Yes, and in spite of the platitudes and excuses offered, I can confirm that it truly is happening. Studies undertaken by the National Education Association and the Census Bureau have found that the majority (about 52%) of US adults no longer read for pleasure at all. As age drops, the percentage who do not read unlessed forced to do so rises.
It was suggested a few years ago that the rise of instant messaging and e-mail would bring a new dawn of literacy, but I don't see it happening. Instant messaging and texting, at least among the young kids, consists entirely of junk like "OMG" and "O RLY" and other illiterate platitudes. The advent of broadband has shifted the bulk of internet usage into visual rather than textual communication, with all the attendant limitations on content and detail.
Those same cell phones that encourage foul initials-only texting also contain cameras. Why bother to send a text message when a picture will surfice - easier on the pinkies, what?
All sweeping generalisations are not a good benchmark, I do know a handful of well read people so there must be more out there, who makes up the sales in the bestsellers lists if there are not people who buy?
On a similar dumbing down note, I have picked up Vernon Little God last night and feel that it will not last me past the point I am at now. If this is the sort of book that it takes to engage the public nowadays then I will stick to the Classics.
I really only can speak for the US population on this. Yes, we still have readers, but as I pointed out, most are age 40 and older. I believe a major change is taking place in society and culture, and literacy as we once knew it is disappearing.
I have observed the same in the various jobs I have had in my life. In fact, I worked for five years at a library software house. About half the staff there were librarians, but we were all engaged in work other than directly dealing with the public and books. The department I started out in was the documentation section, where we wrote the manuals and instructions for using the software. Writing was our day to day job. We all had to be literate. Yet, believe it or not, within a few months of starting there I was instructed NOT to put instructions, advice, or questions to other members of the department in the form of writing. Why? Because it was "too intimidating" and would make people "afraid of me."
At another major corporation I suffered a whole parade of managers who could not write two coherent sentences down on paper without spending hours of torment to do it. We laugh about the obvious illiteracy of the US President today, but it is symptomatic. Congress is little better. Society is returning to a state where people of wealth will pay someone else to read and write for them, and people without wealth will simply do without reading and writing.
On the topic of best sellers:
Some best sellers are worth their salt, most will be forgotten within a year or two. It has probably always been that way. The novels of George Macdonald, for instance, were record sellers 125 years ago (and I happen to still appreciate them) but today he is only remembered for his children's stories and the novels have been out of print for a century. There are of course good books being written, and some of them will become classics in their own right. In libraries with limited shelf space, we have a constant struggle to keep those classics on the shelf, though. They sit there for years without gathering any attention and only collecting dust. I have been working for the last four years to restore a collection of such books that was badly reduced by my predecessor. His opinion was that anything older than ten years or that had not been borrowed in two years should be discarded. Mine is that the librarian's job is to offer the best that we can in hopes that at least a few readers will discover an interest in it. Slowly I'm restoring Jane Austen, Thomas Hardy, William Faulkner, John Steinbeck, and other critically acclaimed writers to our shelves. Much of that has to be done by waiting for people to donate books, though, because our purchasing power must be devoted to current material that is in high demand.
I don't know, Lord of the rings and Harry potter started a lot of young people reading. I wouldn't write the world off just yet, its easier to read a book than on a screen, but there's so many unpublished writers now online :)
Alas, I have a close up view of that phenomenon and it seems to be an empty one. True, Harry Potter got boys in the 11 to 12 year old range interested in reading (for a while.) But the advent of the movies meant that they now choose to "wait for the movie" rather than read those dauntingly large books. The other problem has been that there are only six Harry Potter books and those who started paying attention just to read those refuse to read anything else. I did a campaign two years ago to introduce other authors who write similar stories, but found almost no interest. They would rather read Harry Potter over and over again.
Lord of the Rings is a different thing, somewhat. The appeal is to a slightly older group, and it's true that the films awakened a new interest in the books. However, my impromptu surveys of those who check out and return the books produce rather dismal conclusions. Most don't finish them. They knew nothing of Tolkien until they saw the movie. They expected the book to be like the movie, full of battle scenes and fast action, and of course the books are not like that. They move slowly, in great detail, with a lot of history, folklore, and descriptive scenery. People in their teens and twenties don't have the attention span to get through a 1200 page epic like that any more.
In general, my observation is that the majority of US females stop reading at or around puberty. The vast majority of males stop much sooner, if they ever really start. The bulk of library usership is from persons aged 40 to 50 and older. We have very few users between secondary school age and 40, and the majority of the school kids are only interested in using the computers and the internet.
