Cultural Literacy What Every American Needs To Know

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Cultural LiteracyWhat Every American Needs To
Know

• E. D. Hirsch, Jr.

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Plato vs. Rousseau

• SPECIFIC CONTENT TRANSMITTED TO CHILDREN IN
  EDUCATION.

• NATURAL DEVELOPMENT OF YOUNG CHILDREN IN
  EDUCATION.

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John DeweyJohn Dewey

• Acknowledges Rousseau as the chief source of his
  educational principles. Children should learn
  from typical experiences. He assumed that early
  education did not need to be tied to a specific
  content. Dewey is believed to be one whose
  ideas were deeply influential in American
  education theories.

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LITERACY Its not all about Reading!

• To be literate
• is to be able to understand the spoken and
  written word.
• Is to be able to communicate effectively with
  others across the nation.

• To be literate
• Is to have the ability to communicate using
  stable written forms.
• Is to be able to understand more than the surface
  meanings of words.

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According to Hirsch, real literacy depends on an
"acquaintance with one's national culture" --
thus the term "cultural literacy." He likens
cultural literacy to the kind of knowledge that
allows a person to pick up a newspaper and
comprehend what he or she is reading. It is that
shared body of information about mainstream
culture that every American must possess to
communicate efficiently and participate
effectively in society.
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So Whats it All About?

• Pride in our country

• Rich Historical Education

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To be Culturally Literate

• Means to share a common language from coast to
  coast.
• Be taught about the rich heritage of American
  culture.
• To have a firm grasp of Mathematical and
  Scientific concepts.
• To be exposed to both modern and classical
  literature.

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The Facts

• National Literacy enables us to communicate
  effectively throughout the nation.
• Is based on the knowledge we possess about
  language.
• Enables us to communicate amongst different
  specialties in different places.
• Gives us the background knowledge which allows us
  to communicate in a short, efficient fashion.

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What Can Be Done ?
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Encourage National PrideTeach the History of Our
Nation
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Build Background Knowledge
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Celebrate!
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So.

• How culturally literate are YOU?
• http//www.readfaster.com/culturalliteracy/