"Learning to Read Biology" by Christina Haas (Precis 3)

Why do colleges require students to take various courses that seem unrelated to their major? Why does it always feel like students must jump through unnecessary hoops to acquire a degree? Christina Haas’ investigation shows that different college courses benefit students by exposing them to multitudes of discourse training that cohesively develop college level rhetoric. Her longitudinal, in-depth research focusing on Eliza beginning at her freshmen year explains the gradual changes that ultimately suggest these unnecessary hoops are actual useful if not necessary for acquiring academic discourse.

In Eliza’s freshmen year, Haas discovers that Eliza’s reading of science courses is geared exclusively on preparing for tests. In English courses however, she read perceiving the text as a “source of information to extract and more of a place in which someone says something” (363). According to Haas, most incoming freshmen perceive text as autonomous—that is the belief “that academic texts [are] discrete, highly explicit, even “timeless” entities functioning without contextual support from author, reader, or culture” (589). There is no connection made between the author to the book, at times students will explain the ideas from their reading saying “the book says” rather than the “author says” (363). In her sophomore year her reading changed only in that she was aware of more points of view. She continued to see written works as autonomous texts and performed very well that year. Her reading improved significantly when she began a work study job growing protein mutants in a lab. She developed sophisticated reading techniques “skimming, reading selectively, moving back and forth through texts, reading for different purposes at different times” (366). Also, she had noticed that articles written from a particular time period were of no use to her for current scientific developments. In other words, she has identified a relationship between text and the time it was produced. By her senior year she gained greater awareness of the intertextual nature of discourse, she was able to draw connections that enhanced her understanding of the subject.

Most importantly, the changes in Eliza’s academic discourse reveal that she began to “see her own role as not simply learning the facts but of negotiating meaning” (371). Haas suspects the changes may have been influenced by the different kinds of texts that required different strategies, goals, and views of discourse (372). There are other variables in Eliza’s collegiate experience to suggest her rhetorical development was not a result of the courses required of her to take. It is undeniable however, certain tasks in English courses provided her opportunities to practice interpreting meaning. Rather than simply understanding what authors are saying, by her senior year was focused on extracting meaning and significance from text. The ability to apply different strategies and techniques to any task and see connections can certainly improve a student’s critical thinking skills—which is useful for any career.

MLA Citation

Haas, Christina. “Learning to Read Biology: One Student’s Rhetorical Development in College.”

Literacy a Critical Sourcebook. Ed. Ellen Cushman, Eugene R. Kintgen, Barry M. Kroll, Mike Rose. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2001. 358-375.

Lisa Delpit: The Politics of Teaching Literature Discourse. Literacy: A Critical Source Book. Cushman, Ellen. et al. New York: Bedford/St Martins, 2001



Lisa Delpit seems to agree with most of Gee’s theories. However, his notion of "people who have not been born into dominant discourses will find it exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, to acquire such a discourse...if you’re not already in, don’t expect go get in" (Delpit P546) is troublesome for her. This theory proves unethical because it permanently sets the present discourse of people within that realm throughout life. It sets a stage of impossibility and powerlessness to enhance change into a better lead life. Unlike Gee, Delpit believes this as quite the opposite. For Delpit, while she does feel that discourses may contain opposing values, there are people who overcome these obstacles. There is no door that separates discourses but there is a key to opening and obtaining others.

Delpit uses the examples of students that went beyond and excelled into other discourses through their teachers’ determinism to make them succeed, "They held visions for us that we could not imagine for ourselves...The world is tough out there and you have to be tougher" (Delpit P 549). More importantly, these teachers were not of elite, high power and dominant discourses and yet, they enabled these students to climb into another more dominant world (discourse). She makes the point that these teachers put in extra support to shape these students’ learning. Thus, illustrating that by bringing in different ideas and concepts that contribute to other races and cultures can , in fact, have a positive impact. As Delpit demonstrates with these teachers and their students, nothing is impossible. It is through the participants effort that shape and put forth the ultimate success of acquiring a more dominant discourse.

"Inventing the University" by David Bartholomae (Precis 2)

David Bartholomae offers a useful perspective on the challenge of students to write academic essays. Perhaps essay writing is challenging because they must invent the university. He says that the student “has to learn to speak our language, to speak as we do, to try on the peculiar ways of knowing, selecting, evaluating, reporting, concluding, and arguing that define the discourse of our community” (511). Furthermore, students must comfortably “find some compromise between idiosyncrasy, a personal history, and the requirements of convention, [and] the history of a discipline” to excel in at the university.

Using several high school student essays, he explores the ways in which the student attempts to invent the university. Generally, he discovers students must dare to speak scholarly in order to answer the imagined expectations of college professors. He is looking for the students ability to reference “commonplaces” which according to him are “controlling ideas of our composition” or “a culturally or instititutionally authorized concept or statement that carries with it its own necessary elaboration” (512). For example, a student describing a clay model attempts to use the terminology he presumes is suitable for his topic and for his readers to demonstrate his knowledgability of clay models. Problems arise when the student is caught in a tug-o-war between satisfying what he presumes his audience to know and the degree of authority he may assert as he explains his ideas. As Bartholomae says, the students must “try on a variety of voices and interpretive schemes” depending on the task at hand. Students must apply the discourse of a literary critic for one task and on another day the discourse of psychologist in another. How can we expect students to try on different discourses as if they were trying on different outfits for various occasions and expect them to find a strong original voice?

Perhaps, we can devise creative assignment tasks that condition the student to remain consciously aware of their audience. For example, we can ask the students to explain baseball to a Martian or explain the monomyth to a third grader. These creative tasks force the writer to tailor their discourse appropriately for their audience (515). The writer must employ an “imagination in which they consider themselves within the privileged discourse, on that already includes and excludes groups of readers, they must be either equal to or more powerful than those they would address” in order to “transform political and social relationships between basic writing students and their teachers” (516). Although creative assignments offer opportunity for students to improve their writing, it is impossible to eliminate the intimidation a student feels knowing their teachers are the experts on the subject. Bartholomae explains that “students have to assume privilege without having any” in order to speak effectively (516).

There seems to be magic scholarly code and somehow students must live and breathe this code to translate their ideas into acceptable university discourse. They must do this while simultaneous monitoring syntactical construction. According to Barholomae, it is a mistake to classify a writer’s level by number of syntactical errors. It is possible “students who can write reasonably correct narratives may fall to pieces when faced with more unfamiliar assignments” (522). What then can students do acquire this magic scholarly code?

