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WHY AMERICANS CAN’T READ
Accuracy in Media ^ | December 4, 2001 | Reed Irvine and Cliff Kincaid

Posted on 12/04/2001 12:27:03 PM PST by Jean S

Conservative activist, author and lawyer Phyllis Schlafly told the recent AIM conference that America has become too open and accommodating toward people who can’t read or speak English. This trend undermines our heritage and future as a nation. She said she wasn’t surprised by the fact that most of the hijackers could not speak English very well. Yet they were here training to be airline pilots.

One of the most serious problems facing America is illiteracy. She said an eighth grade science teacher had called in to her national radio program and said that half the students in her class couldn’t read. The teacher was pressured to read the tests to the students or record them on tapes so they could listen at their own convenience. At the same time, the subject matter on the exams was reduced by 30-40 percent to make it easier to pass the tests.

Schlafly, who has produced several books teaching phonics to children, said stories like that told by the science teacher make a mockery of claims about rising standards in schools and how more tests will solve the problem. She said Dr. James Dobson of Focus on the Family, a former teacher, had told her that he remembers about a half dozen students in his class who couldn’t read and he just passed them along to other teachers and other grades. If our citizens can’t read, Schlafly emphasized, then the ability to govern ourselves through a representative democracy is at risk. Current figures show that 37 percent of fourth graders can’t read. Among blacks, it’s 63 percent and among Hispanics, 58 percent.

Popular educational reforms are deceptive. Schlafly said one plan in Illinois to re-certify teachers, to make sure they’re competent, involved having the teachers go to a race track and place bets on horses. They got credit for a "course" called "Probabilities in Gaming." The rationale was that the teachers would learn something about math by going to the track.

At the beginning of our country, everybody read. But not today. Exams of Army soldiers over the last several decades show that, in World War II, there was a 4 percent illiteracy rate. By the Korean War, that had grown to 19 percent. By the Vietnam war, that had risen to 27 percent.

The real solution, Schlafly said, is teaching people to read through the phonics method. That teaches the 44 sounds of the English language and how to put them together. This effective method has been replaced over the years by something called the whole language or whole word system. This involves teaching kids to memorize a few dozen words and associate them with pictures. Much of it involves guessing.

Schlafly said this problem has come back to haunt the Democrats, some of whose constituents can’t speak English and were not able to read that controversial butterfly ballot in Florida in the 2000 presidential contest. This may have cost Gore the election. Schlafly said some people confused the designation of libertarian on the ballot with Lieberman, the Democratic vice-presidential candidate. For someone taught to read with the whole language system, the words looked the same. We’ll have more on the danger of illiteracy in our next broadcast.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial
KEYWORDS: educationnews
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1 posted on 12/04/2001 12:27:03 PM PST by Jean S
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To: JeanS
Geez. . . they can't read because they attend our communist governmment school system!!! The 10th Plank of the Communist Manifesto is in full force and effect and it's working marvelously well, eh???
2 posted on 12/04/2001 12:37:32 PM PST by GeekDejure
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To: JeanS
WHY AMERICANS CAN’T READ

Cause government took over education. What would you expect? The dumber people are, the more government they want. Even the brighter folks are set back by the deteriorating education standards.
3 posted on 12/04/2001 12:37:44 PM PST by verboten
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To: JeanS
then the ability to govern ourselves through a representative democracy is at risk

Seeing as how I generally admire Mrs. Shafly, I'm pretty disillusioned to find out that she doesn't know what form of government our Founders actually set up for us. Guess she learned THAT in one of those "teachers colleges".

4 posted on 12/04/2001 12:43:00 PM PST by KentuckyWoman
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To: JeanS
Schlafly said some people confused the designation of libertarian on the ballot with Lieberman, the Democratic vice-presidential candidate.

Gore (to his advisors at the DNC): "I TOLD YOU SONSABITCHES THAT WE SHOULD HAVE PICKED SOMEONE WITH A SIMPLE NAME LIKE KERRY TO BE MY RUNNING MATE !!!!"

5 posted on 12/04/2001 12:46:54 PM PST by Alberta's Child
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To: JeanS
Among blacks, it’s 63 percent and among Hispanics, 58 percent.

I can almost excuse the Hispanics if they're recent immigrants and not too fluent with the language, but why the Blacks?

6 posted on 12/04/2001 12:49:59 PM PST by A Ruckus of Dogs
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To: KentuckyWoman
It isn't just her. 2 weeks ago I read my 4th grade daughter's social studies book, and it said we are a representative democracy.
7 posted on 12/04/2001 12:52:58 PM PST by pubmom
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To: pubmom
Well we are a representative democracy now. Actually, we are approaching a monarchy. Either way, the Constitution is a dead letter.
8 posted on 12/04/2001 12:56:51 PM PST by verboten
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To: pubmom
It isn't just her. 2 weeks ago I read my 4th grade daughter's social studies book, and it said we are a representative democracy.

Guess the social engineers figure if they repeat that mantra often enough and can get others (read: school children) to repeat it, then that will somehow make it so.

