Writing for Professional Practice - Essay Example

? Writing for Professional Practice: What freedoms does literacy offer in a globalised society? Introduction The traditional notion of literacy refers to the ability to read for knowledge and write coherently. Increasingly literacy has been expanded to include critical thinking within modes of cultural production. This has resulted in the development of media and scientific literacies. While in the globalized world technologies spread at rapid pace, there are still over 860 million adults that are illiterate. Additionally, nearly 100 million lack access to school. The importance of literacy within contemporary society has not gone unnoticed. The United Nations has declared 2003-2012 the decade of Literacy as Freedom. The notion of literacy is witnessed in a variety of ways. This essay considers the various freedoms literacy offers in a globalized society. Analysis Considered from an overarching perspective literacy has been recognized as contributing to freedom in a variety of ways. An examination of literature on the subject of literacy freedom demonstrates thematic nodes. Many theorists have focused on literacy in terms of empowerment, including women’s right freedoms or emerging nations (Freire 2000; Freire 2005; Dighe 1994). Still, it’s clear that literacy extends to freedoms that relate to all elements of society. One freedom literacy affords individuals and populations is security. Indeed, insecurity has been prominently linked to illiteracy. This term is extended to insecurity in a variety of avenues. Not being able to read and write is a tremendously anxiety producing experience, as individuals fear social stigmatization, ridicule, or a variety of other conditions. While there is the potential that something awful may happen to an individual that is illiterate, Knobel (1999, p. 20) indicates that the very state of being illiterate is indicative of something terrible having happened. In many ways this perspective on literacy as granting the individual the freedom of mental and emotional help is not restricted to populations in Western societies, but can be extended globally, particularly in the emerging world. Bhasin (1984, p. 37) examined literacy in India. Specifically, she examined the construction and development of an educational institute named the Pratichi Trust. The study revealed that over time the girl’s that were admitted to the institute quickly gained the literacy skills of their male counterparts; in this way literacy afforded the freedom of gender equality. Gender equality, however, wasn’t the only freedom gained through this literacy. The study notes that soon the parents became involved and it encouraged a greater degree of community involvement and harmony. In Development As Freedom, Amartya Sen advances a framework that considers the relation between literacy and freedom (Sen 2000). The consideration of this framework reveals a number of prominent ways that literacy offers freedom in a globalized society. One of the central thorough-puts of Sen’s framework is the recognition that literacy often contributes to opportunities and options. The consideration in this way is that literacy must be considered in terms of development. This development extends to personal and professional modes and comprehensively influences the individual’s existence. Rather than specifically considering the way that literacy contributes to freedoms or the avoidance of unfreedoms, there is an emphasis on the social structures that the individual must navigate. The argument then is that development in literacy allows the individual the skills necessary for this navigation. Sen (2000, p. 284) writesn, “A child who is denied the opportunity of elementary schooling is not only deprived as a youngster, but also handicapped all through life (as a person unable to do certain basic things that rely on reading, writ- ing and arithmetic).” While Sen recognizes there are considerable freedoms that are achieved through literacy, perhaps even more important is the recognition that literacy aids in the individual in avoiding certain unfreedoms. For instance, unfreedoms could involve premature mortality, insecurity, famine, lack of work, no access to education of healthcare, or even the denial of civil liberties. Of course another prominent freedom gained through literacy is jobs and gainful employment. Perhaps this consideration is most evident in the Western world, where post-secondary education is fast becoming a pre-requisite to gainful employment. Even for lower-tier work, however, there is a literacy requirement. One considers that the simple task of applying for a job at Wal-Mart necessitates that the individual has the reading and writing skills necessary to navigate the application process. Indeed, literacy has long been viewed as a necessity to successfully competing in global commerce. Macedo (1987, p. 99) considers that industrialized nations have long-established education to improve literacy as a means of successfully competing in global commerce. Macedo (1987, p. 99) states, “The Fundamental Code of Education, issued in 1872 (shortly after the Meiji Restoration in 1868), expressed the public commitment to make sure that there must be ‘no community with an illiterate family, nor a family with an illiter- ate person.” These measures were implemented as Japan recognized the centrality literacy plays to successfully functioning in the global economy. It can even be argued that the Japanese 19th century implementation of literacy programs