- The 5 elements of literacy according to Szwed is text, context, function, participation and motivation. Motivation gives the individual the pursuit to read or write about something that interests them. This can be from hobbies, financials or even political topics. Its factors like this that gives the person the time to read or write about something.
2. Szwed recommends ethnography as an effective way to study literacy. He explains that to measure literacy you would have to be able to look at it in a culture aspect rather than a general aspect.
3. Szwed’s quote basically means that every cultural/ethnic group has their own way unique way of describing literacy. Literacy cannot just be this general 19th century European elitist way of thinking when you describe literature. Literature can mean different from an African’s perspective compared to a European’s perspective when it comes to literature. Just because they are not the same doesn’t mean there are flaws to one’s idea of literature.
4. If I was a literacy teacher in a Bronx High School, I would acknowledge the culture/community that I am teaching. I would teach them in a manner that they would like to be taught. I would encourage them to read and write about things that showed similarity to their life experiences. This way it can get the students more motivated to read and write about things that are appealing to them.
5. Elizabeth Baker explains that the sociocultural perspective of literacy examines literacy as an artifact of culture. It gives a perspective that literacy can change from culture to culture. The four characteristics of literacy is semiotic, public, transitory and product oriented. She suggests these characteristics of literacy because it gives us an insight to see what others are reading and writing and it shows that literacy is always constantly transitioning as time passes.
6. I learned that orality involves the exchange of information using speech/communication. Orality relies on human senses to convey information. Literacy, exchanges information by making use of written language like reading or writing.
7. Literacy practices are shaped by communities we are a part of and raised in by culture. Literacy can be viewed differently across cultures. For example Elizabeth Baker showed that the kids from the Appalachian communities were deemed illiterate in their classrooms. But in their communities literacy was not the same as the schools; literacy changes as cultures change.
8. Literacy standards are created from changes in the culture or progression in mainstream masses. For example in Western culture, literacy is assessed through schools and media. It has changed from time to time in Western culture though. In the 1900s literacy was defined as getting the gist of newspaper articles and following directions. Compared to the late 1600s, literacy standards involved mastering a range of religious texts. These standards obviously do not apply to everyone because literacy varies from culture to culture.