Perhaps imitation is necessary like training wheels. In order to gain familiarity with scholarly discourse, imitation is possibly necessary for the unskilled or basic writer. In the struggle between establishing an authoritive voice and satisfying syntactical standards, Bartholomae seems to prefer papers with a stronger sense of voice than the syntactically coherent essays.

Precis #2: Gee and the Nature of Discourse

Gee, James Paul. "Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics." Literacy: A Critical Sourcebook. Eds. Ellen Cushman, Eugene Kintgen, Barry Kroll, and Mike Rose. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2001. 525-544.

“We all have many Discourses,” claims Gee in his article, “Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics (526). This statement is decidedly true. I myself have a myriad of Discourses if you consider the breadth of what Gee considers to be Discourses. For example, I am a student of literature, I am an American, I am a woman, etc. With the idea that what we claim ourselves to be, what our immediate identity is at the moment, how are we to categorize and explain these many Discourses in a sensible way. Gee has presented to us his explanation and example of exactly how to do this.

Initially Gee explains the basics of a Discourse: “A Discourse is a sort of “identity kit” which comes complete with the appropriate costumes and instructions on how to act, and often write” (526). With this individualism between Discourses firmly cemented into our minds Gee must now delve further into defining each Discourse or, discourse. First we are broken down to decipher the differences between primary and secondary Discourses. The primary describes an initial learned Discourse that branches from the family and extends to our later interactions with anyone we become intimate later in life with. The secondary Discourse can be described as one we acquire once we have branched from our families, once we enter churches, schools, or community groups (527).

Then we must decipher between dominant and non-dominant discourses, which Gee considers to be secondary Discourses. These dominant/non-dominant discourses are concentrated on the acquisition of goods. While the dominant is used to acquire necessary and social goods, such as money and status, the non-dominant focuses on finding comfort and protection in a single social network (528).

By focusing on and defining the different levels of discourses, Gee can continue to explain the purpose of discourses in language and literacy. For without the Discourses that everyone contains the process of explaining literacy is unable to be done. We must first fully understand our own Discourses and others to explain there interaction with each other, in order to define literacy.

Auto 5: Discourse Shifts & Level of Verbal Formality

After observing shifts in my own verbal discourse over the past few days I have come to the conclusion that my verbal level of discourse can be put on a scale from one to five. One stand at the most informal setting and five is the highest level of spoken formality. I find that at the most informal level is my discourse and speech that I share with my boyfriend. It is open to anything and a little silly at times, which is why I scored it as the most informal. I believe that the fact that we live together also creates this heightened level of informality. My mother on the other hand, whom I am very close to, but no longer live with, can be scaled at a two. It was difficult to determine the placement of my mother, because I feel that generally my mother and my boyfriend should be on the same level: somewhere in between 1 and 2. I have noticed though that my voice actually deepens from my oral discourse with my boyfriend to my mother, and even more so as formality increases in the scale. I think this is because my speech is becoming more direct and concrete, and my points are being made more clearly as the formality increases.

On level three I find my friends. These are my friends outside of college; the ones I have known for years or simply never discuss scholastics with. Even on this level though, I find a discourse difference between each friend, which may also comment of the education level of the individual I am speaking with. My closest and longest friend of 13 years, Vanessa, seems almost to be at a 3.3 level. While Vanessa and I are close we find little to talk about outside of daily life due to the fact that after High School I went straight to college, and she chose to work and eventually start her own family. Another friend of mine named Kyle seems to be at a 3.6 (I have only known him for roughly 5 years). He also has not attended college, but is an avid reader and is constantly interested in learning. Due to this I relate to him on a closer level intellectually than with Vanessa. My last close friend is Derek, whom I have only known for about 2 years. I would probably rate my discourse with him at a 3.9. His own discourse is what elevates my own, I believe. Derek is a very proficient speaker, and his speech is extremely honest and blunt. This is something that I consider a quality, for I am blunt myself. It is interesting to note that Derek has also attended some college in his life, which is more than either of my other close friends. Do I intend my oral discourse to be determined by a level of education? Of course not, for both my boyfriend and mother have higher levels of education than any of my friends. Apparently though, when it comes to my friends (who I do not live with), there is an obvious subconscious level of change where I determine my level of informality and formality based on education.

Level four I reserve for my fellow peers in school and if I was currently working, probably my co-workers. With these people I find myself needing to meet there level of discourse, and for that reason I level them fairly high for I feel I need to be more formal in order to do so. At the highest level of formality (5) in my oral discourse I categorize my speech with professors, bosses, and individuals at a school in which I am observing at. As I stated before my voice deepens and becomes clearer with the elevation of formality and at level five I am very clear and concise. I find it interesting to note that my discourse lies on the most basic level of hierarchy: family, friends, peers, and professionals; but that also (with the exception of family) I subconsciously classify my discourse based on the assumed level of education with the person I am speaking with.

Response to Brandt

Dear Chewy Coyote,

Your precis on Brandt was very informative. When I initially heard her term of "sponsor"I thought the essay would explore the motivations that push people toward literacy. I was surprised to learn that there is more to sponsorship. It can open doors and also closed doors. Her essay talked about the need for people in the workforce to gain literacy.

Negotiation; Autobio 6

The variables that seem to most influence my shifts in discourse include the person I am negotiating with and the sensitivity of the topic. Negotiations I have mostly occur orally and if it is written it is in the form of email, instant messaging, texting, or leaving comments on facebook.com.

Towards my younger sister and my mother, members of my family whom I most closed to, I express my feelings or complaints first regarding the subject and then proceed to work out a plan. Even if the negotiation is as trivial as the order in which we hit the stores in the mall we still consider anyone’s preferences but mother has the final say. In matters between my siblings, no matter how we feel against a decision, we usually listen to the eldest sibling’s decision. Formalities are not necessary within the family, but I feel obliged to keep some formality when I negotiate with my father. At times I don’t think I want to even try negotiating with him in fact I don’t think “negotiate” is the right word. My mother and I have this tactic where we make him believe he came up with the plan originally but we had laid some foundation for the result we intended. That tactic is usually involves exhausting every and any logical and reasonable argument before resorting to pathos.

In negotiations with cohorts and peers, I find that is best to begin saying something to the extent of “If it’s alright with you” because it seems to be the best way to get started with group projects. I never like to assume the leadership role unless I feel there is a pressing need for it. Having many experiences with class group work, I find it very annoying when someone suddenly becomes the “boss” when there was no instruction to assign one. Some people are happy to follow a good leader and some people would rather do the group assignment individually as much as possible.

