...Reflection: After many days thinking about this project, I had plenty of opportunities to read other people’s papers and compare them to mine. I found out that everyone is different; their views on the subject of literacy varied a lot from one person to the next. I experienced the difficulties that one encounters when you try to define such an ambiguous term. How do people set the standards for this? And how do we know which definition is the correct one if everyone will debate the term because of their different views on it. The readings helped a lot because they served as a base for my argument. Brandt is more interested in the way people view the different aspects of literacy rather than arguing the standards she would set for the term. Young and Kendall also impacted my arguments because they see literacy in a rhetoric way speaking about the importance it carries and the ambiguity it possesses as well. As hard and complex as it was for me to begin this paper, I decided to speak of literacy as a process in everyone’s life. Starting from reading and writing and ending with our employers who are most likely the ones who will be setting the standards for our literacy level. As I read, I saw that the paper wasn’t flowing smoothly and I tried focusing on transitions from one idea to another as I went on to my final draft. As I see literacy as a process that is constantly evolving and flowing through out education and our lives, I thought that my paper should also be a flowing...
Words: 2119 - Pages: 9
...My literacy journey began when I first began going to school, I joined school and I began attending Pre Kinder. At that time in age, I knew nothing about letters or numbers. I can say I barely knew my name and how old I was. The first day of school began with a simple introduction on learning how to write my name. I can still remember how difficult it was to spell out my name! Man it was hard. I remember walking into class that scary morning and meeting a lady who would change my little world forever. Her name was Mrs. Guevara. She was an angel in my eyes. Mrs. Guevara’s lessons were fun and educational. She taught us many songs, for example the ABC’S she taught us the vowels and how to pronounce them. At first I would get so frustrated for not being able to pronounce them properly, but over time I was able to accomplish that....
Words: 1152 - Pages: 5
...social media outlet that is invented every month, the proliferation of information is all around us. Despite all of the advances in technology in the delivery of information, it may surprise you to learn that one in every five people on this planet are illiterate, two thirds of that number being women. Reflecting on this alarming statistic and Deborah Brandt’s essay on “Sponsors of Literacy”, I thought about what influences us to strive to learn how to read and write. Deborah Brandt refers to literacy sponsors as, “any agents, local or distant, concrete or abstract, who enable, support, teach, model, as well as recruit, regulate, suppress, or withhold literacy-and gain advantage...
Words: 1553 - Pages: 7
...off the car. All you hear is a big splash. My feet were soaked. I could feel the cold water seeping into my socks. “Well this is a bad start to my day,” I said out loud. I walk inside school and rush to class before I got another tardy slip. That would have ruined my day. Finally, I sit down in my favorite desk and wait for Advisory to start. I loved Advisory because I could finish my homework or talk to my friends. The next bell rang for first period. I had AP English Literature with Ms.Wyatt who was also my basketball coach. As soon as I walked into the classroom I felt a cold air hit my...
Words: 952 - Pages: 4
...Literacy Narrative In: Other Topics Literacy Narrative I grew up in a very fortunate family; we never really had to worry about a low income, and we were able to buy extra stuff and go on other trips unlike other families. I never really understood how we were able to do this seeing as my parents did not go to college. They also rarely ever read; if they did it would be a magazine or an article online, and they never wrote. My parents would always push me to read more and always do well on my writing assignments and review them over and over again so they would be the best of my ability. Back then I never really understood why they would make me do all of this, but now that I am a bit older and understand how important these traits are, I understand why they did this. I’ll never forget my English teacher my junior year of high school, Mr. Stanizzi. He was the most inspirational teacher I have ever had in my life. He genuinely loved his job and made English class fun, and fascinating. By this time I thought for sure that no teacher was ever going to change my opinion on writing, but he proved me wrong. There was something he did while teaching and analyzing poems that really struck my interest. Every week we would have a period just focusing on either writing our own poems or analyzing them. There was one particular poem that I was extremely proud of and showed Stanizzi the poem. He was shocked that I wrote such a good poem. He liked my poem so...
Words: 492 - Pages: 2
...the sustainable literacy mastery of one generation to the next generation. Literacy is really needed to speed up the development or the progress of a country especially in this era of globalization in which technology advance and rapid economic development requires everyone to be competent and to have good skills. Everyone should be literate and be able to read or write at least. In line of this, Hussain (2005) said: “Access to quality literacy learning opportunities and the development of literate environments are essential components of strategies for poverty reduction, equality, economic development and environmental protection, and for achieving democracy. Literacy is a fundamental human right and a prerequisite to the empowerment of the individual and development of society”. It is fully essential to social and human development in its ability to transform lives. For individuals, families, and societies alike, it is an instrument of empowerment to improve one’s health, one’s income, and one’s relationship with the world. Literacy education is one of important aspects which should be applied in order to foster an interest and latent talent in order to get that empowerment of the individual and development of society. Through informal or formal education at school, students especially can know how to read and write well. When they know how to read, they are expected to possess good knowledge by reading books or many other medias such as internet. Literacy is not obtained...
