Helping People to Read

WHO are these millions who can neither read nor write? By and large they are responsible, hardworking citizens. In the developing nations, they provide food, clothing, and shelter for the vast majority of the population. In the industrialized countries, they take on the work nobody else wants to do​—jobs that are exhausting, repetitive, and menial, yet essential to society.

More often than not, lack of opportunity is the reason why people do not master the skills of reading and writing. As a group, illiterates are not stupid, ignorant, or incompetent. “I don’t have trouble thinking,” said a typical learner. “My trouble is just reading.”

Lack of Opportunity

For many, illiteracy is linked to poverty. At the family level, poverty means that people are more concerned with acquiring food for the table than they are in getting an education. When children are needed at home to work, they do not go to school. Many who do go do not continue there.

Poverty exacts a toll at the national level too. Developing nations burdened with foreign debt are forced to cut back on education. In Africa, for example, total spending on education was reduced by nearly 30 percent during the first half of the 1980’s. While wealthy nations spend more than $6,000 a year on each of their schoolchildren, some poor countries in Africa and South Asia spend only $2. The result is too few schools as well as teachers with too many children.

War and civil strife also contribute to illiteracy. The United Nations Children’s Fund estimates that seven million children languish in refugee camps, where educational facilities are often poor. In one African country alone, 1.2 million children under 15 years of age have not been able to attend school because of an agonizing civil war.

Those who miss out in childhood sometimes have the opportunity to learn to read and write later in life, but not all feel it is worth the effort. Concerning the rural illiterate, the book Adult Education for Developing Countries states: “An adult who has managed without reading and writing is unlikely, except in special circumstances, to have a burning desire to read and write. . . . Whilst it would be completely false to conclude that he is completely contented with his lot, he may not be sufficiently discontented to want to do very much to alter it.”

Yet, many do have a strong desire for self-​improvement. Motives vary, of course. Some want simply to improve their education and feeling of self-​worth. Others are motivated by financial reasons. Those without a job reason that literacy will help them obtain one; those with a job may seek a better one.

Recognizing the close link between literacy and development at both an individual and a national level, governments and organizations have embarked on programs to teach reading and writing to adults. It is a challenging task that requires empathy on the part of teachers as well as an understanding of the unique characteristics of the adult learner.

Profile of the Adult Learner

Those who teach adults should recognize the differences between adult learners and child learners. Personality, habits, attitudes, and interests are more set in adults than in children, making the adult more rigid and less receptive to change. On the other hand, adults have rich experiences on which to build and are better able to make sense of facts and concepts that can confuse youngsters. Usually they do not have as much free time as children do. Another very important difference is that adult learners, unlike children, have the freedom to discontinue their education at any time.

Many adult illiterates possess unique talents and have succeeded in some areas of life; they simply have not developed the skills of reading and writing. The literacy teacher needs to encourage them to use the adaptability, creativity, and endurance they have demonstrated in other areas of life.

It takes courage for an illiterate to admit his or her needs and to ask for assistance. Although circumstances and individuals vary, many adults approach literacy training with apprehension and a lack of confidence. Some may have a long history of academic failure. Others may feel that they are too old to learn new things. “It is difficult to learn left-​handedness in old age,” states a Nigerian proverb.

Teachers can build confidence and sustain interest by being quick to acknowledge and commend progress. Lessons should be structured to minimize learning failure and to ensure repeated successful achievement of learning goals. The publication Educating the Adult states: “Above all, success is probably the single greatest factor in continued motivation.”

Adults generally know what they want from educational experiences and wish to see immediate progress toward their goals. One professor of adult education in Africa stated: “They want to get into class, learn what they need to know as quickly as possible, then get out.”

Sometimes the goals a student sets are overly ambitious. From the outset the teacher should help the learner establish intermediate, short-​term goals and then help the student to achieve them. For example, let us say a Christian enrolls in a literacy class because he or she wants to learn to read the Bible and Bible publications. These are long-​term goals. In working toward them, the teacher can encourage the student to set intermediate goals, such as mastering the alphabet, finding and reading selected scriptures, and reading from simplified Bible publications. Regularly achieving goals sustains motivation and stimulates the student to keep on learning.

Effective teachers can do much to stimulate motivation by encouraging and commending their students and by helping them work toward practical, achievable goals. Yet, in order to progress, adults should not expect to be spoon-​fed. They need to be willing to take responsibility for their own education and to work hard at learning. In doing so, they will learn to read and write, and these skills will transform their lives.

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Guidelines for Teaching Adults to Read and Write

1. It is vital to stimulate motivation in the student. From the first session, stress the benefits of learning to read and write, and encourage the student to set reasonable long- and short-​term goals.

2. To make progress the student should be instructed several times a week. Once a week is not enough. The student should do homework between lessons.

3. Do not be overly demanding or overwhelm the student with too much material in one session. This can cause him to become discouraged and stop attending classes.

4. Be consistently encouraging and positive. Reading and writing skills are developed in small, sequential steps. The student should find satisfaction in his progress.

5. Encourage the student to apply as quickly as possible in his daily life what he is learning.

6. Do not waste time on side issues. Adults are busy people. Make the most of the instruction sessions to teach the essentials.

7. Always be respectful of the student, according him the dignity he deserves. Never embarrass or belittle him.

8. Be alert to individual problems. A student may be unable to read small print because he needs glasses. Another may be hard of hearing and may thus find it difficult to hear correct pronunciation.

9. The student should learn the manuscript (printed) alphabet before attempting cursive writing (where letters are joined together). Manuscript writing is easier to learn and easier to do, and the letters more closely resemble those on the printed page.

10. A good way to teach how to write letters is to have the student trace them from a pattern. He might trace a letter several times before trying to copy it without tracing it.

11. Progress in reading is often faster than progress in writing. Do not delay new reading lessons if the student is not able to perform the homework in writing. On the other hand, remember that new letters are learned and remembered more easily if the student practices writing them.

12. Although the adult student may be able to perform intricate tasks with his hands, writing with pen or pencil may be a difficult and frustrating experience for him. Do not insist on perfectly formed letters.