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TCEA REMARKS
IT SEEMS TO ME THAT THERE IS A FALSE DICHOTOMY IN THE
LIBRARY PROFESSION OF LATE. IS LITERATURE OR IS TECHNOLOGY
MORE IMPORTANT? TO ME THAT SEEM POLARIZING. LITERATURE
AND TECHNOLOGY DO NOT EXIST AS SEPARATE ENTITIES. RATHER
THEY ARE TWO ENDS ON THE SAME CONTINUUM, A CONTINUUM WE
MIGHT LABLE “LITERACY.”
SO, IN THE WORDS OF RODNEY KING, I WANT TO ENTITLE THESE
REMARKS: CAN’T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG?
IN ORDER TO GET ALONG, ITHINK, WE NEED TO REDEFINE SOME
TERMS. WE NEED TO REDEFINE WHAT WE MEAN BY READING. WE
NEED TO REDEFINE WHAT WE MEAN BY BOOKS. AND FINALLY, WE
NEED TO CONTINUE TO REDEFINE WHAT WE MEAN BY “LITERACY.”
WHAT IS READING? AS SOMEONE WHOSE DOCTORAL STUDIES WERE
IN THIS FIELD, I KNOW THERE IS NOT A SIMPLE ANSWER TO THIS
QUESTION. HOWEVER, I DO NOW THAT READING HAS TO EXTEND
BEYOND A DISCRETE SET OF SKILLS. AFTER ALL, IS READING IS
SIMPLY SOUNDING OUT WORDS, THAN THIS IS READING:
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A
AB
AC
AD
AF
AG
ANYONE RECOGNIZE THIS? THIS IS THE SYLLABARY. IT IS HOW
CHILDREN WERE TAUGHT TO READ IN CENTURIES PAST. HOWEVER,
IT IS ALSO, IN ESSENCE, PHONICS. SOUNDING OUT IS NOT READING. I
CAN SOUND OUT LOTS OF WORDS. THAT DOES NOT MEAN I KNOW
WHAT THEY MEAN. LIKEWISE, THE CONVERSE IS TRUE: I CAN KNOW
WHAT A WORD MEANS AND NOT KNOW HOW TO SOUND IT OUT.
NAT’S WAFT STORY
MY STORY ABOUT INDICT
WHEN PROGRAMS SUCH AS HOOKED ON PHONICS CLAIM THAT WITH
30 MINUTES OF INSTRUCTION A CHILD CAN READ AN ENTIRE BOOK,
NOTE THAT THEY DO NOT SHOW THE BOOK THEY CAN READ. GUESS
WHAT THE BOOK IS? IT IS A SYLLABARY VARIANT. IS THIS
READING? I THINK MOST OF US WOULD SAY NO.
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SO, IS READING COMPREHENSION? UNDERSTANDING THE WORDS?
READ A PASSAGE; ANSWER THE QUESTIONS. VOILA, READING?
GOSH, I HOPE RADING IS MUCH MORE THAN THAT. SOUNDING OUT
AND DECODING ARE FINE AND WE NEED KIDS TO HAVE THOSE
SKILLS. HOWEVER, IF THAT IS ALL THERE IS TO READING, HOW DO
YOU RESPOND TO SOMEONE WHO POSTED THIS THE OTHER DAY IN
RESPONSE TO NANCIE ATWELL’S LOVELY ESSAY ABOUT THE
IMPORTANCE OF BOOKS AND READING ENTITLED THE CASE FOR
LITERATURE?
ENGLISH EDUCATION HAS NEVER HAD A CONVINCING
RATIONALE FOR TEACHING LITERATURE; THANK HEAVEN FOR
WRITING, AS AT LEAST A TEACHER KNOWS WHEN A STUDENT DOES
IT! LITERATURE HAS ALWAYS BEEN--AND CONTINUES TO BE--USE-
LESS: IT DOESN'T HAVE A CLEAR USE THAT TRANSLATES INTO A
VALUE FOR NON-LITERATURE-TEACHERS.