At this point, we are in the second generation of that. Kids whose parents do not read and only watch television have no role model and no impetus to start reading. In fact, they may encounter parental disapproval of reading because it is not active enough or won't make them competitive enough.
I'd like to read more, but don't seem to get a lot of time. I'm sure that Internet use has largely consumed the time I might otehrwise have spent reading or creating. It's also largely replaced tv watching for me, perhaps a step up at least.
Obviously I think there is value in the interchange that can take place over the internet, or I wouldn't be here. This discussion is an example.
Like so many things in life, reading requires time. We are pressured from so many directions, pulled and torn, that it is easy to let reading, or exercise, or proper nutrition slip. Reading is exercise for the mind, and a very important exercise at that. If necessary, we have to set aside a segment of time for it, even if only 30 minutes a day. If the newspaper is all you read, fine, but make sure it is a good quality journal. :)
You are a literate and educated person, I know that. So you need to keep feeding your intellect. Don't starve it.
Take heart Altivo, here is a little example of someone they did reach.
My best friend was never a reader, I always remember through highschool and most of uni he had no book shelf or books. Then Harry Potter and Lord of the rings came out, he devoured each book that came out, bought Lord of the rings and "the hobbit" then started devouring fantasy novels. He then switched to more sci-fi and actually borrowed some of the great old classics off me, "The Count of Montecristo" and plenty of others, from all the classic authors, Charles Dickens for one :) He now has a large bookshelf in his room where none stood before and he actually introduced me to a few good classics I'd never read, the complete adventures of Sherlock Holmes for one ^.^
*notices Nipper* Gee the internet is a small world :) I haven't seen you since my mucking days.
I feel lucky - in my office, we have a few hundred books in the dining room that people can take and/or leave as they choose. Of course, working in academia, we have a slightly different view of books than most, seemingly.
Oddly enough, the seven years I spent working at a college dedicated to "communication and the arts" leads me to the conclusion that even academia is declining in the area of literacy.
We had a good library, but it was underutilized. Faculty were in fact fighting to avoid the imposition of so-called "general education" requirements for graduation (i.e., every student must have some amount of literature and writing, basic math, and history in the curriculum, regardless of their major or concentration.) Many did not require their students to write anything, and based grades on oral answers and presentations or strictly on drawing or video creations. Of course there were still some faculty who were "old school" and demanded research and writing, and a few who even engaged in writing and publication themselves, but they were for the most part older and will soon retire.
The inherent anti-intellectualism of US society is speeding this degeneration. One need only look at the results of the last two or three national elections to see it. People dislike and refuse to trust educated, literate politicians, and prefer the ones who are "just folks" even if that means they can't read, write, or speak intelligently.
That I can't argue with, My university was perfectly happy to graduate full fee paying overseas students who couldn't even make a coherant English sentence. They're paying for it now though, their degrees aren't held in high esteem anymore and people are starting to do work first so they can find out what they actually want to do then go to uni later on in life.
I spent 4 years doing a business degree that was useless as everyone wanted experience or someone who hadn't gone to uni yet. Then I was overqualified for entry level jobs *gnaws on his tail* Eventually I started a traineeship in IT and that got me a job. And here I am bitter cynical and completely non-plussed about my uni experience. Still dad wanted me to get a degree and I did. I still seethe when I remember a lecturer marking me down for using the correct English rather than the American English spelling.
That's a whole 'nother soap box for me. In the US, and obviously elsewhere too, college and university education has been degraded to mere preparation for the job market. That's not what it always was. I went to college not to train for a specific job, but to expand my educational background. I loved learning in all areas, and wanted to take advantage of every bit of it that I could absorb while it was still available to me.
It was a constant battle even then (almost 40 years ago, now) as advisors and family tried to push me to focus on something that would "make a good career and earn lots of money." I considered fields like veterinary medicine and law but ultimately rejected them because they would limit my educational options and require me to spend most of my time studying just set curriculum. I wanted to read in philosophy and literature, to learn languages and higher math, as well as to have the opportunity to experience science in a real laboratory. I defied everyone and did all those things, even went on to theology for a while. I don't regret a bit of it. Even in today's dull, unimaginative and misfocused academic environment, you can learn if you really want to. Unfortunately, most students are only interested in the state of the beer supply and doing no more than what they absolutely have to in order to get by. And our culture encourages that.
Corporations do not want to hire people who think. They want people who will do as they are told and not question it. Those who point out that the emperor has no clothes on are invariably ostracized and exiled.
Because I have insisted on thinking, and pointing out the nakedness of the emperor, I have not earned millions of dollars or achieved high prestige in the business world, but I can solve a problem before an overpaid manager can even understand that there is a problem or what its nature is. People like us are needed, even if we are underappreciated.
