Dear WinkWorld Readers,

Janet Towell is a dear friend from my CA days.  Our offices were right beside each other, and we only lived a couple of blocks apart.  We have been great friends since that time. After she left CSUS, she went on to Florida Atlantic University for great years there also.  She has retired to Las Vegas, and she recently came to spend a few days with us.  I must warn you that she is a city girl, and she found ranch life amazing.  Every time we came back in the house, Janet went right to her journal and wrote so that she would not forget any details.

Readers, if you would like to connect with her (Dr. Janet Towell), you can find her on FB and/or she reads the responses to my blog. 

Life on the Prairies . . . By Janet Towell

September 5, 2018

 Joan Wink and I have been friends since the nineties. I have been wanting to visit her ranch in South Dakota for 25 years. Labor Day weekend I finally got the chance. Allegiant Airlines flies direct from Las Vegas to Rapid City, so that part was easy. Seeing her smiling face at the airport brought me such joy. I could not believe that I was actually in South Dakota after all these years.

Driving home from Rapid City in the dark was a big deal, although a normal part of life on the prairies. The drive takes approximately two hours. You have to constantly watch for deer on both sides of the road. At least there is very little traffic. Talking made the time go by quickly.

When we got to the entrance of the Wink ranch, Joan told me to get out of the car to look at the stars. What an amazing sight! The infinite number of stars was breathtaking. I had never seen anything like it. And that was just the beginning.

During my three days on the ranch, I felt like Alice in Wonderland, stepping through the looking glass into another world.

What I have learned so far about life on the prairies:

Ranchers know the meaning of the words “America the Beautiful”: “O beautiful for spacious skies and amber waves of grain”. The vast landscape is jaw dropping.

It is easier to get around on a ranch by driving a four-wheeler rather than riding a horse.

You should never leave home without your gloves, rubber boots and a walking stick. Everything on a ranch is dirty and rattlesnakes can be lurking in the tall grass.

JW’s comments: Please note that she is not wearing her gloves.

Reading is more important than TV, at least in the Wink household. The Internet is their link to the outside world.

Ranchers must plan ahead. The closest grocery store can be two hours away.

Prairie wives know how to cook and they cook a lot, especially during hunting season. Fast food is a pipe dream.

Prairie women are strong and independent. Most of them do it all: Cook, clean, drive a tractor or pick-up truck, help with calving and/or branding, haul hay, and take care of the kids (and most of them have large families).

JW’s comment: Most of the women I know, do all of this, but I don’t want you to think that I do.  Recently a truck driver from San Francisco, CA was here.  He sat in his truck and told me to jump into the tractor and move a piece of equipment, so he could get his truck where he wanted it. I replied, “I have spent my whole life NOT learning how to drive a tractor, and I am not about to learn for you.” 

JW’s comment: This is Janet in her town life, doing a ReadAloud of one of my favorite stories from Patricia Polacco–Aunt Chip and the Great Triple Creek Dam Affair.

In fact, I love that story so much that ended The Power of Story with a story about it. Click below on “continue reading” if you would like to read  it.

Human connections are vital. The local church is a safe place where the congregation (a close- knit community of 25 or so) can share their joys and sorrows.

Gravel roads are as prevalent as paved roads. There are over 1,000 miles of gravel roads in the county where Joan and Dean live.

One and two-room prairie schools still exist, but they are few and far between. Because of the dwindling numbers of students, their future is in jeopardy. We were able to visit with Missy on Friday, one of two teachers at the K-8 Atall School, an hour’s drive from Joan’s ranch.

Small towns may only consist of a post office, two gas pumps and a small general store. Although you must get your mail at the post office, Amazon will deliver packages to your door. Amazing!

JW’s comment: Janet, we feel so, so fortunate to have postal services out here.  A few years ago, we all went to battle to save our little post office.  I remember a federal official who came to talk at us, in his light blue shiny polyester suit at a local native school.  We were all in jeans and working clothes.  I remember an older native woman explaining to him that many of the Lakota simply cannot drive an hour or two to any other location, as they are so isolated and live in poverty.  I remember him (the white man) telling her (the native woman) that she chose to live there.  Obviously, he did not know his history, and I wrote to his boss in DC and the President and told them of this outrage.

