What is Literacy

[loml]

Introduction:

Cued Speech was designed to help eliminate the difficulties of English language acquisition and literacy development in children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing. Results of research show that accurate and consistent cueing with a child can help in the development of language, communication and literacy but why is this so important and how does it happen? This paper addresses the issues behind literacy development, traditional deaf education, and how using Cued Speech makes such a difference in the lives of children.

What Is Literacy?

Literacy is how we define a person’s reading and writing abilities. The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 defines literacy as “an individual’s ability to read, write, speak in English, compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job, in the family of the individual and in society.” This definition takes a broader approach to understanding literacy than perceiving it simply as an individual’s ability to read, which has long been the traditional concept of literacy.

With regard to children and adults who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, literacy is typically measured in terms of grade-level achievement. Studies have shown that the average American adult reads and writes at an eighth-grade level, and the average deaf adult at a fourth-grade level. The most recent data are from 1996, when the Gallaudet Research Institute (GRI) collected raw data from 17- and 18-year-old deaf students who were in school and took the Stanford Achievement Test, 9th edition. The section from the test used for measurement was the reading comprehension multiple-choice subtest of the SAT. The median score corresponded to the 4.0 grade level, which means that only 50 percent of 17 to 18 year old test-takers scored above the typical hearing student at the beginning of 4th grade, and 50 percent scored below that grade.2 (Note: This is not an arithmetic average score.)


However, the Institute for Education Sciences (part of the U.S. Department of Education) recently conducted a large-scale literacy assessment compared to international countries. The assessment is based upon a 500-point scale, with the U.S. rating about 271 out of 500. For more information, see the National Center for Education Statistics web site. No research has been done yet to evaluate deaf adults’ literacy levels within the redesigned international viewpoint of literacy assessment. The following bulleted items provide an overview of what constitutes their levels of literacy achievement.


The report follows four main literacy levels, which are based on work done by the National Research Council's Committee on Performance Levels for Adult Literacy. All the scores are based on arithmetic average calculations.


o Proficient means that someone can do complex activities such as comparing viewpoints in two editorials or interpreting a table about blood pressure and physical activity.


o Intermediate means that a person can do moderately challenging tasks such as calculating the cost of an order from an office supply catalog or identifying a specific location on a map.


o Basic means a person can perform simple and everyday tasks such as comparing the ticket price of two sporting events or understanding a pamphlet that describes how a person is selected for jury duty.


o Below Basic indicates the lowest levels of performance, such as understanding the directions for signing a form or adding the amounts on a bank deposit slip.

CUEDSPEECH.org > Cued Speech > Myths & Facts

 

[jillio]

The median score corresponded to the 4.0 grade level, which means that only 50 percent of 17 to 18 year old test-takers scored above the typical hearing student at the beginning of 4th grade, and 50 percent scored below that grade.2 (Note: This is not an arithmetic average score.)

The median is not the best way to report such results. A mean would provide a much truer assessment of the average level for the population as a whole. The percentage falling below and above the median does not sufficient information, such as how far below and how far above the mean students were scoring. Simply reporting the mean indicates only that at least one students of the ones tested scored that particular figure on the test. While it may appear to be valid at first glance, particularly to someone who is not used to working with statistics and is not actively involved in research, it is deceptive, and leads the reader to draw what is probablly not the most accurate conclusion.

The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 defines literacy as “an individual’s ability to read, write, speak in English, compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job, in the family of the individual and in society.”

The Workforce Investment Act applies to adults, not children, and is a broad umbrella covering the emplyment of all indiviuals with any disability, including displaced housewives and acquired disability. The definition is applied to adult rehabilitation. It does not address the early education of deaf and hoh children.

With regard to children and adults who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, literacy is typically measured in terms of grade-level achievement

With regard to ALL CHILDREN AND ADULTS literacy is typically measured in terms of grade level achievement. The question is, what assessment tool is used to measure the grade level achievement of children and adults who are deaf and hard of hearing. Standardized testing is infamous for being culturally biased, and unless a modified version of the standardized test is used, results are not accurate in regard to indiviual achievement. Anyone familiar with standardized testing and the procedures is well aware of this.

No research has been done yet to evaluate deaf adults’ literacy levels within the redesigned international viewpoint of literacy assessment.

And the redesigned viewpoint would remove some of the innacuracy caused by the biased testing.

The report follows four main literacy levels, which are based on work done by the National Research Council's Committee on Performance Levels for Adult Literacy. All the scores are based on arithmetic average calculations.

As per my first point, they would use the more accurate mean, rather than the median as reported in your article. And the classification of levels removes the bias of the strictly verbal componet of the Stanford test using multiple choice answers only. It measures ability to apply comprehension and kowledge, not just the ability to take a test.

CUEDSPEECH.org > Cued Speech > Myths & Facts
Why does everything link back to your organization?

 

[GarnetTigerMom]

You ask what is Literacy?

According to Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, literacy is "the quality or state of being literate."

Literate, according to this same source, derives from Middle English and Latin terms meaning "marked with letters" and "letters, literature." Two definitions are provided:

1) "able to read and write," and
2) "versed in literature or creative writing...having knowledge or competence.

It also provides an entry for visual literacy, defined as "the ability to recognize and understand ideas conveyed through visible actions or images (as pictures)."

 

[jillio]

You ask what is Literacy?

According to Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, literacy is "the quality or state of being literate."

Literate, according to this same source, derives from Middle English and Latin terms meaning "marked with letters" and "letters, literature." Two definitions are provided:

1) "able to read and write," and
2) "versed in literature or creative writing...having knowledge or competence.

It also provides an entry for visual literacy, defined as "the ability to recognize and understand ideas conveyed through visible actions or images (as pictures)."

Exactly. The ability to comprehend the concept portrayed by the symbol. In other words, if one understands that the symbol "flower" and the sign for "flower" both represent the thing growing in the garden, then one has achieved conceptual understanding leading to literacy. Just because one can pronounce the word "flower" doesn't mean that one comprehends that the spoken word is nothing more than a symbol for the thing growing in the garden.

 

[loml]

You ask what is Literacy?

According to Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, literacy is "the quality or state of being literate."

Literate, according to this same source, derives from Middle English and Latin terms meaning "marked with letters" and "letters, literature." Two definitions are provided:

1) "able to read and write," and
2) "versed in literature or creative writing...having knowledge or competence.

It also provides an entry for visual literacy, defined as "the ability to recognize and understand ideas conveyed through visible actions or images (as pictures)."

GarnetTigerMom- Indeed and Cued Speech is visual.

 

[jillio]

GarnetTigerMom- Indeed and Cued Speech is visual.

So is the written word. If one needs to put English into a visual format, one should use a system that has been successful for centuries, not a recently invented system that is simply redundant.