Literacy In Antebellum America

1. In antebellum America, was the main source for “literacy and political discourse”?
• In antebellum America, the main source for “literacy and political discourse” was printer and steam press.

2. How does the economy relate to literacy as suggested pages 1-2?

• If the literacy develops, the economy will develop too. The development of the economy leads to earn more benefit and power.

3. What have past scholars/researches said about literacy? (p.2)

• They said about literacy that literacy is one of the engines to get money or profit, and to compete advantages. In addition, people’s literacy skills have less growing in their economy values because of changing in the literacy standers with every new generation of learners.

4. What
He has opportunity to work in a computer shop in the summer and develop his programming techniques. In the interview, he had successfully graduate from the local university in software documentation and writing of software. In short, the family background and economic status increase his opportunity to learn computer techniques.

10. Who is Dora Lopez? Describe her story in 3-4 sentences

• Dora Lopez was born in 1969 as a Mexican American. Her father has accounting degree from local technical collage and worked as clerk, and her mother attended technical collage and worked part time in bookstore. Her family moved to Midwest.

• Dora lived 17 miles far from a big city. She teaches herself how to read and write in Spanish, and help her mother at the bookstore. She used computer for the first time to teach children when she was 13 years old. Her father bought to her a used word processing machine. At the interview with university, Dora has transferred to technical collage. She works with cleaning company as a Spanish-English translator.

11. How do Branche’s and Lopez’s stories differ in terms of their literacy, opportunity, sponsors, and access? How are their stories
Also, their families moved to the Midwest. Both of them are self- initiated learning.

12. Why is there a rise in literacy standards?

• There is a rise in literacy standards because the literacy is available for ordinary person, so the people gradually improve their literacy skills to achieve or earn more benefits for their life and civil rights. The government and job requirements looked for professional and specialize person. Therefore, people worked more and took short courses to achieve the new job demands of literacy. In addition, individuals competed each others in development of literacy to earn profit and power as well as sponsors did that leaded to a rise in literacy standards.

13. What are the consequences of this rise in literacy standards?

• The consequences of this rise in literacy standards are: (1) older generation have difficulties with the new literacy standers. (2) Literacy can change fast between generations or in same generation such as Lowery had struggle against a rise in literacy standards. There are big different between standards when he began until he retired. (3) There are huge economic competitions in the literacy between individuals, and between