One Nation Semi-literate

A study by the American Institutes for Research tested college students nearing completion of their degree programs on their ability to perform three types of complex literacy tasks. They included analyzing news stories and other prose, understanding documents such as tables and graphs, and having the arithmetic skills required to balance a checkbook or calculate a tip. Over 50% of students at four year colleges and over 75% of students at two year colleges lacked the skills required to perform those tasks.

This was reported by AP education writer Ben Feller in his January 19, 2006 article, “Study: Most College Students Lack Skills.” He wrote, “There was a brighter side. Overall, the average literacy of college students is higher than that of adults across the nation.” That’s good news? The “brighter side” is that, to some degree, colleges are teaching those skills. There is no bright side to the fact that, while most college students lack the skills for basic tasks, even more non-college educated adults lack those skills. No one should have to attend college to acquire them. Understanding a newspaper article or balancing a checkbook isn’t rocket science. All high school graduates should be able to do so.

Education becomes more vital with increasing globalization. More and more products formerly made in the U.S. are being made overseas. Competition continually increases. As U.S. automakers lose sales to foreign manufacturers, China plans to manufacture cars. After sales of U.S. manufactured goods weakened in the global economy, our high-technology products remained strong. Now we are losing that edge. According to the National Science Board, our share of global high-technology exports has fallen in the past 20 years from 33% to 17%. Since only about 6% of U.S. students plan to study science and engineering, that trend is likely to continue.

Technological degree programs require solid basic skills. If high schools fail at teaching basic reading and math skills, the number of students planning to pursue science and engineering is unlikely to increase. Many aspects of our educational system must change if the U.S. is to have an educated workforce.

John Stossel covered some changes that should be considered in his 20/20 broadcast, Stupid in America: How we cheat our kids. One reform is school choice. Parents can base decisions on results if education money is attached to students rather than school districts. Stossel also pointed out how strong teachers unions almost guarantee continued employment of ineffective teachers.

If we are to have more graduates who are interested in technological fields, boys must be encouraged to consider college. No matter how egalitarian we try to be, boys seem more interested in science and technology than girls. An educational system that encourages boys interested in pursuing those fields should not be seen as slighting girls who are also interested. The issue of whether or not education has become “girl-centric” needs more attention, but both sexes should be encouraged academically. It also seems that the economic success of some rap stars and pro athletes leads some boys to believe they don’t need education. There may also be a subtle message in pop culture that reading and studying isn’t cool or manly. Boys need men in their lives to counteract this. In her Newsweek article, “The Trouble With Boys,” Peg Tyre wrote, “One of the most reliable predictors of whether a boy will succeed or fail in high school rests on a single question: does he have a man in his life to look up to?” A father in the home is best. In a society in which 40% of boys are being raised without their fathers, male teachers and mentors become critically important.

Boys are falling behind girls in academic achievement, yet, judging by the literacy study, girls aren’t learning much either. One reason may be a tendency of school systems to respond to problems with curricula du jour. For example, last year 65% of middle school students in Baltimore City’s public schools scored below proficiency in the statewide reading test. In response, the school system spent $500,000 for the Studio Course program and almost $1 million on the classroom reading material for the program. Studio course included the magazines Teen People and CosmoGirl, (which was removed from the curriculum after parents objected to the content). It also included a grammar lesson in which a noun was defined as “stuff” and verbs were “what stuff does.” This seems like the ultimate in “dumbing down.” Good teaching should inspire students’ interest in literary works. That may be the city’s real educational problem: Only 42% of Baltimore City’s teachers were considered “highly qualified” under the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

Much attention is paid to problems in the educational system, but some parents cause problems. Last spring, parents at Daniels Field Elementary School in Trumbull, CT complained about teachers’ use of red ink for corrections because it was “stressful” to the children. Around the nation, there have been cases of parents complaining or threatening to sue if their children are disciplined or receive poor grades. Such parents not only do a disservice to their kids, they also promote diminished academic standards and discipline in schools systems.

To compete in a global economy, our country needs a well educated workforce. When over half of students preparing to graduate from four year colleges lack the literacy skills needed for basic tasks, we can not remain competitive.

Copyright Eva Ellsworth, 01/29/06, all rights reserved