Narrative Of Literacy

A Narration of Literacy

Literacy can be told as a narration. Almost everyone has their own story of how they became literate. It is this journey that lays out the foundation for how one views literacy. Therefore, finding a definition for literacy proves to be quite difficult. Instead, an explanation of literacy is found through cause and effect. People’s personal stories all constitute what we believe literacy is. As a class, we have majorly analyzed the written works of Jimmy Santiago Baca, C.H. Knoblauch, Jean Anyon, and Mary Louise Pratt. Not only were we able to read these excellent pieces, but every single one of us were able to meet and interview our very own peers. It is easy to analyze someone’s story on paper, but it does not feel

real until it is sitting exactly in front of you. Conversing with Olivia Kroone has provoked me to further scrutinize her literacy experience. Olivia Kroone’s educational experiences before college, during college, and her path to become more literate have led her to find the kind of person she wants to be.

Context of Literacy
Literacy offers knowledge, it is a power, it encourages you to broaden your perspective on life, and it offers freedom that extends beyond the constitution.

Jean Anyon’s “Social Classes and the Hidden Curriculum of Work” displays that literacy offers something more than just the ability to read and write; literacy gives the gift of knowledge. It is stated: “Knowledge and skills leading to social power and regard (medical, legal, managerial) are made available to the advantaged social groups but are withheld from the working classes to whom a more ‘practical’ curriculum is offered (manual skills, clerical knowledge)” (Anyon 1). The kids taught in the working class schools are offered the most bare-bones education: C.H. Knoblauch’s functional literacy. These working class schools do not provide their children with knowledge, because they so focused on teaching the kids how to live in the “real world”. The underprivileged youth are set up to function in the working society in replacement of the academic society. Literacy gives power to the literate and detracts power from the illiterate. C.H. Knoblauch argues that powerful, literate people reason that they are deserving of power because they are literate. Knoblauch states, “Literacy therefore, constitutes a means to power, a way to seek political enfranchisement…” (Knoblauch 7). This statement

is preceded by Knoblauch stating that powerful leaders may be able to suppress their people because of the gap between the literate and illiterate. Literacy encourages you to broaden your perspective on life. Mary Louise Pratt’s “Arts of the Contact Zone” displays that literacy caused Pratt’s son to learn more about his passion. In turn his passion allowed him to become even more literate through his very own contact zone of baseball cards. Pratt said that baseball cards gave her son, “the broadest, most varied, most enduring, and most integrated experience of his thirteen-year old life” (Pratt 1). This being said, everyone has different, unique contact zones. Literacy provides freedom that is not set out by the constitution. Sadly, Jimmy Baca was denied freedom through his own conscience at first and then through the constitution. Baca was illiterate his whole life until his time spent in jail. He had experienced limitations his entire illiterate life. Luckily, this was not his life story. Baca turned his life around while in jail, and therefore, he became literate. Believe it or not, but Baca found freedom in jail. He found freedom through poetry, novels, and even grammar. By achieving literacy, Jimmy Baca’s imagination grew exponentially. He was able to express his freedom in captivity through literacy. Baca reflected on his past of being illiterate: “There was nothing so humiliating as being unable to express myself” (Baca 2). This shows that illiteracy denies the illiterate the most basic of rights. Literacy shapes our everyday lives; it impacts not only our education throughout secondary and post-secondary school, but also our very own personal lives. Even if one is illiterate, they are still impacted because of their lacking in knowledge, power, ways of looking at certain situations, and freedom.

Clarification
By reading these influential works by Baca, Pratt, Anyon, and Knoblauch, one can grow in their understanding of literacy. But to fully understand literacy, one must analyze a personal experience of not only yourself, but of other individuals. For many college students and Olivia, an obstacle in her personal literacy development is the will to continue her education.

A Narrative of Olivia’s Journey in Literacy
Olivia was involved in many programs through high school.

All five of her educational experiences involved leadership and how she fits into a team. While she was in dance and the Health Occupations Students of America, she learned what it means to be a part of a team and how to work together towards a goal. By being a Bengal Pride Leader, dance coach, and a student teacher, Olivia found out that she succeeds in a leadership role where she can teach. She concluded that in her future she hopes to obtain a similar role. Also, because Olivia has had so much practice with working in a team setting, she will do well in college because she knows how to work with her peers. During this year, Olivia has learned about herself. She has had many educational experiences in college already. She first overcame a pattern in her family. Olivia is the first family member to attend a post-secondary school. She has recognized that school is hard through dropping a challenging math class and overcoming her speech anxiety. By rising above these limitations, Olivia has even been able to make conclusions about her future. She is now very motivated to finish college and persevere through hardships and struggles. Olivia knows that she wants to be a teacher through her current job at Kidstop. Specifically, she wants to work with special education because of her SPED 203 class. Olivia has had many key experiences shape her personal journey to become literate. On peer workshop day, Olivia learned how to

edit papers. She learned about grammar and spelling, which also improved her literacy. Another key experience that happened in class was during her SPED 203 class. Olivia and her peers shared how they related to special education. She learned about a lot of learning disabilities and how to help people with these disabilities. Not only did she learn about the topic itself, but she also learned that this was her passion. Olivia determined that this is the window by which she will be able to succeed, become more literate, and be happy in the world. Pratt stated that baseball cards opened up many open doors for her son. For Olivia, her baseball cards is actually special education.

Synopsis
It is now known that literacy is a complex term. The concept of literacy has so many more dimensions to the term that can be continuously revised. Literacy can be analyzed in class, but it is also important that one must analyze the term personally. Olivia has been able to find her purpose in life through multiple different events that occurred to her during high school, while she was in college this year, and her personal journey towards literacy.