Scottish Literacy Report-What's the solution?

Haz is right, however parents do play a part. My brothers, sister and I all could read before we went to school. We came from a low income family and had a lot less than most kids we went to school with. So I don't really think it's anything to do with families on low incomes and such. I think it's just parents getting their priorities wrong.

I'm not saying that children should read before because some just aren't ready but I've worked with an awful lot of young children (2-3) who ARE ready and eager to learn how to read. Part of it is the attention they get, how you engage them. Those children go home and some of them don't get to read and be read to.

You need to engage children when they want to which I've found is at an early age and move at their pace. It's tricky at school because you don't have the staff to do this.

There's a wonderful scheme in USA where children read to dogs and there's been a massive improvement especially in lads on reading ability. When a child lacks confidence and has slipped down, reading to an adult is daunting. A child can figure out when a word doesn't sound right and in time will find out how to read that word correctly, when an adult does it for them it knocks them back. There's a way to do it and it's hard because it does depend on the child.

Haz: I agree some children will stay at the bottom [:(!!] however I've seen the standards coming up because parent and child sessions where parents see how further ahead other children are and feel quite embarrassed that their child isn't at that level so work with them to bring them up. It is quite wonderful to see though quite upsetting at first, that's why it is important that schools link up and partly why it is down to parents. So I think things are starting to look up in some ways.

This is why I don't really agree in sets as to speak (oh how lefty...!) because children know when they're at the bottom but there will always be a bottom set even though they may be at the expected level... It does nothing for self esteem. Just segregates them and makes them feel worse :( It's tricky though like when Haz has said, you've got 2 adults in the class.

Going back to the 1960's and before we had an emerging working class with aspirations..and education was seen as a route by parents who wanted their offspring to 'better themselves'..and in fact many children made it into traditional middle classe occupations like teaching, the law, medicine etc.. The schisms of the '80s changed all that (instability of employment, emasculation of the unions etc) and class mobility stalled. We live in a post-industrial (and largely) post literate society where numeracy and literacy are seen as neither useful or advantageous to the vast majority.

For a govt and an economy which is largely dependent on financial trading rather than traditional production of goods, a literate educated populace is neither useful or necessary either (in fact it would be a downright threat to stability and control)

Lets get this clear. They are talking about "functional literacy", not illiteracy. Either way it's a disgrace. I do wonder how accurate it is as a report though. I can't think of that many children at my primary who couldn't read or write reasonably well. There were one or two, who struggled badly, even in high school. One of my friends couldn't even read his own handwriting. Strangely, I could read it (with some difficulty).

I saw this yesterday and nearly died; yet another negative tale about the Scots. Examining it, I feel that the report is rather too broad in it's definition of "functional illiteracy". Here's a quote from the BBC article:-

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Education Secretary Mike Russell told BBC Radio Scotland's Good Morning Scotland that the concept of literacy was broader than simply reading and writing.

He said: "What we were talking about 20 years ago was essentially an inability to read.

"What we are talking about now is an inability to cope with all the demands around us.

"It's not just about reading - essentially you need to be able to operate a computer, you need to be able to use a mobile phone.

"We need to ensure we are constantly upskilling people to cope with everyday life."

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So, I can see that what they have taken into account to determine what they are classing as illiterate, are some of the more complex modern skills, not just how well these kids can read.

I do applaud any attempt to get a better education system, but I do wish they had chosen their language with more consideration. It's as laughable as the report that said Scots use lard as a tanning oil. I could get paranoid about the intent of these reports.

What can be done? Well, as the report points out, a lot needs to be done to tackle poverty. Poverty is a key factor in achievement at school. I would bring in a "Breakfast club" (not like the film); but I would have quality food available to the kids when they turn up in the morning. Many children do not eat an adequate breakfast. They should have the nutrition to cope with the demands of their education. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but school only offers lunch.

There is a scheme to bring laptops to children in third world countries, called "One Laptop Per Child". They have designed and built the OLPC. It is a linux based laptop, that is very cheap to make ($100 each). I'm not suggesting that we live in a third world country, but the concept of every child having access to modern technology at a very affordable price, is highly attractive.

Many Scottish children are living in poverty. Enabling them, by giving them their very own laptop, would help with this skills gap.

In my experience if kids don't 'get' literacy within reception class they are doomed. Kids that are in the bottom sets stay in the bottom sets..depressing.

They have studied literacy and the learning/teaching of it to death and it is now so formulaic that any kids ( lads especially) who fall outside the learning style of synthetic phonics ( the current system) are totally buggered and set on a path from the outset.

Sadly I think the solution is finding every kids different learning style and that in a classroom of 30, one teacher and one CA, is a no brainer..they have to go with the best catch all. It does mean that kids slip through - the real tragedy and injustice is that they stay on that trajectory.

Im in America, and we have a very similar problem. I would you cant lay the blame on just one thing. All parts of society are to blame. The parents are to blame, the school system/teachers for simply passing the kids to move them on, the government for setting up laws saying you cant fail certain kids of certain races-if you do its discrimination, also TV is to blame. Reality shows give our kids a false picture of what the world is like, has them thinking that they can drop out today and MTV will set them up in a mansion with a reality show.

So..

As parents, you're the most important first step in your children's journey into the wonderful world of reading. It is up to you to create the most supportive environment that turns your child on to reading - such as reading aloud to them often during the day and before bedtime, and placing age appropriate books for children around the house, so that the child will have access to plenty of books. Reading often to your child will help develop their interest in books and stories, and soon they will want to read stories on their own.

For a simple, step-by-step program that can help your child learn to read visit this site: http://readingprogram.toptips.org/

Best

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och i the noo