Welcometomysite.
ThroughoutmytimewritingattheCityCollegeofNewYork,Iexperiencedaslowanddramatic transitiontomyfirstsemesterofthiscollegecourse.Duringthattime,I'velearnedfromseveral feedbackandlessonsfromcertainpeersandmyprofessor.Becauseofthestrictcommentswrittenin mydraftsbymyprofessor,afewhelpfulsuggestionstoincludeinmywriting,andafewmiserably failures,Iwasabletoseehowmywritingandhabitshavechangedduringthedurationofthis courseBackinhighschool,Iwasalwayscomfortablewritingonlyfiveparagraphessays (Introduction,threebodyparagraphs,andaconclusion),butI'veneverexpectedtowritesomething morecomplex.Here,IwasencouragedtoincludeasmuchdetailasIcaninsteadofwriting somethingvague
Asyoucansee,formyfirstdraftofmyliteracynarrative,IbrieflyexplainedhowEnglishasa SecondLanguage(ESL)helpedmeimprovemyreadingcomprehensionandwritingbecauseIwas borninaforeigncountrythatspeaksSpanish,butIwasbroughttotheUnitedStates,wereit's mostlyspokeninEnglish,andmyhomelanguageremainSpanishWiththatfeedbackfrommy professorandpeerscommentingsimilarsuggestionsliketheoneabove,Iincludedspecific situationsthatservedasexamplesofprogress.Ialsoexpandedonamethodoflearningthrough musiclyricsbyusingMichealJackson'ssongsandspecifiedthewordsused,Imanagedtocompose adecentliteracynarrativefor
EssayOnLiteracyReflection
...Getmorecontent...
Isitimportanttobealiteratepersonintoday'ssociety?Theabilitytofunctionwelldependson whetherornotapersonisliterateandcancomprehendwhatisgoingonaroundthem.Ifaperson doesn'thavethebasicabilitytoread,theywillfeelthestressanddependencyonothersbecauseof theirilliteracy.Illiteracyisabigproblembecausewithouttheknowledgeofreading,illiterate peoplecan'tperformdailytasksandresponsibilitiesindailylifeWhenallitwouldtakeisamere twominutesoutofyourday,don'tyouthinkilliteracycanbehelpedorevenextinguished?In today'ssocietyilliteratepeoplearelookedatas"half–citizens"(Kozol190).Theyaredependenton literatepeopletofunctiondailyThinkshowmorecontent
Theproblemisnotonlythatilliteratepeoplearedependentonothers,it'salsothattheliterate,well–functioningpeopleofsocietyaren'talwayswillingtoputforthhelp.Helpmayonlytakeafew minutesoutofsomeone'sday,andtothembenobigdeal.Foranilliterateperson,thosefewminutes maybethedefiningoftheirlives.Asanexample,Iwilltalkbrieflyaboutmycousin,bornintoa brokenhomeandforcedtodealwithilliteracyonadailybasisStevenwasbroughtupinabad neighborhoodandraisedbythestreets.Hisfamilysimplydidn'tcareaboutanythingotherthanhow theywouldaffordtheirnextbottleofboozeorpackofcigarettes.Growingup,hewasnevertoldhe hadtogotoschool;therefore,heonlywentonoccasion.Hislackofschoolinginhisyoungeryears tookitstollonhimbythetimehehithighschool.Livinginabadneighborhoodandbroughtupby gangs,Steven'slifewasinabadcondition
Afterdroppingoutofhighschoolinhissophomoreyear,Stevenattemptedtogetajob,butwithout adiplomaoralicensethiswasjustclosetoimpossibleforhim.Indesperateneedofajob,to supporthisgrowingfamily,Steventooktothestreetsandmademoneytheonlywayheknewhow Afterseveralmonths,hewaslivingthegoodlife,untilthedaycamethatchangedhislifeforever. Heendedupsellingdrugstoanundercoverpoliceofficerandwassenttojailforthreeyears.
TheImportanceofLiteracyEssay
...Getmorecontent...
ReflectionOnLiteracy
Analysis Literacy
Asachild,Ineverhadbooksreadtome.Itwasnotreallypartofthemiddle–classlifestylein Punjab,whereIwasbornandlivedfor5years.InPunjab,Icompletedtwoyearsofearlyeducation knownasLKG(lowerkindergarten)andUKG(upperkindergarten)TheschoolIwentto,although ahighSESschool,didnothavealibrarywherewewouldgotoreadpicturebooks.Moreover,the bookswedidhavefor'English'wereacompilationofpoemsandstories,withveryfewpictures. Poemsorstorywasreadbytheteacher,andthentoldthe'moral'ofthestoryNothingmoreNeither wasthereanyextrapolationnorexplorationofcharacterorplots.
