Traditional Literacy

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Merits and shortfalls of redefining the traditional way of literacy.
Redefining the traditional way of literacy can be seen as not being fair to those who are able to only read and write, as it means that there is more to add on that for them to be literate but it has benefits also. As already mentioned above, literacy is now seen as more to just the reading and writing, now the benefits can be based on each of today’s spectrum of literacy (Barton & Hamilton, 2000).
The redefining of traditional literacy makes people to push more and learn more as now being literate is not just reading and writing. For example being able to communicate, and understand the different contexts which is also part of the benefits. There is information literacy which …show more content…

Competence in literacy is essential if an individual is to participate fully in society, able to take part in the workforce, engage in democratic processes and contribute to society. Literacy is also an essential component of social justice. It enables individuals to gain access to social resources and helps them to participate in social institutions. It can be a source of enjoyment and can contribute to individuals’ expanding knowledge and understanding of themselves and the world (Blackburn & Clark, …show more content…

Most governments throughout the world give a high priority to the development of literacy skills in their populations. As part of basic education, literacy is seen as a key factor in a country’s social and economic development. UNESCO, as part of its education strategy, sees literacy as ‘a fundamental human right’ (Blackburn & Clark, 2007).
Literacy gives people tools with which to improve their livelihoods, participate in community decision making, gain access to information about health care, and much else besides. Above all, it enables individuals to realize their rights as citizens and human beings. It is now clear that having only the traditional view of literacy qualities can be a problem as most of the mentioned importance will be (Barton & Hamilton, 2000).
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