I can write clear explanations and instructions too. Unfortunately, more and more I find that people cannot read and follow instructions. They want you to "show" them instead. It's all part of the same decline.
I wouldn't mind going back to study something I'd enjoy doing and something I could do for a living, but after so many false starts I really don't know what I want to do anymore. I can't afford to go back anyway.
However when I was doing training to be an apprentice mechanic at one of my local colleges and later when I was doing a traineeship in IT, I was a much better student than I was when I was 18-21. I sometimes think people are made to grow up too quickly, you take a group of kids just out of highschool finally having finished 12years of schooling (or 13 depending on where you live) and then expect them to then sit through another 3-6 years? No wonder most of them party themselves out at Uni.
People vary in their rate of achieving maturity. The structure and rate of our school systems was set a century or two ago, when life moved at different rates, some things slower, some faster. You are probably right that college comes too soon for some, but I think it comes too late for others.
The problem in the US at least is that the public school systems from age 6 to 18 have declined severely. My father read in high school the works that were required in college when I attended. And my grandfather read those same works in school, even though he stopped his schooling at age 14.
My grandfather left formal schooling in 1911. My father graduated from high school in 1931. I finished my undergraduate degree in 1971. That's how fast our educational standards have been declining. It's not that the student is incapable of learning at that rate, but rather that society no longer values learning enough to provide a motivation.
It reminds me of a comedy tape I once heard, where the comediean was talking about going to a Waffle House after a performance at a club while traveling. He brought a book along to read, and the waitress asked him "What are you reading for?" Not what are you reading, but why. He sad he was reading to broaden his mind, keep it active... and most of all, he was reading so he would not end up waiting tables at a waffle house.
Alas, you have it exactly right. In the US, at least, today people are very proud about their ignorance, and resentful of anyone who displays more education or intellect than they themselves have.
Ah but did you not see the completely unnecessary insult by the book reader (even though it was a comedy):)
I suppose in a way a lot of people's lives have become so complicated that actually learning about other things just makes it more complicated. Ignorance is bliss and all that. Still I'm often amazed that so many people don't take the time to stop and actually wonder why things are the way they are. However in my family Education was king, and though I didn't like uni I did learn some valuable facts about life, people and the world in general.
Unnecessary insult? Oh, you mean Ed Crankshaft's remark about the "sales tot"?
That's in character and has nothing to do with intellect or reading. Ed insults everyone, all the time. You need to see this individual strip in the context of the long running series to get that, of course. He's a cranky old codger. He drives a school bus, which I'd say is enough to make anyone cranky after a while.
My grandfather did that, and he was a lot like this character. He only had an 8th grade education, but was better read than most college graduates today. He had beautiful handwriting, never made grammar or spelling mistakes, but he was still an old fashioned farmer and a country person at heart. He finished 8th grade in 1911, when American schools had much higher standards than they do today.
I am glad to have brought all these favorite books from Alaska with me. In spite I donated boxes and boxes to the library in Sutton. Interestingly, the Chief of the Native tribe there, whom I visited on a few occassions, had more books than nearly anyone I have ever been in the house of. Every wall floor to ceiling shelves of books and he read them all and again. Good man, going nuts this morning trying to remember his name and the name of the tribe. Something with Wolf in it.
Anyway, I know what you mean. I do not read nearly as much as I used to, mostly technical books for my job. Books, that is, I DO read a LOT on the Internet. I grew up a book junkie and spent my afternoons after school for many years AT the library. Mom and dad always knew where I was. Used to call me there and tell me dinner is about ready.
I also hate those abbreviations and tend to type out entire sentences with punctuation (OMG!)... grin... and can write fairly well in spite of the internet's sometimes bad influence.
I am still uncertain whether it is really all that important to read actual books. I used to and wonder why I no longer do. Twenty to even ten years ago I read over 200 books a year and they were a major part of my expenses. But now... rare. Bear just finished the thick Narnia compendium and I am next. He tells me the actual stories are MUCH FULLER and quite different than the film, which does not surprise me in the least.
I just put up some book shelves in my room and you are welcome to poke through the books when you visit in a couple of weeks. Lots of animal story books and horse and dog and animal books of course. My sci-fi and fantasy mostly remain in Alaska (boxes and boxes of paperbacks), but I did bring a few hardbound versions with me.
Enough. Your loyal if not all that royal mount, Imperator
I will look at your books for sure then. I already know a lot about you, of course, and I like what I know. But there is nothing more telling about a person than the things he/she keeps on the bookshelf (or doesn't keep there.)
