Summary Example 1

Scribner's Views on Literacy

Sylvia Scribner tries to define what it is to be literate and how to promote literacy in her article, "Literacy in Three Metaphors," published in the November 1984 issue of the American Journal of Education. She asserts that defining literacy "has more than academic significance" because the definition will create the "objectives for programs aimed at the formation of a literate citizenry." (p. 6) Scribner cites many possible definitions of literacy. Harman (1970) defined it to be the level of proficiency needed to accomplish the duties of modern soldiers (p. 9). In 1947 a fifth grade education was considered adequate by a U.S. Census sample survey to render a person literate (p. 10). Gray (1965) and Hunter and Harman (1979) defined literacy as having skills needed to participate in the actual life and situations of a community (p. l0). These definitions and the others that Scribner mentions "conflict, contradict but rarely complement each other" (p. 7).

Scribner proposes that what "lies behind the definitional difficulties" is that the researchers are looking "for the 'essence'ófor the 'one best' way of conceptualizing literacy" (p. 7). The researchers want a quick answer so that they can help others to become more literate. Scribner argues that the issue is too complex for this, however, and that some of the more subtle aspects and questions about literacy are overlooked.

To clarify the issue, Scribner categorizes the aspects and questions into three groups: literacy as adaptation, power, and a state of grace. Within the adaptation category, Scribner asks the reader to consider "which literacy tasks... are 'necessary' and which are 'optional'" (p. 9). Scribner hypothesizes that literacy needs vary from community to community, yet "adopting different criteria for different regions or communities would ensure the perpetuation of educational inequalities" (p. 10). Within the literacy as power category, Scribner points out that the connection between literacy and social status needs to be determined. Scribner discovered that some experimental world literacy programs did not show that higher literacy rates led to social and economic improvement, whereas "when masses of people have been mobilized for fundamental changes in social conditions... rapid extensions of literacy have been accomplished" (p. 12). In looking at literacy as a state of grace, Scribner proposes that some people invest "the written word with great power and respect" or equate literacy with "being 'cultured"' and the development of "a person's essential self" (p. 13).

Scribner's main point is that all of these aspects and questions about literacy need to be explored further in order to adequately define literacy. Any of the three categories, "taken by itself, gives... only a partial grasp of the many and varied utilities of literacy and of the complex social and psychological factors sustaining aspirations for and achievement of individual literacy" (pp. 8-9). Scribner illustrates this theme by describing the various uses of the written language of even a fairly simplistic culture, the Vai people of West Africa. To satisfy each individual's desires or needs for any literacy skills, Scribner promotes a "diversity of educational approaches, informal and community-based as well as formal and school-based" (p.18) with emphasis on being responsive to everyone's personal literacy objectives.

One assumption Scribner seems to make is that greater recognition of the many different varieties of literacy will lead to improvements in literacy education. But recognition of differences can just as easily lead to increased conflicts. Each special group may want the schools to include instruction in its particular literate practice. Scribner is silent on the question of how schools would fund such variety.

Summary Example 2

Writing in the American Journal of Education in November 1984, Sylvia Scribner addresses the issue of literacy in an essay entitled "Literacy in Three Metaphors." There Scribner suggests that what counts as literacy in our technological society is a matter "not very well understood."

According to Scribner, there has been a dominant response of scholars and researchers who are arduously searching for definition and measurement of the concept. "Many approaches have been taken (among them, Adult Performance Level Project 1975; Bormuth 1975; Hillerich 1976; Kirsch and Guthrie 1977-78; Miller 1973; Powell 1977), and at least one attempt (Hunter and Harman 1979) has been

made to put forward an 'umbrella definition'" (p. 6). Scribner argues that although all of these examples have given new insight into the issue of literacy none has yet gained the support of all. "Each of these efforts has identified important parameter of literacy, but none has yet won consensual agreement" (p. 6).