There is an abundance of wildlife. Over the weekend I observed a couple of great blue herons roosting in an old cottonwood tree, six storks circling overhead, a herd of antelope, young antelope twins (orphans), ducks, Canadian geese, and a prairie dog town that had seen better days.

Many ranches were homesteaded in the early 1900’s and they have stayed in families for generations. Joan’s house (that belonged to her Grandma Grace) was originally built in 1910. The average ranch has 5,000 acres and 200 head of beef cattle (primarily Angus).

JW’s comment: Dawn’s book is available on Amazon.  It is the story of my Grandma Grace, who was very important in my life growing up.

Most ranchers have their own gas tanks and generators. Power goes out frequently in the winter and gas stations are rare.

Water is a high commodity on the prairies, requiring ponds with dams, deep wells, miles of pipelines and numerous water tanks for survival.

JW’s comment: Janet and Wink playing in the water over at the truck washout.

Crops in southwestern South Dakota include wheat, sorghum, corn and sunflowers.

Hay must be baled, stacked and stored for the winter. Round hay bales can weigh between 1200 and 1500 pounds. Some years there is hay and some years there isn’t, depending on the weather.

There are not many trees but some, such as red cedars, grow along the river banks. The Wink ranch is near the Cheyenne River.

A variety of farm vehicles is required on a ranch: A John Deere tractor, pick-up truck, jeep or SUV, side by side, 4 wheelers, snow mobiles, and a riding lawn mower.

It is important to carefully latch the gates on the ranch so the cattle will not get out. (That’s another story about a bull that escaped on Saturday morning.)

JW’s comments:   Fortunately, Janet spotted him as he strolled in front of the house.  Wink went running  and jumped in the side-by-side and put him back in the right pasture.

Ranchers follow this rule: “Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man (or woman) healthy, wealthy and wise.”

Everyone I met during my trip was so friendly, welcoming and warm. (They get very few visitors in this part of the world.) During emergencies, ranchers drop everything to help each other during times of crisis.

JW’s comments: Janet, you learned a lot!

Just being with Joan, talking about old friends and good times during our days as colleagues at California State University, Stanislaus, was the best part of the trip. In the words of the old Girl Scout song: “Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver, the other is gold.”

Jt 9/6/18

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

We often read in the academic literature that schools of the future will thrive if they also serve as community centers; however our very isolated one & two-room schools already are thriving, vibrant community centers.  This week I drove an hour and 15 minutes to visit the first day of school for Hereford (K-8), 2-room school.  They welcomed me, as if I lived 5 minutes away.  The school yard was filled with moms, dads, babies, aunties & uncles, grammies & grampys, a school board member, and even the local electrical company people who arrived with donuts and juice for everyone.  I’m pretty sure that these prairie people don’t need the academic literature to tell them what works in their school.

In this issue of WinkWorld, I will share just a peak into this wonderful experience.

Both teachers, one baby daughter, and 15 kids lined up for the official photo.  Teachers, we understand how tricky it can be to get kids to line up on the first day, but when you add horses to wiggling kids, it is even trickier

Here are two of the 8th graders: Jess and Sage.  

Ironically, Jess on the left with the dark long-sleeve shirt, once was a little girl who came to my classes at Black Hills State University with her mom, a graduate student.  Here is Jess 3 years ago in our graduate class, as I was doing a Read Aloud.

Incidentally, “The SheepOver (Sweet Pea & Friends)” by Jennifer Churchman and John Churchman is a great book.  There are now 2 others in the series: “Brave Little Finn” and “Alpaca Lunch” available on Amazon.

This little guy is just beginning kindergarten.  He was not the least bit excited to tell me about riding to school on a horse on his first day ever in school, but he was VERY excited that he had a phone buried deep in one his many pockets.  He eventually dug it out and proudly showed it to me.