We don't have room for all the books here. Our city house was a two story affair and we had converted most of the second floor to library. The walls were lined with bookshelves, even in the little hallway leading to the bathroom. Now many of those books are languishing in boxes out in the big barn. Fortunately all are labeled and mostly in some kind of order, and as we find we need things, we keep pulling them out. The house is becoming a clutter of books again.
As I said to nipper above, reading is important. It is an exercise for the mind, and your mind needs exercise just as much as your body does. You are the complex and intelligent person you are, at least in part, because you have done a lot of reading. You may no longer need to do it at the same rate, but you still need to do some. It is the way we discover like minds and realize that we are not alone. It is the way we discover new ideas and gain new perspectives on the same old realities (or unrealities for that matter.)
Most importantly, written words are still the way in which the most important thoughts and ideas are conveyed. We simply cannot get them off the television or radio, because those media are aimed at the lowest common denominator of society. Even public television or NPR cannot convey the entirety of important thought. They can only hint at it and tell you what to read in order to comprehend the whole of it. Reading is the fastest and best way to provide healthy and balanced nutrition to the mind. Other forms of input are only junk food or candy. :)
You'd love the big book sale we have in my city every year, a local charity "Life line" gets all the books donated to them and sets up a huge stall and you can get heaps of great books for bargin prices. I still use my set of mechanic textbooks :) Not to mention all those "How to guides" Plus collections of fictional works and biographies.
J’ai lu les commentaires et je voulais y répondre avant, mais les mots ne me viennent pas toujours très facilement. Je suis d’accord avec vous tous lorsque vous affirmez que malheureusement les gens lisent de moins en moins. Mais je ne suis pas prêt à en attribuer le principal blâme à l’internet.
Je vais parler ici de ce que je puis voir ici au Québec.
C’est d’après moi d’abord un problème de société. Les parents travaillant de plus en plus pour maintenir la vie de consommation de nos jours, préfèrent laisser les enfants devants la TV, les jeux vidéos ou l’ordinateur plutôt que de les stimuler. Il est démontrer que l’apprentissage de la musique en bas âge aide à développer le cerveau. Une des seules bonnes choses que mes parents ont faites pour moi, c’est de m’avoir incité acheter trois livres quand j’étais en deuxième année. Je me rappelle encore de ces trois livres (d’ailleurs je les ai encore) , et c’est là que j’ai eu ma piqûre pour la lecture. Ensuite, au secondaire et au CEGEP ils nous ont imposé des livres qui étaient beaucoup trop mature pour des gens de notre âge. J’ai même perdu tout goût pour la lecture. N’ayant été d’un vrai professeur de français qui nous laissa choisir les livres que nous voulions lire (dans une liste de cent titres) je n’aurais probablement jamais recommencé à lire. Tout cela pour dire que je crois que les parents devraient rendre la maison un endroit plus propice au développement de leur enfant en les entourant de temps, de livres, de musique, et de tout média qui pourrait lui permettre de stimuler son cerveau et sa créativité. Je crois aussi qu'il faudrait que le programme scolaire soit révisé. Il est bien d’analyser les beautés de la langue mais je crois que le but premier devrait être d’apprendre à apprécier la lecture, ensuite le reste viendra beaucoup plus facilement. On a oublié depuis longtemps qu’il pourrait et qui plus est qu’il devrait être amusant d’apprendre. La journée ou les parents redeviendront vraiment des parents, et la journée ou les professeurs penseront plus à comment intéresser les étudiants à leur matière plutôt que de penser à leur salaire ou à leurs réunions syndicales, les gens recommenceront à lire et à penser. J’ose espérer que vous comprendrez que j’ai utilisé des généralisations et que je ne crois pas que tous les parents, ni que tous les professeurs sont comme cela, mais ceux qui le sont souvent démotivent par leurs actions les autres.
I agree with you very much. Forgive me for not answering in French, but I would embarrass myself with bad spelling and grammar. My French composition is nowhere near as good as your English.
The main source of the shift away from reading (and music, as you point out, which is also important) is indeed a cultural change that affects the environment in which children are reared and educated. I hoped that it was mostly a US problem, but clearly you have seen it in francophone Quebec as well.
I learned my love of literature from my parents and grandparents, who read aloud to me, and was encouraged by teachers who gave me free access to as much as I could read, on any subject. Somewhere this is being lost today, and I believe you are correct that it is early childhood where the difference has appeared. Now that we have more and more adults who no longer read for pleasure, their children are not learning this habit.
It worries me a great deal, but I have no answer for it.
