by Michelle Miller (AIWC Cologne)
In September, the Education Team considers the importance of literacy. I’m sure few of us would contend that the ability to read is not critically important to the full enjoyment of life. However, I think most of us (including myself!) do take our good fortune for granted. We were lucky to have early childhood education that encompassed learning how to read and write. Those two skills opened up a world of possibilities.
But consider for a moment what your reality might have been had you been born in a different place:
- In Gaza, an estimated 625,000 children are beginning a second year without schools to attend. “The war has stolen our future,” as one young woman poignantly argues.
- In some places, all it takes is to be born female. For example, in Afghanistan, the male literacy rate is 52.1%, while the female literacy rate is 22.6%. UNESCO is trying to improve this situation with its Community Based Literacy programs.
What might you have missed out on if you were not literate?
- What kind of employment would you have? Even in developed nations like Canada, this is an issue – The importance of literacy.
- How healthy would you be? The World Literacy Foundation demonstrates that a child’s health is closely related to the literacy of the child’s mother.
- Would you be able to vote and participate in your community in meaningful ways? The Education Development Center, a global non-profit, argues convincingly that literacy is a human right.
- For the 754 million human beings who are illiterate, these are existential issues, rather than simply an interesting thought experiment. Read more from UNESCO.
Just imagine for one moment that you could not read this article, or a bus schedule, or doctor’s instructions, or an election ballot . . .
