Date: Fri 18-Sep-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: JAN

Quick Words:

illiteracy-sidebar-literacy

Full Text:

Illiteracy remains a serious problem in Fairfield County

It's hard to believe, but illiteracy is a serious problem in Fairfield County.

Approximately 15 to 20 percent of the adults in Fairfield County can not

complete a job application, comprehend the writing on a prescription bottle,

or even read this sentence.

Nationally, the U.S. Department of Education reports that 21 to 23 percent of

adults -- 40 to 44 million Americans --are functionally illiterate.

To combat those statistics, Literacy Volunteers of America (LVA) is seeking

additional volunteers to meet the needs of students seeking its services.

Training for new volunteers to teach Basic Literacy and English for Speakers

of Other Languages will be held this fall. An open house will be held October

1 at 7 pm at the LVA office, 5 Library Place, Danbury. No prior experience or

foreign language is required.

The Fairfield County statistics are listed among the conclusions of a new

National Institute for Literacy (NIFL) report, "The State of Literacy in

America," that estimates literacy rates in more than 75,000 municipalities.

For each municipality, the report lists the percentage of adults at "Level 1",

the lowest of the five levels of literacy. These adults, said to be

"functionally illiterate," have difficulty with everyday tasks such as

completing bank deposit slips or reading bus schedules.

"This should be a wake up call to our local elected officials," said Lynne

Gilbert, executive director of LVA-Danbury, an affiliate of LVA.

"It's more evidence that our community isn't providing people with the tools

they need to become better parents, workers and citizens. An unacceptable

number of our citizens don't have the skills they need."

Literacy is defined today as the ability to read, write and compute, and

increasingly, to possess computer skills.

LVA, founded in 1962, is a not-for-profit organization. The local affiliate is

one of more than 390 community-based LVA programs that help adults and their

families acquire literacy skills.

The Danbury LVA affiliate provides literacy services to a 14-town area. Over

700 students received services by 394 trained volunteers and tutors over the

last fiscal year. Over 20,000 hours were spent on instruction.