I am in the process of talking with a couple of hospitals for children around here to see if it would be possible for the furries around here to go there once a month to entertain the children. Please don’t spread the words just yet I would prefer to have more information before being harass by people (and I don’t think they will come and read comments so far away in time ;) ).
That and your comment gave me some ideas.
I could try to find people who are good at reading and see with the hospitals the possibilities of having reading session where we would read them classics children books every weeks or so.
The other idea you question gave me is: next Christmas instead of giving only food for the poor around here, I will add a couple of books (like Tom Sawyer or The Last Unicorn). You are so right in saying that the parents have lost the drive for reading. If I can give it back to a couple of children of today, they will be the parents of tomorrow. Who knows in a century or so it might become something. It is far fetch but I don’t have too much too loose by trying.
My boss has asked before whether I would wear my fursuit at work to amuse the children for a story session. I'm reluctant because being gay and being around children is such a big issue here in the US. But she is right, it would probably be a good thing. The love of books has to start early. Most will never get it unless they begin reading while young.
I would none the less suggest that you’d do it. Just stipulate that you want her to be present with you at all time when there are children around. I am sure that she will see the benefit in it. After all she wouldn’t want bogus law suits against you and her company just because someone wants to make quick easy money.
I am sure that the children would love to hear someone read with love. The passion we have can be very contagious you know.
Oh absolutely. More than one staff member present, preferably, and little or no physical contact between me and the kiddies. I'd insist on that.
I think the director is well aware of my concerns, actually. When she hired me it was a choice between hiring a full time person to focus on children's programming and a full time person to focus on technology. The other one would have to be part time. She asked if I was interested in children's programming and I said outright that I thought it unwise for me to be directly involved. She said she saw my point. :) But of course I'm well qualified for the technical stuff, too.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2006-04-09 01:31 pm (UTC)I shall cross reference it in my journal and credit you - a good way to spread the message within the cartoon.
:O)
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Date: 2006-04-09 04:15 pm (UTC)It was suggested a few years ago that the rise of instant messaging and e-mail would bring a new dawn of literacy, but I don't see it happening. Instant messaging and texting, at least among the young kids, consists entirely of junk like "OMG" and "O RLY" and other illiterate platitudes. The advent of broadband has shifted the bulk of internet usage into visual rather than textual communication, with all the attendant limitations on content and detail.
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Date: 2006-04-10 01:35 am (UTC)All sweeping generalisations are not a good benchmark, I do know a handful of well read people so there must be more out there, who makes up the sales in the bestsellers lists if there are not people who buy?
On a similar dumbing down note, I have picked up Vernon Little God last night and feel that it will not last me past the point I am at now. If this is the sort of book that it takes to engage the public nowadays then I will stick to the Classics.
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Date: 2006-04-10 04:32 am (UTC)I have observed the same in the various jobs I have had in my life. In fact, I worked for five years at a library software house. About half the staff there were librarians, but we were all engaged in work other than directly dealing with the public and books. The department I started out in was the documentation section, where we wrote the manuals and instructions for using the software. Writing was our day to day job. We all had to be literate. Yet, believe it or not, within a few months of starting there I was instructed NOT to put instructions, advice, or questions to other members of the department in the form of writing. Why? Because it was "too intimidating" and would make people "afraid of me."
At another major corporation I suffered a whole parade of managers who could not write two coherent sentences down on paper without spending hours of torment to do it. We laugh about the obvious illiteracy of the US President today, but it is symptomatic. Congress is little better. Society is returning to a state where people of wealth will pay someone else to read and write for them, and people without wealth will simply do without reading and writing.
On the topic of best sellers:
Some best sellers are worth their salt, most will be forgotten within a year or two. It has probably always been that way. The novels of George Macdonald, for instance, were record sellers 125 years ago (and I happen to still appreciate them) but today he is only remembered for his children's stories and the novels have been out of print for a century. There are of course good books being written, and some of them will become classics in their own right. In libraries with limited shelf space, we have a constant struggle to keep those classics on the shelf, though. They sit there for years without gathering any attention and only collecting dust. I have been working for the last four years to restore a collection of such books that was badly reduced by my predecessor. His opinion was that anything older than ten years or that had not been borrowed in two years should be discarded. Mine is that the librarian's job is to offer the best that we can in hopes that at least a few readers will discover an interest in it. Slowly I'm restoring Jane Austen, Thomas Hardy, William Faulkner, John Steinbeck, and other critically acclaimed writers to our shelves. Much of that has to be done by waiting for people to donate books, though, because our purchasing power must be devoted to current material that is in high demand.
