Advocate for Adult Literacy and Celebrate Books in September
by Deborah Kennedy
Literacy is a key lever of change and a practical
tool of empowerment on each of the three main pillars of sustainable
development: economic development, social development and environmental
protection.…As the foundation of learning throughout life, literacy is at the
heart of sustainable development.
Kofi Annan,
then Secretary-General of the United Nations, included those words in his 2005 Message
for International Literacy Day (United Nations), and they still ring
true in 2021. September is an important month for adult literacy advocacy
because it features both International Literacy Day (ILD) and National Adult
Education and Family Literacy (AEFL) Week.
International Literacy
Day
International Literacy Day is
observed on 8 September each year as a way of raising and maintaining support
for the foundational skills that underlie full participation in community life.
The theme for ILD 2021 is “Literacy for a human-centered recovery: Narrowing
the digital divide.” In choosing this theme, the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
writes:
The COVID-19
crisis has disrupted the learning of children, young people and adults at an
unprecedented scale. It has also magnified the pre-existing inequalities in
access to meaningful literacy learning opportunities, disproportionally
affecting 773 million non-literate young people and adults. Youth and adult
literacy were absent in many initial national response plans, while numerous
literacy programs have been forced to halt their usual modes of
operation.
Even in the
times of global crisis, efforts have been made to find alternative ways to
ensure the continuity of learning, including distance learning, often in
combination with in-person learning. Access to literacy learning opportunities,
however, has not been evenly distributed. The rapid shift to distance learning
also highlighted the persistent digital divide in terms of connectivity,
infrastructure, and the ability to engage with technology, as well as
disparities in other services such as access to electricity, which has limited
learning options.
The
pandemic, however, was a reminder of the critical importance of literacy.
Beyond its intrinsic importance as part of the right to education, literacy
empowers individuals and improves their lives by expanding their capabilities to
choose a kind of life they can value. It is also a driver for sustainable
development. Literacy is an integral part of education and lifelong learning
premised on humanism as defined by the Sustainable Development Goal 4.
Literacy, therefore, is central to a human-centered recovery from the COVID-19
crisis.
ILD 2021
will explore how literacy can contribute to building a solid foundation for a
human-centered recovery, with a special focus on the interplay of literacy and
digital skills required by non-literate youth and adults. It will also explore
what makes technology-enabled literacy learning inclusive and meaningful to
leave no one behind. By doing so, ILD2021 will be an opportunity to reimagine
future literacy teaching and learning, within and beyond the context of the
pandemic.
Adult Education and
Family Literacy Week
In the
United States, the major event centered on adult literacy advocacy is National
Adult Education and Family Literacy Week, observed this year from 19–25
September. The
National Coalition for Literacy (NCL) and its member organizations
encourage students, teachers, and administrators in adult basic education and
English language programs nationwide to contact decision makers at local,
state, and national levels during AEFL Week to raise awareness of the
transformational power of adult education and to advocate for policies that
support it.
AEFL Week
originated in 2009 when the NCL worked with then-Congressman Jared Polis
(D-CO), then-Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN), and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) to
create a Congressionally-recognized designation that would draw attention to
the importance of adult education and family literacy. Since then, NCL has
sponsored National AEFL Week in September each year on behalf of its members
and the adult education field as a whole, and has worked with members of Congress
to have the week recognized through resolutions in the Senate and the House of
Representatives.
Ways to Observe and
Participate
Both ILD and
AEFL Week provide great opportunities for learner-centered activities and projects.
Here are some ideas:
-
Illustrate
the importance of literacy. Have learners read or listen to
level-appropriate materials about the importance of literacy and reading. Then
have them work individually or in small groups to develop posters and
presentations illustrating ways that literacy has been important in their own
lives. Use Padlet or Lino for generating
and sharing ideas or Piktochart
for creating posters, or develop a class page on Instagram.
-
Explore
literacy data. Use the U.S. Skills
Map to explore literacy and numeracy data on your state or county
with your learners.
-
Teach
advocacy. Plan a visit to a local or state decision maker’s
office to generate support for your adult education program. This could be the
office of an area business as well as the mayor, city council, or state
representative. Give adult learners plenty of support in developing their
ideas, and allow time in class for practice, including strategies for what to do
if you forget what you were going to say or don’t know the answer to a
question. As an alternative, invite decision makers to visit your program and
talk with your learners. Adult learners can be powerful advocates because of
the personal perspectives on the value of adult education that they
provide.
Use the resources in the TESOL
Advocacy Action Center to learn about the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and download the WIOA Resource
Kit.
You can find
more information and resources for ILD on the UNESCO
website and on the World
Literacy Foundation website.
You can find
information on AEFL Week, including literacy quotes, links to maps and
information about adult literacy in the United States, and links to resources
from NCL member organizations on the NCL
website.
National Book
Festival
While you
and your adult learners are engaged in advocacy in September, you can also
celebrate books and reading with the Library of Congress National
Book Festival, taking place on 17–26 September. The festival will be
fully virtual and will feature a PBS special hosted by LeVar Burton and
discussions with many of the nation’s best authors, poets, and illustrators.
Visit the festival
information site to learn how to participate in the festival
experience.
As the
Library of Congress says, “Open a book, open the world!”
Reference
United
Nations. (2005). ‘Literacy is at the heart of sustainable
development’, secretary-general says in Literacy Day message. Press
release. https://www.un.org/press/en/2005/sgsm10065.doc.htm
Deborah
Kennedy is the executive director of the
National Coalition for Literacy. To learn more about her work, visit key-words.us.
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