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

[T. Joseph Carter]

Antonio,

If I my restate what I understand your first point to be succinctly, 
literacy seems to have a language context.  That is, your mom is 
literate in Portuguese, but much less literate in English.

Literacy also incorporates the ability to read, use, and produce 
written language.  I think we can agree on that point.

Joseph

On Mon, Feb 16, 2009 at 10:16:24PM -0500, Antonio M. Guimaraes wrote:
> Hello Joseph,
>
> Thank you for your thoughtful, inteligent response. I understand your 
> point about literacy being about reading and writing, annd not about 
> ability to think. In our discussion, we should separate what it means to 
> be inteligent from what it means to be literate. At least I think it 
> might be useful in your context, even though I somehow think one reflects 
> on the other.
>
> Let me present to you my mother. Mom is highly inteligent, yet not very  
> educated. She is insucure about her english, and does not cultivate the  
> habbit of reading. She has always been preoccupied either about raising a 
> family, or in current times, keeping a home durring tough economic 
> climate. She can read and write in portuguese, and somewhat more 
> limmitedly in English. I would not call her illiterate, because she can 
> read and write. Yet she gets by without newspapers, and even the internet 
> to some extent. She does go on her Orcut page, like a Flicker or FaceBook 
> for south-Americans, so she is confortable with new learning.
>
> If we define literacy as the ability to read and write, mom is both  
> inteligent and literate. Take it with a grain of salt, she is my mom 
> after all, so I better follow one of the commandments, and honor mother 
> and father.
>
> If you get more sofisticated, you may accept the UNESCO deffinition:
>
> "'Literacy' is the ability to identify, understand, interpret, create,  
> communicate, compute and use printed and written materials associated 
> with varying contexts. Literacy involves a continuum of learning to 
> enable an individual to achieve his or her goals, to develop his or her 
> knowledge and potential, and to participate fully in the wider society."
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literacy
>
> this deffinition calls for personal growth, and participation in society. 
> One should use his or her ability to write as a vehicle for achieving 
> one's goals, developing one's knowledge and potential, and participating 
> in one's society. Sounds empowering, and progress-bound. Don't just know 
> how to read, but use reading to improve your position and standing in 
> your social circles.
>
> In another way, this definition of literacy goes beyond the basics, even 
> to suggest that you be able and confortable with statistics, perhaps.
>
> "ability to identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate, compute 
> and use printed and written materials associated with varying contexts."
>
> Compute, it said. So, I guess I could say I was literate enough to 
> realize that the National Library Services for the Blind was publishing 
> way too many books on magic tricks. More than I care to read, or even 
> care to know so much of their resources would be going to such fruitless 
> publications.
>
> I think compute information could be refering to some level of 
> mathematical computations as a demonstration of literacy. Fare enough.
>
> This definition, and I like this definition a lot, calls you to
>
> 1. identify
>
> Find, procure, locate, get your hand on relevant material for your 
> subject. Identifying is part of research.
>
> 2.  understand,
>
> One must be able to comprehend. This requires a knowledge of the 
> vocabulary, and command of the language. If you can't handle Shakespeare, 
> or Hawthorn, then you aught to do some work, start from easier readings 
> before you tackle such writers.
>
> 3. interpret,
>
> This comes after understanding, and undeniably requires some level of  
> inteligence. Most people have inteligence, and that sets humans apart 
> from other animals.
>
> To interpret is to make inferences from your reading. It's reading 
> between the lines, and having knowledge of the author's intent.
>
> Because literacy requires interpreting, and interpreting requires  
> inteligence, then literacy requires inteligence.
>
> 4. Create
>
> It's fine to read and write, but to simply be able to write, and not do 
> it is not an accurate demonstration of literacy. Also, the Definition 
> does not call for being able to write well, just well enough  for your 
> social context. One need not be able to tell a story, unless she or he is 
> a journalist, or biographer, or the holder of a job where you need to be 
> an attention-grabbing story-teller.
>
> 5. communicate,.
>
> this is the one that I think calls for more excelency. You must be able 
> to communicate, or convey a message. Did I spell convey correctly? If 
> not, had you noticed it before? If it is a misspelling, and I had doubts 
> about it, you think I would consult a dictionary about it if these were 
> an actual manuscript or professional document? You bet I would! this is 
> no excuse for filling the list with incomprehenssive blabberings on, 
> which I hope I don't do too much of.
>
> I think communicating is the first call for one's ability to make a  
> difference. If you want to be well-respected, and considered as someone 
> who gets it, and writes effectively, you better be a good communicator. 
> There are entire college courses and majors on this topic, so I won't 
> pretend I know the first thing about it.
>
> 6. compute and use printed and written materials associated with varying  
> contexts.
>
> The language about varying contexts calls for broadness of mind. So read 
> all the NLS books about magic and card tricks, and you will likely not be 
> fulfilling this requirement. Completely ignore the cart tricks books, and 
> any other book on fun performance-related subjects, and you could not be  
> fulfilling this requirement once again. Whatever else this might mean, it 
> does call for one to read widely.
>
> So whatever literacy means will depend on the definition of another word: 
> reading.
>
> Antonio Guimaraes
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