In the photo below, Carrie, is the teacher for the kids in 5th-8th grades.  Carrie even rode with her baby, Grace.

Terri is the teacher of K-4; here she is with the kids who will be in her class.

Of course, we had to have some fun!

Hey, Look, I Even Found an Avid Reader!

This mom, Cassie, was reading “just a few more pages” until I went over and interrupted her as she was lost in the flow of the book, Winter by Marissa Meyer, which is part of The Lunar  Chronicles.

Finally, it is time to go in and start the school year: Ring that Bell, Boys!

Thank you to Elizabeth (mom of Jess), Shelane (traveling library paraprofessional), and Terri (teacher)  for sharing some of your photos and the video.

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

Linda Huff, a teacher in Texas, was kind enough to share a short story about when she discovered the power of reading–this took place after she read Stephen D. Krashen’s book, The Power of Reading.

Enjoy Linda’s discovery by clicking on the grayed-out “continue reading” in the box below.

Recently, Linda and I had another conversation about how mainstream classroom teachers can more actively engage students with their classroom libraries, school libraries, and/or their local library.   I thought I might share some of these resources, and I hope you share with us how you use the library with students.

Library Resources for Mainstream Teacher (or any of us!)

You might want to join the following groups:

•American Library Association (ALA) 

•American Association of School Librarians (AASL)

Yes, these two professional groups are active on social media, also.  

•Library Think Tank is on Facebook and often has wonderful discussions of library resources.

•Nerdy Book Club  from Donalyn Miller never fails.  Donalyn is also active on social media.

A Classroom Library: If You Build It, They Will Read by Jim Bailey

I asked my school librarian friend/colleague/former graduate student and school librarian extraordinaire, Dr. Deb Schneider of Tracy, CA for some resources.  Deb immediately cited a few more references for us.  Thanks, Deb!

https://futureready.org/program-overview/librarians/

Hi WinkWorld Readers,

Teachers and Teacher Educators, this one is really for you.

About 6 months ago, a colleague, Beth Skelton, and I had a discussion of instruments for shadowing a student.  We agreed that we had never found an instrument, which really worked for both of us and for others.  Beth has been working on a new instrument since that time, and we want to share with you.  Beth will also be sharing her work at a couple of conferences, so she may have more to share.

When I speak of shadowing, I am only speaking of shadowing to learn more about a child’s language abilities.  Shadowing a student can be used in many diverse contexts (to create more empathy; to promote independence; to understand a student’s perspective; to encourage social engagement; to understand various learning differences, etc.)  

What Is Shadowing?

Sometimes, we have a student who might not be reading or writing as well as we think he/she should, and the teacher wants more information about the student’s language abilities. At this point, a classroom teacher can request a colleague (a literacy specialist, a shadow assistant, a paraprofessional, etc) into the classroom to focus specifically on one student to understand the student’s needs better.  The shadow assistant simply sits to the side and pretends to take notes on the whole class while the mainstream classroom teacher carries on with planned instruction.    Various instruments are available to help the shadow assistant record as much as possible about what is happening, usually in 5 minute intervals. We also refer to this as collecting data; the instruments are very specific about what the literacy specialist or assistant is to watch and record.

Why Shadow?

To better understand the needs’ of a student.

To improve and increase a teacher’s pedagogical skills.

How To Shadow

In this WinkWorld Beth shares the instrument, which she is using now. I have never used it, but it looks very good to me.  I have used other instruments many times, and I have always been amazed at what can be learned about a student’s linguistic needs.

This is the instrument, which I have used the most. I find it to be very demanding and very revealing.  Please note that my colleagues at Stanislaus Country Office of Education in Modesto, CA originally shared it with me.

Shadowing Observational Tool

Beth Skelton modified the instrument and created this one.

Beth Skelton Shadowing Document Modified

Thank you, Beth Skelton!

