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sandwichpepe t1_jdykohl wrote

and people wonder how more than half the city’s adults are functionally illiterate

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sandwichpepe t1_jdylsor wrote

like deadass there’s a regular that comes in to my work and he often brings in magazines - he comes over to me and points to a part on the page and goes, “what does this say?” or “can you tell me who this guy is?” (i read the article for him to find out). he even asked me to help him fill out the application for his REAL ID, he had no clue what was on the paper. i thought it was odd and was trying to figure out why he needed me to do this for him, and then i realized - this guy can’t read! he can read very little, like he understood the “no bathroom” sign on the door but even struggles to do that. this guy is 54 years old. fifty fucking four. he was homeless and begging for a long time but now he finally has a job!!!!!

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casp514 t1_jdynukj wrote

without asking you to give away your personal work info, i wonder if this is the guy that i've seen frequently ask people to help read newspapers to him at one of the stores i go to in fairmount? he asked me to help one time when i was in line and i did but thought it was a bit odd, but then i went back another day and another dude in line was reading to him and i was like oh, this guy just wants to know the news but can't read

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sandwichpepe t1_jdyo4at wrote

it could be, this guy shows up to my store in cc once a week but comes in at the exact same time and day. i don’t think he’s ever had newspapers though, just celebrity drama magazines 😂

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casp514 t1_jdyooy4 wrote

i mean considering those library numbers i wouldn't be surprised if it was two different guys 🙃 but i love that for him. i'm not sure how often the guy in fairmount is there but he brings in a plastic bag with what must be at least a week's worth of newspapers and kinda just flips through em

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Moose2157 t1_jdztg48 wrote

Funny to think the guy wakes up and thinks, “Time to hit the streets and see how Jeremy Renner is doing with his recovery.”

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snooloosey t1_je05ef5 wrote

i got stuck reading to this guy. i wont give up OPs place of work but i was stuck waiting for something and had to read the whole paper.

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porkchameleon t1_je519n4 wrote

Could be dyslexic: I had a kid like that in school growing up (early years). Super nice, but massive issues with reading comprehension early on. I don't know if he was diagnosed officially (moved schools eventually), but back in the day they didn't focus on stuff like that and chalked it up to a general learning disability or something like that.

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OccasionallyImmortal t1_je0oq71 wrote

Are they functionally illiterate because of a lack of libraries in schools? Sure, it's not helping, but it seems unlikely that people who cannot read are going to spend a lot of time in their school's library.

Anyone who graduates and is functionally illiterate has been failed by the school system and their parents. How can a school fail to recognize an obvious lack of education yet repeatedly promote them into the next grade or graduate from high school without being taught one of the most basic skills?

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Inevitable-Place9950 t1_je33xfb wrote

Access to the variety of stories in libraries are part of how kids get motivated to read. Kind of like how the number of books in the kid’s home correlate to academic achievement.

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OccasionallyImmortal t1_je3gae7 wrote

At no point in my life did the contents of a school library contribute to my ability to read because my school also did not have one. The public library contributed to my continued interest in reading which the school library could also facilitate.

The critical ingredient are parents and/or teachers who value reading as important. Half of Philadelphia's children appear to have neither.

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apricot57 t1_jdznwlt wrote

When I was a poll worker I got to see this first-hand. So sad.

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