Yay!!! We have officially completed another semester!! And our grades are posted: all A's & B's for both of us! We are very happy!
So in the midst of studying my brains out this week, I met a man who can't read and write. I was (and still am) in complete shock! T & I were dogsitting this week and the couple's house we were staying at, is getting some additions/repairs done on the house. So it just so happens that the garage door installer shows up (thankfully T was there!) to install the garage door and the keyless entry. The owners had left a list of instructions posted in the garage, in case the contractors came while we weren't there. So T & I greet this man and he tells us what he thinks he's supposed to be doing. Just to verify he was doing what needed to be done, I walked over to the list and said, "Well, here's a list, maybe this has something on it that applies to the garage door". He preceeds by telling me that he can't read and write and asks if I would mind reading it to him. I have to say I probably paused for a complete 5 seconds just trying to grasp the fact that a 50-something year old man can't read and write. I have to say, since then, I have given a lot of thought to this. I honestly can say I believe him, I don't think he was lying to me. But how can you not know how to read and write by the time you are 50-something? This is America! Most education is FREE! So, while he worked on the garage, he talked to T & I - told us about his family, how he was looking forward to Christmas, his daughter just had a baby (girl) and how excited he was to see her again during the holidays. Just a good 'ole Southern man! I have to say, this did put a damper on my stressing for finals. Here I am, stressing about finals, trying to complete a college degree and worried about making a B in a class and yet, there are still people (in America!) that can't read and write. Wow...
So, T & I were talking about this later and he said he that heard once that there have been studies that show that there are people who graduate w/a high school diploma and still can't read and write. Being an education major at one point and having completed a minor degree in education, this was never mentioned...so now I'm interested...are there really people out there like this?
What an eye-opener week! Now to get ready for the cruise... :)
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2 comments:
Absolutely! Parents who don't value even a basic education for their kids(they "got along just fine without it" they say), parents whose habits prevent them from even physically caring for their kids, and on and on. There didn't use to be the goverment oversight of these situations and even today it's too massive of a problem to really stay on top of. You all are get exposed to the "elements" that exist, J&T!
It is sad to say that is true. My girls panio teacher subs and was at a high school and was in a class where the students could not read. She had them to read and they could not so she had to read the chapter to them. SAD!!
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