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Mr.
Rober McNamara, President of the International Bank for reconstruction and Development,
has recently suggested that "from now on there should be less emphasis on
physical construction-'brick and mortar' and that on the contrary greater attention
should be paid to training and education people, in particular to 'functional
literacy for adults in these countries where the growing pool of adult illiterates
constitutes a serious obstacle to development.1 This indicates the prevalence
of a high percentage of illiteracy in the developing countries and the urgent
need to eradicate the same for national development. Functional literacy is not
some thing new ; but it is only literacy in depth as against traditional literacy.
It is the literacy that works in life.
The need for literacy was not felt in olden days as much as it is being felt to-day.
It does not mean that the problem of illiteracy did not exist in those days. It
did exist but it did not pose any problem in those self-sufficient traditional
societies. Knowledge was mostly transferred from person to person through the
spoken word. With the introduction of modern means of communication and transport
the traditional society is getting transformed and it is becoming closer and closer.
Secondly, with the advent of printing technology there has been a voluminous manufacture
of reading materials. "It has been estimated that an individual living in
a modern society receives developing country and sixty percent of this information
is communicated by reading"2.
So, there is explosion of knowledge all over the world and also especially in
developing countries. When there is heavy illiteracy in the developing countries.
When there is heavy illiteracy in the developing countries how could the majority
of the population keep in touch with the growing knowledge to benefit themselves
? In this connection it may be argued that radio and television being the modern
mass media, could conveniently replace the printed materials. Let us take it for
granted that radio and television being the modern mass media, could conveniently
replace the printed materials. Can we store all the information that is communicated
through these mass media in our brains which is the store-house of knowledge ?
How long can we rely on our brains ? In cases of failure is it not the printed
material that comes to our aid and makes us self reliant ? Also there must be
facility of preserving of the knowledge that is useful and allow others to share.
The fact that news broadcast today may not be repeated for the benefit of those
that missed it emphasizes the need for printed material.
The twentieth century has realized the need for literacy for economic growth and
national development. But the illiterate societies in these countries are yet
to realize the importance of the three1, Rs. Unless the illiterate adults have
the inner urge to learn literacy no amount of external pressure will work. External
pressure can only reinforce or cement the inner desire dormant in the individual.
Unless one feels that acquisition of new skills helps him to improve himself he
does not feel that acquisition of new skills helps him to improve himself he does
not feel like acquiring it. Therefore the primary necessity of a social worker
would be to make the illiterate adults feel that literacy improves their prospect
of earning more and leading a better life. The adage of a horse being taken to
a river to drink water when it is not thirsty could be cited. Therefore, there
must be natural hunger for learning to read and write. The inner urge that drives
the individual to learn is called motivation.
The World Conference on Literacy and Society held in Rome in 1962 has stated the
following reasons which are preventing the illiterates from becoming literates3.
1. The environment of the illiterate adult does not impress on him the need for
literacy for individual growth.
2.
The adult does not have time and energy as he has to toil round the clock for
earning his livelihood.
3.
He feels that he is too old to learn to read and write.
4.
The illiterate feels shy to attend the literacy class as he has the fear of being
ridiculed by the society.
5.
Social customs and traditions prevent the adults from attending literacy classes.
This provides a clear picture of the illiterate society which does not favour
learning to read and write. Even amidst these bottlenecks, we do find a section
of the illiterate population eager to become literate. What is it that prompts
them to attend te literacy classes ? What are the motivational factors that encourages
these illiterate adults to take up literacy instruction ? UNESCO has compiled
the information from its member countries in regard to motivational factors that
encourage illiterate adults to attend the literacy classes. 4
1. Status-social, political and religious.
2. Education of self and children-influence of compulsory education on parents-
desire to write letters to friends and relatives-natural desire to learn to read
and
write.
3.
Economic rewards-better wages, prospects of better employment.
The motivation may come from within. If it is from within it can be reinforced
by
offering external motivation or incentives like:
4. Distribution of trophies, badges and certificates.
5. Free distribution of literacy materials and free tuition and distribution of
household articles for those attending the classes regularly ; distribution
of
agricultural materials, including seeds.
6. Publicity for those who have successfully completed literacy classes-
distribution
of certificates in a public function- 'Grama Gowrava Samarambha'
as in the
case of Mharashtra Grama Sikshana Mohim.
7. Competition among villages.
8. The application of sanction of illiterates e.g., prohibition to attend public
entertainments ; legal prosecution of people neglecting regular attendance
at
literacy courses (only two countries mentioned these negative incentives).
