Sample Introduction for Literacy Narrative Archive

While many people believe that literacy is prerequisite for success, some people rebel against the kinds of literacy that are most valued in our society and most taught in the schools and universities charged with preparing people for professional work. As literacy scholar Kara Poe Alexander argues, there are few of these literacy “rebels” (616), but it is imperative to understand why some people reject school-based literacy, because people who rebel against school-based literacy experiences may find themselves later challenged to acquire the reading and writing skills most valued in our society, and thereby limit their ability to acquire the “social goods” (power, status, wealth, and influence) that linguist James Paul Gee says accompany the acquisition of dominant forms of literacy (8) . According to Alexander, literacy rebels do not necessarily reject reading and writing itself–in fact, they may be quite skilled readers and writers (621).  Instead, they reject the school-based literacy “system” itself, “dismissing the values and pedagogies of school” as stupid, unnecessary, or overly restrictive (621). While literacy rebels may, in my mind, have a point about some aspects of school-based literacy, the consequences of completely rejecting school-based literacy are too significant for concerned literacy sponsors not to attempt to recruit rebels to the Discourse community of analytical readers and writers. But in order for literacy sponsors to be successful, they must first accurately understand the specific reasons why individual rebels find themselves in conflict with school-based literacy, and then, perhaps, find a way to meet rebels half-way. The best way to understand rebels is to examine their own accounts of their school-based literacy experiences. In this essay, I examine four such literacy narratives, written by rebels. By carefully analyzing the personal and societal imperatives motivating rebels’ rejection of school-based literacy, I have identified three key underlying reasons why rebels reject the values and pedagogies of school-based literacy: _________________________________. With these reasons in mind, it is possible to plan alternative pedagogies that can meet some rebels halfway, and enable those open enough to reconsider to gain access to the powerful literacy skills they’ll need to navigate the world as professionals and citizens.