Educational Consultants, LLC

www.bethskelton.com

970-773-0887

The image below is not related to shadowing a student in a school, but it does speak loudly to me. 

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

There are many great ways to begin a new school year, and I hope you will share your good ideas with us, too.  Thank you, Teachers!  In this issue of WinkWorld, I am sharing 4 suggestions, which might interest you.

Begin With a Book*

I have recently learned of teachers in various states, who asked their community members to donate a book for each child.  Annie is a neighbor, friend, and 4th/5th grade teacher in a small town, Faith, 30 miles from us.  Annie reached out on social media and asked our very rural community to donate a book, so that each student would have a new book of their very own on the first day of school. 

After the first day of school, Annie wrote on social media, “This is what makes my job worthwhile! The excitement on my kiddos’ faces when they received their new books!!! Or when my fourthies from last year told the fourthies this year how good their book was. I am so stinking excited to add these books to my “to read” list when my kids give me rave review on them. This was BY FAR my favorite project. I sent them home with “homework” tonight on the first day of school: you must read for 20 minutes in your new book! Not a single complaint.”

I can just feel the excited as I read Annie’s words.  The truth is that this reading project has reached beyond her classroom, as many of us are excitedly waiting for her next request.  I can see that, not only is Annie building community in our rural area, but she is also showing us how we can be good mentors for young readers.

Thank you, Annie!

In another part of our county–even more rural and isolated–is Atall School.  If you follow WinkWorld, you know that I have written about this little school previously.

Last spring the 15 students took a field to see Mt. Rushmore.  A couple of weeks ago, the teacher, Missy, sent a postcard to each student, welcoming them back. Thank you, Missy.

Tammy, a first grade teacher in Kuna, ID, also sent a postcard to each student before school began.

In addition, Tammy has First Grade Business Cards waiting for each student on the first day of school.

Thank you, Tammy.  To read more about the adventures of Tammy and her class, you might want to sign up for her blog, Forever in First. 

In addition, please check out Tammy’s book, Gatekeepers: Let’s Talk About Teaching.  I have written about Tammy previously.

Tammy’s Professional Reading: 41 Professional Books this Summer

The next issues of WinkWorld will focus on (a) shadowing students to know their needs better (thank you, Beth Skelton) and  (b) ways which mainstream classroom teachers can be more actively engaged with their school libraries (thank you, Linda Huff from TX) . Soon after these two, I hope to share a bit about Louise Rosenblatt, (thank you, Philomena Marinaccio from FL).

*Begin With a Book, and yes, that is the working title of my next book proposal, which Missy Urbaniak and I are writing.

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

Teachers, family members with kids in schools, and all people interested in literacy and learning: This one is for you. 

Krashen, Stephen D., Lee, Sy-Ying, & Lao, Christy. (2018).

Comprehensible and Compelling: The Causes and Effects of Free Voluntary Reading

Libraries Unlimited/ABC-CLIO

Teachers, many of you know about Krashen’s comprehensible input (CI) for language acquisition. The idea is that if we make our teaching MEANINGFUL, people will acquire language. Well, CI just got a lot bigger, with the advent of compelling comprehensible (CCI), which deepens CI from language acquisition, to literacy, to motivation, to teaching and learning for a future, which is, of course, unknown.

At the very beginning of the book, the authors write that if we happened to be too busy to read the entire little 7 chapter, 87 page book, we really only need to read the first 3 tiny paragraphs–here they are.

I disagree with the authors. You also really need to find time to read the Conclusion where the authors share tight little summaries and implications of the new knowledge for literacy, language acquisition, motivation, and well, the future of education.

However, you must read to the end of my review so you can find the story of the people I met on the plane while I was writing this review.  Or, you really could skip my review and jump down to the bottom and read the story of The HORSE and HIS BOY (1954) by C.S. Lewis.

