Michael Watts October 13, 2013 English 1101-040 Mid-Semester Writing Prompt Studying the life of Yang Li has

allowed me to gain knowledge of literacy in its many forms. In my research, I have derived working definitions of Lesemen and de Jongs conceptual literacy tools: literacy opportunity, literacy instruction, cooperation, and socio-emotional quality. I will explain my definition of these literacy terms and give examples of each term from Yang Lis childhood. Literacy opportunity refers to the communication between an individual and any encounter they have with literacy. Literacy opportunity was prevalent during Yang Lis childhood. He was constantly flooded with all forms of literacy whether that be at his home or school. His learning and interaction with Chinese and English literacy forms was the literacy opportunity he experienced. Literacy instruction refers to the literacy support provided by parents or parental figures in an individuals life. Nie-dong and Liyong provided extensive literacy support to Yang through storytelling, vocabulary lists, and educational guidance. I believe literacy instruction is one of the most influential sponsors in literacy development. Cooperation refers to the individuals involvement and response to literacy activities or events. Cooperation was another defining factor in Yang Lis literacy. Yang and his mother shared a time set aside for story reading. Yang not only comprehended each storys literacy, but he could retell any story previously read to him. Socio-emotional quality refers to the barriers, often cultural or lingual, that affect an individuals well-being whether that be at home or outside home. Yang experienced socio-emotional pressures everyday especially outside of his home. Yang

was not like every other child. He lived in a Chinese world in America, and he often felt isolated. However, as he grew up and learned more English, he became more confident and the socio-emotional pressures declined. Leseman and de Jongs conceptual tools for literacy can be used to analyze the literacy in any primary domain in ones life. I have used these tools to analyze the literacy in my workplace. I work at Autobell which is a privately owned car washing company designed to provide a quality car wash to every customer. Literacy is key in my workplace to communicate with customers and other employees and to assist in written instruction. The literacy opportunity I experienced at Autobell consisted of the training videos and quizzes required to be taken as a new employee. The training videos and quizzes were created in a way to be understood by all audiences. The literacy was straight-forward and direct. The literacy instruction I experience is the everyday guidance given to me from the managers and experienced employees. When I need help or direction to assist a customer, I can look to my peers to help instruct me in the right direction. Also, if I have a closing shift, a manager will give me written instruction of tasks to do in order to efficiently close the store for the night. The literacy used in the written instruction can only be understood by the employees, because they are familiar with certain terms used in the workplace. The cooperation I experience in my workplace is a result of the teamwork between employees. In order to be most efficient in washing the cars, two people work together to clean each car. I make sure to communicate with my partner with a dialect of literacy that can be understood. Each customers receipt states the car washing services they paid for, so my partner and I have to read each receipt and communicate to devise a plan to wash each car

expeditiously. The socio-emotional qualities I experience at Autobell are vast. I work in a culturally diverse area of Charlotte where many of the customers are hispanic. I do my best to communicate my literacy with them in spanish; however, sometimes I find it very difficult. Fortunately, some of my co-workers are bilingual, and I can call them over to assist the customer. Autobell has given me opportunity to develop my own literacy and learn from my co-workers and customers literacy.