I have just got round to reading a super blog post by Online Universities called 25 Inspiring Literacy Projects Around the World. Right at the top is a link to READ Educational Trust in South Africa who explain the benefits of literacy. I hope they don’t mind me quoting them:
Improved literacy can contribute to economic growth; reduce poverty; reduce crime; promote democracy; increase civic engagement; prevent HIV/AIDS and other diseases through information provision; enhance cultural diversity through literacy programmes in minority languages; lead to lower birth rates as a result of increased education; and confer human benefits such as increased self-esteem, confidence and empowerment. However, the benefits of literacy ensue only when broader rights and development frameworks are in place and operating effectively. Individual benefits, for example, accrue only when written material is available to the newly literate person.
Reading Matters is not listed as one of the 25 Inspiring Literacy Projects Around the World, maybe next time, but the list has certainly inspired us. Especially the Leicestershire Poetry, Objects and Children’s Voices project that fosters literacy and creative writing using poetry and objects from the Open Museum’s collections.
All great stuff!
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