I amy be late, but I have a good (and true) story as a peace offering

I was really interested in Brandt’s “Sponsors of Literacy.”  It is something I haven’t really considered before– how literate we are is not always an individual choice, but a matter of access.  I think sponsors as individual people are the most influential.  When I think of my literacy in terms of sponsorship, my mind immediately flips to the people who influenced and inspired me– usually teachers.  I must say, as a future teacher, it is encouraging to look back on the difference teachers made in my life and I feel comfortable with my role models.

As far as terms of access go, I have an interestingly true story to consider in light of Brandt’s information regarding sponsorship.  My mother is a special education teacher for K-5.  One of her students is an autistic.  This child is mid-level on the spectrum, neither high functioning nor super low functioning.  What I found interesting was how the parent’s handle their child’s approach to literacy.

Most parents of autistic children push to have them integrated into society as much as possible.  They want the child in a classroom as much as possible, and learning information at the highest level possible.  But this student’s parents approached it differently. When developing the student’s IEP, the father pushed to ignore mathematics and wanted a focus on literary technology.  He said he didn’t want to waste time on math– teach him how to use a calculator.  He didn’t want to focus on spelling– teach him how to use spell check.  Instead of a focus on basic California standards, this father stressed how he wanted his child to be real world literate as possible.  He wants him to know how to use a computer and an iPad.  This father said he wants his child to be able to function in the world at the job level– in essence, teach the child to be employable.  Technology and associated literacy are what he needs to know.  This father said that “I want him to learn the technology of his generation.”

To me, that is a powerful sponsor.  That parent is changing his child’s life in ways that we have yet to see, but you can bet your socks that his entire life will be better with a focus on functional literacy.  When I look at Brandt’s studies on people and their literary practices in terms of access, this story seems like it would fit within her study.  One middle class parent is pushing for new technology to be used in school.  The technology they cannot afford at home– iPads, fancy computers, etc– is made more important in the school setting.

Most of my mother’s students do not have access to computers at home.  Sitting in the fancy college library filled with computers, printers, copiers, and more, that seems crazy.  But many families, especially in rural areas, do not have the luxury of excess technology.  Those students are the ones that end up in my mother’s class, put behind in school because of limited access to the technology that would enhance their literary practices.  As sad as that is, I think that shows us, as future educators, where our focus should be.  Literacy isn’t just the pen and paper– computers and advancing technology have paved a new road that we must make sure our students have access to, or they will fall by the wayside and be in a muddy rut for the rest of their lives.