Learners’ Stories to Literacy
The stories which follow highlight recurring hurdles which resulted in low literacy for these adult learners. At the researcher’s discretion, a purposeful sampling (Siedman, 2013) of the interviewees’ stories have been selected to achieve range and coverage of hurdles which have led to low literacy for these adult learners.
Low Literacy & Educational Misdiagnosis
Abigail. Abigail likened her experience with reading to an individual diagnosed with dyslexia. Indicating that because the instruction she received earlier in her educational experience followed a more traditional approach, those methods did not align well with her individual learning style. This misalignment caused false assumptions to be made regarding why Abigail was reluctant to read, assuming she was choosing not to read. Rather, it was quite the opposite. Abigail struggled with reading. In reality, as Abigail recalled, her diversion from reading was attributed to her deficit in reading comprehension, yet that went unaddressed. Coupled with an instructional approach not designed to benefit her learning style, Abigail was placed in the same learning environment as students with disabilities. In Abigail’s opinion, this was a misdiagnosis. Abigail has since sought out instruction to remedy her literacy deficits as she desires to be a life-long learner, in addition to becoming “the best, most functional person [I] can be in [my] adult life”.
Low Literacy & Substance Abuse
Bradley. Learning that “education is the most important thing after error", Bradley recounts that his distance from literacy came as a result of a decision made in his later teenage years.Describing his line of work as being in the “pharmaceutical business”, Bradley shared that his path toward literacy was redirected after the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. In other words, his primary method of distribution was via air transportation. It was after this tragic, national event that “I got a conscience” and realized that “I’m part of the problem because I’m supplying”. Redirecting his efforts to be more positive than negative, while also paired with the fear of spending his adulthood in jail, Bradley changed the course of his life path. Acquiring literacy is important to Bradley not only for access to better employment opportunities, but because he desires to break the cycle of illiteracy in his family. “My parents didn’t graduate from high school. I didn’t graduate from high school, so someone has to break the cycle. I want my kids [and grandchildren] to be proud of me, just like I am of them.”
Low Literacy & Foster Care
Elizabeth. At the age of nine, comparable to a traditional third grade student, Elizabeth dropped out of school and was placed in foster care. Prior to that, she lived at home with her mom and her mom’s boyfriend. She endured abuse from him for several years and because he worked as a police officer, she believed nobody would think he could be doing that. After two years in foster care and her continued fighting, she was removed from foster care and placed in group homes. For the next eight years, until the age of 18, she remained in group homes and “refused to go to school”. Elizabeth also shared that, during this time, she was prescribed several different medications, in hopes of regulating some of her behaviors.
In her words, “If you want to know how many different pills, you’re going to need a different sheet [of paper]. Thorazine. Xanax. Valium. I was on so many different kinds.” Later in life, Elizabeth returned to school in hopes of fulfilling requirements for her GED. Having primarily relied on Social Security benefits, Elizabeth no longer wanted to be forced to rely solely on this as her source of income and thus, now desires an education – the same education she once refused as a child.
Jane. Jane dropped out of school during her freshman year of high school. With neglectful parents and the presence of drugs and alcohol in their home, eventually Jane was removed from her home and placed in foster care. At the age of twenty-one, she aged out of the system. Her experience in school was equally negative. Peers were mean to her, and she quickly became the subject of their bullying. As a result, her confidence and self-esteem levels plummeted. Yet, Jane refused to let others’ actions bring her down. Now, Jane is more determined than ever to advance her literacy skills. “Anybody can just go to school, but having the motivation to want to learn even more is what’s going to change my life”. Jane has her sights set on attending college, once she has successfully attained her GED.
Low Literacy & Health Challenges
Carl. Hoping to gain more access to improved employment opportunities, in addition to being better equipped to care for himself, Carl desires to develop his literacy skills. Working to advance his digital literacy skillset specifically, Carl enrolled in an instructional program to aid just that. In his present line of work, he shared that in order for him to fully comprehend written instructions, it required him to read and reread the text several times. Additionally, his medical diagnosis of diabetes also catalyzed the need for Carl to develop his literacy skills. Building his literacy skills will advantage Carl to offer better self-care as he can read material to “[better] understand the different ways to try to control [his] diet, [and] to keep [his] glucose levels at the correct level”. Furthermore, Carl spoke to having the ability to read the informational pamphlets provided to him and learn more about the prescription medication he was taking to regulate his diabetes. Carl indicated that being literate is important in life, “…[as I] get older, I was really seeing that it was getting to be more difficult for me to function in society…with a lot of the things that I was being confronted with… in life, on my job, with people”. Refueled by his growth in literacy skills, Carl now has his sights set on designing new inventions, with the intent to be awarded patents for them.