I KNOW WHAT MY REPLY IS. WELL, AT LEAST THE REPLY I CAN
SHARE WITH YOU IN PUBLIC AND NOT THE MUTTERED REPLY THAT
SPRANG FROM MY LIPS UNCENSORED WHEN I READ THIS. HOW SAD
TO THINK THAT LITERATURE IS USE-LESS. HERE IS JUST A FRACTION
OF WHAT LITERATURE DOES:
1. IT REMINDS US OF HOW WE ARE ALL CONNECTED. I HAVE
SPENT A LOT OF TIME OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS
TALKING ABOUT CONNECTIONS AS I WORKED ON MY NEW
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BOOK: READING LADDERS. WHEN I READ, I SEE
CONNECTIONS BETWEEN TEXTS. BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY,
I SEE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN THE BOOK AND MY OWN LIFE,
THE CHARACTERS AND ME.
2. LITERATURE ENCOURAGES THE “WHAT IFS” OF INVENTION.
3. LITERATURE HELPS US DEAL WITH SOME OF THE COSMIC
QUESTIONS: WHO AM I? HOW DO I FIT INTO THIS WORLD?
WHAT CAN I BE WHEN I GROW UP?
4. LITERATURE SHOWS ME ALL OF THE MANY SPLENDID WAYS
WORDS CAN BE UTILIZED. HOW CAN WE HAVE WRITERS IF
WE DO NOT FIRST HAVE READERS? AND FINALLY
5. LITERATURE OFFERS WINDOWS AND MIRRORS: WINDOWS
INTO OTHER PLACES AND TIMES, WINDOWS TO OTHER
CULTURES. AND MIRRORS? MIRRORS THAT REFLECT OUR
OWN LIVES AND CULTURES AND PLACES.
SO, WE NEED TO EXTEND OUR DEFINITION OF READING TO GO
BEYOND SOUNDING OUT AND DECODING. HERE ARE SOME THINGS
WE NEED TO INCLUDE:
A. THE READING OF NONFICTION
B. THE READING OF NON-PRINT MATERIALS
C. READING WITH OUR EARS
THAT SUGGESTS, THEN, THAT OUR REENVIONING OF READING IS
ALSO A REIMAGINING OF WHAT WE MEAN BY THE TERM BOOK OR
TEXT. HOW MANY OF YOU READ THINGS LIKE THIS:
BILLBOARDS?
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MENUS?
SHAMPOO BOTTLES?
CEREAL BOXES?
ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING?
TWEETS, STATUS UPDATES, BLOGS, WIKI PAGES, NINGS?
THESE ARE ALL TEXTS. WHEN I SEE REPORTS THAT INDICATE THE
AMOUNT OF READING OUR KIDS ARE DOING IS DECLINING, MY FIRST
QUESTION IS: DID YOU COUNT THIS KIND OF READING, THESE KINDS
OF TEXTS. IF NOT, YOUR CONCLUSIONS NEED TO BE CHALLENGED.
REDEFINE READING, REDEFINE BOOKS, AND NOW WE NEED TO
REDEFINE LITERACY. JIM WARLICK AND JOYCE VALENZA AND
MANY OTHERS HAVE WRITTEN ELOQUENTLY ABOUT THIS TOPIC. I
WANT TO ADD A PIECE FROM MY END OF THE CONTINUUM AND
FROM MY FIELD: ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS.
DAVID BOOTH, IN HIS POWERFUL BOOK, READING DOESN’T MATTER
ANYMORE, HAS QUITE A BIT TO SAY, I THINK, ABOUT WHERE
LITERACY MUST HEAD NOW. READING DOESN’T MATTER ANYMORE
HE SAYS UNLESS WE REDEFINE LITERACY. HOW DO WE DO THAT?
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BOOTH PROPOSES THAT WE INCLUDE A VARIETY OF TEXTS, HELP
KIDS BUILD STRONG READING MUSCLES, VALUE THE RESPONSE OF
THE READER, AND WELCOME READERS INTO THE CULTURE OF
LITERACY. NONE OF THIS IS NEW. WHAT IS NEW, THOUGH, ARE THE
READERS WE WORK WITH IN CLASSROOMS ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
EACH AUGUST FOR THE PAST 11 YEARS, BELOIT COLLEGE IN
WISCONSIN, HAS RELEASED THE BELOIT COLLEGE MINDSET LIST. IT
PROVIDES A LOOK AT THE CULTURAL TOUCHSTONES THAT SHAPE
THE LIVES OF STUDENTS ENTERING COLLEGE.
