Professional and Trade Journals: An Argument for Change in the Literacy Education Profession

Major Claim

There are a few specific reasons why language-minority learners are not receiving the best education and really truly benefiting from their education. This article will point out what the problem areas are and a few suggestions on how to improve the situation.

Summary

The barriers to literacy are the failure of either the "teacher education programs to adequately prepare reading specialists to work with language-minority learners" (Grant) or "education researchers to engage in more substantive research on English reading development for such students" (Grant). Due to new state testing and benchmarks there is now more than ever a high demand for a higher performance level from all students.

Due to these new standards we now are placing our English-language learners on the "back burner" (Grant). The reading specialist is deemed knowledgeable to teach these learners how to reading and write English. The problem is that these reading specialists are taught all of the theological methodologies but are not taught to deal with the culture differences of the students. Grant suggests that the reading professional take certain measures to prefect the literacy for our English learners. Adjusting the programs of study for the reading specialists, providing hands-on experiences for the reading specialists and work to change testing for children at a disadvantage are a few of the suggestions of this article.

Providing that all of these suggestions are followed our country would see a big improvement in our English learners.

Analysis

There is a huge problem with our English learners actually learning to become literate. Our learners are being taught by Reading Specialists who have no clinical training and are being held at a disadvantage by the tests. The art of teaching cannot be undermined. Anyone could learn the methodologies of teaching but the art of teaching can only be experienced by hands-on experience. An informed understanding of identity within design is virtually a prerequisite of design literacy. Without the knowledge of such key design issues within design, how could designers possibly hope to create an artefact of social, cultural or even personal significance? Therefore to effectively operate as a designer one must come to an understanding of key design issues such as identity. Who you are, your origins, your environment - these are all facets of identity, which direct and influence designers in the process and creation of any artefact.

There are those who believe ...