In all cases where negotiations are made I always try to keep in mind ways to approach people with maximum respect. Even if it’s a child or someone much younger than me, people are more likely to abide with the stipulations of the negotiation if they feel respected. I try to make an effort to consider the perspectives and feelings of those involved as much as possible.

AutoBio #5- Literacy Interaction

As I begin to write this assignment I step back into time and truly wonder how many times I use oral and written language on a daily basis. I realize how significant our use of literacy is throughout our everyday tasks. From the morning we get up, we look at (read) the alarm clock then we rush to get ready for wherever we need to go or do. We set our coffee maker and use our microwaves. When driving we have to be conscious of our speed limit, signs and lights. Even more interesting is that literacy is a multi-functional tool that serves to accommodate our everyday lives from simple to more complex tasks.

What’s most appealing to me is that all of us interact with oral and written communication on different levels. For example, a teacher may be equally bound to using both oral and written literacy within the classroom whereas a real estate agent needs to show the upmost friendly and social communication skills to make a sale. At home, my language usage is more informal than it would be at work, school, party, dinner table, etc... thus, social community matters. For example, it’s unavoidable to quarrel (goof around) daily with my brother at home where bad words and tricks are exposed. In contrast, I talk more formally (with more respect) to my sisters and parents. I’ve come to realize that literacy is integrated and needed for human survival. We are all active participants and connected in this literacy world.

Deborah Brandt: Sponsors of Literacy

Cushman, Ellen, Kintgen Eugene R., and Kroll Barry M.. Literacy-A Critical Sourcebook. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2001.

In the world of literacy during the mid-nineteenth century, there came to life, the inventions of what is called steam press which reorganized the economy of print industry. This new form of mass printing brought an end to certain potentials in literacy as well as different kinds of literacy sponsorship. Throughout the fluctuation of time and generations, literacy has been traced as both rising and falling with each new wave of new technologies and ideas. There is an attempt to connect literacy as an individual development with literacy as an economic development. This approach is known as sponsors of literacy, with the idea that “sponsors” are tangible reminders “that literacy learning throughout history has always required permission, sanction, assistance, coercion, or at a minimum, contact with existing trade routes” (556). The concept of sponsors is used to clarify human relationships and ideological pressures that arise from the world of literacy. Literacy sponsors affect learning by organizing such systems that create opportunity and access, and they raise the bar of literacy, in struggles for competitive advantage which makes things more complimentary for the average individual.
Brandt uses two cases as examples of “literacy diversion.” Both of the narratives used are the stories of woman who both work “in subordinate positions as secretaries, in print-rich settings where better-educated male supervisors were teaching them to read and write in certain ways to perform their clerical duties” (568). Both of the women took what they were exposed to at work, and diversified it to help them with personal aspects of their life. Carol white took the idea of Anecdotes from her boss, and began creating her own colorful anecdotes to do door-to-door missionary work as a Jehovah’s Witness. Sarah Steele explained how she began to model her very own household finances after the attorneys of whom she worked with. The picture being painted is a pattern of how such opportunities for literacy acquisition open up a kind of clash between old and new sponsorships, and between “the lingering presence of literacy’s conservative history and its pressure for change” (570).
It seems after reading and understanding all the theories of literacy learning among all classes, that this idea of a “sponsor” plays an even larger role throughout the entire realm of literacy and language. The essay breaks this concept down, and explains the histories behind, and even gives specific examples, however, there seems to be a great deal that has not yet been mentioned. Such as the professional writer who is struggling to publish. How does a writer connect his/her private world with that of the public realm and create material that is both culturally and socially acceptable? There are hundreds of oppositions that must be adequately balanced in the world of literacy.

Week 6-autobio

This quarter alone, has been one of the most interesting areas of school with the idea of literacy and methods of communication. It is so intriguing to acknowledge just how much an average individual changes their modes of speaking and shifting discourse gears in their normal day-to-day routine. Taking the time to really listen for my own shift in discourse has proven that I myself actually shift discourse gears everyday. Aside from someone who swaps between one language and another, I change discourses just within the English language. A great example of this, is in my writing: both in class note taking, and the daily communication through text messages. Looking at my class notes alone, there are several instances where I begin to write out complete sentences, and then almost immediately begin to make abbreviations, and simple codes that stand for a more complete or complex thought. This is done involuntarily in a way that helps me to gather as much information and transfer it from ear to paper and ink, while still being caught up with what is being discussed in the class. Text messaging is a great example of this kind of code making in literacy today. It doesn’t matter how professional a situation or person is, because in the “community” of text messaging, it is easier, faster and more room efficient to make abbreviations, or spell words wrong on purpose, so long as you get your message across. In my own personal experience in this circumstance, I was texting my friend, who was actually once my high school AP English teacher. She presents herself as a very intellectual and “grammatically sophisticated” individual in her work environment, and even occasionally outside of the work environment. I have noticed that this image of sophisticated language discourse immediately changes when she communicates through text messages. Almost every word is spelled wrong, or incorrectly abbreviated, but the fact of the matter is, I still understand exactly what she is communicating.
Another important kind of shifts in communication takes place within my own household. This year, I rent a room from one of my old assistant coach and his family. They have a 16 month old little boy named Spencer, who has been taught several different signs (of actual sign language) in order to communicate what he wants. He knows the signs for words or phrases such as “Hungry” “more food” “bottle” “bath” and “diaper change”. It is interesting for me to sit and observe Spencer and his mom communicating with one another. Spencer’s mom shifts from speaking verbally, to strictly making the hand gestures in order to help Spencer to have a smooth transition from not being able to speak, to speaking pretty fluently.

En Los Dos Idiomas

Marcia Farr is a participant observer in the ethnography of communication among Mexican immigrants. The study involved forty-five people with an education range from zero to eight years and was concluded throughout five years in Chicago (on weekends) and six weeks in Mexico. There were two ranchos that were observed that were the complete opposite of each other, however they both practiced literacy whether acquired through schooling or not. The men from the rancho of Guanajuato achieved literacy without formal education. They learned it lirico meaning informally by others who only spoke the language. In Michoacan, they learned it school based. In addition to the importance of literacy whether oral or written, another important role within these two ranchos (communities) is the concept of compadrazgo: the Mexican system of godparent like relationships that function as a reciprocal exchange network to facilitate economic survival and provide emotional and social support (Farr P 468). Because of compadrazgo it is essential for the Mexicans to maintain close relationships and more importantly, stay in contact with each other thus emphasizing the importance of literacy whether through writing letters or telephone calls.