Nieto(1992)assertsthatthelanguagestudentsbringalongimpactstheirlearning,andteachersoften wanttotakeawaythestudent'slanguageandculture.IwasoftentoldtospeakEnglishathome,and athomeIwastoldtospeakPunjabi.Teacherswhowanttocreateequityinclassmayinfact,by ignoringdifferences,byacceptingthedominantcultureasanorm(Nieto,1992)Manyteachers expectthatstudentsknowhowto'talkbooks',becauseitis'nature',howeveritheavilyunderpinned bynature(Heath,1982).Understandingthecultureandthetypeofhomeliteraciesstudentspractice inisimperativeinprovidingtheappropriatesupportforthestudent.WhenIfirstcametoAustralia, myteachersthoughtIhadsuperficialEnglishskillsbecauseIwasunabletounderstandliteracythe wayitwaspracticed
...Getmorecontent...
Introduction
"Literacylearninghasaprofoundandlastingeffectonthesocialandacademiclivesofchildren. Theirfutureeducationalopportunitiesandcareerchoicesaredirectlyrelatedtoliteracyability. Sinceearlychildhoodistheperiodwhenlanguagedevelopsmostrapidly,itisimperativethatyoung childrenareprovidedwithavarietyofdevelopmentallyappropriateliteracyexperiencesthroughout eachday,andthattheclassroomenvironmentisrichwithlanguage,bothspokenandprinted.Early childhoodteachersareresponsibleforbothunderstandingthedevelopmentalcontinuumoflanguage andliteracyandforsupportingeachchild'sliteracydevelopment Literacylearningbeginsatbirthanddevelopsrapidlyduringthe...showmorecontent...
Childrencantakemorethanoneofthesestepsatthesametime.Thislistofsteps,though,givesyou ageneralideaofhowyourchildwillprogresstowardreading."(Helpingyourchildbecomea reader)Whiletheseideasmayseemstructured,itisalsoimportanttoallowchildrentobecreative andusetheirimaginationAlthoughreadingisimperative,toomanyarrangementsandrulescanturn achildoffandleadtofeelingsofresentment,anger,andresistance.Readingshouldbesettothe toneandpaceofthechild.
EmergentReaders
Asthestandardsofeducationchangeaconsistentfactorremainsthefocusonreading.Early childhoodeducatorsmustprovideanatmospherethatisbothdevelopmentallystimulatingtothe studentwhilealsomeetingthestandardsofeducation.Themethodsusedtohelprecognizephonics andbeginthetransitionintoemergentreadersvaryfromstudenttostudent.Withoutthefoundation ofphonicsresearchshowsthatachildwillnotlearntoreadAllchildrenmustknowthealphabetin ordertocommunicateeffectively.Phonicscannotbedrilledintothechild.Thiswillonlyproduce memorization.Instead,educatorsmustunderstandachild'sindividualneedsaswellasbalance. Thereisnotrueneedtoteachphonicsasaseparatesubject.Mostchildrenwilldevelopasenseof curiosityfromtheirownknowledge,ideas,andinterest.Therewillofcoursebeaselectfewthat maybenefitfromamoreformalinstructionWhenchildren
...Getmorecontent...
EssayEarlyLiteracyinEducation
Isealedmyfateforliteracyintheninthgrade.SittinginregularlevelEnglish,Iwasaboutto determinemylevelforsophomoreyear.Atthetime,Ididn'tthinkIwasparticularlyskilledin writing,andIwasn'tabigreader,soitwashardtomakethedecision.Inthatmoment,Istill preciselyremembermyteacheraskingme"DoyouwanttogointohonorsEnglishnextyear?Ican seeallyourotherclassesarehonors"Irespondedwith"I'llthinkaboutit"andIwenthometoget myparentsopinionthesameday.Atfirst,Iwantedtotakehonors,butforsomepeculiarreasonI thoughttheworkloadwouldbetomuchtohandle.Leaningtowardsattendingregularlevel,my parentsweren'tdecisiveenoughformeTheygavethegeneric"Dowhatyouwant"response,and hearingthatdidn'treassuremeintheslightest.Intheend,Itookthelowerlevel,anditbecameone ofmyworstdecisionsyet.IneveractuallyrealizedhowskilledIwasatliteracyuntillateintomy sophomoreyear.IenjoyedreadingagrandamountmorethanIthought,andcomprehensionwas usuallyeasyforme.MycompetenceinwritingwasatminimumthreetimesgreaterthanIinitially believedBeingatthetopoftheclasswascommonplaceforme,andIgotanoutstandingscorefor EnglishonthePSAT.ItwasthenthatIunderstoodmyterriblemistake.WhywasIinsuchalow levelclasseventhoughIwasexceedingallexpectations?Whydidn'tItakehonorsEnglish?Tothis day,I'mstill
ReflectiveEssayOnLiteracy
...Getmorecontent...