Before we begin, you need to know that I have been a Krashen fan since the late 1970s, when I went to hear him speak at a conference in Phoenix.  He turned my grammar-loving, memory-centered teaching up-side-down. Before his presentation, I really believed that “I will teach, and they will learn” the conjugations, the past perfect tense, the little direct and indirect pronouns, and the simbolismo de Don Quijote.  Turns out that those teenagers in AZ needed to use real language in real contexts to acquire Spanish. In addition, most of the students had been using Spanish at home, since they were born, so I am forever grateful to them for helping me acquire Spanish, too.  Soon after this great discovery about the use of real Spanish, the principal moved our classes way out on the edge of the campus in a room, which had previously been used for shop classes.  The band was moved into the only room near us.  Worked perfectly.  Our lively classes didn’t bother any of the quieter classes. I think I thank you, Steve. 

Previously, I have published on this experience with The Benson Kids, and I will post a link at the bottom of this post.

My only problem in reading and writing the review of this book is that I kept getting lost in the flow (Thank you, Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) as I forget all else and relished the memories of my teaching experiences which kept flooding back. I cannot promise you an archetypal book review, but rather I will share HOW I read it and WHAT I thought, as I read.

First, I did a fast scan of the book, as I know most of the research and implications in the book, and I wanted to know what’s new?  A-ha: Something very new indeed, as comprehensible input (CI) just grew and deepen to include compelling comprehensible input (CCI). I promise to explain, as we go. Or as the authors say early in their book: “We will do our best” (p. ix). 

Second, after scanning the book, I went immediately to the References, to find our ‘ol literacy friends: Our Keeper of the Numbers and Knowledge, Berliner; The Book Whisperer, Donalyn Miller; Our Intellectual Hero, Chomsky;  Mr. Flow Himself, Csikszentmihalyi;  Phonics Only Helps Kids Do Better On Tests Of Words In Isolation and Not Comprehension, Garan;  Story-telling Guru, Mason; Words In Context Matter, Nagy; Ever The Researcher, McQuillan, Dear Friend, Fay Shin; Beloved, Frank Smith; Mr. Read Aloud, Jim Trelease, and many other highly-esteemed literacy scholars.

But, Bean (1879):  Who the heck was she, and why should we care? And, yes, that is 1879.  I stopped reading the References immediately and went searching for her in the text: FOUND on p. 37. Turns out that Bean, a librarian, wrote something dreadful entitled, The Evil of Unlimited Freedom in the Use of Juvenile Fiction. She was concerned that this “craze for books” among kids would rot their brains.  So, this is where that silly notion came from, as the myth has lived on with others through the years.  If you are a reader of novels, you certainly know that dismissive comment, when someone rolls their eyes and sighs, “Oh, I only read non-fiction.” 

To Bean and her buddies, I say: “Not to worry.”  Indeed, the Krashen, Lee, Lao book provide the evidence (Chapter Six) that “readers, when allowed and enabled to select their own reading, do not stick to substandard texts, but rather select more demanding reading material as they mature” (p. 83). 

Third, after the References, I went right to the Index.  I checked Comprehensible Input (Krashen, 2003), p. 2: We acquire language and develop literacy when we understand messages.  This is now (2018) referred to as the Comprehension Hypothesis. The opposite is the Skill Building Hypothesis (p. 2) which posits that  competence is in the distance future after a whole lot of hard work. 

It is like the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic learning; between meaning-centered and memory-centered;  between incidental and intentional learning; between comprehension and reading skills.  Can you see that I am now in the flow (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990), and nothing but this activity matters to me.  The concerns of today disappear, and I am lost in this writing.  Tonight when I read my novel, I will be lost in that world.

Now, the new stuff: compelling comprehensible input(p. 2): 

Compelling Comprehensible Input = FLOW, which is where I am right now.  We all love to understand, and we all love when something is really, really interesting (OK, compelling) for us, and we all love to get lost in a project (flow).

A glance into these 7 short chapters, which Krashen, Lee, and Lao say (with tongue firmly placed in cheek, I hope) we can skip.  I found them worth my time.

Chapter One Compelling Comprehensible Input–Compelling comprehensible input has primacy in language and literacy development: This is a game changer for education. Read it.