The significance of this study is to acknowledge that learning literacy isn’t just limited to an education. It can just as well be achieved through informal practices. In addition, literacy plays a key role in keeping connections with family members and compadres where trust and commitment are essential in producing learning and teaching among themselves. Furthermore, I can relate to many of these circumstances and experiences because of my family background. My parents are also immigrants who came from a rancho with limited schooling. They had to focus on work to survive. My mother taught my dad letters and numbers and to at least be able to sign his name. In addition, my mother has acquired a lot of the English language informally by just hearing it spoken. It’s truly significant how one is able to learn literacy and use it under any condition.

Harmful Verbal Literacy; Autobio 4

Roller coasters, boogie men below my bed, and the fear of losing a loved one all do not compare to my daily fear of disappointing my parents and anyone important. Only recently I noticed how most of my decision making is driven by the hope that one option was better than others because it prevented disappointment. I know I don’t live solely for those people and I can become disappointed with myself, but their hopes and expectations become my own. Sometime in elementary school that group of important people included teachers. I spent some seven hours with teachers, five days a week for most of the year—naturally I recognized them as authoritative figures that should be respected almost like parents.

I made one measly mistake in second grade. One mistake the teacher felt necessary to expose to the class. One mistake that resulted with me writing ‘I will not leave my lunch box in front of the door because others may get hurt’ a hundred times. Of course my classmates would not trip over it, but she would the way she stormed through the door. Yes, I can go on about how the details of that day indicate that she had as much blame in my forgetfulness but I will never forget her public verbal tongue lashing. “Who is the irresponsible idiot who left their lunch box here…I could have fallen, I could have gotten hurt, don’t you realize how old I am, how could you hurt your teacher!?” Denying I was the irresponsible idiot was not going to happen, not while my peers were quick to glance at me. I was embarrassed. To talk back and explain myself was simply not an option at seven years old. But nothing stung more than her recognition that the irresponsible idiot was me. You have to realize, before that day I had gained a wonderful academic reputation and I was well liked by teachers including her. It’s like she took all the past compliments, all the proud smiles and acknowledgments back when she said “I am very disappointed in you.” I remember turning in the scribbled pages of redundant torture she asked for and all she said was “I couldn’t believe it was you.” I remember apologizing, but in my heart it was not because of my petty crime, but because I caused her disappointment and she told everyone I was an ‘irresponsible idiot’. With those two words, she lowered my self esteem and condemned me as one of the dumb kids always acting up in class for attention.

I hate public scolding. I hate receiving it and I hate witnessing it between teachers and students especially when students are not free to explain themselves. I can’t help but sympathize for my peers and even though I am innocent, I still feel just as bad as they might. I want to yell back at teachers and tell them to take it outside like it’s a special brawl for the sake of that student, guilty or not they shouldn’t have to endure the humility. Some people might argue it’s the best way to teach someone a lesson, I’d say it’s a way to make enemies. I never went out of my way to pull a prank on my teacher, but I failed to stifle my hysterical laugh when she sprained her ankle tripping on her own foot. My relationship with her was never the same thereafter; I couldn’t forgive her the way I forgave my parents for irrational disciplinary actions. I never left my lunchbox carelessly around but that incident was the first for me and the last time I gave subsequent teachers any cause to embarrass me. All I’m saying is, there is a time and a place for disciplinary actions toward students and public humiliation should be a last resort.

AutoBio #4

I consider my bilingual ability (Spanish) as an asset. I constantly find myself needing to go back and forth with these two languages whether at home, work or out in the street. The most significant moment I've used this language ability, not only spoken but written was when my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. From the beginning of her diagnosis I was able to accompany her everywhere. It was crucial for her to know all the steps involved in order to begin her treatment. In this case, as in many others, I realized that it was so significant to have the ability to communicate in both spoken and written languages. I had to serve not only as a comfort zone but interpreter as well. The day they diagnosed her, my mom was only focusing on the horror of having the cancer and what might happen, she was not focusing on the documentation needed and further steps involved.

My focus was on getting any type of available help/programs that would help my mother financially to further proceed with her treatment. I immediately asked for help with programs available , forms and further appointments, as well as a doctor. Day after day I was either calling or completing forms for her to get the immediate help that she desperately needed. I was able to get a state approved cancer program for all of her future medical needs. I realized that although my mother could've gotten help through other means, it would have definitely taken longer and maybe she wouldn't have qualified for the program. I used my literacy skills to act quickly on a very important, personal concern. Thankfully, my mother is alive and doing extremely well. I think this situation futher demonstrates the importance of literacy and how effective it is within our everday lives.

Autobiographical Essay #4: Talking at Two

I don’t remember much of my early years, but according to my mother I was a very interesting toddler when it came to speaking. I apparently chose to speak in my own wonky language until the age of two when I could speak in complete sentences. My mother used to always tell me, I was unlike other children in the sense that other children would say single words as they began to learn to speak, such as “cat” or “ball,” but I waited until I could clearly ask, “May I have the ball?”

In retrospect I can see that this system of waiting until I learn the entirety of something has followed me throughout my life. While other students learned lessons, such as a mathematics problem or essay structure, part by part, I absorbed everything until I was sure I could perform the lesson properly. Seeing as to perform mathematics properly you must understand all parts individually prior to a proper completion, I am still not very good at math today. However, essay writing always seemed more fluid to me: there was room for error and revision. Still it was not until I was in my freshman composition class in college that I truly comprehended the essay concept and then I flourished. While my system worked for me in some aspects of my study, it equally did not in others.

It wasn’t until my sophomore year in high school, when I was taking my first psychology class that my mother told me about my insistence on complete sentences as a child. I was quiet pleased when I heard about this; it was cool to think that I waited to speak until I could be properly understood, and it gave my some insight to my dilemma of essay writing at the time. It was helpful to realize that though I didn’t understand the individual purpose for the parts of the essay structure, i.e. introduction, body, and concluding paragraphs, by themselves once I looked at the essay structure as a whole it would click. It did. Once I saw the introduction as not only a paragraph, but a comment for what was to come in the body and as assistance to the conclusion, essay writing became all the more easier. I just had to put purpose behind what I was writing, just like I had to put purpose behind what I was saying as a child.

