Reading at a grade six level?

This was written by Jim Gath

I wrote this the other night:

“According to the U.S. Department of Education, 54% of U.S. adults 16-74 years old - about 130 million people - lack proficiency in literacy, reading below the equivalent of a sixth-grade level.”

And that got me thinking……

If one reads below a sixth-grade level, one never attains an acceptable level of critical thinking.

Think about reading & reading comprehension up to the sixth grade. We learned words, the different parts of speech, and how to craft sentences & paragraphs. Our history books, probably the most complex of our school reading materials, consisted primarily of facts. The ‘why’ of things happening & the complexities of the issues just weren’t there at that early stage.

It was only later, in what was then called junior high school (grades 7, 8 & 9), were we assigned or read on our own, more complex literature. Our eighth-grade class read ‘To Kill A Mockingbird. And, every day, after reading our assignment as homework, our teacher had us put all of our chairs into a big, round circle.

And it was there – in that circle – that many of us began to delve into the complexities of the many issues that that book held. The various sides of the same issue - & why those were what they were. We discussed things like bigotry & the law & parenting & the wide range of issues & emotions contained in Harper Lee’s work.

We were beginning to learn critical thinking. We were learning to gather all the facts about an issue or issues & then, & only then, could we make a somewhat informed opinion. And that lesson & many more – through reading & understanding – taught us the importance of truly thinking for ourselves & making educated decisions in life.

That’s just one example.

Oxford defines ‘critical thinking as “the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgment”.

If one doesn’t develop critical thinking, one doesn’t analyze or evaluate an issue. One makes his or her decision based on feelings or emotions. And, often, non-critical thinking people will gravitate to that which feels good, not necessarily what is good.

Non-critical thinking people are all too often drawn to others with like-minded views. Why? Because it’s comfortable. And it makes them feel that their views & decisions are somehow justified – because if others feel that way, it must be right. It’s a form of herd mentality.

But it’s a herd mentality that has been developed by either: a) others who are also lacking in critical thinking, or b) those who understand the group’s lack of critical thinking & exploit it for their own uses.

And then, it all begins to feed on itself. And it grows.

Just as we’ve seen it grow over the past few years.

That’s why having 130 million people in this nation who are, for the most part, somewhat devoid of the skill of critical thinking is a recipe for ill.

How does that change?

Well, this country would have to make its children’s education the highest national priority. It would have to begin to drastically upgrade its educational system & bring it to the forefront of the twenty-first century. It would have to begin to consider the teaching profession as having the same importance as the medical profession & others like it. And teachers would have to be treated & paid accordingly.

Will it happen?

No – at least not in my short remaining lifetime.

Maybe, if you’re younger – a lot younger – perhaps. But only through back-breaking, heart-breaking hard work over a span of years, if not decades.

And, quite honestly, I don’t believe that we’re up to the task