Chapter Two, The Three Stages of Reading–If you are skipping any chapters as you read, do not skip this one. Krashen uses his own experience as a case history. Read it.  My story is very different, but that is for another WinkWorld.  I suspect that I am on out-lier. 

Chapter Three, What Read-Alouds Do and What They Don’t Do–Read-Alouds are not the be-all-and-end-all for literacy development, but they are highly effective. It is not helpful to focus on print awareness, while reading to kids; it just interrupts their connection with the story…and, it can be very annoying for them. Read it.

Chapter Four, Self-selected Reading–Apparently, I will not be going to hell-in-a-handbasket because I sometimes choose light reading, which is often held in distain.  Last night, I read Ghosted by Rosie Walsh, and apparently I will still be okay. I read hard stuff, too.  You and I both like to choose our own reading–kids, too. Read it.

Chapter Five, Will They Only Read Junk? Answer: Not to worry. Read it.

Chapter Six, The Complexity Study: Do They Only Read “Easy” Books?  Here is the evidence.  The data demonstrate that children in a print-rich environment, in which they can choose their own books, do not stay with only easy books.  In fact, they will begin to choose harder books. I am always reminded of one of my 1970s students, José. I told the class they could choose their own reading and their own writing, and after a little quiet time, 8th grader José, issued the challenge.  “Even the Tucson phone book?” Sure.  He did not get beyond the A’s, when he moved on to much harder materials.  More of this story is found in The Benson Kids, posted at the bottom.  Read it and read Krashen, Lee, and Lao’s Chapter Six, too.

Chapter Seven, What Have We Learned from PIRLS ? (an international test of reading)–Access to compelling comprehensible input matters.  Poverty is the problem. Libraries are the answer. Read it.

Now, that story about The HORSE and HIS BOY by C.S. Lewis, a couple of teenagers and a mom on a plane:

As I was writing this review on a flight from Chicago to Philadelphia, I suddenly realized that I heard the voice of someone reading aloud. I started searching and found a mom in the middle seat directly in front of me. She was leaning over closer to her teeny-bopper daughter in the window seat, who was leaning into her mom. The mom read aloud the entire trip. When we landed, I immediately asked the mom and daughter what they were reading: The HORSE and HIS BOY.

While waiting for our luggage at the carrosel, the mom, daughter, son (age 17), and I continued talking about the value of reading. When we parted, the son asked me if I knew of the “Warrior” series. Yes, indeedy, thanks to my 2 avid reader grandsons. Finally, a little street “cred.” 

The Benson Kids.

Various versions of this story have been printed in the 4 different edition of Critical Pedagogy: Notes from the Real World.  The following story is taken from the 3rd edition (2004). 

Critical Pedagogy 3rd Ed – The Benson Kids

Dear WinkWord Readers,

A group of graduate students and I wrote and published this piece, Those People, in 1997.  Sadly, it seems more relevant today.  It is rather long, but I so wanted to capture the oral history and graphic drawings of  Mimi, and of course, this is not her real name. 

Teacher educators, I know that some of you are using my materials as you create your syllabi. This is one for lots of different classes.  Of course, a reference is always appreciated.

It all began so simply. . .  

Those-People-WinkWorld-3.29.2017-

The next issue of WinkWorld will be my review of Comprehensible and  Compelling: The Causes and Effects of Free Voluntary Reading (2018) by Stephen D. Krashen, Sy-Ying Lee, and Christy Lao, published by Libraries Unlimited/ABC-CLIO.

Hey Teacher Friends and Families with Kids in Schools,

This WinkWorld is for you.  

IF you could choose which test to use for your state’s mandated testing, what would your choice be?  Please think in terms of (a) the process and (b) the product.  For example, do you prefer once per year, twice per year, three times per year?  And/or, is there a specific test which you believe has more value for kids than other tests?  I am aware that some districts have very good district-mandated tests, in addition to the state’s tests.  

