And besides our economic dependence on reading, it has opened up for most of us worlds of imagination and entertainment and inspiration that have enriched our lives to an extent that no other experiences could have. We have become, in many ways, what we read and what we write. If we suddenly lost those capabilities, we'd feel we'd been robbed of a major, vital element of our selves. And we'd flounder as we confronted shaping our own futures without those essential skills. Despite all the recent advances in computers and technology, our schools continue to stress writing and reading because they remain at the very core of education and the development of selfhood.
Language still stands as the key to thinking and learning.
Our high-tech world makes that even more so. As more and more written information becomes available in a variety of electronic formats, reading ability is increasingly paramount. Yet up to 40 million adult Americans have only minimal literacy skills. They can't fill out a job application, interpret a label of instructions on a medical prescription or read a simple fairy tale to their children. These unfortunate individuals are shut out from a whole universe of experience most of us accept unthinkingly.