Like Father, Like Son: Can the Cycle of Illiteracy be Broken? Other People’s Words: The Cycle of Low Literacy by Victoria Purcell-Gates recounts the author’s two-year journey with an illiterate Appalachian family. Purcell-Gates works with Jenny, the mother, and her son, first grader Donny, to analyze the literacy within the household. Throughout the journey, we learn the definition and types of literacy, the influences of society and the environment, and the impacts of literacy on education from the teacher’s perspective. In order to evaluate literacy in the household, one must study multiple types, including functional, informational, and critical literacy. As the name implies, functional literacy incorporates reading and writing as
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Donny’s father continually reiterated he neither needed nor desired to learn to read or write. Purcell-Gates notes, “The very core of Donny’s identity was bound up with that of his parents. He loved his parents intensely and allied himself with them at all times. And as a male child, his identity was increasingly tied to his father, who had repeatedly announced his lack of desire to learn to read” (150). No one within Donny’s sphere of influence was encouraging him to develop the skill of reading. This, of course, had a huge impact on his education. Donny was stuck in the mindset that if his father did not need to be literate, he did not need to be …show more content…
Some of our students may never have owned a book, or sat on their parent’s lap to have a book read to them. Other student’s may speak Spanish at home. Some of our students may have been practicing reading with their parents every night since preschool. Teachers are not responsible for their student’s previous knowledge. It is our job to differentiate our lessons in order for every student to succeed. Successful lesson planning will allow the students, at every level, to remain engaged in the classroom. For those who excel, it will be important to keep them engaged in the subject matter. We need to be aware of our students area’s of difficulties to help them thrive to their greatest ability within the school system. As we uncover the difficult areas of study for our students, we must be able to provide additional skills and assistance for them to develop their skills. Pairing a strong reader with one who is struggling, may be beneficial for both students. Creating a lending library of books for the classroom may spark a child’s interest in reading. The possibilities are endless. Whether we provide our students with after-school reading programs, tutoring sessions, or simply with the nurturing they need to feel special, the greatest impact we can have on all students is the quest for
Donny’s father continually reiterated he neither needed nor desired to learn to read or write. Purcell-Gates notes, “The very core of Donny’s identity was bound up with that of his parents. He loved his parents intensely and allied himself with them at all times. And as a male child, his identity was increasingly tied to his father, who had repeatedly announced his lack of desire to learn to read” (150). No one within Donny’s sphere of influence was encouraging him to develop the skill of reading. This, of course, had a huge impact on his education. Donny was stuck in the mindset that if his father did not need to be literate, he did not need to be …show more content…
Some of our students may never have owned a book, or sat on their parent’s lap to have a book read to them. Other student’s may speak Spanish at home. Some of our students may have been practicing reading with their parents every night since preschool. Teachers are not responsible for their student’s previous knowledge. It is our job to differentiate our lessons in order for every student to succeed. Successful lesson planning will allow the students, at every level, to remain engaged in the classroom. For those who excel, it will be important to keep them engaged in the subject matter. We need to be aware of our students area’s of difficulties to help them thrive to their greatest ability within the school system. As we uncover the difficult areas of study for our students, we must be able to provide additional skills and assistance for them to develop their skills. Pairing a strong reader with one who is struggling, may be beneficial for both students. Creating a lending library of books for the classroom may spark a child’s interest in reading. The possibilities are endless. Whether we provide our students with after-school reading programs, tutoring sessions, or simply with the nurturing they need to feel special, the greatest impact we can have on all students is the quest for