THE CLASS OF 2012 (AND I HAVE A RESIDENT OF THE BACK
BEDROOM WHO WILL BE IN THAT FRESHMAN CLASS THEN) HAS
GROWN UP IN AN ERA WHERE COMPUTERS AND RAPID
COMMUNICATION ARE THE NORM, AND COLLEGES NO LONGER
TRUMPET THE FACT THAT RESIDENCE HALLS ARE “WIRED” AND
EQUIPPED WITH THE LATEST HARDWARE. THESE STUDENTS WILL
HARDLY RECOGNIZE THE AVAILABILITY OF TELEPHONES IN THEIR
ROOMS SINCE THEY HAVE SELDOM UTILIZED LANDLINES DURING
THEIR ADOLESCENCE. THEY WILL CONTINUE TO LIVE ON THEIR
CELL PHONES AND COMMUNICATE VIA TEXTING. ROOMMATES, FEW
OF WHOM HAVE EVER SHARED A BEDROOM, HAVE ALREADY
CHECKED OUT EACH OTHER ON FACEBOOK WHERE THEY HAVE
SHARED THEIR MOST PERSONAL THOUGHTS WITH THE WHOLE
WORLD. IT IS A MULTICULTURAL, POLITICALLY CORRECT AND
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“GREEN” GENERATION THAT HAS HARDLY NOTICED THE THREATS
TO THEIR PRIVACY AND HAS NEVER FEARED THE RUSSIANS AND
THE WARSAW PACT. STUDENTS ENTERING COLLEGE FOR THE FIRST
TIME THIS FALL WERE GENERALLY BORN IN 1990.
FOR THESE STUDENTS, HARRY POTTER COULD BE A CLASSMATE,
PLAYING ON THEIR QUIDDITCH TEAM.
1. GPS SATELLITE NAVIGATION SYSTEMS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN
AVAILABLE.
2. IBM HAS NEVER MADE TYPEWRITERS.
3. THERE HAS ALWAYS BEEN PEARL JAM.
4. AUTHORITIES HAVE ALWAYS BEEN BUILDING A WALL ACROSS
THE MEXICAN BORDER.
5. CALLER ID HAS ALWAYS BEEN AVAILABLE ON PHONES..
6. OFF-SHORE OIL DRILLING IN THE UNITED STATES HAS ALWAYS
BEEN PROHIBITED.
7. STUDENTS ALWAYS HAD GOOSEBUMPS.
THESE ARE THE STUDENTS SITTING IN OUR CLASSROOMS, STUDENTS
FOR WHOM OLDER DEFINITIONS OF LITERACY AND BOOKS AND
READING MUST EVOLVE. FOR THEM, GN ADAPTATIONS OF BEOWULF
OR THE MERCHANT OF VENICE BY GARETH HINDS ARE
MEANINGFUL. ALAN GRATZ’ CONTEMPORARY AND HUMOROUS
STORIES ABOUT HAMLET AND MACBETH IN SOMETHING ROTTEN
AND SOMETHING WICKED RESPECTIVELY ARE WAYS TO MAKE THE
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BARD MORE THAN ACCESSIBLE, THEY MAKE HIM ACTUALLY
PALATABLE. AUDIOBOOKS ALLOW THEM TO GET MORE READING
ACCOMPLISHED. HERE ARE THE MOST DOWNLOADED AUDIOBOOKS
AND EBOOKS FROM 2009:
Most Downloaded Juvenile Fiction Audiobooks AND E BOOKS from the Library (2009)(Title, Author, Publisher)1. Twilight, Stephenie Meyer, Listening Library2. New Moon, Stephenie Meyer, Listening Library3. Breaking Dawn, Stephenie Meyer, Listening Library4. Eclipse, Stephenie Meyer, Listening Library
Most Downloaded Juvenile Nonfiction Audiobooks from the Library (2009)(Title, Author, Publisher)1. Night, Elie Wiesel, Audio Bookshelf,LLC2. VocabuLearn Spanish Word Booster, Penton Overseas, Inc., Penton Overseas, Inc.3. Hear-SayTM Spanish, Penton Overseas, Inc., Donald S. Rivera4. Amelia Earhart, Books In Motion, Lori Van Pelt5. Blizzard!, Jim Murphy, Audio Bookshelf,LLC