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Date: 2006-04-09 01:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-09 04:25 pm (UTC)Lord of the Rings is a different thing, somewhat. The appeal is to a slightly older group, and it's true that the films awakened a new interest in the books. However, my impromptu surveys of those who check out and return the books produce rather dismal conclusions. Most don't finish them. They knew nothing of Tolkien until they saw the movie. They expected the book to be like the movie, full of battle scenes and fast action, and of course the books are not like that. They move slowly, in great detail, with a lot of history, folklore, and descriptive scenery. People in their teens and twenties don't have the attention span to get through a 1200 page epic like that any more.
In general, my observation is that the majority of US females stop reading at or around puberty. The vast majority of males stop much sooner, if they ever really start. The bulk of library usership is from persons aged 40 to 50 and older. We have very few users between secondary school age and 40, and the majority of the school kids are only interested in using the computers and the internet.
At this point, we are in the second generation of that. Kids whose parents do not read and only watch television have no role model and no impetus to start reading. In fact, they may encounter parental disapproval of reading because it is not active enough or won't make them competitive enough.
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Date: 2006-04-10 12:00 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-10 04:38 am (UTC)Like so many things in life, reading requires time. We are pressured from so many directions, pulled and torn, that it is easy to let reading, or exercise, or proper nutrition slip. Reading is exercise for the mind, and a very important exercise at that. If necessary, we have to set aside a segment of time for it, even if only 30 minutes a day. If the newspaper is all you read, fine, but make sure it is a good quality journal. :)
You are a literate and educated person, I know that. So you need to keep feeding your intellect. Don't starve it.
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Date: 2006-04-10 01:37 am (UTC)My best friend was never a reader, I always remember through highschool and most of uni he had no book shelf or books. Then Harry Potter and Lord of the rings came out, he devoured each book that came out, bought Lord of the rings and "the hobbit" then started devouring fantasy novels. He then switched to more sci-fi and actually borrowed some of the great old classics off me, "The Count of Montecristo" and plenty of others, from all the classic authors, Charles Dickens for one :) He now has a large bookshelf in his room where none stood before and he actually introduced me to a few good classics I'd never read, the complete adventures of Sherlock Holmes for one ^.^
*notices Nipper* Gee the internet is a small world :) I haven't seen you since my mucking days.
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Date: 2006-04-10 04:40 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-09 03:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-09 04:32 pm (UTC)We had a good library, but it was underutilized. Faculty were in fact fighting to avoid the imposition of so-called "general education" requirements for graduation (i.e., every student must have some amount of literature and writing, basic math, and history in the curriculum, regardless of their major or concentration.) Many did not require their students to write anything, and based grades on oral answers and presentations or strictly on drawing or video creations. Of course there were still some faculty who were "old school" and demanded research and writing, and a few who even engaged in writing and publication themselves, but they were for the most part older and will soon retire.
The inherent anti-intellectualism of US society is speeding this degeneration. One need only look at the results of the last two or three national elections to see it. People dislike and refuse to trust educated, literate politicians, and prefer the ones who are "just folks" even if that means they can't read, write, or speak intelligently.
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Date: 2006-04-10 01:43 am (UTC)I spent 4 years doing a business degree that was useless as everyone wanted experience or someone who hadn't gone to uni yet. Then I was overqualified for entry level jobs *gnaws on his tail* Eventually I started a traineeship in IT and that got me a job. And here I am bitter cynical and completely non-plussed about my uni experience. Still dad wanted me to get a degree and I did. I still seethe when I remember a lecturer marking me down for using the correct English rather than the American English spelling.
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Date: 2006-04-10 04:50 am (UTC)It was a constant battle even then (almost 40 years ago, now) as advisors and family tried to push me to focus on something that would "make a good career and earn lots of money." I considered fields like veterinary medicine and law but ultimately rejected them because they would limit my educational options and require me to spend most of my time studying just set curriculum. I wanted to read in philosophy and literature, to learn languages and higher math, as well as to have the opportunity to experience science in a real laboratory. I defied everyone and did all those things, even went on to theology for a while. I don't regret a bit of it. Even in today's dull, unimaginative and misfocused academic environment, you can learn if you really want to. Unfortunately, most students are only interested in the state of the beer supply and doing no more than what they absolutely have to in order to get by. And our culture encourages that.
Corporations do not want to hire people who think. They want people who will do as they are told and not question it. Those who point out that the emperor has no clothes on are invariably ostracized and exiled.
Because I have insisted on thinking, and pointing out the nakedness of the emperor, I have not earned millions of dollars or achieved high prestige in the business world, but I can solve a problem before an overpaid manager can even understand that there is a problem or what its nature is. People like us are needed, even if we are underappreciated.
