International Literacy Day; Can We Help children Unstick from outside to classrooms?

There is one word that instigates many of us almost all the time. That is “curiosity” curiosity to know the unknown, curiosity to discover what is uncovered yet, and curiosity to share what you have learned. This curiosity takes human beings from ground to sky. This curiosity distinguishes us from all other creatures and makes us superior. Seeking knowledge satisfies this curiosity.

Despite progress made over the years, literacy challenges persist with at least 771 million young people and adults lacking basic literacy skills today. International literacy day is celebrated on September 8 every year. The day aims to highlight the importance of literacy to individuals, communities, and societies and the need for intensified efforts toward more literate societies.

"In the aftermath of the pandemic, nearly 24 million learners might never return to formal education, out of which, 11 million are projected to be girls and young women. To ensure no one is left behind, we need to enrich and transform the existing learning spaces through an integrated approach and enable literacy learning in the perspective of lifelong learning," UNESCO said

Literacy brings access to knowledge, work, social interaction, and political participation. There is a large body of scientific knowledge about how children learn to read and how they can best be taught. The depth of this scientific knowledge makes the exclusion of so many from the economic and social benefits of literacy particularly shocking. Science tells us that virtually all children are capable of learning to read, so why aren’t they learning, and what should be done to change course?

The best answer comes when we break reading down into two main component skills. Reading with comprehension is a complex skill, integrating a variety of pre-requisite abilities. The most important skills for the beginning reader are (a) the ability to understand spoken language, and (b) the ability to map printed words onto spoken language. Reading specialists call the former “comprehension” and the latter “decoding.” Whatever you call them, they obey a simple law: in order to comprehend what you are reading, you have to “get the print off the page” in the first place. Readers turn printed words on the page into spoken words in their heads.

Research shows that 99% of the variation in children’s reading comprehension comes down to these two component skills. However, emerging evidence indicates that most children in LMICs are not able to decode printed words. They may know a word if they hear it, but they cannot quickly and easily recognize that same word on the page and then turn it into “spoken language in their heads.” They fail because they have not gotten enough instruction and practice in mapping letters to sounds and sounds to letters.   

Lack of education not only takes you away from success, and from the educated community of society but also through you in the darkness of superstitions, and takes you away from reality, and not only this but also affects your social, and personal life. People start believing unrealistic things and then act accordingly without analyzing what is wrong, and what is right. Education tells you the difference between the wrong and the right. Education should be given regardless of gender. One more drawback of society is that it is believed that education is confined to the male gender. No, it is not. Only educated mothers can raise an educated family, if the mother is ill literate that their whole family is going to suffer the darker side.

What do we do when we get knowledge? We satisfy our mind which is full of questions. The power of learning, reading, and writing is the ultimate weapon of human beings and is the only way to survive in this global village and to be in the race of diversity.  A single pen can do that a sword cannot do. Knowledge is like a river, and anyone can satisfy the thirst for learning from it. If we talk about society today, then it can be stated that success is in the hands of an educated person only.

There are many societies working on education, and creating awareness in the society, especially in the ruler areas where women are still being treated in an inhumane way. On this international literacy day, I would like to spread the awareness of getting an education and to see the right path for all, and for the upcoming generation. Let’s be sure that all of us who care about literacy—policymakers, teachers, advocates—ask these fundamental questions: Have kids mastered their letters and sounds? Can they quickly and easily unstick the print from the page? If the answer is no, then what is missing from their school instruction that prevents them from learning this most learnable skill in literacy? The task of improving literacy is large, but significant gains await if we can ask these questions and act on our answers.