It seems to me like you're mentioning literacy in a lineal fashion. We have progressed from not being able to speak to perhaps speaking to writing and now even e-mailing. I want to argue that we haven't progressed. We simply use language differently. I would not say that writing a letter is more civilized than being able to tell a good story. Being able to tell a story well, one that captures the audiences imagination like when our teachers used to read to us in grade school, a good storyteller is as much a learned trait as being able to read.
The media in which we write depends on the advancement of the society. Caveman wrote on walls, then stone, then paper, and now we type. If these transitions were linear there would be no regression. Being too dependent on advancements makes our society a very fragile one. This, to me at least, is not REAL advancement but rather a different mode of communication. More emphasis should be on verbal communication than that of written. I understand verbal is a natural progression whereas writing is not. Writing is definately a requirement in the business fields but how much GOOD writing is involved?
What is the school system trying to do with the students? Is the goal to produce Shakespeare type students or promote individual thinking and have basic skills in order to communicate? I know that I struggle by not having a large vocabulary and that basic fundamental, I think, is more important than learning a second language in school. Being able to do basic math is a requirement before learning how to do trigonometry. Basic thinking skills, vocabulary, being able to portray ideas are the bare necessities that should be drilled into our mental fiber at a young age.
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