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Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Back to my old theory about literacy in the U.S.

So I have this theory about the decline of literacy in the U.S. based on what I know about Whole Language and a lack of knowledge about teaching the 40% of the population who need the additional help and time to learn to read (and basically mostly don't get what they need currently). 

I'm always looking out for clues that I might be right on this one. 

So it's interesting to me that if you read this article signed by 132 Catholic educational professionals one of the main points of criticism for the Common Core mandates are that they are dismissive of literature.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/11/02/catholic-scholars-blast-common-core-in-letter-to-u-s-bishops/

Well,  one has to be able to read to enjoy literature in all it's glory.  And if a significant portion of the population doesn't or cant read well I can see how some people might think it's okay to push literature to the wayside.

So literature is seen by some as expendable.  As not necessary for the future manual laborers of the world. Of course I completely disagree.

One of the things that most saddened me about my children having dyslexia was the thought that all the wonderful books that helped me cope with my childhood were not going to be as easily shared with my children.  I'm not sure that this is true but for the moment no one is reading at that level in my house.  It is my hope that one day they will be.

I'll never forget finding Anne of Green Gables for the first time when I was 10 or 11.  A friend of mine had it on her shelf.  She was not particularly interested in the series and was willing to let me borrow them  (I had never seen them before in my school library).  The world of Anne took me away from the neighborhood where I lived and the drudgery that I considered my life.  It opened new doors for me and set a new example for how to be as a young girl. 

I have waited and waited to introduce my own daughter to Anne.   Thank goodness for the cartoon series (she loves that).  I did try reading it aloud to her but found it very wordy (I hadn't really remembered that part). 

So Common Core throws literature out (for the most part) and the Catholic educators have an issue with it.  Good. 

I still don't believe the federal government or the state government need to be dictating what teachers do in the classroom.  We aren't all going to be suddenly better off because some elected officials with larger than life egos all decide to tell the rest of us what is important for our children.  No thanks.  I doubt very much that my many Greats Grandfather who fought in the Revolutionary War ever thought things would one day appear this way.  I don't think freedom is about laws micromanaging teachers. 



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