Try and imagine our society without a common language. This could be quite a hard idea
to fathom. Allow me to assist you. If this hypothetical idea were in fact true, a
typical conversation between two individuals would be as follows: one of the two would
begin the conversation by making noises representing their language, the other person
would not understand these noises and respond with unrecognizable noises to the first
individual. As you can well imagine, this would get quite frustrating. Rita Mae Brown
describes literacy as, "a social contract, an agreed upon representation of certain
symbols" (420). If the symbol's (letters) meanings are not agreed upon by those
attempting to communicate, then interpreting one another becomes difficult. Simply
stated, literacy is very important. Society has proven time and time again, it will
reward those individuals who are competent and impede those who are not, whether
expressed in terms of employment opportunities (job success) or just on a social level.
One need look no further than their everyday activities in order to realize how
important literary skills are. Without adequate literary skills one may not be able to
identify on a label the correct amount of medicine to give a child, or read and interpret
a sign giving instructions on what to do in case of a fire. These two examples bring
perspective to literacy's importance. Nevertheless, recent surveys have indicated that,
"4.5 million Canadians, representing 24 percent of the eighteen-and-over group, can be
considered illiterate" ("Adult Illiteracy" 5). Illiteracy is truly a problem within
Canada. Although many groups are working to render the problem of illiteracy, much work
still lies ahead.
As our society moves on into the next century literacy is proving vital to economic
performance. Without basic literary skills in one's possession they will become lost in
our rapidly changing society. The modern worker must be able to adapt to the changing
job-scene. This often means gathering new skills and knowledge from printed material,
whether instruction manuals, computer programs, or classroom training (text books). It
is quite commonly the case that highly skilled jobs require a high level of literacy.
Therefore, literary skill level is an important factor in predicting an individual's
economic success. It will affect an individual's income, their employment stability and
whether they even receive employment opportunities.
Presently, our world revolves around literacy. Simply being literate allows one to
continuously upgrade one's literary skills to a higher level. It allows one to stay
informed of happenings in and around the world through mediums such as newspapers and
magazines. Knowing current news about what is going on in this ever changing world of
ours is the key to staying ahead. Another thought to ponder is this, we rely on those
with high literacy levels to record and document findings and happenings for future
generations to reflect on. These writings would most likely be dull and inaccurate or
would not exist at all without our current levels of literacy.
When viewed from a social standpoint, literacy remains just as important as when viewed
from the economic standpoint. Linda Macleod of the National Associations Active in
Criminal Justice, points out that, "65 percent of people entering Canadian prisons for
the first time have trouble reading and writing, low literacy is part of a constellation
of problems that can limit choices in life and thus lead people to criminal activity"
(20). Somebody in possession of a high level of literacy will most likely be well
informed and tend to make wiser decisions. By obtaining this level of literacy they have
also gathered a large vocabulary giving them many words to choose from to express their
ideas and feelings. Conversely, many would agree that a conversation with one who has a
good grasp of the English language is always more delightful than with one who is less
educated.
Literacy can act as a window, opening one's view to the world. Presently, we are being
bombarded with information, news, trivia and gossip (not that this is always a positive
feature in our lives). Without sufficient literary skills one cannot even absorb any of
this information. These people will miss out on many of life's benefits, socially as
well as economically. Without sufficient literary skills one would have a tremendously
difficult time functioning in our current world. Think about your average day, consider
how many times you refer to your literary skills to aid you, could you function without
those skills? Finding an address, reading a map, reading a menu, performing a bank
transaction, these are just a few common tasks that require your literary skills.
Also, when looking at the importance of literacy to our nation, its value is evident.
High levels of literacy throughout all sectors of Canada's workforce are necessary, "low
literacy levels of workers' affect Canada's ability to perform in the increasingly
competitive international marketplace" ("Literacy" 7). Literary skills become building
blocks. First creating a well-educated society, then a highly skilled labour force which
can compete and adapt to the changing market. These factors lead to an increase in
economic growth within the nation which in turn, results in a higher standard of living
for its people.
As our society moves forward into the future, a higher level of literacy will become
more important to one's level of success. Where would our society be without our ability
to exchange knowledge and information? How many times have you made a purchase that read
on the outside - instructions inside? You and I think nothing of this, and in a sense
take our gift for granted. For many, deciphering written instructions is a near
impossible task, asking for assistance does little more than to further lower their self
esteem. Literacy is important. To truly seize the benefits possible in one's life it has
to be accepted that literacy is the key. Society will continue to reward skilled
individuals and disadvantage those who are not.
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