[nabs-l] How you read, Braille or voice

Tue Feb 17 04:08:59 UTC 2009

Serena,

All I can say is that there is a difference between a hastily written 
(and not proofread) email and one written by someone with little or 
no experience with the written word.  If one cannot see the written 
word (or even if the written word takes such great effort to see that 
one generally chooses speech as an alternative), he or she is 
deprived of valuable written information--even when it is read aloud.

My example of writing is just the most obvious case in which a person 
can see the effects of this missing information.  As such, I think it 
does constitute a literacy deficit.

It's an important if unfortunate fact of human nature that even some 
of those who should understand the situation when they encounter the  
writing of a person who lacks this skill will nonetheless think less 
of that person for such things.  Solid Braille skills make a blind 
person better able to function in the sighted world, not less able.

Joseph

On Mon, Feb 16, 2009 at 09:18:31PM -0500, Serena wrote:
> Joseph
>
> That's true, but don't many sighted people write emails, without  
> proofreading them, as well?  I'm sure many of them are literate!  And 
> what about instant messaging and text messaging?  There are tons of 
> abbreviations people use, but that doesn't mean they're illiterate.
>
> Serena
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "T. Joseph Carter" 
> <carter.tjoseph at gmail.com>
> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"  
> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Monday, February 16, 2009 7:29 PM
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] How you read, Braille or voice
>
>
>> Antonio,
>>
>> I would argue that being literate and being informed are two distinct 
>> and separate things.  I know many people who are literate and yet 
>> blissfully unaware of a great many things.
>>
>> Contrarily, I know a few people who seem to be pretty well informed, 
>> and yet I would question their literacy.  You've encountered some of 
>> them on these NFB lists, actually--but I know others who are sighted 
>> whose literacy I also question.
>>
>> Literacy to my mind connotes both the ability to read and the ability 
>> to write.  While it is true that reading can take many forms, those 
>> forms of reading that involve the spoken word do not generally assist 
>> in writing.
>>
>> Consider, how many very intelligent people on these lists use spellings 
>> indicative of working almost entirely with speech rather than access to 
>> the written word in a way that includes some form of letter-sound  
>> correspondence.  Or for that matter, how many posters to these lists 
>> write their messages as single long paragraphs?  These types of errors  
>> negatively impact what others' think of them, particularly if those 
>> others do not use a screen reader to access their world.
>>
>> Some of the people I'm thinking of are undeniably brilliant, so that is 
>> truly a shame.  The sighted world judges by appearance.  If we are 
>> going to compete on equal terms in the sighted world in any way that 
>> includes written communication, we must learn to write in a way that is 
>> meant to be read with the eye, rather than heard with the ear.
>>
>> This to me is why literacy is more than just reading and the ability to 
>> hear and understand an audio book or access the contents of a website  
>> through a screen reader is simply not enough.
>>
>> Joseph
>>
>> On Mon, Feb 16, 2009 at 06:32:56PM -0500, Antonio M. Guimaraes wrote:
>>> Hello all,
>>>
>>> I am a braille reader, though not  a very fast one. I'd like to throw 
>>> some thought in about reading and literacy.
>>>
>>> First, what is literacy? Is braille the only way to literacy? Is 
>>> getting reading done part of being literate, and informed, no matter 
>>> the method?
>>>
>>> I have as many questions as I think I have the answers.
>>> First, for me literacy is the ability to read and right, and the  
>>> discernment to stay informed by reading a wide variety of books, 
>>> articles, magazines, journals, and any other form where words are 
>>> conveyed.
>>>
>>> By my definition, literacy can and does include spoken language, an 
>>> text to speech.
>>> I am a firm believer that braille is an integral vehicle for 
>>> literacy, but not the soul vehicle. Without braille, one can not 
>>> learn to spell properly. I am also tempted to argue that perfect 
>>> spelling is not indicative of, or a prerequisit for literacy.
>>> I should disclose, in case you didn't notice, that I am not the best  
>>> speller, and that I do make quite a few spelling mistakes in my 
>>> writing.
>>> Still, the literate person does not read in braille only, even though 
>>> she or he needs a good amount of it to be a good, reputable 
>>> communicator.
>>>
>>> I use speech on my computer, and was able to get through 300 nabs 
>>> messages in one sitting. I think this was done on less than two 
>>> hours, and without braille. I wanted a quick and efficient way to get 
>>> at these mailings, and with my braille reading speed, I would only be 
>>> able to read a small fraction of the material.
>>>
>>> A well-read person is more literate, and best exposed to the world 
>>> than the passive listener who has no developed interests. So, the 
>>> literate person is by some measures a more interesting person because 
>>> she or he is better informed, and can discuss with some authority 
>>> about a wider array of topics. To this effect, I have set out a 
>>> reading list with books on topics of interest to me. I limmited 
>>> myself to learning about one topic for a month, then moving on to 
>>> something else.
>>>
>>> So, March might be Antonio's philosophy month, and not the kind we  
>>> tipically talk about. April could be birds month, may would the the 
>>> time to read about religion, and so fourth.
>>>
>>> I feel some reservation and small amount of guilt for not devoting as 
>>> much time to reading in braille. After all, braille for some is the 
>>> only way to being literate, and if I sell out and read on Kurzweil, 
>>> or in spoken media, I would not be aquiring knowledge, or practicing 
>>> good literacy skills.
>>>
>>> Do you see the hole in the argument of braille as the only way? Do 
>>> you see that I would still be accessing and gaining knowledge by 
>>> reading an electronic file with my text to speech features?
>>>
>>> What are your thoughts as we embark on the biggest braille literacy  
>>> promotion campaign? Keep it honest, and inspiring if you can.
>>>
>>> Antonio Guimaraes
>>> Shop online and support the NFB of RI at no additional cost to you.
>>> http://www.givebackamerica.com/charity.php?b=169 Givebackamerica.org, 
>>> America's Online Charity Shopping Mall  
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