I will compile the results and share the results.  I will double-post this WinkWorld to Facebook and Twitter, so all of the responses will not be visible to some of you immediately.  In addition, I know that some of you simply prefer to respond to me on email (joan@joanwink.com).  Whatever works best for you.

Yes, someone, who can make a difference, really did ask me that question.  I told that person that I would ask all of you and get back to her/him.

Thanks!

Here is a visual overview of my recent chapter on testing, High-Stakes Stories, which is in The Power of Story.  Thank you to my dear friend and cousin, Missy Urbaniak, for drawing the following visual Table of Contents.

The Power of Story Chapter Four

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

Dawn, our daughter, just wrote on her blog, DewDrops, about our branding in late May.  These memories make me so happy, and I wanted to share with all of you.  Thanks, Dawn!

Click HERE to enjoy.

Please turn up your volume on her video clip.

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

In the previous two posts on literacy*, I wrote about newer perspectives on literacy.  We used to think that literacy was reading and writing (and, it is), yet we now understand that literacy can also have deeper meanings. 

I first encountered these expanding definitions of literacy in the mid to late 1980’s, and yes, it was a challenge: Relearning and unlearning often is very annoying.  However, there were a few specific steps along the path, that helped me move forward.

First, I encountered Jim Moffett’s definition of literacy, which initially jarred me; then haunted me; and finally appealed to me.  Now, I’ve lived long enough to know that this is true.

Literacy is dangerous and has always been so regarded.  It naturally breaks down barriers of time, space, and culture. It threatens one’s original identity by broadening it through vicarious experiencing and the incorporation of somebody else’s heart and ethos.  So we feel profoundly ambiguous about literacy.  Looking at it as a means of transmitting our culture to our children, we give it priority in education, but recognizing the threat of its backfiring, we make it so tiresome and personally unrewarding that youngsters won’t want to do it on their own, which is, of course, when it becomes dangerous. . . .  The net effect of this ambivalence is to give literacy with one hand and take it back with the other, in keeping with our contradictory wish for youngsters to learn to think but only about what we already have in mind for them (Moffett, 1989, p. 85, as cited in Critical Pedagogy: Notes from the Real World, Wink, 2011, p. 71).

Ouch! 

James Moffett was ahead of his time.  

The second step for me in understanding more deeply about literacy was when I learned in the mid to late 1980’s of the work of Paulo Freire.  The Moffett quote seemed to come true in Freire’s life.

Freire lived in Brazil, and he discovered that he could teach the peasants to read in a relatively short period of time, by encouraging them to write of their own experiences in their own language.  Eventually, he was exiled from his home country: “Literacy is dangerous.”

Freire went on to be a highly respected and much loved literacy and critical pedagogy scholar throughout the world; he was invited to Harvard. Eventually, he was welcomed home, where he became Secretary of Education in Sao Paulo, Brazil. 

Reading the Word and the World.

One of Freire’s many contributions, which really influenced me was his notion that literacy was reading the word, and it was also reading the world.

In my book Critical Pedagogy: Notes from the Real World, 2011, p. 71, I describe these two concepts in the following manner.

Reading the Word means:

To decode/encode those words

To bring ourselves to those pages

To make meaning of those pages as they relate to our experiences, our possibilities, our cultures, and our knowledges.

Reading the World means:

To decode/encode the people around us

To decode/encode the community that surrounds us

To decode/encode the visible and invisible messages of the world.

Freire’s definition of literacy rang very true for me at that time.  I grew up in a violent home, and I learned very, very early in life to read the world before I was able to read the word.  And, today I think of those immigrant children who have been taken from their families–they may be too young to read the word, but I know from experience, they they are reading the world. 

Paulo Freire’s books are readily available online. My Critical Pedagogy: Notes from the  Real World is available from Pearson.  Amazon has it also, but they often charge a lot more than Pearson. Also, online used books almost always has very inexpensive copies of my book.

Paulo Freire

Photo taken by Dean Wink, 1993, California Association of Bilingual Education (CABE)

*posted below