11 million American adults not literate - USM Forum -- Message Board

Date: Dec 16, 2005

11 million American adults not literate

Date: Dec 16, 2005

Reporter wrote:

"Adult literacy dropped or was flat across every level of education, from people with graduate degrees to those who dropped out of high school."

Any USM professor at who has graded written examinations, term papers, or other written assignments would not be surprised by this.

Date: Dec 16, 2005

Amen, preach it sister. (Or brother.)

Date: Dec 16, 2005

Reading the article, what struck me is that the emphasis was on English literacy. Well-educated people who don't speak English were classified as illiterate. If our definition of literacy means speaking English, then a PhD from the University of Monterrey may well be illiterate, but by that same definition, every single person who reads this post is illiterate somewhere.

I'm not dredging this up to kick off a debate on whether English should be the national language in the U.S. or whether America is not a "melting pot" any more but just a kettle of stew. Personally, I have no strong feelings about that & I regret on a daily basis that I didn't maintain my Spanish better.

Anyway, that's the message that I took out of that article...

Date: Dec 16, 2005

Invictus wrote:

Reading the article, what struck me is that the emphasis was on English literacy. Well-educated people who don't speak English were classified as illiterate. If our definition of literacy means speaking English, then a PhD from the University of Monterrey may well be illiterate, but by that same definition, every single person who reads this post is illiterate somewhere. I'm not dredging this up to kick off a debate on whether English should be the national language in the U.S. or whether America is not a "melting pot" any more but just a kettle of stew. Personally, I have no strong feelings about that & I regret on a daily basis that I didn't maintain my Spanish better. Anyway, that's the message that I took out of that article...

these measurements are made by the Ivy League, so I am suprised they have not classified all with a drawl as illiterate...

Date: Dec 17, 2005

I forgot to point out that this article was the "In-Depth" part of the NBC Nightly News. The TV report was much more than this article I posted and included interviews with educators. The report emphasized as shocking the percent of college graduates who were technically (they provided a definition) not literate. Here is another link to the story with a differnt title:

Study: 11M U.S. Adults Can't Read English

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10481211/

"So even as more people get a formal education, the literacy rate is not rising. Federal officials say this trend is puzzling and worthy of research."

Date: Dec 17, 2005

Do I have to go to the library? wrote:

Reporter wrote: "Adult literacy dropped or was flat across every level of education, from people with graduate degrees to those who dropped out of high school." Any USM professor at who has graded written examinations, term papers, or other written assignments would not be surprised by this.

You can put a shoe in the oven, but that does not make it a biscuit. Or, as the Wizard of Oz said to the Scarecrow, " I can't give you a brain, but I can give you a diploma."

Date: Dec 17, 2005

"So even as more people get a formal education, the literacy rate is not rising. Federal officials say this trend is puzzling and worthy of research."

Anyone that has ever met an educrat would not find this puzzling at all. It's easy to find academic administrators now who could care less about education and don't even like kids.

It's just a transition. Having a real education is becoming so profitable that if the current delivery mechanism doesn't work another one will pop up that will.