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Alex Doane
Laura Knudson
University Writing 1103
7 December 2014
Literacy: A Journey Worth Taking
Reading is essential to the success of any person in this day and age. If one cannot read,
they have very little chance to obtain a well paying job; therefore they will have a very difficult
providing for not only themselves but also their family. I remember reading a story in elementary
school, about a mailman and how uniquely he navigated his mail route using signs, shapes and
colors to find his way. I did not think much of it, other than it was pretty unique. It was not until
the end of the story that the reader learned that this was not just his way of getting around, but
the mailman was illiterate. Thinking back now, that was a life changing moment for me as a
child who could already read. I thought, Is this how difficult my life would be if I couldn't
read? still I cannot imagine the struggle an illiterate adult goes through. How embarrassing it
would be to sign one's name with the letter X. It's hard for those who can read, to fathom the
struggle. Personally there is no greater skill that I value more than reading and writing. Writing
has influenced everything in history, including the religions of the world and how they are worshipped. Now, in my fourth year of learning Spanish, I know the value of learning a second language as well. Reflecting on my reading and writing journey, I know why everyone stresses the
importance of being literate.
Before I even remember riding a bike for the first time, or throwing a baseball with my
dad, I can remember The Berenstain Bears books. Those books, however silly and childish they
may seem to have made an enormous impact on my life. The messages in them were pure; don't

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steal, respect ones parents, be a good citizen. Though those are great lessons, the true value of
those books lies in the fact that those books are what I learned to read on. My mother and father
would read them to me, it seems like every night, and then when I turned about four or five I began reading them on my own. The words were simple but true, and I cant imagine learning to
read on anything else, these books were very special to me. Eventually, as I became a more advanced reader (which I did quite quickly) I began reading higher-level books, and as odd as it
sounds, I loved reading non-fiction books. For this reason, when I came into high school, I knew
so many things about history and the world that the other students didnt. My interest in reading
peaked in elementary school, because parents and teachers stressed it so much, looking back now
I wish I had pursued educational reading further.
A possible reason for my lost interest in reading and writing may be the lack of a socalled sponsor of literacy. The notion of a sponsor of literacy comes from a professor in the
Department of English at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She defines a sponsor of literacy
as The figures that turned up most typically in peoples memories of literacy learning(Brandt
47). As a young child, everyone wants to support them in learning to read books, and write stories. I can remember my favorite year in all of school, 3rd grade Mr. Leshers class. Not only
was it a blast, I learned more than all other classes in elementary combined. It was an atmosphere
conducive to comfort and education. Every Thursday we would all bring in the book we were
reading in class and talk about it and read a chapter. It may seem simple, but the way that Mr.
Lesher took a special interest in every student, in hindsight was magnificent. He made me and all
the other students feel as though we could be comfortable in the class, not be embarrassed reading, and succeed. That year I read over 20 books, wrote essays and won the Best Reader
award. Aside from my parents, Mr. Lesher was the most influential person in my literacy history,

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and I could not thank him enough. The sad thing about this country, as hard as we try with social
equality, most students will never have a Mr. Lesher, they will never have someone that excites
their interest in reading and writing. There is nothing we can do to change it, its just one of
those things. The importance of a strong sponsor of literacy other than a parent in a childs life
cannot be overstated. A child needs someone other than a parent to tell him or her that they are
good at reading, or that they need more practice, they need support. Looking back now on life,
not just thinking about reading, I was incredibly fortunate to have the parents/friends/teachers
that I did, not everyone is that lucky, and I will be forever grateful. Without a strong foundation,
success is exponentially more difficult to achieve.
One experience that still upsets me when I think of it, was 7th grade writing class with
Mrs. Altom. She was about eighty years old, and as rude as they come. She had no problem
building kids up, but she also could tear them down. I wont lie and say that I was the most studious 13 year old in the world, but she wasnt kind to many. She, looking back, was somewhat of
a detractor from my literacy journey. But then again, if bad, is never experienced, it's difficult to
really appreciate the good in life. Mrs. Altom for how rude and insensitive she really prepared
me for the future, looking back it is easier to appreciate her and what she did. She was in fact a
very good teacher and someone that could be relied on for good advice. One of my best pieces of
writing came out of that class, my novella about Stockholm Syndrome. Oddly enough, my inspiration for the novella came from a Blink-182 song; it was an emotional song that really stuck
with me. I think it is very important for children to be exposed to all different kinds of media in
their early childhood. Listening to music and reading books can open up a whole new world for
kids, a world that is really out there and that they should strive to explore. It is the job of the parent to make sure the exposure is positive and the child gets something out of it, also parents

