identify things that a person can do that demonstrates
literacy. For instance a person might demonstrate literacy if she or he:
1. can read and understand a newspaper article.
2. can pass a GED test.
3. fill out a job application.
4. follow a written recipe.
5. read and order from a menu.
6. fill out an order form and compute a total price for items purchased.
7. make change.
8. write a friendly letter.
9. find a location on a map and give directions to find it.
10. use a bus or train or other similar schedule effectively.
Might anyone have suggestions for the list? Or is there another approach to
defining
literacy that's significantly different?
Thank you,
Tom Woods
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