Scribner defines the problem of conceptualizing literacy by noting that each formulation of an answer to the question "What is literacy?" leads to a different evaluation of the scope of the problem and to different objectives for programs aimed at the formation of a literate citizenry. The main misconception Scribner sees in defining literacy is the tendency of scholars and researchers to be guided by such a search for the "essence"--for the "one best" way of conceptualizing literacy. Although Scribner believes this idea is useful and helpful when attempting to define literacy, she also suggests that conflict and contradiction can arise from such an essentialist approach. "This enterprise is surely a useful one and a necessary component of educational planning. Without denigrating its contribution, I would like to suggest, however, that conflicts and contradictions are intrinsic to such an essentialist approach" (p. 7). To support her argument that the search for the one "best" is a misconception, Scribner points out that most attempts at defining this issue claim literacy can be defined by viewing individuals and their individual abilities. "Most efforts at definitional determination are based on a conception of literacy as an attribute of individuals; they aim to describe constituents of literacy in terms of individual abilities" (p. 7). In contrast to this, Scribner argues that the single most compelling fact about literacy is that it is a social achievement. "Literacy abilities are acquired by individuals only in the course of participation in socially organized activities with written language" (p. 8).

Scribner supports the idea that the enterprise of defining literacy becomes one of "assessing what counts as literacy in the modern epoch in some given social context" (p. 8). According to Scribner to get a true and accurate definition of literacy one must demand a "deeper examination." Scribner's solution to the problem of defining literacy consists of examining and discussing the three metaphors: literacy as adaptation, literacy as power, and literacy as a state of grace. "I will examine some of them, organizing my discussion around three metaphors; literacy as adaptation, literacy as power, and literacy as a state of grace" (p. 8). To define literacy by these three metaphors Scribner argues that one must blend the three definitions together or only a partial view will be seen. "My argument is that any of the metaphors, taken by itself, gives us only a partial grasp of the many and varied utilities of literacy and of the complex social and psychological factors sustaining aspirations for and achievement of individual literacy" (p. 9). Through the observation of these three metaphors Scribner refutes the misconception that literacy has a static and universal essence and establishes that what literacy "is" inevitably involves social analysis.

One implication of Scribner's idea is that what counts as literacy may change from one place to another. Sometimes change from place to place is good, but sometimes not. Suppose that auto parts changed from one place to another, so that if your car broke down in California and you were from Vermont, there would be no parts to fit. Would this be a problem for literacy? It is a question that needs to be answered.

Summary Example 3

Can literacy be defined? In her article Literacy and Three Metaphors which was published by the American Journal of Education in November, of 1984, Sylvia Scribner states that there is no set definition of literacy. She writes, "Although literacy is a problem of pressing national concern, we have yet to discover its boundaries" (p. 6). She also believes that one of the reasons that literacy needs to be defined is so we can answer the questions Who is a literate person? Who is a illiterate person? Those are the two questions that Scribner is trying to answer in this article. This is an important topic as she explains "Definitions of literacy shape our perceptions of individuals who fall on either side of the standard..." (p.6). Because there are so many different societies the definition of literacy widely varies.

Scribner believes that the general public needs to define literacy in order to judge people. She asks what reading and writing skills are needed for people to live in their own societies. She writes "Do all communities and cultural groups in our class-based heterogeneous society confront equivalent functional demands." (p.9) Looking at this point she comes across the fact that there are many different societies. When people are trying to judge other people they need to know what a literate person is and what makes a person illiterate. In order for people to judge other people they need simply to be able to define literacy. Without this ability people will often be incorrectly judged.

To solve the problem and once and for all define literacy, Scribner uses three metaphors. Scribner states "I have described some current views of the meaning of literacy in terms of three metaphors." I will look at these metaphors now. The first is called "Literacy as Adaptations" (p.13) In this metaphor Scribner states the idea that literacy is different in different societies and different time periods. The second metaphor "literacy as power" (p.11) shows that literacy can help change a society. The last metaphor that Scribner uses to define literacy is called "Literacy as a state of grace" (p.13). This metaphor shows how literacy is a wonderful thing to possess no matter who you are.

In conclusion, literacy is defined many different ways . There are many different societies to define literacy. Scribner argues that one needs to know certain standards of a particular society to define literacy for that society. She believes that literacy is essential for a just society. She says "Not to be literate is a state of victimization " (p.12). Literacy used to be "A concern with preserving and understanding scripture..." (p.13) Scribner writes. Finally Scribner believes that "Literature is a many-meaninged thing" (p.9).