CriticalLiteracyEssay
PremiseforCriticalLiteracy
CriticalLiteracyhasmanydifferentforms,andcanbeverydifferentdependingonwhichclassroom itistakingplacein.ThebasicpremisethatIacquiredfromresearchingcriticalliteracyisthatit requirestheliterateconsumersofthetexttoadoptacriticalquestioningapproach(CriticalLiteracy, 2015)CriticalLiteracyisforminganindividualopiniononatopicthatisn'tonlysuperficial,but alsoindepthandmeaningful.Beingcriticallyliterateisn'taboutattainingliteracyforthepurposeof readinglettersonapage,itistoreadthewordsonthepageandbecomeengagedinadiscussion formulatingopinionsandexpressingideasopenlyBecomingcriticallyliteratemeansthatan individual...showmorecontent...
AcoupleofthemarePauloFreire,AllenLuke,HenryGiroux,andJoeKincheloe.Manyofthem sharethesamebeliefsaboutthistopic,butwithadifferentviewpoint.PauloFreirewasatwentieth–centuryBrazilianeducator.HewasbornSeptember19,1921anddiedMay2,1997.Freirewasa leadingadvocateforcriticalpedagogy,andcontributedtothephilosophyofeducationfromamore classicalapproachsuchasPlatoandmodernMarxist.Freirebelievedina'bankingmethod'whichis comparedtostudents.Heviewedstudentsasemptybankaccountswaitingtobefilledbythe teacher.AccordingtoFreire,byfillingstudentswiththisnewknowledgeittransformstheminto receivingobjects(PauloFreire,Wiki).PauloFreirebelievedthatCriticalthinkingwasnotaone–waydevelopment,not"somethingdoneforstudentsortothem"fortheirowngood(Freire,1989, 34).Freire'spedagogyfocusedonwriting,reading,andthingsbasedaroundthestudent'slife,and notrepetitivelecturing.OneofFreire'smoststressedphrases,Ibelieve,is"readingtheworld."
SomethingthatPaulosaysisthatwhenreadingwords,youareactuallyreadingdifferent perspectivesofthe
...Getmorecontent...
HealthLiteracy
Healthilliteracyhasbecomereferredtoasthesilentepidemic.AccordingtotheU.S.Departmentof HealthandHumanServiceswebsite,theNationalAssessmentofAdultLiteracyshowedonly12 percentofadultshaveproficienthealthliteracy.Thatmeansnineoutoftenadultsmaylackthe neededskillstoadequatelymanagetheirhealthandpreventdisease
HealthyPeople2010definehealthliteracyas"thedegreetowhichindividualshavethecapacityto obtain,process,andunderstandbasichealthinformationandservicesneededtomakeappropriate healthcarerelateddecisions"Thesearetheskillsthatpeopleneedtofindtherightplaceinthe hospital,filloutinsuranceforms,andcommunicateappropriatelywith...showmorecontent...
"Itwasestimatedin1998thatbetween$35–73billionwaswastedinprolongedhospitalstaysand frequentdoctorsvisitsrelatedtolowhealthliteracy"(Ickes,MEd&Cottrell,DEd,CHES,2010,p. 492).Withallofthepreviouslymentionedproblemsofpoorhealthliteracy,individualswhofall intothesecategoriesarealsomorelikelytodieatanearlyageIsthereasolutiontothiscostly societalproblem?Thelong–termsolutionrestsinthehandsofhealtheducationbeginningin kindergartenandcontinuingthroughoutcollege.Weneedmorecommunityinvolvementwiththis issue.Itnotonlyaffectsthehealthilliteratebutthosethatareveryhealthliterate.Itraisesthecosts ofhealthcareenormously.Despitemassivetechnologicaladvancesandthatwespendtwiceas muchpercapitaonhealthcareintheUnitedStates,weremainoneoftheunhealthiestnationsinthe world.Lowhealthliteracycontributestoourgrimfuture.Wehavehighratesofinfantmortality; increasedmortalityrelatedtochronic,preventablediseaseprocesses;andcancermortalitycouldbe greatlyreducedbyearlydetection
Healthliteracyisbothaconsumerandpublichealthcareissue.Asahealthcareprovider,itisnot onlymyresponsibilitytoensurethatyouunderstandyourhealthandwhatisgoingon
...Getmorecontent...