I can write clear explanations and instructions too. Unfortunately, more and more I find that people cannot read and follow instructions. They want you to "show" them instead. It's all part of the same decline.
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Date: 2006-04-10 05:32 am (UTC)However when I was doing training to be an apprentice mechanic at one of my local colleges and later when I was doing a traineeship in IT, I was a much better student than I was when I was 18-21. I sometimes think people are made to grow up too quickly, you take a group of kids just out of highschool finally having finished 12years of schooling (or 13 depending on where you live) and then expect them to then sit through another 3-6 years? No wonder most of them party themselves out at Uni.
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Date: 2006-04-10 08:03 am (UTC)The problem in the US at least is that the public school systems from age 6 to 18 have declined severely. My father read in high school the works that were required in college when I attended. And my grandfather read those same works in school, even though he stopped his schooling at age 14.
My grandfather left formal schooling in 1911. My father graduated from high school in 1931. I finished my undergraduate degree in 1971. That's how fast our educational standards have been declining. It's not that the student is incapable of learning at that rate, but rather that society no longer values learning enough to provide a motivation.
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Date: 2006-04-10 02:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-10 03:18 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-10 04:53 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-10 05:20 am (UTC)I suppose in a way a lot of people's lives have become so complicated that actually learning about other things just makes it more complicated. Ignorance is bliss and all that. Still I'm often amazed that so many people don't take the time to stop and actually wonder why things are the way they are. However in my family Education was king, and though I didn't like uni I did learn some valuable facts about life, people and the world in general.
I shouldn't be down about that I suppose :)
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Date: 2006-04-10 07:45 am (UTC)That's in character and has nothing to do with intellect or reading. Ed insults everyone, all the time. You need to see this individual strip in the context of the long running series to get that, of course. He's a cranky old codger. He drives a school bus, which I'd say is enough to make anyone cranky after a while.
My grandfather did that, and he was a lot like this character. He only had an 8th grade education, but was better read than most college graduates today. He had beautiful handwriting, never made grammar or spelling mistakes, but he was still an old fashioned farmer and a country person at heart. He finished 8th grade in 1911, when American schools had much higher standards than they do today.
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Date: 2006-04-10 01:28 pm (UTC)Driving a school bus must be one of the hardest jobs in the world, I don't know how they do it.
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Date: 2006-04-10 03:21 am (UTC)Anyway, I know what you mean. I do not read nearly as much as I used to, mostly technical books for my job. Books, that is, I DO read a LOT on the Internet. I grew up a book junkie and spent my afternoons after school for many years AT the library. Mom and dad always knew where I was. Used to call me there and tell me dinner is about ready.
I also hate those abbreviations and tend to type out entire sentences with punctuation (OMG!)... grin... and can write fairly well in spite of the internet's sometimes bad influence.
I am still uncertain whether it is really all that important to read actual books. I used to and wonder why I no longer do. Twenty to even ten years ago I read over 200 books a year and they were a major part of my expenses. But now... rare. Bear just finished the thick Narnia compendium and I am next. He tells me the actual stories are MUCH FULLER and quite different than the film, which does not surprise me in the least.
I just put up some book shelves in my room and you are welcome to poke through the books when you visit in a couple of weeks. Lots of animal story books and horse and dog and animal books of course. My sci-fi and fantasy mostly remain in Alaska (boxes and boxes of paperbacks), but I did bring a few hardbound versions with me.
Enough.
Your loyal if not all that royal mount, Imperator
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Date: 2006-04-10 05:01 am (UTC)We don't have room for all the books here. Our city house was a two story affair and we had converted most of the second floor to library. The walls were lined with bookshelves, even in the little hallway leading to the bathroom. Now many of those books are languishing in boxes out in the big barn. Fortunately all are labeled and mostly in some kind of order, and as we find we need things, we keep pulling them out. The house is becoming a clutter of books again.
As I said to
Most importantly, written words are still the way in which the most important thoughts and ideas are conveyed. We simply cannot get them off the television or radio, because those media are aimed at the lowest common denominator of society. Even public television or NPR cannot convey the entirety of important thought. They can only hint at it and tell you what to read in order to comprehend the whole of it. Reading is the fastest and best way to provide healthy and balanced nutrition to the mind. Other forms of input are only junk food or candy. :)
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Date: 2006-04-10 05:38 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-10 10:26 am (UTC)*eyes his boxes of books and wonders when they will be all proper displayed*
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Date: 2006-04-10 11:38 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-12 07:47 pm (UTC)Je vais parler ici de ce que je puis voir ici au Québec.
