So in this picture we see my aunt, my sister, and me on busy intersection in the Quartier Latin in Paris. Learning a different language can be a method of survival in another country or culture that is not your own. When looking at this picture, you may not be able to discern what this could possibly have to do with literacy. The answer: plenty.
In this photo, you can see many different signs that are in French or just have symbols. Understanding these signs will help you get to where you want to go in the city. For example, by looking at this picture, French speakers would know that the sign which says "METRO" means that it is the entrance to the subway. There is also a sign that says "Quai Andre Citroen" with an arrow. A person needs to know that the word quai means riverbank in order to understand which way the Seine is. Also in the background you can see a green lit-up sign that says what looks like "HARMA". This stands for Pharmacy. I know this because it is in green and I can see the makings of a green cross, which is the symbol for pharmacies all over France. You also have to know that the red circle with a white line in it means "Do not enter" and that the little red man on a stoplight means "Don't walk" or else you could get run over.
These are all forms of literacy and being able to read these signs and symbols is part of being able to get around a foreign country. In learning French, you can also learn what these signs mean and be able to use them to successfully navigate the city. So you see, literacy is a part of everyday life...even in foreign countries.
I really like that you brought up literacy in a context different from spoken language. It is true that navagating a foreign country can be very difficult because of language barriers, but also because of unfamiliar signage. Even in a country that uses your native language or your own country, knowing how to navigate is a form of literacy. There have been times when I have gotten lost driving around in Minnesota (particularly Minneapolis) because I am not familiar with my surroundings. The reason I am not currently driving aimlessly around Minneapolis is because I have learned from all of the times I've been lost and become more literate in navigating the one-ways, streets that end or change abruptly, and the difference between avenues and streets. If I don't recognize a street name I am sometimes able to to recognize a landmark that seems familiar from another time I have been in the area (and most likely lost). The use of landmarks for me is similar to your knowledge of the pharmacy sign: you have to know what you are looking for. Literacy is very important in navigation, especially when you don't have a map. (Though you definitely need to be literate in order to read a map!!)
ReplyDeleteI think that discussing literacy this way really relates to a lot of the problems that students have in school, especially on standardized tests, but even in regular classrooms. On standardized tests, many students have problems because they don't possess the kind of literacy needed to understand the questions and/or answer them. Standardized tests are written in a different language as far as many students are concerned. In classrooms, students have to become literate in the way that the class itself works, understanding how the the teacher grades, what is expected of them, and how the classroom in organized and run. The teacher has to become literate in navigating different learning styles and levels, what to teach and how, and, in general, how to organize the class most effectively for everyone involved. Navigation as a form of literacy is very important when travelling in different countries as well as in running our classrooms.
First of all, I'm glad I "let" Amy use a picture from the past for her first posting. I'm thinking the photo you used, Amy, could be the cover of a content area literacy textbook. As you point out, there is so much reading of the world and the word going on in this shot. The signage, the body language, the environment--how you can "read" people's clothes to tell you more about the weather. Although a lack of knowledge of French would keep you from getting where you needed to go on the Metro, there's still a lot to understand about what's going on with just a basic background knowledge of city life.
ReplyDeleteYour posting also reinforces that very important idea that we read lots of different texts. In Kendra's photo, she was reading blank walls; in Allie's photo, she was reading Kirby (and vice versa!); in Michel's photo, we were reading a diagram. In your photo of a Paris street corner, signs really dominate the landscape. Who teaches kids to read signs? What "signs" would kids need to know how to read in your disciplines?