Avia Ustanny, Freelance Writer
HE IS nattily dressed in what he considered to be latest in design wear. But his face is stamped with fear. In a surge of aggression, he pushes his way to the front of the ATM line. Then he does the unexpected. He requests the person next in line to make his withdrawal for him.
Those have seen a similar occurrence will immediately recognise the acts of the man who cannot read, who must place himself before the last man to leave if he wants to use the machine.
Illiteracy with its attached social ills, remains an itching sore for this society and for those who have not learned to read. Major strides have been made in literacy training since the 1970s when a national programme for adult literacy was established, but since then the gains have noticeably slowed. Currently, JAMAL estimates that approximately 300,000 of the adult population (Jamaicans aged 15 years and over) are illiterate. Another 200,000 are estimated to fall in that category called 'functionally illiterate' and these pose the danger of lapsing into illiteracy, says analysts, writing in the latest literacy survey (1999).
Close to 60 per cent of this group are under the age of 50 years and have the potential, should their literacy level be raised, to be more active participants in the labour force.
The slowest gainers have been Jamaicans aged 65 and over. The literacy level for this age cohort remains 53.7 per cent, well below the national level.
Literacy rate - Jamaica (1975 -1999)
1975 - 47.0
1981 - 73.1
1987 - 79.0
1994 - 75.4
1999 - 79.9
What accounts for the deceleration in literacy results?
"We have suffered from a reduction in resources and we are not as well funded as we sued to be," Seymour Riley, director of field operations at JAMAL The Jamaica Movement for the Advancement of Literacy comments. "Although there are only 12,000 enrolled, we are estimating that there are as many as 300,000 in the population."
A core of over 1,000 teachers at JAMAL has been reduced to just over 100. All of this is occurring in the context where literacy needs are changing. Basic reading, writing and numeracy skills, as defined by UNESCO in 1970 are inadequate to meet the needs of labour in developing nation such as ours.
Compared to other countries at a comparative level of development, the Jamaican performance in even basic literacy training is mediocre. The illiteracy rates for Barbados and Venuezuela stand at less than 10 per cent. Trinidad claims an illiteracy rate of 3 per cent. Still, ours is better than that of India (48 per cent in 1990).
What improvements there have been were primarily the result of JAMAL, community empowerment movements which includes skills training and remedial programmes of education, and the effects of the media.
Full literacy remains outside of our grasp, however. The UNESCO assertion of "The right to education, as a right in itself and as means of promoting peace and respect for human rights is yet to materialise, here.
Urban areas ahead
ACROSS THE island, there are wide variations in literacy rates. The highest rate was recorded in St. Andrew (88.1 per cent) and Kingston (87 percent). The lowest rates were in St. Elizabeth (64.8 per cent). Literacy was highest within the urban concentrations.
Rural schools remain under-resourced. In these areas, there are fewer schools and fewer teachers. School drop-out rates are higher - more than twice the percentage in urban areas. More students in rural primary and all age schools tend to be illiterate.
Literacy is defined as the ability to read, write and understand language at a basic level.
Functional literacy is the ability of individuals to apply skills in reading, writing calculation and basic problem solving.
Basic literacy refers to the ability of the individual to display a clear grasp of the alphabetic system, recognise simple words, to read and understand simple narrative, or document and write a simple sentence.
Illiteracy is the term used when an individual displays very limited knowledge a very limited knowledge of the alphabetic system. He or she may be able to identify only a few frequently used words, but cannot understand a group of words in a phrase or sentence. Such persons may write a few letters of the alphabet.