EssayonHealthLiteracy
Inthistimewherewereceiveknowledgedifferentthenanytimebefore,thequestionofhowwe shouldinteractwithitshouldnotbejustraised,butemphasizedon.Inthisnewflatfastworldthat wegetourknowledgethrough,criticalliteracyisavaluabletoolandabilitythatshouldberecalled andavailableforallreaders.Morespecific,itshouldbetransferredbyteacherstostudentsinall educationalenvironmentItisanimportantabilityforstudentstohavetowardstextsAndredefining textstoanydevicesormaterialsthatwearegettingtheknowledgefrom,isthefirststeptoward understandingcriticalliteracy.Besidehowcriticalliteracyspreadstheawarenessoflookingattexts intheirsocialandculturalcontext,itshowmorecontent
Inthiscontextthecriticalliteracyworks,andwhichcouldbedefinedastheabilityofusingthe languagetoquestionandexamineourowninteractionwith,developingthroughandvisionaboutthe worldaroundus,whichhavebeendefinedbyourculturesandsocialcontext(Shor,1999).Critical literacyisanactionofreadingbeyondwhatwereceive,specifically,on"oneaspectwearelikelyto agreeaboutinprincipleisthatCriticalliteracyisconcernedwithrelationsofpowerandthusthe mannerinwhichpowercirculatesbothintherealworldandwithinparticulartexts"(Comber& Simpson,2001).Byusingcriticalliteracywecancometothetimewhenwere–centralized,atleast, thepowerofknowledgefromthosewhohavebeencontrollingittothosewhohavebeen marginalized.Itisatoolthatifwefocusmoreinpracticingit,thechangingoftheauthorityandthe publicdiscoursewouldbemorenoticeableandbeneficialforthemajorityofpeopleandsociety Withcriticalliteracythepeoplebecomemorethennegativeandpassivereaders,rather,theywould beempoweredtocreatetheirowninterpretation."Criticalliteracyviewsreadersasactive participantsinthereadingprocessandinvitesthemtomovebeyondpassivelyacceptingthetext's messagetoquestion,examine,ordisputethepowerrelationsthatexistbetweenreadersandauthors. Itfocusesonissuesofpowerandpromotesreflection,transformation,
EssayonCriticalLiteracyandPedagogy
...Getmorecontent...
Literacy,accordingtoMerriamDictionary,meanstheabilitytoreadandwrite.Everyonehasthe ABILITYtoreadandwrite,butthatdoesnotmeanweareallgoodatwriting.WhenIstarted elementaryschoolinEdmond,Oklahoma,thefirstthingIlearnedwasreading.Myteacherwould readtomeandIwouldgotothelibraryandpickoutsomebooks.Whenigottothethirdgrade,i waslearninghowtowriteincursiveandhowtoimprovemypimnimshipThisisalsowhenIstarted towriteincompletesentencesandgetintothe"bigkid"typeofwork.Forme,Ihadgottenbigger andbiggerassignmentsthroughoutmiddleschoolandmyfreshmanyearofhighschool.Myfirstreal writingprojectwasnotuntilmysophomoreyearIlivedinavery
EssayOnMyLiteracy
...Getmorecontent...
Throughoutmychildhood,theideaofhavingacollegeeducationwasgreatlystressed.Asaresult,it wasmydutyasthenextgenerationalchild,toexcelinmystudiesandachievealifeofprosperity andsuccess.Learningbecamethebasicfoundationofmygrowth.Therefore,myyouthwas overtakenbymanyhoursspentreadingandwritingwhatwasknowntobecorrect"Standard" EnglishIfirstfoundthistobeagreatshortcoming,butasIgrewolder,Ibegantorealizethemany rewardsacquiredbyhavingtheabilitytobeliterate.
Duringadolescence,Ibeganreadingandwritingthroughafundamentallearningprogramcalled, "HookedonPhonics"Thisprogramconsistedoflonghoursspentreadingshortnovelsand writing...showmorecontent...
Unlikereading,whenwriting,itisimportantthatgrammar,spellingandvocabularytermsareused correctly,thereforerestrictingmefromwritinginthewaythatIwouldprefer.Themoststressed phrasewhileinhighschoolwas,"Itisnotthecontentoftheessay,butratherthemechanicsof grammarandspeechthataremostprominent"Unfortunately,Ihaveneverbeenonetoenjoytheart ofwriting.Infact,Iwasrecentlygivenadiagnostictest,determiningatwhichlevelIwriteand whetherornotIshouldbeupgradedtoahigherachievingEnglishclass.Unfortunately,Ididnot passthetestwithflyingcolors.ThiswasnotduetothefactthatIamincapableofwritingagood paper,butratherthatIamunabletowriteinalimitedamountoftime,usingtheemphasized principlesofcorrect;grammar,vocabularyandspellingInthereading,ShittyFirstDrafts,byauthor AnneLamott,itisafactthatinordertowriteabrilliantpaper,afirstdraftmustbecreated. AccordingtoLamott,"TheOnlywayIcangetanythingwrittenatallistowritereally,reallyshitty firstdrafts,allwriterswritethem"(94)ThisisaquoteinwhichIcanrelatebeingthatinorderfor metobeginafinaldraft,Imustfirsthavewrittenafirstdraft,usuallyonethatisinabsolute ...Getmorecontent...
EssayonLiteracyNarrative