Words: 4179 - Pages: 17
...Technology to Support Literacy in a Preschool Classroom CIEC 6180 Esmeralda Torres Introduction What is literacy? Literacy is defined simply as the ability to read and write. This is taught in all classrooms in many different ways from reading books to writing summaries of books. Literacy though, can be taught through technology as well. In today’s world, technology continues to grow at a rapid pace and has therefore opened many opportunities for teaching and learning. Connecting students with digital literacy will allow teachers to support their students’ literacy growth. It is not just about the pencil and paper anymore. When we think about technology we immediately envision a computer, a tablet, or a smartphone but technology is not just those things. Televisions and radios are technology as well and can be used to support children’s literacy development in different ways. There are many different methods and programs that allow us to target all types of students therefore teachers should embrace technology and its many educational uses. This paper will look at how different types of technology can be used to support literacy in a preschool classroom. Why use technology? Using technology in our classrooms will actually help motivate students into learning. The excitement the students get when a laptop or tablet is pulled out is what begins that motivation. Even those children that were not paying attention are suddenly paying attention all because technology...
Words: 3551 - Pages: 15
...“Literature is a textually transmitted disease, normally contracted in childhood.” “Literature is a luxury; fiction is a necessity.” “Literacy is a way to know others” As time pass, many people has many ways to describe literacy. Many of us like it and many of us don’t. Many of us think it is corruptive and many think it’s honorable, but my opinion of would be literacy is totally different than others. I think of literacy as a source, what teaches us to learn how to live and go on. I think this way because when I was very little, I got bullied. I cry every day after I came from school. Then my life responded in the way of Forrest Gump’s quote about, “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re going to get.” One day I took a bite in a type of chocolate that just changed my life and bought a light. I discovered how to read. After that day, the only best friend of mine was booked. I learn to do everything from a book, it taught how to go on also, who to go with? It taught me many things. It taught me the meaning of my life and the power I have, whom I hate and whom I really trust in this big world of unknown. These books really change the view of the world from my distinct. Though the real book to affect my life and change my point of view of the world was wonder and art book. Wonder was one of the first books I ever read. It was about a little boy who had deformed face. No one would play with him because of his deformed face. He was homeschooled, because of his face...
Words: 854 - Pages: 4
...Illiterate are constantly struggling to function well in the society. Their lack of basic essentials can be disastrous in terms of losing their human potential and productivity and a general failure to access many of life's opportunities. How can anyone with low literacy rate complete daily tasks such as writing a letter, filling out forms, helping their child with homework and so on? Illiterate adults face problems not only in the workforce but right in their very own homes. Almost everything would be a disadvantage if a person is illiterate. A person who is illiterate can't read, write, of course hasn't been to a school, hasn't received education, can't learn the mannerism an educational institute provides, can't have the ability to think like cultured people, can't have effective decision making ability where he/she can weigh the pros and cons of a situation etc. In today's world, its very important to receive education and be able to handle your life properly through your knowledge and understanding. There are people who have a certain sort of skill but due to the lack of any education, they don't get a chance to improve upon it or enhance it. Take the example of a person who loves to draw but hasn't been to a professional art institute.He would still be drawing but would never be aware of the possibilities that he could have explores only if he was literate. He would never know how an artist can publicize his work, what other mediums he can use besides oil, paint...
Words: 3413 - Pages: 14
...Media Literacy Project medialiteracyproject.org Introduction to Media Literacy Media literacy is a set of skills that anyone can learn. Just as literacy is the ability to read and write, media literacy refers to the ability to access, analyze, evaluate and create media messages of all kinds. These are essential skills in today's world. Today, many people get most of their information through complex combinations of text, images and sounds. We need to be able to navigate this complex media environment, to make sense of the media messages that bombard us every day, and to express ourselves using a variety of media tools and technologies. Media literate youth and adults are better able to decipher the complex messages we receive from television, radio, newspapers, magazines, books, billboards, signs, packaging, marketing materials, video games, recorded music, the Internet and other forms of media. They can understand how these media messages are constructed, and discover how they create meaning – usually in ways hidden beneath the surface. People who are media literate can also create their own media, becoming active participants in our media culture. Media literacy skills can help children, youth and adults: • Understand how media messages create meaning • Identify who created a particular media message • Recognize what the media maker wants us to believe or do • Name the "tools of persuasion" used • Recognize bias, spin, misinformation and lies • Discover the part of the story...
Words: 8228 - Pages: 33
...schools over my first two years of college, I feel like I have had the opportunity to build up many habits of mind from Framework for Success in Post-Secondary Writing, especially in flexibility, openness and persistence but still can develop in metacognition and creativity in order to become a more successful college writer.” This showed that I could adapt a thesis to the assignment and it was focused and used my sources. At this point in the semester, a strength I have is the ability to connect source evidence with my thesis. I am able to develop my focused thesis around source-based evidence. For example in the college learning essay I was able to use my interview with my friend who was an elementary teacher to help develop my thesis about how teaching has changed due to technology. I also think another strength I have is organizing my paper in a proper order. In the three essays in this portfolio I organized the essays with a focused thesis, introduction, body paragraphs and an organized conclusion. A challenge I have is using signal phrases to introduce my source-based evidence. I have worked on revising the essay on college learning to try and use...