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should have discussions with kids on how to form their own opinions and not to follow the
trends of everyone else. This again shows how important the notion of a sponsor of literacy is.
Mrs. Altom for me is a literacy sponsor because of how constructive she was on my road to literary success.
Learning a second language is very important because it opens up a whole new world, literally and metaphorically. Spanish is the language this country is headed in and learning it has
been a challenge and very rewarding. I remember the first time I sat in a real Spanish class,
sophomore year, Sr. Ross class, I had absolutely no idea what he was saying! I thought to myself I can never learn this Its too hard. Little did I know this was just the beginning of my
literacy in Spanish history. Learning Spanish was very similar to learning English for me. It was
very difficult in the beginning to cope with failure, but having a sponsor of literacy like Sr. Ross
was of the utmost importance. There are many hard times, and many I am continuing to pursue
college and I plan on having it as a second major. Its very important in todays world to not give
up on something just because it seems difficult. Learning languages and even having a better
grasp of English opens many doors to students and adults alike. Our world is a global community
and we owe it to each other to be able to communicate. Looking forward I would love to travel to
Spanish speaking countries and learn their cultures. I would love to learn how to help these people speak English, and Spanish better. Americans don't realize the amount of literacy opportunities they have as opposed to other people, how fortunate we are.
Back when reading was considered a luxury to many people it was appreciated more.
Many people used the ability to read as a way out of the situation that they found themselves in. I
think its important for us now to find that kind of motivation to move forward. This quote by
Carl Sagan sums up that theory well, Frederick Douglass taught that literacy is the path from

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slavery to freedom. There are many kinds of slavery and many kinds of freedom, but reading is
still the path(Quotes About Literacy). This quote by Carl Sagan is eye opening in many ways.
Right now, today there are millions of people who suffer below the poverty line, many of these
people are doing their best to survive and provide. Poverty is not a choice, but literacy is, in order to succeed in life, one needs to be educated and books are key to this. The path to a new life
for many is higher education, and that is why we are all currently in college to get good jobs and
provide for ourselves. We understand that in order to get good jobs, we need that piece of paper
that says we know what we do. There are plenty of successful people that do not go to college or
even graduate from high school, but these people are not the majority. It is essential to not only
be literate, but also to strive for higher degrees. I know from my parents the importance of literacy, without being able to read, my parents would not have been able to do their jobs and provide
for me.
When thinking about reading and the importance of reading, I think religion. I know, bear
with me on this one Ill explain. For me, growing up in a household with two parents unsure of
their religious beliefs, it was easy to develop my own beliefs when it came to God. As soon as I
was old enough to truly understand the importance of the great question where did it all come
from I was old enough to research on my own. I was able to not only read and write, but also
comprehend what I was reading. Looking back now, and looking at our world today, we need
more of what I had. Children are so easily moldable; parents beliefs become theirs. This can potentially be positive or negative. One positive is that a child now knows there is a higher reason
to be good and act morally. A negative could be that the children really never had a chance at
deciding for themselves. Telling a child that they are broken, and need to be fixed by an allpowerful God can be unnerving. That child does not know any better than to trust and believe all

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that their parent says. It is important for that child to be mentally able to handle such a concept,
and as it currently stands, they are not able to reach that maturity before religion enters their
lives. Historically this is true for all religion, it is passed one generation to another, everyone
thinks they're right. No one really knows for sure, and this can work the same way for Atheists
and non-believers. Children should be allowed to fully mature before they are introduced to religion. This entire thought could be used as a metaphor for literacy, a person needs the tools to be
educated, and they need to be able to educate themselves because in reality no one really knows
anything for sure. Knowledge is contained in books, thousands of years of advancement are there
for the taking, and children need to know how and what to learn.
One issue concerning religion and literacy that I struggle with today is the fighting in the
Middle East. Groups like ISIS and Al Qaeda brainwash their members into believing things so
that they can manipulate them. These people likely don't know how to read and write so they
have no idea if they are being fed lies. This is dangerous for not only them, but also their target,
us. It seems like in 2014 we should not have this problem; literacy should not be a widespread
issue. The reason I do think it is an issue for many people though is because when you live to
provide for yourself and your family, there is no time or need to read books or debate philosophy. As a human race we need to make the literacy issue our issue and resolve it. I know and Ive
said it several times, but my life would not be the same if I could not read.
Moving forward in my life I still know the value of reading and writing. Without it, we
would be no more advanced than the animals. This tool must be harnessed to be able to succeed.
Personally I want to graduate college and work in business, which will definitely require me to
be good with reading and writing as forms of communication. Communicating with customers
and colleagues is essential in succeeding. My future will be greatly influenced by what I learn in

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these next four years. With an open mind and a lust for education I believe I can succeed with
furthering my literacy history. I know that the key to success is having supportive people around
me, something that not many people have. Sponsors of literacy are as essential to my life from
here as they were when I was younger. They may be bosses, they may just be supportive, people
along the way, but without supportive people success becomes much harder. That is why; hopefully along my path to success, I continue educating myself. With the support of the people
around me there is no reason to believe I won't succeed. More than that I know that if everyone
in the world could read and write, we would be in a much different place. How much more advanced would technology be? What place would religion have in our world? These questions are
some that I believe Ill always struggle with. Nevertheless my journey never ends.

Bibliography

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Brandt, Deborah. "Sponsors of Literacy." Writing about Writing: A College Reader. Bos
ton: Bedford/St. Martins, 2011. 43-63. Print.
"Quotes About Literacy." (98 Quotes). N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Sept. 2014.