Autobiographical Essay Five

When I was a toddler, my mother said she was often times worried about my speech development, because I was still not talking at an age where I should’ve begun putting simple words together. My family still tells stories today, of how I would merely point and grunt, as a way of communicating what I wanted. My mom said she tried to “help” my speech development by clearly telling me to say what I wanted. However, I proved difficult as I would not budge, and only continue to point and grunt, until the crying started. After many phone calls to the Dr., my mother was reassured that this was in fact normal, and that I was in a phase that would soon pass. Sure enough, this was so, and I finally began speaking, and putting simple words together and eventually forming complete sentences. However, there soon arose another problem by the time I hit the age of 2 ½; I began to develop a stutter and this continued on for months. At this point in my life, I can gather the facts through my own memory, instead of just what I was told by my mother and family.
I have vague memories of attempting to speak, and having my aunt Linda telling me to stop, to think about what I wanted to say. At that point, I knew there was something wrong with the way I spoke. After about the age of 4 ½, my stutter was noticeably fading and I remember hearing my mothers praises for my progression. This was one of the first times in my young life, where I felt assured of my self and abilities to communicate with other human beings. Soon after, my aunt would make comments as to how much I was “growing up” and “talking like a grown-up” which made me feel triumphant in my small world. These memories of feeling accomplished however, are not as vivid in my mind, as were the times when family members (such as my aunt) would tell me to slow down, and remember to think about what I am “trying” to say. These memories of failure are what have stuck with my to this day, as opposed to those short-lived moments of finally feeling accepted into the world of language; at least within my family.

Moss: "Ethnography and Composition: Studying Language at Home"

Moss, Beverly J.. Ethnography and Composition: Studying Language at Home. Carbondale: Southern Illinois: Methods and Methodology in Composition Research, 1992.


Beverly J. Moss writes on her experience of doing an ethnography of the African American church, and goes about the tactics and methods in which create a valid collection of analysis on a particular community. Moss was inspired by Shirley Brice Heath's "Ways With Words" and claims "Heaths work validated [her] desire to do research that connected with [her]...because [she] was convinced that finding out what students did outside class was the key to helping them succeed in school" (388). Ethnography essentially is the study of community of people, and how they act, speak, and live in their daily lives. the goal of a successful ethnographer should be to describe a community so that an outsider may understand that community just as a participating community member would. Moss identifies Hymes ideas that ethnography can be broken down into three major categories or inquiries: Comprehensive-oriented ethnography, (which is a way that seeks to describe a total way of life) topic-oriented ethnography (picking only one major focus in a study) and hypothesis-oriented ethnography, which can only be acquired through the use of the two other inquiries of ethnography. Moss claims that generally speaking, ethnography connects with "phenomenological-oriented culture perspective" in the idea that ethnographers can focus on a select number of individuals within a community, and observe what they do and say, so that they can understand below the surface emotions and feelings. Certain methods an ethnographer would create are things such as taxonomies and cognitive maps, and they would need to find a way to gain access to a community, as well as keeping a conceptual framework in mind. A successful ethnographer collects data and analysis's that "consists of recognizing patterns and relationships that emerge from the framework" and the developing it into a coding scheme which transfigures them into categories (391). Moss claimes that one of the most important lessons to be learned from creathing an ethnography is that ones experience is not reproduced through literacy, but must be understood as a narration.

Critical Response: It is insightful to see that many times, ethnographers choose to write on their own community of which they are famaliar, and they are then choosing to re-adjust their mindsets on something which would have otherwise been seen as the norm. These individuals who choose to study their own community must choose to keep an open mind about the community, and must be willing to ask questions without having an immediate answer. With this being said, there seems to be a few flaws in this logic that states such an ethography on one's own community is the hardest to do of all. This can be argued either way, but initially it is understood that the gaining of access or acception of the community has already been accomplished. One of the most interesting ideas on this study of a particular culture or community, is the fact that you must "fit in" or not be noticed, in order to gain unfaltering data. Once a community member notices you, they are at risk of acting differently from how they "normally" would, which could cause other community members to follow the same pattern, which ultimately leads to a set of invalid observations and field notes.
In connection with thinking about literacy, it is interesting to think of your data you collect as a professional ethnographer, should not be a series of notes, or a collection of writing for others to merely read, but it should in fact been seen as a narrative or memoir of your experience among a particular group of people. This idea of literacy can be quite complex and interesting because, when one goes back to tell a "real-life" story, things will always be less accurate of what really happened. This is this interchangable tie between "story-truth" and "happening-truth". what makes a good story, as to what really happened?

The Power of Choice

Up until my junior year in high school I saw essay writing to be a necessary evil. Required writing was tedious and pointless in my mind so the concept of even enjoying it a little was ridiculous to me. However, when I was first given the option to choose my essay topic, a whole new world of possibilities opened up to me. Before my junior year I already knew that I found my English classes to be easier than the rest of my classes, but it wasn’t until I found a teacher who I could relate to that I actually enjoyed them. The first thing my junior year English teacher did on the first day of class was introduce himself and provide us with some knowledge about his past. It turned out that teaching was not his first choice. In fact his initial dream was to become an actor and he went to an acting school in New York for a few years prior to changing his mind. A light bulb turned bright on in my mind that day. I had finally found a teacher who was like me, one who wanted to become an actor as well. Opportunities presented themselves immediately, not only could this teacher understand me, but for the first time I could write about my passion for an adult who would truly understand it and not think it was just a pipe dream, or cute.

Perhaps it was the fact that I was finally tuned in to what a teacher was saying in class, but I did surprisingly well in English that year. I enjoyed the reading, while always visualizing the novels characters on stage and myself in my favorite role. I began giving presentations on books as if the classroom was my stage and not just a torture chamber. The best part of the class though was the first time I wrote a true research paper. Our teacher told us to choose a person, alive or dead, that we admired and to write a five page paper about them. Being prone to my musical theater obsession, and at that particular time the musical “Chicago”, I chose to write about the shows choreographer, Bob Fosse. I had recently seen a musical based on his dance style, and which was named after him, and I loved it. So I chose to research and write about Bob Fosse, and as I researched two things ran through my mind constantly: (1) My teacher will really enjoy reading my paper, because of our mutual theatrical passion, and (2) I better write a really good paper, because my teacher probably knows more about my subject than I can research about. After all Bob Fosse is one of the top three great names in musical theater choreography, so my teacher was bound to know him.

