"The Terrasque."
"Right. I shapechange into that and drop my jaw to the ground."
Posted on 02/12/2008 7:51:36 AM PST by grundle
OCEANSIDE, Calif. -- John Corcoran graduated from college and taught high school for 17 years without being able to read, write or spell.
Corcoran's life of secrecy started at a young age. He said his teachers moved him up from grade to grade. Often placed in what he calls the "dumb row," the images of his tribulations in the classroom are still vividly clear.
"I can remember when I was 8 years old saying my prayers at night saying please god tomorrow when it's my turn to read please let me read. You just pretend that you are invisible and when the teacher says, 'Johnnie read,' you just wait the teacher out because you know the teacher has to go away at some point," said Corcoran.
Corcoran eventually started acting up to hide his illiteracy. From fifth through seventh grade he was expelled, suspended and spent most of his days at the principal's office.
The former teacher said he came from a loving family that always supported him.
"My parents came to school and it no longer was a problem for me reading because this boy Johnnie the -- native alien I call him -- he didn't have a reading problem as far as the teachers were concerned. He had an emotional problem. He had a psychological problem. He had a behavioral problem," said Corcoran.
Corcoran later attended Palo Verde High School in Blythe, Calif. He cheated his way through high school, receiving his diploma in June 1956.
"When I was a child I was just sort of just moved along when I got to high school I wanted to participate in athletics. At that time in high school I went underground. I decided to behave myself and do what it took. I started cheating by turning in other peoples' paper, dated the valedictorian, and ran around with college prep kids," said Corcoran.
"I couldn't read words but I could read the system and I could read people," adds Corcoran.
He stole tests and pursuaded friends to complete his assignments. Corcoran earned an athletic scholarship to Texas Western College. He said his cheating intensified, claiming he cheated in every class.
"I passed a bluebook out the window to a friend I painstakingly copied four essay questions off the board in U.S. government class that was required, and hoped my friend would get it back to me with the right answers," Corcoran said.
In 1961, Corcoran graduated with a bachelor's degree in education, while still illiterate he contends. He then went on to become a teacher during a teacher shortage.
"When I graduated from the university, the school district in El Paso, where I went to school, gave almost all the college education graduates a job," said Corcoran.
For 17 years Corcoran taught high school for the Oceanside School District. Relying on teacher's assistants for help and oral lesson plans, he said he did a great job at teaching his students.
"What I did was I created an oral and visual environment. There wasn't the written word in there. I always had two or three teacher's assistants in each class to do board work or read the bulletin," said Corcoran.
In retrospect, Corcoran said, his deceit took him a long time to accept.
"As a teacher it really made me sick to think that I was a teacher who couldn't read. It is embarrassing for me, and it's embarrassing for this nation and it's embarrassing for schools that we're failing to teach our children how to read, write and spell!"
While still teaching, Corcoran dabbled in real estate. He was granted a leave of absence, eventually becoming a successful real estate developer.
It wasn't until he was 48 years old that he gave reading and writing another chance. He drove to an inconspicuous office with a sign he couldn't read. He studied and worked with a tutor at the Literacy Center of Carlsbad. Assigned to a 65-year-old volunteer tutor, Eleanor Condit, he was able to read at a sixth-grade level within a year.
"I'm just an optimistic hopeful person that believes in the impossible and miracles," said Corcoran.
Carlsbad City Library literacy coordinator Carrie Scott said people of all walks of life go through the reading program, including teachers.
Corcoran is now an education advocate.
"I believe that illiteracy in America is a form of child neglect and child abuse and the child is blamed and they carry the shame, if we just teach our people how to read we'd give them a fair chance," Corcoran said.
He has written two books, "The Teacher Who Couldn't Read" and "Bridge to Literacy." He is also the founder of the John Corcoran Foundation. The foundation is state-approved as a supplemental service provider for literacy in Colorado and California – providing tutoring programs for over 600 students in small group settings, and individually in homes through an online program.
In before the teacher haters.
You really just cannot make this stuff up.
You’re right—lately real life is giving Scrappleface a real run for its money
Just about every other employer has mechanisms for weeding out these sorts of people, and the fact that a school system wasn't able to do that reflects badly more upon the school system than this individual.
The wonderful Department of Edumacation strikes again.
A little hard to believe.
ping
In before the FReepers who hate leftist Unions and the institutionalised dumbing down of America.
Oh wait, I hate those things too.
What puzzles me about this is that you need a teaching credential to teach in California, and I was under the impression it involved a written test.
Not hard to believe. I knew many HS and college grads who could barely spell, much less read.
I'm with you. Just ain't buying it.
Literacy is a very basic skill and an extremely important one in our world, but it is quite surprising how easily people can get by without it. Also surprising is the lengths that the non-literate (or more accurately, semi-literate - total illiteracy amongst adults is extremely rare in the west) will go to avoid being “caught out”. They can be very, very inventive about disguising their lack of reading/writing skills.
Evidently not exclusively a recent problem...this guy graduated from college in 1961.
I say we bash illiterate teachers here all we want. It isn't as if they will ever know.
I am not sure he isn’t still conning his way to success.
I’ve seen surveys and news articles citing very high percentages of college students or college graduates who were functionally illiterate, usually defined as not being able to read a bus or train time-table, or comprehend a paragraph of prose. I have to say that I doubted those surveys for two reasons. First, I had to read and write like a lot in college, and I’m sure someone would have figured out if I couldn’t. Second, I’m sure that everyone I work with can read, although I’ve run into people who I need to work with, but who don’t work for my organization who will take a document (not always one I’ve written, so it’s not me), then hand it back to me and completely misunderstand what it says, which has lately caused me to wonder whether I’ve just run into a highly educated but illiterate adult.
He had high school and college diplomas. Civil service applicants can't even be tested for typing and computer skills under current Federal Regs.
I think it is possible. And if true, note the relationship between not being able to read and the bad behaviour in the lower grades.
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