Just one more in a long line of reasons that we pulled our children out of the government indoctrination centers two years ago. I was spending more time every evening UNteaching them the wrong information that had been inparted during the school day than I do home schooling them now!

9 posted on 12/04/2001 12:59:54 PM PST by KentuckyWoman
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To: verboten
Verboten,

Stop cheering me up!!

Please?????

10 posted on 12/04/2001 1:00:43 PM PST by KentuckyWoman
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To: JeanS
Several things.... She said she wasn’t surprised by the fact that most of the hijackers could not speak English very well.

I've known a lot of people who read English very well but couldn't speak it. Unfortunately, too many of them were T.A.s in college....

Schlafly said this problem has come back to haunt the Democrats, some of whose constituents can’t speak English and were not able to read that controversial butterfly ballot in Florida in the 2000 presidential contest.

Hoist by their own petard. If they can't read they can't vote straight. If they can read, they're more likely intend to vote GOP or 3rd party.

11 posted on 12/04/2001 1:04:13 PM PST by Celtjew Libertarian
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To: KentuckyWoman
When I was in College I had an English teacher who was from India or Pakistan or some such place. I do remember that she could barely speak English. She had a very deep accent. She may have known all the rules but, where did they (the school) get off having her teach English class? I complained often about it but my concerns fell on deaf ears. I passed the class but so what?
12 posted on 12/04/2001 1:08:04 PM PST by Khepera
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To: JeanS
luks lik big stry - did ya'all hav a pnt?
13 posted on 12/04/2001 1:11:28 PM PST by mad_as_he$$
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To: JeanS
Here’s some links to some education threads (containing numerous links)

FReegards

The Failing Teacher and the Teachers' Code of Silence
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: December 3, 2001
Author: Glenn Sacks

Time for outrage! Linda Bowles reports latest results in America's public schools
Source: WorldNetDaily.com; Published: November 27, 2001
Author: Linda Bowles

Illiterate in Boston: Samuel Blumenfeld explains U.S.'s ongoing reading problem
Source: WorldNetDaily.com; Published: July 20, 2001
Author:Samuel Blumenfeld

NEA - Let our children go!
Source: WorldNet Daily; Published: June 23. 2001
Author: Linda Harvey

Why Do Schools Play Games With Students' Minds ?
Source: The Detroit News; Published: April 1, 2001
Author: Thomas Sowell

The Public School Nightmare: Why fix a system designed to destroy individual thought?
Source: http://home.talkcity.com/LibraryDr/patt/homeschl.htm
Author: John Taylor Gatto

Dumbing down teachers
Source: USNews.com; Published: 2/21/01
Author: John Leo

Free Republic links to education related articles (thread#8)
Source: Free Republic; Published: 3-20-2001
Author: Various

Are children deliberately 'dumbed down' in school? {YES!!!}
Source: World Net Daily; Published: May 13, 2001
Author: Geoff Metcalf {Interview}

New Book Explores America's Education Catastrophe
Source: Christian Citizen USA; Published: April 2000
Author: William H. Wild

Deliberately dumbing us down (Charlotte Thomson Iserbyt's, "The Deliberate Dumbing Down of America"
Source: WorldNetDaily.com; Published: December 2,1999
Author: Samuel L. Blumenfeld

Could they really have done it on purpose?
Source: THE LIBERTARIAN; Published: 07/28/2000
Author: Vin Suprynowicz

From the Littleton Crisis to Government Control Littleton Crisis to Government Control

The UN Plan for Your Mental Health The UN Plan for Your Mental Health


14 posted on 12/04/2001 1:14:01 PM PST by Stand Watch Listen
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To: JeanS; Zon; Texaggie79
I tried reading your post but can't. Help?
15 posted on 12/04/2001 1:15:33 PM PST by RedBloodedAmerican
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Comment #16 Removed by Moderator

To: JeanS
??......so what ARE the 44 sounds??
Thanks......
17 posted on 12/04/2001 1:23:41 PM PST by maestro
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To: JeanS
Whoa! Hold on their, Hoss. Kids are spending inordinate amounts of time on the internet, which is nearly all text; if they could not read they could not surf the web.
18 posted on 12/04/2001 1:32:23 PM PST by Junior
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To: JeanS
Schlafly said some people confused the designation of libertarian on the ballot with Lieberman, the Democratic vice-presidential candidate.

The opposite would be equally true., The main difference is that the Libertarian premise is natural to human nature compared to the Democrat premise. The Libertarian premise stresses self-responsibility and thus less illiterate Libertarians than illiterate Democrats that shun self-responsibility in favor of government being responsible for the individual. 

Okay, I've made an observation. Who's going to be the first to bash the Libertarians. Have at it. I'm not even a Libertarian.

19 posted on 12/04/2001 1:33:51 PM PST by Zon
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To: KentuckyWoman
Yup, and once enough Americans are convinced of that, there will be a move to "Correct" the Constitution to eliminate things like the electoral college and the sovereignty of the States. To "Ensure the blessings of Democracy" for all donchano.
20 posted on 12/04/2001 1:35:53 PM PST by Chuckster
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