I researched and researched for this paper, and I must have edited it at least ten times. When I turned it in I had the best grade in the class, and after a final edit (allowed to the class), I had achieved full points on the biggest project of junior year English. I found myself helping my fellow students with grammatical errors and phrasing choices in their essays without knowing what I was doing. My teacher even asked to keep my paper to use as an example in classes he would have for the following years. With the ability to choose my writing topic and a little understanding from my teacher I excelled that year and realized two things: (1) It is okay if I want to be an actor today and later choose to be a teacher, and (2) I really liked the idea of becoming the latter.

A Pleasureable Literacy Experience


Thinking back to my teenage years, I recall a literacy experience which was very satisfying after completing. I was in the 6th grade. I truly enjoyed reading at that time, whether in school or at home. I loved books.This experience is on a book report. However, it wasn't your typtical book report of reading and writing a one page summary and/or response. This involved many steps. First, we had to find and read a book of our choice. Then we had to decorate a brown cardboard shopping bag with handles to emphasize the theme of our book. Inside the bag we had to include three important things that represented the story. I did mine on Little Red Riding Hood. I used red construction paper to cover the bag and added a cut out shape of a little girl's face in the front. I used gold glitter to decorate the title of the book and handles of the bag. Inside the bag I included a small red hood-represent the girl, a small toy wolf to represent the evil and a small basket that represented love.

This was not an easy project for me. However, it has been a very unique learning experience. I felt very proud and satisfied when I completed it. It was even more fun to see the other students' work and decorations. In a way, this activity helped me feel better about myself, in addition to being more creative.

Journals Then and Now (Autobio 3)

A positive schooled experience with literacy learning I recall was in third grade when my class began writing in journals. Everyday, the teacher shared a quote or asked a general question usually about what we could remember about yesterday’s topics. My favorite journals to respond to were “wonder why” tasks. For example, the teacher will say “I wonder why the sky is blue” and in our journals we would do our best to answer that question however imaginatively we wanted. I often wanted to use words that I didn’t know how to spell. Even though it was acceptable in those days to sound it out as close as possible, I felt compelled to have the correct spelling. We were allowed to share our journals to our peers for a moment and I hated hearing I was a ‘dummy’ from a fellow peer for not spelling a certain word correctly. It was fun sharing my ideas with anyone and hearing their take on it as well.

To some degree I still write journals attempting to answer the ‘wonder whys’ of my life. Even if no one reads it, writing helps me make sense of my jumbled thoughts. Sometimes I swear I can explain better in writing than with speech. There’s a kind of permanence to writing that can serve as proof or maybe like a map to my past self. Writing helps to preserve memories and we can travel to our old mentalities. I get such a kick out of reading my old elementary, middle school, and high school diaries. I can’t believe the way I saw the world and myself in those days! I’m not ready to share those embarrassing stories yet but they sure are entertaining.

Study the Ethnography of Literacy

John F. Szwed proposes that literacy should be studied as ethnography in his essay "The Ethnography of Literacy." In other words, in order to understand and perhaps define literacy, it should be studied as if it were a culture. Clearly, “literacy as an ideal seems to be suffering a crisis” (page 421) and no one is exactly sure what kind of relationship exists between literacy and civilization. He raises an important question: what positions do reading and writing hold in the entire communicative economy and what is the range of their social and cultural meanings?

Arriving to a satisfactory answer to this question proves to be difficult when you begin to consider the function of literacy to not only the community but to the individual. According to Szwed “it is not enough to know what a language looks like, but one must also know what it means to its users and how it is used by them” (422). Consider the wide distribution of the skill to read and write across all walks of life; everyone has a unique motivation to engage reading and writing. Obviously books offer information but for some they can serve as gifts, decoration, and perhaps status symbols. Furthermore, nearly every social context can feature a specific reading purpose. For example people are more likely to read magazines and newspapers available at a doctor’s lobby or beauty salon. Not only are there different motivations, there are different styles of reading and writing. There are people who speed read and others who actively engage with the text critically (426). Certainly, these different styles will yield different understandings of text. In addition, nearly everyone is familiar with or has invented personal short hand notation. Some abbreviations or acronyms have become so common they are now universally understood. There are many ways to break down literacy but the most important aspect of literacy to consider are the expectations placed on schools for developing literacy.

Szwed, suggests the best way to examine literacy in the scope of academic interest is to understand the “literacy needs of individual students on a day-to-day” basis (427). Ultimately, we should focus our attention on the relationship between school and the outside world.

Good Experiences With Literacy

One of the most prominent memories about a good experience with literacy was my junior year of highschool in my AP English class. A few times a week, we would have class discussions about the current novel we were reading. Ou teacher did her best to encourage the entire class to participate and fully engage themselves in the discussion by making observations for the rest of the class, or posting a question concerning the book that would further open up the doors for discussion. However, as much as a teacher wishes for the best, when it comes to everyone equally participating, we had a good number of people that would not engage at all, and there were two or three students that would speak out at any chance they could, just to hear themselves talk. So, one day during a class discussion, our teacher had us organize our desks into a huge circle where we all felt included. she then handed us each 4 cards, each a different color. each colored card, began with a different "conversation starter". For example, one said, " I feel.."
another said " I have a question about..." and so on. Everytime someone rose their hand to talk, they would place a card face down. We had to place at least 3 cards down by the end of the class discussion, but we were also directed to use these cards wisely (for the students that dominated the class discussions) and we were graded on how many cards we actually used. This helped alot of people come out of their comfort zone and led to a fully-engaged class discussion. This particular memory is meaningful to me because I was one of the students who hardly spoke up, and this was a friendly push for me participate. After I starting participating more, I felt completely absorbed in the material and began to enjoy learning. This event is significant today, because I still find myself struggling to speak up in class discussions more, and I always think back to those 4 colored cards with a starting point on each one.

Graff: The Nineteenth-Century Origins of Our Times

Opening up, our readers learn that our very own U.S. was often said to have been born modern, largely because of its strong foundation in literacy. For a long time, this surge of nationhood had overpowering moral and civic goals, over that of true education. However, it was agreed upon by both Radicals and Conservatives that education was necessary in order to improve a society. There was then a shift in the early 19th century that exposed a common core of morality, patriotism, and knowledge into an individuals schooling. Despite the fact that both radicals and conservative agreed that and educated society was vital, Conservative were strong opposed to the education of slaves. As the schooling system began to expand, the use of schools was still mainly used for the assimilation and sociocultural cohesion, and this developed into a major social goal in the early nineteenth century. Education was promoted with the idea of the advancement of a society, not the individual. However, education was more readily available to those who had an advantage in occupation or property. There were economic-friendly schools where man met, for cheap or almost free of charge, but this type of education was given on shaky grounds because there was a constant struggle to find teachers, and many of those teachers were under qualified. With education, reading began to increase but the reading material that was actually being read was criticized to have been on material that was not approved. Women, especially middle-class women read often and were actually encouraged to do so. However, slave-owners opposed the idea of allowing slaves to read, because they thought the world of books would cause the slaves to hate their condition, begin to create crazy ideas in their head, and they believed that books would ultimately make them, “unlaborable”.

