Introduction
After concluding this week that the definition of literacy is vague, ideological, cultural, and changes over time, I found myself questioning what happened to the 2003 UNESCO call for literacy to include all of humankind. Did they bring an end to the fact that two-thirds of all illiterate adults were women (Graff, 2010, p. 651)? After all, it has been almost 20 years and UNESCO has been in the business of improving literacy worldwide since 1946.
Go to these links to learn more about UNESCO,
https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/turning-point-why-we-must-transform-education-now
UNESCO Futures of Education - A NEW SOCIAL CONTRACT
Task
Sadly, UNESCO’s data shows that literacy hasn’t improved worldwide “at least 773 million youth and adults still cannot read and write and 250 million children are failing to acquire basic literacy skills” (UNESCO.org) In September 2022, UNESCO even called for transforming education by putting education at the top of the political agenda. An agenda that calls for a new social contract for education that is needed to shape ”a better world anchored in social, economic, and environmental justice” (Turning Point, 2022).
Upon closer reading of the material on the UNESCO website, I found myself agreeing with most of the points that were made about the importance of literacy. I also wondered who was controlling the definition of literacy and what did they mean about political agenda? What about literacy for women? What is environmental justice?
Infographics | Global Education Monitoring Report (unesco.org)
Is climate change really the most important topic to address in the coming decade? I began to see more and more politics behind the call for literacy like “Building Bridges, Not Walls” was Hillary Clinton’s 2016 slogan.
clinton building bridges not walls - Bing images
I then remembered, “Literacy always comes with a perspective on the interpretation that is ultimately political power” (Gee, 2015, p.87). I went back to the infographic page on the UNESCO site and found this neat graphic.
unesco-50-years-literacy.jpg (6720×8761)
I did not know that Tehran hosted a literacy conference in 1965.
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000131817
So what is Iran's literacy rate like today?
iran literacy rates - Search (bing.com)
Interesting, Iran has a pretty good literacy rate. But, what about women?
iran women rights - Search (bing.com)
And I thought about what “The person, the educator, who hands over the gun, hands over the bullets (the perspective) and must own up to the consequences” (Gee, 2015, p.87). Education is powerful and this quote about a text being a loaded weapon made me really think about the importance of developing literate, critical thinkers. As a teacher, I need to teach my students critical thinking skills along with basic reading skills.
I agree that "Literacy is a subversive profession." I don't agree with literacy being used to push political agendas.