Chapter 15 – History of Writing in the Community

Chapter 15 – History of Writing in the Community
History of Writing in the Community - Ursula Howard

I thought it was particularly relevant to comment on this chapter after our discussion this week. Unless I am way off, this clearly relates to the idea of “the big D” – Discourse.

Though this movement began in the UK, I can see some of the vestiges of it. First and I’m sorry if I write about this ad nauseum, I can see how the National Writing Project builds upon these principles. The first I attended the Summer Institute in 2001, each of us brought pieces of writing that reflected who we were and how we’d used writing. We pinned each piece on the wall and did a gallery walk, using sticky notes to post our thoughts here and there. It was amazing to see how the pieces varied – from grocery lists to very revealing personal poetry. Right away, we all knew each other a little better as writers – and a lot of the “mystique” of being a writer vanished. We were all writers now. To me, this also reminds me of Barton and Hamilton’s work: each participant was literate – just to a greater or lesser extent. I’ve read other posts about how people don’t feel like writers yet; I would argue we are all writers; maybe not in the academic sense, but that comes. It is just a different genre! Shame, shame on teachers who use writing and language as a barrier rather than a tool. NCTE seems to be taking an advocacy role in this realm by promoting “The National Day on Writing” and the National Gallery of Writing. It is the written version of NPR’s StoryCorp, which is oral, not written. Just like we all have stories, we all have things to write about – or about which to write…

I also found it interesting to see how literacy was used to subjugate groups who were disadvantaged. In the UK, it was mostly the poor and women. Howard writes that, “Opposition to writing reflected broader fears about teaching the working classes that could upset the social order.” (p. 241) In the US, the disenfranchised groups who were excluded from the “literacy club” were mostly women and African Americans. But I think I have to be careful about claiming that Americans were more inclusive in some way, because though we did educate the poor and later generations of immigrants (mostly from Ireland, Italy, Eastern Europe and Asia), I think the worry about providing "too much" education existed (exists?) here as well. Education and literacy have had the capacity to both create and break barriers – that seems to be fairly universal. I do conjure up images of serfs and lords when I think of Europe, though. I know people who have family that have lived in the same town in Belgium for over 400 years! It seems that it would be harder to break through cultural barriers that have existed that long.

Howard writes about how writing led to self-improvement and ultimately, social change. (p. 246) to write is to be, to read is to think; without the capacity to do either we can neither share our ideas nor be exposed to other’s ideas. Howard cites Raymond Williams on page 239 noting that, “…the first half of the 19th century was the moment of change following 2,000 years of ‘cultural division’ during which writing was known only to a minority. In this period, a majority of people rapidly achieved at least ‘minimal access to writing’ giving rise to a ‘confusion of developments’, a confusion exacerbated by a continuous relocation of the boundaries that kept the social divisions in education, cultural production and life choices in tact.” You wonder what role political revolutions like the American, the French and the later Russian revolution played in this opening of the world of literacy- and where the internet will lead us as we progress through the digital revolution.

I wish every potential high school drop out could read an (abbreviated) version of this chapter. It might help them to reconsider the relationship between education and empowerment.

I also have a lot of thoughts about the role of literacy within the context of religion, but in order to avoid offending anyone, I'll refrain from posting my thoughts in a public forum. If anyone wants to talk more abut it, I'd LOVE to meet before class and discuss it over coffee at Grounds4Thought!