[NIFL-POVRACELIT:1557] Re: race and literacy

I think what you said, Danielle, is true that people really value litearcy as an important asset for future or just in general to different degrees. However, it is the information age now, which has imposed tremendous pressures on people in obtaining information. We are to (learn to be able to) acquire the skills to get ahead in a competitive society where information is the key. With the role and importance of info getting skills acknowledged by many schools, standards in testing literacy skills have become tougher. Students are supposed to take a test of 54 questions and 9 passages in an hour. The majority of these questions are inferential and require a wealth of prior knowledge. Students from homes where literacy is prioritized and given a premium pass this kind of test at their first try with great scores. One of these passers, a student of mine from the reading class, told me of the abundance of literacy engagements she found in her household from the early years she could remember. On the other hand, I have seen other students who failed the same test for n times recount almost just the opposite.

I agree that jumping on the race bandwagon could be futile, waste of time and dead end. However, the gaps could be closed by only recognizing where the problems lie.

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From: "Danielle S Shareef" <dshareef1@student.gsu.edu>
Reply-To: nifl-povracelit@nifl.gov
To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-povracelit@literacy.nifl.gov>
Subject: [NIFL-POVRACELIT:1555] Re: race and literacy
Date: Mon, 26 Sep 2005 16:12:16 -0400 (EDT)
>There is some truth to this, but don't make the assumption that just because a student comes from a low-income household and urban area, that literacy/education isn't valued in the home. (Those same implications exist in rural areas as well). I was born to a 20 year old mother who had to drop out of college to take care of me and herself. My father didn't complete his B.A degree until he was well in his thirties. We were a low-income, sometimes single parent household, yet my 2 siblings and I are college graduates, with 2 of us having graduate degrees; of those 2, one of us is pursuing doctoral studies.
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>My mother came from a household in which her mother only had a sixth-grade education, and none of my mother's seven siblings are college-educated, though many are successful & property owners. Still, their mother valued education and literacy. I think for some of my relatives and maybe other people in general, there has to be a desire to improve yourself, even if it means temporarily working with whatever means you have, even if they are not the best. It is not beneficial to rely on what one does not have access to as an excuse for not trying to learn or take advantage of what is given in some urban environments (This does not include those with no access to resources for learning disabilities or deficiencies). Many indigenous people and low-income communities have made history by succeeding despite the disadvantages they faced.
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>I know that I have been blessed with opportunities & resources that many do not have access to. I also believe collaboration between the haves and have nots is essential to combating the cycle of illiteracy. This can only take place if we are honest about issues of race and poverty on a national and global level.
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>Danielle Shareef
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