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Literacy enhances one’s world immeasurably
Theresa Seraphim g
Spotlight
“Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.” Sir Richard Steele
There is a scene in the 1990 movie “Stanley and Iris” which powerfully shows the importance of being able to read.
The two title characters (played by Robert De Niro and Jane Fonda) work in a cafeteria. One day, Stanley complains of a headache, and Iris hands him a bottle of pain reliever. When he makes no move to count out the pills or take them, she tells him to read the bottle. He doesn’t – and she figures out he’s unable to read and so doesn’t know what the correct dosage would be.
Iris, horrified at the possibility of Stanley becoming ill or dying due to overdose, teaches him to read, and thus opens up a whole new world for Stanley.
And that is exactly what literacy does for everyone.
As International Literacy Day approaches on Sept. 8, it’s good to lift one’s eyes from the newspaper or book or magazine for a moment and think about the huge role literacy plays in our lives.
Whether it’s reading the Battle of Hastings, or letting one’s imagination participate in a game of Quidditch, or learning to knit, reading brings the world closer to a person and gives more information and skills.
But literacy isn’t just for reading tomes; it is also essential in day-to-day interactions. The term doesn’t just refer to words – it also refers to numbers (numeracy), and we use lots of both in our endeavours.
It’s hard to picture anyone not being able to read. Yet according to the International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey (2005), 40 per cent of adult Albertans and 35 per cent of working age Albertans do not have the literacy skills needed to reach their full potential in our knowledge-based economy.
That’s 40 and 35 per cent too much. In a highly-developed province and country such as ours, nobody should have to be scared of taking pills for fear of overdosing. Nobody should quake when being asked to fill out a government form (although that may be understandable, but that’s another story). Nobody should walk out of store after making a purchase, without confidence that they’ve been given the correct change – because they’ve been able to count it.
In short, nobody should be held back from achieving his or her goals because of illiteracy. Initiatives such as Slave Lake’s Community Reading Program help them do this by matching tutors with tutees for sessions designed for the learner’s needs. Those people have shown great courage in coming forward and saying, “I don’t know how to read/how to do math, and I’d like some help.”
Some of them are immigrants still learning English. Others are Canadian-born but, for whatever reason, do not have the literacy skills they need to further themselves. Either way, they know they deserve to be as much a part of our society as other people, to have as much a chance at great things as anyone else.
So, read. Since literacy starts literally from day one, read to your child at bedtime (trust me, it can engender an interest on the child’s part for reading!). For yourself, read when you have a few minutes…stretch your mind. Open yourself up to possibilities, to enjoyment, and to learning.
On Sept. 8, think about the benefits of literacy, and do what you can to help others achieve this necessary and worthwhile gift.
Stanley and Iris would be proud.
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