Literacy Can Change America

Senior Service Learning Project

Videos

• Illiteracy in America• How Stupid Are Americans?

Startling Facts• Majority of Americans can’t name a single

branch of government• 24% cannot name the country America fought

in the Revolutionary War• More than 2/3 of Americans do not know what’s

in Roe vs. Wade• Nearly 50% of Americans know that states have

two senators• Less than 50% can name their congressman• People complain about taxes yet have no idea

what the government spends money on• The average voter thinks foreign aid consumes

24% of our annual budget. It is actually only 1%

What is literacy?

• Literacy is the ability to read, write, compute and use technology at a level that enables an individual to reach his or her potential as an adult and community member.

Facts about Illiteracy in the U.S.

• 30 million people over the age of 16 or 14% of the country’s adult population do not read well enough to understand a newspaper story written at an eighth grade level or fill out a job application.

• The U.S. ranks 5th among industrialized nations in terms of literacy

Impact of Illiteracy

• Adult illiteracy can be connected to almost every socio-economic issue in the U.S.– 60% of all state and federal corrections

inmates can barely read and write

Functional Illiteracy

• Incompetence is basic functions such as reading, writing and math.

• 24 million Americans are plagued with functional illiteracy

• 13% of American 17 year olds are illiterate • Among minorities the number jumps to

40%• Every year, at least one million of these

functional illiterates graduate from high school

Who does illiteracy effect

• Begins with children who do not learn how to read and write in elementary school

• They become teenagers who are passed through despite not having the academic skills to progress forward

• Who become adults who cannot read higher than an 8th grade level who are thus unskilled

• The cycle of poverty continues

How Does Literacy Help

• Improves the quality of life• A person who lacks a high school

income earns a monthly income of $52 as compared to $1,829 for those with a college degree

• Literacy increases access to healthcare

• Literacy will ultimately help to stimulate our economy

• Decreases the rate of crime

How Can We Increase Literacy

• Increase participation in literacy programs

• Increase access to literacy programs in low income areas

• Catch children in elementary school • Increase academic standards in

public schools