directly contributed to their early 20th century economic progress. With the increasing nature of globalization it’s clear that these trends will only further progress into the 21st century. Another major consideration in terms of literacy is legal freedoms. From an overarching perspective there is the recognition that an individual discerning their rights is often contingent on the ability to read and recognize laws. In Western society one recognizes that even abiding by laws requires a degree of literacy, as the individual must navigate the text to pay a citation or make a court appointment. In the developing world literacy can play a key role in ensuring subsistence. In many developing societies agricultural production remains a cornerstone element of life. Agricultural production not only occurs for subsistence with one’s immediate family unit, but the sale of goods at market constitutes a primary source of income. Individuals that are illiterate then run the risk of being underpaid for the cost of their goods (Jasper 1996, p 40). There is the consideration that literacy also contributes to general social recognition of one’s rights. In Western society this became particularly evident in the mid-20th century with the Civil Rights and Feminist movements. Through higher-level literacy skills disenfranchised individuals were able to theorize and establish treatises that pointed the way towards a more equitable society (Freire 2005, p. 111). Literacy also affords individuals political freedom. Nowhere was this more evident than in the recent Arab Spring revolts. These Middle Eastern revolts occurred after a man set himself on fire as an act of protest. While political revolts had long occurred in the region, this revolt took on a different order as the events quickly spread to social media. In this way it was the media literacy of the individual’s in the region that spread pivotal information about the protests, as well as about the injustices that had been incurred by oppressive regimes. The Arab Spring revolts would prove successful and result in widespread political change. One considers that while the Arab Spring revolts constitute perhaps the most sensational instance of literacy as contributing to freedom, in actuality literacy empowers individuals throughout the globe. For instance, the United States democratic political process is contingent on an informed public that elects their leaders. It is through literacy that citizens are able to make these decisions and establish the very fabric of society. Further considerations of the freedoms literacy offers can be linked to the concepts of capability and agency. Capability refers to the advantages the individual gains in society through becoming literate. Agency is the “the role of the individual as a member of the public and as a participant in economic, social and political actions” (Sen 2000, p. 19). These intersecting elements form to determine the individual’s overarching freedoms. For instance, while poverty can be articulated as a lack of income, it can additionally be regarded as a deprivation of capability. In this way literacy offers the agency corresponding capabilities that are then implemented to achieve greater freedoms. These freedoms involve heath, income, or a variety of political freedoms that are gained through literacy. Still, there is the recognition that while literacy development allows the individual to establish capabilities that bring tremendous freedoms, there are also freedoms that are contingent on the social apparatus. Sen writes, “the capabilities that a person does actually have (and not merely theoretically enjoys) depend on the nature of social arrangements, which can be crucial for individual freedoms. And there the state and society cannot escape responsibility” (Sen 1999, p. 25). Ultimately then while literacy contributes to a multitude of freedoms there is the recognition that it is limited by social arrangements. Conclusion In conclusion, this essay has examined the various freedoms that literacy offers in the globalized world. Within this context of understanding it’s demonstrated that literacy is essential to a nearly endless array of activities. Among the most prominent freedoms are the freedoms of security and stability, the freedom of jobs and gainful employment, the freedom of legal rights, as well as political freedoms. While it’s easy to consider literacy as simply reading and writing, it’s clear that it is actually intrinsic to survival in the modern world. References Bhasin, D. (1984). “The Why and How of Literacy for Women: Some Thoughts in the Indian Context”, Convergence, Vol. 27:4, pp. 37-43. Dighe, A. (1994). “Women and Literacy.” New Frontiers in Education, 30:2, pp.125-138. Freire , P, (2000), Cultural Action for Freedom, Edition of book, Harvard Educational Review, Mass. Freire , P, (2005), Education for Critical Consciousness, Edition of book, Harvard Educational Review, Mass. Jasper B. (1996). Hungry Ghosts: Literarcy in the modern world. Journal of Adult Literacy. 31(1), p.40-42. Knobel, M. (1999). Everyday literacies: Students, discourse, and social practice. Lang, New York. Krausz, T. (2004). People Making a Difference. Christian Science Monitor 43(1), p.53- 56. Macedo, D, (1987), Literacy: Reading the Word and the World, Edition of book, Routledge, New York. Sen, A, (2000), Development as freedom, Edition of book, Anchor, New York. Sen, A, (1999), Literacy as freedom. Available from: , :  www.paklife.net/files/literacy_as_freedom [Accessed: Jul 12, 2012]. Read More