What Does It Really Mean to Be Literate in America?
The ability to read is not the same as doing it
Guessing games and mistaken meaning
If you had to guess what the literacy rate in America is, what would you say?
This is NOT a rhetorical question. Think about it. What percentage of the population of the United States is considered to be literate? Come up with a number in your head.
The definition of literacy is “the ability to read and write.” (Mind you, it doesn’t say reads “well” or writes “proficiently.”) The meaning of literacy is the most basic skill of seeing words and understanding their meaning, (reading) and physically putting letters into words (writing).
What did you guess?
I guessed it was probably about 85%, based on my misunderstood definition of the term “literacy” and my observation that for many people, the only reading and writing they do is texting.
My numbers were WAY OFF. According to statistics, the literacy rate in America and most other countries of the world is a whopping 95%. In fact, 86% of the world’s entire population over the age of 15 is considered to be literate.
So I was basing my guess on my misinterpretation of the term “literacy,” which in…
