L I T E R A C Y

 

L I T E R A C Y Introduction The Relationship Between Reading and Literacy Definition of Literacy Library Services for Literacy RETHINKING THE BRAIN Educational Services for Literacy Web Resources on Literacy

 

Introduction

 

Literacy is the foundation to information and education. While libraries are not the source of teaching literacy skills, they certainly support all literacy efforts. This wiki contributed to by Amy Kreilick and Laura Lee Wilson will attempt to direct participants to several sources that support literacy and programs that instruct in pre-reading and reading skills.

The Relationship Between Reading and Literacy

 

Reading is considered in the Reading First section of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 to mean "a complex system of deriving meaning from print that requires all of the following: (a) The skills and knowledge to understand how phonemes, or speech sounds, are connected to print; (b) The ability to decode unfamiliar words; (c) The ability to read fluently; (d) Sufficient background information and vocabulary to foster reading comprehension; (e) The development of appropriate active strategies to construct meaning from print; and (f) The development and maintenance of a motivation to read."

 

 

Definition of Literacy

 

The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 and the National Literacy Act of 1991 define literacy as "an individual's ability to read and write, or the ability to use language to read, write, listen, and speak;  to compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job, in the family of the individual and in society."

 

•  Functional literacy involves skills needed to cope at an adult level in everyday situations, such as reading a newspaper or completing a job application form. People who lack these abilities often are members of populations suffering from poverty, crime, and unemployment.

 

• According to 1983 statistics from the U.S. Department of Education, there were 27 million functionally illiterate adults in the country, and 47 million more were having difficulty in some of the domains tested,  The current extent of the problem is thought to be much greater than these figures indicate.

 

• The need for programs to increase literacy has been acknowledged through support from the federal government, from many organizations in the education and library and information fields, and from businesses.

 

 

 

Library Services for Literacy

 

In the past, libraries have supported literacy education efforts by providing:

• Teaching resources
• Space for tutoring
• Information on referral services

 

A more active approach taken by some libraries is that they offer literacy classes or one-to-one tutoring.

• Outreach programs for ESL
• Institutionalized: those in prisons, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and group homes.

 

Some libraries offer programs for groups at risk for literacy-related problems. Adolescents have been targeted because illiteracy has been associated with other problems including:   crime, pregnancy, unemployment, drug and alcohol abuse, and school failure.

 

After-school and summer literacy programs have sought to encourage young people to become employable, contributing members of the community and generally to raise their self-esteem. Strategies have included homework help sessions, peer tutoring, and peer-group reading sessions.

 

Library literacy programs have also been funded by state and local resources or by individual donations, or coordinated through literacy organizations.

 

In addition, new literacy organizations hold promise for assisting libraries in implementing literacy programs. Two that focus on the needs of special groups are the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy and the National Center for Family Literacy. Both provide funding and training for program development, and information to program providers and government policymakers.

 

Families targeted because illiteracy seems to be passed from one generation to the next: children whose parents are functionally illiterate are twice as likely as their peers to be functionally illiterate.

 

In family literacy programs, emphasis is on the parent's role as the child's first teacher. Parents, who may have been inspired to seek literacy training by concern for their children, are taught interactive language activities for use with infants and young children. Some libraries invite entire families to share in reading activities and booktalks, with each member borrowing a book to take home.  One of the programs that libraries across the United States have embraced is Every Child Ready to Read.  It is an initiative that supports the role of the parent as the first teacher.  The program teaches Children's Librarians to role-model literacy componets to parents at storytimes.  Challenging parents to use everyday common occurances as teachable moments that lay the foundation for later literacy.

 

 

Every Child Ready to Read - Six Literacy Skills

 

1. Print Motivation - a child's interest and enjoyment of books
2. Phonological Awareness - the ability to hear and play with smaller sounds of words
3. Narrative Skills - the ability to describe things and events, and to tell stories
4. Letter Knowledge - learning to name letters, knowing their sounds, and recognizing them everywhere
5. Print Awareness - Notice print, know how to handle a book, and to follow words on a page
6. Vocabulary - knowing the names of things

 

Rima Shore, in her book, Rethinking the Brain: New Insights Into Early Development enlightens us about how the brain develops.  Because of new technology (MRI and PET scans) we are able to learn more about how the brain works in young children.

 

 

RETHINKING THE BRAIN

OLD THINKING	NEW THINKING
How a brain develops depends on the genes you are born with	How a brain develops hinges on a complete interplay between genes you are born with and the experiences you have
The experiences you have before age three have a limited impact on later development	Early experiences have a decisive impact on the archeitecture of the brain, and on the nature and extent of adult capacities.
A secure relationship with a primary caregiver creates a favorable context for early development and learning	Early interactions don't just create a context; they directly affect the way the brain is "wired".
Brain development is linear: the brain capacity to learn and change grows steadily as an infant progresses toward adulthood.	Brain development in non-linear: there are prime times for acquiring different kinds of knowledge and skills.
A toddler's brain is much less active that the brain of a college student.	By the time children reach age three, their brains are twice as active as those of adults.  Activity levels drop during adolescence.

 

 

 

 

Educational Services for Literacy

 

• The Reading First-Ohio program is a competitive, federal grant program that supports teachers and students in low-performing, high-poverty schools and targets children in kindergarten through grade three. The program uses scientifically based reading research and proven instructional strategies and tests to ensure that all children can read at or above grade level by the end of third grade.

 

• Reading First was created by the No Child Left Behind Act and is targeted for schools in high poverty areas that need assistance in improving academic achievement. Ohio initially received a Reading First grant from the U.S. Department of Education in 2003 that allocated almost $176 million over six years.

 

• The focus of Reading First is to instill proven methods of early reading instruction into classrooms by establishing a program that is grounded in scientifically based reading research. These program elements are:

 

•  Prepare teachers to identify reading barriers and equip them with tools to help all children read well;
   
•  Provide assistance in screening, diagnostic and classroom reading assessments;
   
• Assist in efforts to prevent or remediate reading failure; and
   
• Strengthen coorindination among schools, families and communoties for improved reading achievement.
   

                –        Any district that met the state's definition of highest poverty, lowest performing was eligible 

                   to apply for Reading First funds. 

 

 

 

Web Resources on Literacy

 

Link to Public Library Association's Every Child Ready to Read

1. http://www.ala.org/ala/alsc/ecrr/ecrrhomepage.cfm
    

Below are websites that introduce the Ohio Ready to Read Initaive

1. http://www.ohreadytoread.org/
2. http://winslo.state.oh.us/newsletter/may07news.html
3. http://winslo.state.oh.us/newsletter/may07continu.html

 

Link to National Institute for Literacy

1. http://www.nifl.gov/

 

Link to National Center for Family Literacy

1. http://www.famlit.org/site/c.gtJWJdMQIsE/b.1204561/k.BD7C/Home.htm

 

List of libraries with sucessful early literacy programs

1. http://winslo.state.oh.us/newsletter/may07news.html Public Library of Youngstown & Mahoning County

2. http://winslo.state.oh.us/newsletter/may07feat4.html Cuyahoga County Public Library, Parma, Ohio

3. http://winslo.state.oh.us/newsletter/may07feat3.html  Amos Memorial Library, Sidney, Ohio