Learning to read an
write has become a matter of prestige among many people in countries like Tanzania,
West Pakistan and India. Illiterates in Philippine Islands felt shy of attending
social gatherings and services in churches. Eager to read newspapers to keep some
countries for learning literacy. The people who have come up in the traditional
culture to read sacred books of their religion has attracted many to literacy
classes as in the case of Egypt, India and other countries.
Who would not like his or her children to prosper in life by being educated ?
One of the countries in Africa did not hesitate to spend twenty pounds in a year
on their children towards their fees and construction of school buildings. But
how could the illiterate parents supervise and guide the learning activity of
their children ? A funny incident can be a case in point : A boy was a trunant.
His mother who did not know this was naturally eager to watch the progress of
the boy. He would show an exercise book every day to his mother. As ill-luck would
have it, for the boy and luckily for the mother, one day it was found out that
he was showing the same page in the exercise book to this mother. The mother then
felt that since she was an illiterate, she was being decived by her boy. The boy
had played this trick for three months during period he did not attend te school.
The mother then became alert and this induced her to become literate.
Every girl would like to marry an educated man and live happily. That the educated
males prefer to marry educated girls is also true. This was so in the case of
girls in Nepal, Sudan, Korea and Tanganyika. But it was different in the case
of Bolivia. There the wives did not like their husbands to attend the literacy
classes lest they go away to the towns leaving them behind.
Literacy held as a matter of prestige issue has worked in many cases to put up
false pretensions of being literates. In Nigeria a person neatly dressed would
sit in a public place with a daily newspaper pretending that he was reading it.
One day it was noticed that he was holding that he was reading it. One day it
was noticed that he was holding the newspaper with pictures upside down. He felt
ashamed. As a result, he felt the need to attend the literacy class to learn to
read. "The story is told that a firm making ball-point pens received an order
from a country with heavy illiteracy for a large number of tops of pens….The
pens were wanted by the people who could not write but wanted to have the tops
of the pens showing in their breast pockets."5
Attendance to literacy classes was compulsory in communist countries like Russia
and Cuba. Even in these countries incentives were offered to encourage regular
attendance of adults. The adults who were punctual to the classes were issued
free tickets to the picture houses. The adults who become literates were provided
opportunities to speak on the platform when certificate distribution functions
were arranged. This was a special feature of Grama Gowrava Samarambha arranged
in Maharastra Grama Shikshana Mohim. Such things will have their impact on the
other illiterates. The issue of essential commodities like sugar and kerosene
were being regulated in Indonesia looking into the regular attendance and progress
of adult students in literacy classes. 'Grama Gowrava Samarambha' was a success
of literacy movement in 'Maharastra Grama Shikshana Mohim' If incentives by way
of cash payments to the individual adult students and the class as a group has
worked well in Tobacco Growers' Project in Indore, but the same had no desired
effect in Malasia.
How
could you expect a hungry man to attend the literacy class during nights after
a hard day's lobour when he is not having a morsel of food? In this connection,
an experiment was tried in a particular project in Brazil. In that project meals
were offered for three years (1966-68) as incentive to join the literacy course
and to keep it up. You may be astonished to hear that it had no effect but only
encouraged those who had finished the course to rejoin.6
I am reminded of my college days when I conducted a literacy class for garden
labourers of the Palace gardens. Three classes were started in the premises of
the garden. These classes were held immediately after the completion of their
day's hard labour. The adults attended regularly for the first few days, probably
due to the fear of their Officer. Gradually the attendance began to dwindle. They
would run away from their fields after the scheduled hours of work through the
unofficial exits, leaving their tools with their colleagues. The reasons for their
absence were as follows :
1.
They were tired after a hard day's labour.
2. They had to walk two miles to
reach their houses.
Within
a month two literacy classes came to a close. About half-a-dozen in my
Class
attended regularly, though they also had the same trouble. But, out of half-a-dozen
adults attending my class, one was a contractor who held contract for fruits and
flower grown in the Palace garden. He pleaded his inability to attend the regular
class in the evenings, but he still wanted to learn if I offered to help him.
When I assured him of my services, he began to go over to my house everyday in
the morning for about 15 minutes to learn literacy. Then he would attend to his
normal work. The other five students were betel-leaf sellers. They wanted to learn
arithmetical skills. In the end, only these half-a-dozen students completed the
course successfully. It is because of their inner desire to equip themselves for
the business they held. So it could be seen that functional aspect of literacy
was felt by the adults even as early as 1939, i.e., at a time when the literacy
programme was initiated all over India.