C’est d’après moi d’abord un problème de société. Les parents travaillant de plus en plus pour maintenir la vie de consommation de nos jours, préfèrent laisser les enfants devants la TV, les jeux vidéos ou l’ordinateur plutôt que de les stimuler. Il est démontrer que l’apprentissage de la musique en bas âge aide à développer le cerveau. Une des seules bonnes choses que mes parents ont faites pour moi, c’est de m’avoir incité acheter trois livres quand j’étais en deuxième année. Je me rappelle encore de ces trois livres (d’ailleurs je les ai encore) , et c’est là que j’ai eu ma piqûre pour la lecture. Ensuite, au secondaire et au CEGEP ils nous ont imposé des livres qui étaient beaucoup trop mature pour des gens de notre âge. J’ai même perdu tout goût pour la lecture. N’ayant été d’un vrai professeur de français qui nous laissa choisir les livres que nous voulions lire (dans une liste de cent titres) je n’aurais probablement jamais recommencé à lire. Tout cela pour dire que je crois que les parents devraient rendre la maison un endroit plus propice au développement de leur enfant en les entourant de temps, de livres, de musique, et de tout média qui pourrait lui permettre de stimuler son cerveau et sa créativité. Je crois aussi qu'il faudrait que le programme scolaire soit révisé. Il est bien d’analyser les beautés de la langue mais je crois que le but premier devrait être d’apprendre à apprécier la lecture, ensuite le reste viendra beaucoup plus facilement. On a oublié depuis longtemps qu’il pourrait et qui plus est qu’il devrait être amusant d’apprendre. La journée ou les parents redeviendront vraiment des parents, et la journée ou les professeurs penseront plus à comment intéresser les étudiants à leur matière plutôt que de penser à leur salaire ou à leurs réunions syndicales, les gens recommenceront à lire et à penser. J’ose espérer que vous comprendrez que j’ai utilisé des généralisations et que je ne crois pas que tous les parents, ni que tous les professeurs sont comme cela, mais ceux qui le sont souvent démotivent par leurs actions les autres.
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Date: 2006-04-13 03:40 am (UTC)The main source of the shift away from reading (and music, as you point out, which is also important) is indeed a cultural change that affects the environment in which children are reared and educated. I hoped that it was mostly a US problem, but clearly you have seen it in francophone Quebec as well.
I learned my love of literature from my parents and grandparents, who read aloud to me, and was encouraged by teachers who gave me free access to as much as I could read, on any subject. Somewhere this is being lost today, and I believe you are correct that it is early childhood where the difference has appeared. Now that we have more and more adults who no longer read for pleasure, their children are not learning this habit.
It worries me a great deal, but I have no answer for it.
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Date: 2006-04-13 04:45 am (UTC)I am in the process of talking with a couple of hospitals for children around here to see if it would be possible for the furries around here to go there once a month to entertain the children. Please don’t spread the words just yet I would prefer to have more information before being harass by people (and I don’t think they will come and read comments so far away in time ;) ).
That and your comment gave me some ideas.
I could try to find people who are good at reading and see with the hospitals the possibilities of having reading session where we would read them classics children books every weeks or so.
The other idea you question gave me is: next Christmas instead of giving only food for the poor around here, I will add a couple of books (like Tom Sawyer or The Last Unicorn). You are so right in saying that the parents have lost the drive for reading. If I can give it back to a couple of children of today, they will be the parents of tomorrow. Who knows in a century or so it might become something. It is far fetch but I don’t have too much too loose by trying.
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Date: 2006-04-13 04:57 am (UTC)My boss has asked before whether I would wear my fursuit at work to amuse the children for a story session. I'm reluctant because being gay and being around children is such a big issue here in the US. But she is right, it would probably be a good thing. The love of books has to start early. Most will never get it unless they begin reading while young.
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Date: 2006-04-13 05:02 am (UTC)I would none the less suggest that you’d do it. Just stipulate that you want her to be present with you at all time when there are children around. I am sure that she will see the benefit in it. After all she wouldn’t want bogus law suits against you and her company just because someone wants to make quick easy money.
I am sure that the children would love to hear someone read with love. The passion we have can be very contagious you know.
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Date: 2006-04-13 05:04 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-13 02:28 pm (UTC)I think the director is well aware of my concerns, actually. When she hired me it was a choice between hiring a full time person to focus on children's programming and a full time person to focus on technology. The other one would have to be part time. She asked if I was interested in children's programming and I said outright that I thought it unwise for me to be directly involved. She said she saw my point. :) But of course I'm well qualified for the technical stuff, too.