How many times did you stop to read something today—a text
message, directions to a lunch meeting, instructions to prepare breakfast, a
street sign, a pamphlet? Literacy affects every single person in the world.
Being able to read is a huge source of empowerment that lots of Americans take
for granted daily. Imagine how many things you would be discouraged from doing
if reading was a barrier. Would you be able to perform your job? Often, reading
and answering emails and invoices, processing documents, and even interpreting
phone messages are daily tasks that would be impossible.
Aside from work and household functions, simply
understanding what is happening in the world would have to come from auditory
sources. Social media outlets, newspapers, magazines, and other print would be
completely inaccessible. The effect can be ostracizing and result in feelings
of loneliness.
This cycle of empowerment starts as young as grade school.
Unfortunately, one in four children grows up without learning how to read. Inability
to read by the end of third grade means quadruple the chance of a kid dropping
out of school, while inability to read by the end of age four drastically
increases the chances of ending up on welfare or even in jail. The correlation
is so strong that prison systems have been known to use primary school data as
a predictor for necessary resource allocation in the future.
Countries with low rates of literacy typically also have
lower life expectancy, less social inclusion, and higher poverty levels, whereas
countries with high literacy rates show the opposite trends. In general, being
able to read is positively correlated with social support and a sense of
community. Regardless of the United States’ ninety nine percent literacy level,
there is incentive to decrease illiteracy even further. Unemployment, poverty,
and welfare assistance are still significant issues that affect not only
individuals, but the entire country.
By starting early and being preventative toward illiteracy,
these phenomena can gradually decrease and ultimately disappear. Encouraging
kids to read whatever they are interested in is a great place to start. Taking
children to the library, asking them about what they are reading, and being
engaged about literacy will go far when it comes to fostering a love of
reading. Ideally, children will be able to converse about their reading
material and start to foster the related social connections that become so
important. Well connected, literate kids are happier, healthier kids.
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