My Earliest Memory About Books

Growing up in my early childhood, most of my time and energy was spent running around with no shoes on and worrying about where my neighborhood friends were. School was not my biggest concern and reading was something we were forced to do. However, one of the first books I can remember having a strong influence on me was a picture book about a little bat falling out of her nest on accident and her journey to try and find her way back to the nest. This book seemed to have a significant meaning to me for its pictures and the fact that it was my grandmother’s book she kept for me.

In my own home, I don’t remember having anything significant that caught my attention. Anytime I wanted to go to my Grandma’s, I knew I had the choice of either watching the Wizard of Oz, or reading from my mini library.

The most recent book I’ve read with real enjoyment was Louise Erdrich’s The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse. The book was centered around the life of a priest named Father Damien, who spent his life on the Ojibwe lands. Father Damien, however, is really a woman formerly known as Agnes Dewitt who spent 80 years living among and serving this tribe. The story tells about her struggles and her self sacrifice and centers on a theme of sanctification and hagiography.

Books; Comfort & Conversation

I knew that reading was not so bad when I began confusing my familiarity to a book as if it were a movie. M. M. Kaye’s The Ordinary Princess was the first chapter book to flood my imagination with new wonderful possibilities. My mother had picked it from the school book fair maybe because the cover was a charming pink color with portrait of a plain girl said to be the ordinary princess. At that time I was capable of reading on my own but more often than not I would start several young reader chapter books and never finish them. Needless to say, I finished this book and reread it in the same week because it was that great.

Since that time, I learned to trust my mother’s book choices for me. Thinking retrospectively I see that she seemed to know just what I needed as a child. Both of my parents worked in those days and I might have needed more attention and more confidence boosts than I was ready to admit.

The most recent book I’ve read out of pure enjoyment was Breaking Dawn, the last book of Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight series. I began reading out of curiosity and the encouragements from my younger sister. She had literally put her high school responsibilities on hold to finish these massive books. I figure books that have that power over a seventeen year old who normally surrenders her soul to television is something worth looking into. Besides, everybody knows that the book is always better than the movie adaptations. I wanted to be one of those people who can instantly list the differences. More importantly, my sister was aching to have someone to talk to about the book. Whenever I discover something so phenomenally amazing I must share it with my friends and family for the sake of having someone to talk to/complain/argue/debate with. Who doesn’t want something to talk about?

Precis & Critical Response #1: The Scholarship Boy’s Journey

In Richard Rodriguez’s The Achievement of Desire Rodriguez discuss’ the trials and tribulations experienced by one particular “scholarship boy;” himself. As defined by Richard Hoggart in his book, The Uses of Literacy a scholarship boy is a child of exceptional scholastic attention and achievement who must balance a life between two worlds, the world of the classroom and that of his/her home life. Rodriguez expands on this definition by discussing his own experiences as a “scholarship boy” who is constantly struggling internally to find calm between his rich desire for education and a life at home with a working-class, natively Spanish speaking, family.

Rodriquez explains how he initially had to distance himself from his parents to achieve his own educational standards and how he felt “Haunted by the knowledge that one chooses to become a student.” He continues by explaining, “Here is a child who cannot forget that his academic success distances him from a life he loved, even from his own memory of himself” (Rodriguez 3). He goes on to explain that he trained himself to take notes copiously to ace exams, and although he outwardly seemed to be the exceptional student, he was actually a very bad student: “The scholarship boy is a very bad student. He is the great mimic; a collector of thoughts, not a thinker; the very last person in class who ever feels obliged to have an opinion of his own” (Rodriguez 6). In his search for everything educational, Rodriguez finds himself returning to his family while attempting to write his dissertation in graduate school. By coming full circle, from family to education and back, he claims his education is now complete.

It is interesting to note that while many students today may not be able to completely identify with the definition of the “scholarship boy” there are many attributes that any college student can feel familiar with. Some familiar topics that Rodriquez discusses include: transferring the role of authority from the parent to the teacher at a young academic age, the possibility of education becoming a barrier between yourself and your parents, and consuming books and information at an alarming rate to “fill the hollow within (me) and make (me) feel educated” (something which college students may definitely begin to feel towards the end of their chosen course of study) (Rodriguez 5). One point of Rodriguez’s that I believe states a very important issue for future teacher’s is, “But he would not be so bad – nor would he become so successful, a scholarship boy – if he did not accurately perceive that the best synonym for primary ‘education’ is ‘imitation’” (Rodriguez 6). This issue of education simply being the copy of life, or the concept of teaching what is on the test (and what is only on the test) is a major concern for future teachers and should definitely be considered and contemplated as we enter the profession.

Autobiographical Essay #2: My Favorite Childhood Book

In the fourth grade, I was required to write my first book report. I can’t remember whether I was required to read this book or if I chose it myself, but what I ended up reading was a book by Marcia Savin called “The Moon Bridge.” I enjoyed the book so much that I have read it quite a few times since and so the plot is fairly familiar to me. Set in San Francisco, during the time of Japanese-American internment camps and World War II, two 5th grade girls become close friends. One girl is American, while the other is Japanese. Mitzi (the Japanese girl) is sent, with her family, to live in an internment camp. The girls continue to talk via the pen pal system for as long as possible, until Mitzi moves to a camp too far away. The girls agree to meet each other someday at the Moon Bridge. They meet there after the war when they are adults at the end of the book.
When I read this book I was at an age of beginning curiosity of my own personal background. My parents being divorced and from two backgrounds I was rightly confused. My father was only available to me via phone, where he constantly pushed his Jewish religion onto me, whether I liked it or not. Due to this my knowledge of WWII expanded only to the holocaust up until the point that I read this book. My horror of the realization that Jews were not the only ones suffering in camps during WWII kept me entranced by the book. A friendship between two girls that survived through the roughest of times also grabbed at my attention, considering my friends were sparse while I attended elementary school. I just absolutely devoured the book. I even recall creating a themed cereal box to represent the plot of the book (an assignment no doubt), but I enjoyed it anyway. To this day Asian culture and historical novels attract my reading choices greatly. This book stayed with me, both emotionally and literally (it sits on a bookshelf in my house today). Reading has intrigued me ever since.
The most recent book that I have read (for pleasure) that I have truly enjoyed was, “Memoirs of a Geisha,” by Arthur Golden. I read this novel before a movie of the novel was even considered. The story is of a woman who becomes a Geisha, by no choice of her own, and her struggle and search for happiness. My intrigue of Asian culture and historical novels definitely connect with this novel. The story focuses on just one woman, but it emphasizes the struggle of many women in the novel. Perhaps the struggle, the journey, to find one’s own happiness is was intrigues me the most. I have found that my reading style tends to lean to novels with strong female protagonists who beat the odds when the odds are stacked against them, no matter what culture (although I tend to veer away from American female protagonist stories [probably because I am American]). I love them all though, which can be seen from the fact that another favorite of mine is the novel “Wicked,” by Gregory McGuire where Oz’s Wicked Witch of the West is the good guy. I dare say though, I think my love for strong female protagonists comes from the fact that I was raised by my mother and grandmother, two very strong women.

