Educating Working-Class Children in Their Own Self Interest by Patrick Finn - Book Report/Review Example

Patrick Finn, Literacy with an Attitude: Educating Working Children in Their Own Self Interest Introduction The book ‘Literacy With an Attitude: Educating Working Class Children in Their Own Self Interest’ by Patrick Finn deals with the type of education system being followed in the different parts of the US. The change in political, economic, social and other forces resulted to the changes in the education system. Despite the fact that the poor children are receiving lower quality of education as compared to the working class as well as middle class. It is often a point of argument that if schools are offering equal literacy to the learners, then why the poor students are not treated equally with respect to education. According to the author of the book, there are two types of education that is empowering and domesticating. Empowering education leads to the gain of power and position in the society. On the other hand, domesticating education makes an individual dependable as well as productive. People belonging to rich family are likely to get empowering education and working class people gets domesticating education. Every citizen has the right to get proper education and become literate (Jacob & Ludwig, 2009). Despite the fact that the children belonging to poor family are not getting equal education as compared to the rich individuals. It is the responsibility of the teachers as well as the present day education system to provide powerful literacy to poor and working class, so that they are able to gain an appropriate position and power in the society (Finn, 2010). A Concrete Connection to the World Today and Related Movements The power or position held by an individual in the society depends on the level of literacy gained by the individuals. However, the difference in class has affected the quality of education as well as the level of literacy. The poor are receiving a lower quality of education as compared to the rich one. Every citizen has the right to get powerful literacy despite the fact that the poor are far away from getting equal level of education. The industrial revelation in the country has resulted to the emergence of the concept of citizenship. On the other hand, the term citizenship includes political, social as well as civil rights of the individuals. However, the modern concept of citizenship defines equal rights for all the individuals. In the context of citizenship, education and literacy are important for the world today. Literacy and education plays a crucial role in facilitating the individuals to protect their rights as the citizen of the society. Moreover, a proper education enables the individuals to get a proper knowledge about the present day scenario (Jackson & Marsden, 2012). The book highlights the ‘myth of meritocracy’ that indicates the fact all the students are offered with same level of education, but only the level of acceptance and attitude that differs. It has further been argued in this context that students who are hardworking and smart are able to enter into any school programs and are able to gain powerful literacy. Therefore, they are more likely to earn power and position in the society. On the other hand, the students who are not able to participate in the school programs due to lack of smartness or learning ability are likely to leave schools earlier with poor quality of education (Finn, 2010). In this context, with the increase in completion in different aspect of life, it has become essential for all the individuals to gain powerful level of education. The level of education an individual gains determines the ability of such individual to gain position with respect to have a better job portfolio in the present competitive job market. In the context of social justice, it is essential to provide powerful education to all the individuals, so that each individual is able to protect their social, political and civil rights. The author of the book noted that “powerful literacy in the hand of poor and working people is literacy with attitude” (Finn, 2010 p.xii). In can be stated in this regard that literacy determines the status of an individual (Finn, 2010). In this regard, it can be argued that the teachers are identified to be playing a crucial role in social justice. The teachers are responsible to develop thinking ability, so that that the students are able to understand their rights and responsibilities. Presently, the US government has implemented No Child Left Behind Act with the aim of ensuring that education is offered to all the children (Barton, 2009). A Concrete Connection to Own Experiences Literacy and education are recognized as two important factors that determine the success of an individual. Moreover, the level of literacy determines the critical thinking ability of the individuals. The difference in social status of the individuals is likely to affect the level of literacy. Literacy is a matter of social right and should be gained by all individuals of the society. However, people belonging to poor family are likely to leave school at an early age that reflects poor level of literacy. As result of which they are unable to get high level job that in turn affects their position in the society (Finn, 2010). Moreover, individuals who are able to get powerful education are likely to gain more power and authority. It can be further argued in this context that the rich people are aware of education and know the importance of education and literacy for protection of different rights as a citizen of the society. On the other hand, the parents of poor family are unaware of the importance of literacy and that in turn affects the education of the poor children. An Analysis of the Author’s Central and Peripheral Ideas and Your Reaction to Those Ideas From the author’s point of view, people receive two kinds of education that affects the level of literacy of learners. The individuals who receive powerful education are able to maintain their position and authority in the society. On the other hand, the individuals receiving domesticating education are able to enhance their development in terms of functional ability. They are just able to fulfill the minimum ability of reading and writing (Finn, 2010). However, to meet the increasing completion of the society, it is essential for all the individuals to have a proper level of literacy. Literacy is the social right of an individual. In addition, the individual must possess knowledge in order to understand various rights of the citizenship. The level of awareness and knowledge is determined by the level of literacy that an individual possesses. Moreover, the level of literacy determines the power and authority of the individuals. The poor people are often ignored in the matter of gaining education and that affects the status held by them in future. The level of education attained by an individual determines the type of job that an individual is eligible. Therefore, it can be mentioned in this regard that the literacy level of an individual determines the future status of the concerned individuals (Finn, 2010). Conclusion From the above discussion, it can be concluded that proper education and literacy is required for gaining position and power in the society. Moreover, education is a social right of the individuals and accordingly, all individual have equal right despite their status in the society. On the other hand, domesticating education makes an individual dependable and productive, as such individual is able to read and write. However, the individuals should possess powerful literacy, as it enhances the thinking ability of the individuals. With the increase in competition in the society, it has become essential for all individual to attain high level of education despite differences in status. The factor apart for the status that affects the literacy of the poor is lack of awareness about the importance of education. It can be concluded from the above discussion that the level of literacy affects power and position and therefore, it is essential for all to attain powerful literacy. References Barton, P. E. (2009). National education standards. Retrieved from https://www.ets.org/Media/Research/pdf/PICNATEDSTAND.pdf Finn, P.J. (2010). Literacy with an attitude, second edition: Educating working-class children in their own self-interest. USA: SUNY Press. Jacob, B.A., & Ludwig, J. (2009). Improving educational outcomes for poor children. Focus, 26(2), 56-61. Jackson, B., & Marsden, D. (2012). Education and the Working Class (RLE Edu L Sociology of Education). New York: Routledge. Read More