RE: Commnicating with an audience of low literacy levels

["Condo, Candis" <ccondo -at- c-cor -dot- com>]

Hmmmm. Back in the dark ages when I was in a grade school, we learned to read by reading. Fancy that. I walked to a library (no, my parents did not drive me there; my mother did not drive, my father traveled) and I borrowed books. I then took them home and read them. There were not a lot of books in my home. My parents were not avid readers but I read as did all my five sibs. Librarians took an interest in us and we all love to read to this day.
 
So what's the secret? Turn off the TV. Turn off the video games. Pick up a book and read.
 
Candis L Condo

________________________________

From: techwr-l-bounces+ccondo=c-cor -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com on behalf of Ned Bedinger
Sent: Sat 5/12/2007 1:12 PM
To: Peter Gold
Cc: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Subject: Re: Commnicating with an audience of low literacy levels




>  
>> Any time anybody has
>> spare books after their garage sale (or before), the
>> nearest prison will gladly accept them as a donation.
>> Spare time spent with inmates as a Literacy Volunteer can
>> improve a life and make society better.
>>    
>
> Yes, but informed proactive policies and well-funded training
> for teachers and administrators in elementary, middle, and
> high schools can help to reduce the acts that lead to
> imprisonment, for less cost, and with better outcomes for
> everyone.

I think the OP's suggestion, that tech writers experience first-hand the
problems and rewards of tutoring the illiterate, and aiming for the
standard of 6th Grade Reading Level, has the seeds of a solution to many
problems.

After years of reading and discussion, I don't believe that anyone knows
how to fix US schools. More than half of my local high school's senior
class (of 1000+) last year didn't qualify for graduation, and that is an
awfully big deliverable blown.

So sorry, but face up to it, you can't fix that with policies, training,
and money. Leading education thinkers all advise home school. If you are
concerned about the problem of the schools but aren't the parent of a
school-aged child, I'm sure you could find some place to teach reading
skills, instead of waiting around for pie-in-the-sky funding and the
short bus to come around and pick up all the ones who fell through the
cracks on the last round.

Ned Bedinger
doc -at- edwordsmith -dot- com


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