Words: 4843 - Pages: 20
...Balanced Literacy Instruction Grand Canyon University: RDG 512 May 28, 2015 Abstract The purpose of this essay is to explain a balanced literacy program and how it will be organized in a classroom. Students need a balanced literacy program to become fluent readers and comprehend text. Two instructional approaches: language and literature based are presented as approaches that would be included in the plan. These approaches will aid in the plan giving a glimpse of how the lessons will be implemented. Explanations of approaches show how they will benefit the program and students learning. These approaches are then compared to components of balanced literacy, based on where they fit in the framework. As a teacher my personal beliefs will be discussed about how I think students learn best through interactive lessons and examples. Introduction A Balanced Literacy program helps to create an environment that fosters the necessary language and phonic develop that students need in literacy. Through balanced literacy it will instill in students the necessary reading skills that they need in order to grow into proficient readers. Balanced literacy is made up of five different components that cater to individual needs for students to become lifelong readers. These components are the read aloud, guided reading, shared reading, independent reading, and word study. Researchers of education have stated that successful implementation of a balanced literacy program has to be teacher...
Words: 1640 - Pages: 7
...While current technological changes and related changes in social practices beyond the school are now forcing us to challenge some of our conventional assumptions about literacy, another challenge to long-held beliefs about literacy has been developing within literacy theory since the 1960s and 70s. This is what has become known as a 'sociocultural approach' to literacy. ' Traditionally, literacy has been thought of 'as a largely psychological ability - something true about our heads' (Gee, Hull & Lankshear 1996: 1). That is, to become literate is to have something done to our brains, so that we achieve a special kind of cognitive 'faculty' or inner capacity. This view reflects the domination of psychology in educational theory and research throughout this century. Being literate has been seen as a matter of cracking the alphabetic code, word-formation skills, phonics, grammar, and comprehension skills. According to this view, encoding and decoding skills serve as building blocks for doing other things and for accessing meanings. For instance, once people are literate, they can get on with learning through the medium of texts - by studying subjects in a curriculum, or by other print-mediated means. When people are literate, they can use 'it' (the skill repertoire, the ability) as a 'tool' to pursue all sorts of 'goods' (employment, knowledge, recreational pleasure, personal development, economic growth, innovation). But to 'get literate' in the first place is seen from...
Words: 780 - Pages: 4
...CONTENT AREA LITERACY IMPORTANCE Tracey Turner EDUC 525A Instructor: Craig Carter December 7, 2014 CONTENT AREA LITERACY IMPORTANCE Literacy is an important aspect for success in life in general. An individual’s success in the classroom, in their career, and in their quality of life is directly related to how literate that individual may be. Literacy is more than the ability to read, but how an individual uses written information to function in life. Literacy was traditionally thought of as just the ability to read and understand what has been read. Now, the term literacy is being thought of in terms as a much wider range of skills related to subjects such as science and math. Changes in society and advancements in technology have brought about rising skill requirement in every aspect in life. To be successful in every area, one must be literate in every subject being taught. The success of the school will also be related to how well the school is equipping the students to have strong literacy skills. Regardless of the subject being taught, literacy is an important aspect for success in that subject. In order for a student to fully comprehend in every subject, they must have strong literacy skills in that subject, not just in reading. “The ultimate goal of literacy instruction is to build a student's comprehension, writing skills, and overall skills in communication.”(Alber, 2014). The incorporation of reading instruction and strategies into content area...
Words: 1152 - Pages: 5
...In my younger days, I thought of the term literacy as being able to physically read a written piece of work. I thought the ability to read was when an individual could actually pick up a book, magazine, or even the daily news, and have the ability to understand the collage or words on the page. Most believe that this simple understanding of what words are on the paper is all there is to know about reading. But what most people do not know, is that there is a much deeper meaning behind the word literacy. Along with being able to actually read a piece of literature, there is also having the ability to determine what that piece actually means or the overall message behind it. This helpful but yet difficult skill to attain is the ability to analyze. Many individuals tend to leave the process of analysis out of the equation when discussing literacy abilities. Some also over look the fact the knowledge gained through reading can be applicable to life in general. Consequently, these talents are not just acquired overnight. Learning to read and understand written words and languages takes time, as there are many more parts to literacy than one would imagine. Although learning to read can prove to be difficult, even for the smartest of children, everyone has to start somewhere. For me, my journey began when I was in kindergarden. My teacher, Mrs. Kroon, had a clever trick to help teach her students how to read. She believed that learning to read starts off with becoming familiar with the...
Words: 1486 - Pages: 6