MY OWN JOURNEY TOWARD A NEW DEFINITION OF LITERACY
BEGAN ABOUT 4 YEARS AGO WHEN I WAS ASKED BY STENHOUSE TO
WRITE A SECOND BOOK. QUITE FRANKLY, I WAS PRETTY SURE THAT
I HAD ALREADY SHARED ALL I KNEW IN MAKING THE MATCH. SO, I
WAS RUMINATING ABOUT SOME SUBJECT FOR A SECOND BOOK
WHEN I LEARNED ABOUT NAKED READING. (SOME OF YOU HERE
ARE FAMILIAR WITH THE STORY BEHIND THE BOOK, BUT IT BEARS
REPEATING AND THERE IS A CADENZA TO ADD TO IT NOW SOME 3
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YEARS LATER). AT THE TIME, MY YOUNGEST GRANDDAUGHTER,
NATALIE, WAS 10. EACH NIGHT, AFTER HER SHOWER, SHE WOULD
DISAPPEAR INTO HER CLOSET FOR ABOUT AN HOUR. IT WAS A QUIET
TIME; SHE WAS IN THERE AND SILENT. THIS COULD NOT BE GOOD, I
THOUGHT, THE PARENT IN ME KICKING IN. SO, I SENT HER OLDER
SISTER IN TO SPY, TO SEE WHAT NAT WAS UP TO. AFTER ALL, THIS
WAS THE SAME KID WHO HAD BEEN LIGHTING CANDLES IN THE
CLOSET OT GIVE IT “ATMOSPHERE.” AS IT TURNS OUT, NATALIE WAS
IN THE CLOSET, SITTING BUTT NAKED READING A BOOK. WHEN I
ASKED HER TO COME OUT AND EXPLAIN WHAT SHE WAS DOING, SHE
TOLD ME THAT SHE HAD READ SOMEWHERE THAT IF THE SKIN AIR
DRIES, IT IS BETTER. SO, SHE CONTINUED, I WONDERED WHAT I
COULD DO WHILE I WAS AIR DRYING (AND NOW THAT YOU HAVE
BEEN HERE IN TEXAS AND EXPERIENCED OUR HUMIDITY, YOU
KNOW THIS IS NO SMALL FEAT), AND I DECIDED I COULD READ.
WELL, THAT SET ME THINKING ABOUT WHY SOME KIDS CAN READ
WHILE AIR DRYING IN THE CLOSET AND OTHERS ELECTED NOT TO
READ EVEN FULLY CLOTHED.
I ASKED NATALIE THE OTHER DAY IF SHE STILL READS NAKED AND
SHE TOLD ME THAT, IF THE BOOK WAS REALLY GOOD, SHE DID. SO,
SHE WAS READING NORTH OF BEAUTIFUL BY JUSTINE CHEN
HEADLEY WHILE NAKED. HOWEVER, A TALE OF TWO CITIES AND
THE SCARLET LETTER REQUIRED READING WITH CLOTHES. WHY IS
THAT? SIMPLY, BOOKS THAT SPEAK TO NAT AND TO HER LIFE AND
WORLD ARE INDEED FODDER FOR NAKED READING. BOOKS
ASSIGNED FOR ESSAYS AND VOCABULARY STUDY WERE NOT. I
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WONDER, THEN, IF IT IS NOT MORE BENEFICIAL TO ALLOW TEENS
SOME TIME TO READ NAKED, TO READ BOOKS WITHOUT HAVING TO
DO SOMETHING AFTER THE READING OTHER THAN PERHAPS TELL A
FRIEND ABOUT THE BOOK? THUS, NAKED READING HAS YET
ANOTHER INCARNATION FOR ME. IT MEANS GIVING KIDS THE TIME
TO READ, SIMPLY TO READ. OF COURSE, I AM NOT SUGGESTING
THAT THERE IS NEVER SOME SORT OF ASSESSMENT. WHAT I AM
SUGGESTING IS THAT WE ALSO FIND TIME FOR STUDENTS TO READ
WITHOUT THE TYRANNY OF A TEST HANGING OVER THEM. AT
HOME, WE READ, WE READ A LOT. WE LISTEN TO BOOKS IN THE
CAR. SOMETIMES WE TALK ABOUT THE BOOKS.
THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL LIBRARIANS HAS BEEN
WORKING ON THIS SAME AREA WITH ITS 21ST CENTURY LITERACY
INITIATIVE. HERE IS WHAT AASL HAS TO SAY ABOUT LITERACY IN
THE 21ST CENTURY:
1. READING IS A WINDOW TO THE WORLD. READING IS A
FOUNDATIONAL SKILL FOR LEARNING, PERSONAL GROWTH,
AND ENJOYMENT. THE DEGREE TO WHICH STUDENTS CAN
READ AND UNDERSTAND TEXT IN ALL FORMATS (E.G., PICTURE,
VIDEO, PRINT) AND ALL CONTEXTS IS A KEY INDICATOR OF
SUCCESS IN SCHOOL AND IN LIFE. AS A LIFELONG LEARNING
SKILL, READING GOES BEYOND DECODING AND
COMPREHENSION TO INTERPRETATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF
NEW UNDERSTANDINGS.
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2. EQUITABLE ACCESS IS A KEY COMPONENT FOR EDUCATION.
ALL CHILDREN DESERVE EQUITABLE ACCESS TO BOOKS AND
READING, TO INFORMATION, AND TO INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY IN AN ENVIRONMENT THAT IS SAFE AND
CONDUCIVE TO LEARNING.
3. LEARNING HAS A SOCIAL CONTEXT. LEARNING IS ENHANCED
BY OPPORTUNITIES TO SHARE AND LEARN WITH OTHERS.
STUDENTS NEED TO DEVELOP SKILLS IN SHARING KNOWLEDGE
AND LEARNING WITH OTHERS, BOTH IN FACE-TO-FACE
SITUATIONS AND THROUGH TECHNOLOGY.
FINALLY
DANIEL PENNAC’S BETTER THAN LIFE OFFERED A WONDERFUL
READER BILL OF RIGHTS SOME YEARS AGO. RECENTLY, I SAW A
BLOG POSTING WITH A RELUCTANT READER’S BILL OF RIGHTS. SO,
THE LOGICAL CONCLUSION FOR ME, OF COURSE, WAS TO SEE IF I
COULD COME UP WITH A YA READER’S BILL OF RIGHTS. SEE WHAT
YOU THINK:
YA READER’S BILL OF RIGHTS
1. RIGHT TO READ YAL AT ANY AGE
2. RIGHT TO READ EXTENSIVELY INSTEAD OF INTENSIVELY
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3. RIGHT TO DEMAND CHANGES IN THE LITERARY CANON FOR
THE 21ST CENTURY
4. RIGHT TO READ WITH THEIR EARS
5. RIGHT TO SEE THE MOVIE OR PLAY INSTEAD OF READING THE
BOOK
6. RIGHT TO READ BOOKS THAT DISTURB THEM AND ESPECIALLY
THEIR PARENTS
7. RIGHT TO HAVE ACCESS TO BOOKS AT SCHOOL AND AT HOME
8. RIGHT TO READ BOOKS WITH LOTS OF PICTURES IN THEM
9. RIGHT TO REFUSE TO READ A PROSCRIBED BOOK
10.RIGHT TO DEMAND A REDEFINITION OF WHAT IT MEANS TO
READ
IF WE FAIL TO OFFER THESE REDEFINITIONS, THESE REIMAGININGS,
REENVISIONINGS, THESE RE-PURPOSINGS, OTHERS WILL DO THAT
FOR US. WE WILL CEDE CONTROL; WE WILL LOSE, I THINK, OUR
ROLE ON CENTER STAGE WHEN IT COMES TO DEVELOPING 21ST
CENTURY LEARNERS. SO, TAKE ON SOME “RIGHTS” OF YOUR OWN
AND PLACE YOURSELF SQUARE IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT
CONTINUUM I MENTIONED AT THE OUTSET OF THESE REMARKS.
THERE IS NO DICHOTOMY THAT EXISTS BETWEEN LITERATURE AND
TECHNOLOGY, TO ANSWER THE QUESTION: YES, WE CAN GET
ALONG JUST FINE.
THANKS YOU.
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