It is not enough if there is initial motivation to join the class. It must be
retained throughout the end of the literacy course. Of course various factors
such as the environment of the class, the teacher and the teaching materials are
responsible for retention of interest among adults. Otherwise, there will be naturally
drop-outs. An interview was conducted with the students of the literacy classes
held under Naya Saveera Project. This project was conducted by the Karnataka State
Adult Education Council during 1970. The following were the reasons for drop-outs.7
1. Enrolment of adults to the classes without consulting them.
2. Social pressure to stay away from the classes.
(a)
Employees in the house-hold services were not permitted by their employers to
attend the classes.
(b)
In the case of unmarried girls, the parents refused permission to them to attend
the clauses.
(c)
Married women were not permitted by their husbands to attend classes.
3. Do not find time on account of heavy work at home.
4. Agriculture operations coming in the way of regular attendance.
5. Teacher's irregularity.
6. Fellow student's irregular attendance in the classes.
These are the findings of a local project. Now, let us see what the world has
to say in the matter. International Institute on Adult Literacy Methods in Iran
has complied a report on the basis of the questionnaries received from 100 governmental
and non-governmental organizations. The report throws light on the problem on
drop-outs (see page 98 of the report.) The percentage of drop-outs varies from
country to country. It ranges from 34 per cent to 60 per cent. The reasons as
revealed from the report are as follows:
1. Several work-planting, harvesting, fishing.
2. Travel and change of domicile pilgrimage, fasting, mourning, feasts.
3. Vocational problems-travel in search of work.
4. House-hold responsibilities
5. Illness
6.
Shyness and other psychological reasons
7.
Student's low caliber
8.
Bad organization
9. No
qualified personnel
10.
Shortage of materials
11.
Others
Bad organization,
absence of qualified personnal and shortage of materials are
Items which the
adult education organisations will have to take care of while implementing the
literacy porgramme. "Experience has shown that if a class is well organised
it attract a large number of participants and tends to raise the demand for functional
literacy training. Indeed, the question of ' drop-ins' had to be faced in some
projects.3 In fact, the drop-out rate was only 5 per cent. Fixation of inconvenient
hours for the conduct of the literacy classes is also one of the items of bad
organization". As a result "in Kenya the literacy classes started at
the time the bars opened after working hours, so that after a short time the participants
preferred to go to the bars instead of to the classes".9 It will not be out
of place here if I mention that in some of the Malnad areas of Karnataka the agricultural
labourers and others in villages will be drunk in the evenings in those areas.
It is easy to take up and complete very big irrigation and other construction
projects costing crores of rupees. But it is a very difficult problem to make
people literate, as it is the bases for the future development of the millions
of people all over the world. Literacy aims at conversion of the mind to face
the realities of life. The problem of motivation has been the headache for adult
educators. In the functional literacy which is an improvement over the traditional
literacy, there does not seem to be enough motivation for a person learning the
'3-Rs'. To be effective, functional literacy should deal with political, culture
and social aspects of development as well.
The recent emergence of the concept of non-formal education is expected to take
care of these aspects also.
Illiteracy is a deadly disease and too complicated for diagnosis. Social educators
will have to feel the pulse of the illiterates like doctors and find out the cause
that motivates them to learn. Motivation is mostly individual which should be
followed by individual remedies. Study of the illiterate's urge to learn literacy
forms a part of pre-literacy work. A successful diagnosis will go half way for
the success of the literacy porgramme. The problem of motivation, yet an unsolved
one demands a scientific approach.
R
E F E R E N C E S
1.
Ministry of Education and Youth Services, Government of India, National Seminar
on
Adult Education, 1970. Agenda Papers 1 Problem (p.19).
2.
H. M. Philips Literacy and Development, UNESCO, 1970. (p.21)
3.
UNESCO Planning and Organisation of Adult Literacy Programmes in Africa, 1966
(p. 25)
4. UNESCO
: ibid, 1966 (p. 24).
5.
H. M. Philips, ibid. (p. 13).
6.
International Institute for Adult Literacy Methods. Final Repot on the Replies
Received to the Institute's Questionnaire. Literacy Projects 1969-70, 1971
(p. 101).
7. Karnataka
Adult Education Council's Adult Education Bulletin, 1971, Evaluation of
Naya
Sareera Primer (p.12-13).
8.
H. M. Philips, ibid, 1970 (p. 15).
9.
International Institute for Adult Literacy Methods, Final Report (p. 98).