AutoBio #2

For some reason, it's hard for me to remember most of the books I've read and their significance. However, there is one in particular that stands out for me, "The Lord of the Flies". I read this in a CSUSB course a few years ago. At first, I wasn't even interested just from the title itself. However, as I began to read it I was pretty impressed about all the possible themes it contained. The story takes place on an island where a plane carrying boys from a boarding school crashes. There are no adults. The concept of community, rules and discipline quickly arise. What I find more significant in this novel is how the characters portray true life personas despite young boys. For example, there's Ralph as the leader in charge of everyone (all the other children) and who believes deeply on rules, order and working together to be rescued. Then there's Piggy whom, in addition to being fat, wears glasses. He's considered a sissy and desires to be noticed and accepted. Jack's character depicts a "want to be" dictator of the group. It's all about him and what he wants to do not what benefits them all. As mentioned, this book represents a lot of literacy and true life concepts that I would want my children to read.

At home, books were never considered as important, much less a "must have". The only books at home were those brought from school for homework use. Perhaps my parents lack of education made them unaware of the significance of reading. However, they did acknowledge that it was important for us to do well in school and recieve good grades.

Honestly, I don't read that often. When I do read, I do it because I have the time, I don't want to watch tv and it helps me relax. The most recent book I've read is "The Illusions of Love" by Kasey Michaels. I bought this book not only because it was on sale but I liked the title. It's a typical marriage of convenience story, however the two characters are not so typical. Lord Dante Muir is a strong, very charming bachelor with much experience with women. Sarah Jane is innocent and just coming into womanhood with no experience in love. The author uses such deep, profound and intimate words and details that I didn't want to stop reading it. In the end they fall passionately in love with each other which is something they didn't realize they wanted. I will reread it again when I have the time.

Frederick Douglas and the Idea of Literacy

Frederick Douglas. How I Learned to Read and Write. From Chapter Seven of Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas. http://etext.virginia.edu


From the very start of this chapter, Douglas makes his point, "I succeeded in learning to read and write" (Douglas, Ch 7). What one might consider as a normal learning experience is the most significant step in Douglas’s life. He adds, "I was compelled to resort to various stratagems" (Douglas, Ch 7). As a slave, Douglas was conscious of the ideal that they had no right to be literate. What for? After all, they were slaves. It would be a great sin if someone taught him that knowledge. He was not going to give up, the more he realized that it would bother/upset his Master, the more he wanted to accomplish it. Douglas’s first achievement was learning the alphabet which was actually taught to him by the Mistress. His next step was being friends with as many white boys in the street to teach him to read. It is a bit ironic how as Douglas serves his Master in doing errands, he learns to read. However reading posed a greater problem for Douglas. He realizes when reading "The Columbian Orator" that wring upholds "the power of truth" (Douglas, Ch 7). At this moment, Douglas must learn to write, and again uses boys to help him.

Why was it so significant for Douglas to read and write? He uses the term "mental darkness" as the inability to read. There is no conscious of anything without this ability- you are excluded from the world. For Douglas, literacy brings the light into his darkness. To read not just meant reading, it is tied to freedom. It is a form of liberation where you can be aware of the world and other people, while at the same time being free. Literacy can be such a powerful tool and Douglas demonstrates this through his writing-nothing is held back. He is teaching us a part of history while at the same time telling his story through his personal voice. Literacy can be many things- a tool for success and survival, it can represent justice, education and career. Literacy is an indefinite term with indefinite purposes.

Autobiographical Essay #1

Thinking as far back as possible, I remember times in my kindergarten class where we began to keep journals and records of different events in our (short) lives. Each day we were stationed at different tables and were given a particular amount of time to complete our assignment that was set specifically for that station. At one table, we were asked to brainstorm and think about what we wanted to write in our journals for that day, and to decide how we would word it. The next station was there for us to actually sit down with our blank piece of paper and pencils and begin writing on our journal entries. And lastly, the third table was set with crayons where we were to spend the remainder of the time illustrating our journal entries and expand our minds from letters to drawings. These daily journals began expanding our minds not only through the use of language and literacy, but also caused us to begin to think in a creative manner. We began sharing our journals with each other and reading different entries, which then led to our freedom to choose a book that seemed interesting to us as young individuals. School was one of the biggest influences on my language and literacy development as far as memory goes, however my grandmother was one prominent figure outside of school who played an important role when it came to reading. She kept a small, but very significant library at her house that was my very own. Having ownership over a selection of books helped me to begin understanding self-knowledge and the importance of "exercising the brain".

Early Child Literacy

As a young child, even in kindergarten I don’t have much memory of my early language and literacy development. I know that my first language has been and still is Spanish. I was spoken to and learned this language from home. However, I wonder if I also already knew some English because of tv watched at home or older sisters already in school. As I attended school, my focus went from Spanish to English but primarily in the school environment. At home, it was primarily Spanish spoken because of my parents who don’t speak English.. I have come to appreciate knowing the two languages. My parents didn’t let me forget the importance of speaking both languages. It never became complicated for me to use these two languages while growing up.
My literacy development pretty much occurred in school. I do remember going to preschool and consider it as an advantage with my language and development. I say this because of studies that prove this theory. Also, my mother probably helped in my early literacy and language by constantly talking and talking to me as a child. My parents had little, if any education. However, they always encouraged me to value education and do well in school. I don’t remember if it was easy for me to learn to read and write or not but I always did my work. I don’t think I’ve ever been involved in any community affiliations.