Philosophies about Teaching Literacy: An interview with John

Entry #1

John is a veteran high school Special Education teacher. His strengths lie in knowing students developmentally and using that information to differentiate to meet students' needs. His degrees are in philosophy and English.
 

Q: How would you define literacy?

A: Off the top of my head, I would define literacy as the ability to use a standard graphic/symbol system to communicate ideas. This implies the ability to read and write competently for the minimal tasks required by the particular society/culture.

Q: When should literacy instruction begin and end?

A: It is not a matter of when to begin literacy instruction. Every movement and interaction within the culture from the time the child is born is literacy instruction. Persons are constantly required to make increasing sense of symbol and meaning. I guess when formal instruction should begin, depends on the requirements of the society.

Q: What do you feel are the core components of literacy that should be taught at each grade level (early primary, primary, middle school, and secondary)?

A: Developmentally, I think kids need to play (which is their work) for a longer period of time…maybe till 5 or 6. Even then, we shouldn’t be too harsh and competitive. I think just reading and playing, drawing and playing, messing around with pictures and letters is generally OK until 5 or 6. Then, introduce sound/symbol match and teach standardized handwriting.

I think the progression of when stuff is taught is less important than paying attention to the developmental issues that indicate when students can be challenged with the next step in whatever defined progression people want to use. People want to feel competent at what they put energy into. I think on the pre-school and elementary levels, paying attention to the developmental issues is more important than later on.

Q: Who should be responsible for teaching literacy?

A: …All teachers are responsible for making symbols alive. I think we could do a better job of admitting that most people don’t need to be literate to the level of college competency. This isn’t to say people shouldn’t have opportunity, only that there are many ways to be competent and happy in the world.

Q: If your epithet were all about literacy instruction, what would it say?

A: “The first person to hurl an insult rather than a stone was the founder of civilization.” I read this somewhere.
My alternative epithets might be:

Word.

All is well.

You can’t always get what you want. So what?