David. His path to literacy is in response to having experienced a stroke and now, the lingering effects of aphasia, post-stroke. Prior to his stroke, David considered himself to be a “great reader and a very good writer”. David also managed his own landscape business, worked at a skating rink, and played blues music during the winter season; however, all of those skills faded after his stroke and in turn, forced David to seek out new educational opportunities that would help him relearn all that his stroke had so fiercely taken from him. In his words, there is great power in literacy indicating that “without communication this life is not worth living”. By regaining his literacy skills, David likens himself to being a “complete person” and advocates for the transforming power of literacy stating that having it is “better for life [in] this world”.
Gavin. Enlisting in the army at the early age of 17, Gavin knew that this was his best option to remove himself from his otherwise, oppressive situation riddled with neglect. “I didn’t really have anyone who showed interest in me as a young man. Everyone that had anything to do with me was very negative.” Being raised by his aunt and very thankful for her, Gavin acknowledged that she was his only immediate family member that showed any level of interest in him and his well-being. Yet, in an attempt to rise up from his situation and avoid the same pitfalls he observed among his friends, he enlisted in the delayed infantry program of the United States Army. Serving for nine years total in the Army’s 1st and 39th Infantries, Gavin remained in the service until he reached 26 years of age. Following his tenure in the service, many factors began to plague Gavin upon his return back to the United States from Germany. Depression and other issues of mental health, coupled with divorce, homelessness, and job loss crippled Gavin. In his words, “I was going down this rabbit hole that I couldn’t get out of and was [in] a fight for my sanity”. Despite Gavin’s battle with what he later identified as symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, commonly referred to as PTSD, Gavin remained vigilant of the power that an education affords to those with it. Overcoming low literacy “…will help me get to where I want to go. Your education can change your class level. [With it], I’ll be able to see how to control my life better”. Knowing this, Gavin continues to redirect his path, embracing the learning opportunities that are made available to him as he continues to work to strengthen his literacy, an ability which he refers to as a “portable skill”.
Low Literacy & Teen Pregnancy
Frannie. Having lost her mother when she was six months old, custody was given to her grandparents. In her words, “…their education was limited, so they didn’t see the value in it”. Paired with having reading difficulties in school, Frannie dropped out of school at the age of 15 and soon became a teenage mother. Later in life, Frannie divorced and “had to figure out how to just depend on myself and my babies”. Thanks to support that she has received from her grown children and growing grandchildren, Frannie took the leap and returned to school in order to build her literacy skills. “I want to change my life to become the person I know I have inside me and was always afraid to let out. The thought of not being able to do it… was worse than trying to do it”. Frannie reminds each of us that learning is not discriminatory. “It doesn’t matter how old you are, you can always learn something”.
Heidi. Negatively influenced by several environmental factors including: teenage pregnancy, dropping out of school in the eighth grade, separated parents, and then later, a diagnosis of cancer, many obstacles delayed Heidi’s access to an education. Motivated now to get her high school equivalency completed, gaining literacy skills is very important to her. At the end of our conversation, Heidi spoke of her primary motivation to read. “It [is] important to [me] to be able to read scripture because a closed mouth never gets fed”.
Ivy. At the age of 13, Ivy became pregnant and in her words, “was pushed through school”. Feeling as though she did not get the academic support she needed, the school system just passed her on to the next grade without proper intervention. Wanting her children to know that she wasn’t a quitter, Ivy is working to address her literacy deficits. Before, “I never did sit down and do reading with my kids as they was growing up because I didn’t know how to help them with their homework. I never did feel comfortable doing that, but now, [with literacy], I feel comfortable”. Desiring to be able to do for herself independently, Ivy seeks to continue learning. Ivy shared that before she came to the center, she was unable to fill out job applications, relying on others to read the questions to her and fill in the blanks. She celebrates her self-sufficiency stating, “I can read a whole book today. I can do for myself. It’s like a peace comes over me and I can do all these things for myself and I have to depend on nobody for help. I can help myself today!” Ivy enjoys sharing the gift of literacy with her grandchildren and supports their learning in all the ways she can, commenting that doing so, “…makes me feel good!”
Low Literacy & Refugeeism
Kaleb. Our last story is shared by Kaleb, who experienced life as a refugee in Kenya, Africa. “We were students and child soldiers at the same time. Teachers were all soldiers. Born in war.” Upon coming to the United States, Kaleb hoped to “acquire [an] education and take it back to [his] countrymen, to help in the building of [his] country”. However, Kaleb’s life path was altered when he dropped out of school. Attaining an education is important to Kaleb now, more than ever before. Succinctly describing the power of education, Kaleb stated, “the pen is mightier than the AK47 that I was taught to carry”. Literacy has the ability to shine a light in an otherwise dark environment, and Kaleb understands that it is available to all who are motivated to achieve it. While sharing his final thoughts, Kaleb conveyed his motivation to “achieve what is mine and to get my own education”.
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