Literacy Should Be Taught In Schools Essay

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The most widely known definition of the word “literacy” is the following: the ability to read and write. However, this is a very narrow and inaccurate definition since literacy skills also include the ability to speak and listen in its very wide meaning. Being able to read, write, speak and listen do not mean that one is simply capable of reading a text, speaking with a friend or listening to his answer, it also includes, for instance, having a critical opinion about a text and being able to express it orally or write it, being articulate, speaking in front of a large public with confidence, etc.

Ofted has recently put an emphasis on literacy skills within the curriculum and more particularly across it. This means that literacy should be taught in every subjects present in a school. The reasons for this …show more content…

A few examples of this would be : "speak coherently and confidently", "write prose using an increasingly wide range of grammar and vocabulary" (from the government's Key Stage 3 curriculum).

From what I have seen so far in my first placement school, the main focus related to literacy in the lessons of any subject concerns vocabulary: every lesson has a focus on specific vocabulary related to the subject studied and the teacher always explains its meaning, how to use it and makes sure that the pupils have it written in their books to have the right spelling. I also noticed during my pupil shadow day that, as expected, the focus on literacy was more important in English lessons. Indeed, the teacher asked several times for full sentences from pupils, in their oral speech as well as in their writing. However, it was also the case in a math lesson where they had to answer a math related

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