Jerry Lo

Professor Agosta
UWRT 1101 006
18 January 2017

Scribner Reading Log

Please type this on a Word Processor, and save it as a .doc, .docx, or .pdf file. Note that I cannot
take Google doc links or .pages files, but can download them as the file types listed above.
Include an MLA heading: Your name, my name, course and section number, and date. You can
download and edit this document with your answers, or you can number your answers separately
on your own file. See example on page 2. Once completed, upload to Canvas under the Scribner
Reading Log assignment by 9am on January 18 th.
1. Read the University Writing Programs description of Critical Reading in our full syllabus
(can be found on Canvas). After reading this statement, describe what critical reading is.
What makes it a particular kind of reading? What is your typical process of reading for
school? Reading articles like this? Do not feel compelled to tell me what the teacher
wants to hear. How do you honestly approach reading for your classes?
Critical reading is how I can make it easier to understand by breaking it or
dissecting it. Reading it first so I can break it down to understand it or making it
easier for myself and others. I do and dont feel compelled to tell what the teachers
wants, because I am sure the teacher wants me to interpret it to my understanding
and themselves. Although I dislike reading, I always try my best, even trying my
best to interpret it and making it easier to read.

2. The title of the piece is Literacy in Three Metaphors, and the author goes on to offer us
three ways of viewing literacy. Consider what you know about literacy. What does this term
mean to you? Describe that here.
Literacy to me is how good I can read and interpret it to my understanding and
others.

3. In the first four paragraphs of this text, Scribner describes some issues surrounding
research of literacy. Why is this a tricky subject to research, according to Scribner?
They cant agree on each others evaluation and having answers that question each
other.

4. At the end of page 7 onto page 8, Scribner asks the reader to consider the following. In
this paragraph, Scribner differentiates literacy as an attribute of individuals and literacy
as a social achievement. Try to parse out what she means here how do the two
different views change how we see, understand, and define literacy? Which view does
Scribner advocate?
What she means is that they both help each other. She goes on explaining the
cultures that we grow around and take in. A good example is When people
mention soda, coke, or pop.

5. At the end of page 8, Scribner notes, In this essay, I will examine some of them
[meanings of literacy], organizing my discussion around three metaphors: literacy as
adaptation, literacy as power, and literacy as state of grace. Each of these metaphors is
rooted in certain assumptions about the social motivations for literacy in this country, the
nature of existing literacy practices, and judgments about which practices are critical for
individual and social enhancement. She goes on to note that any of these metaphors
taken individually will only reveal a partial understanding of literacy. Literacy is a many-
Jerry Lo
Professor Agosta
UWRT 1101 006
18 January 2017
Example
meaninged thing. Here the author makes a turn to show what she will be adding to the
conversation about literacy. This is what we should expect to get as a reader three
metaphors that help us make sense of literacy.

Read from page 8 through the top of page 15. There, Scribner articulates each of her
metaphors: Literacy as Adaptation, Literacy as Power, and Literacy as State of Grace. In
the remainder of your reading log, aim to select 2-3 quotes from each of these sections (6-
9 in all). Next to or below the quote, annotate with your thoughts. Annotations can include:
reactions, notes about understanding Scribners points, questions, connections to your
personal experiences or current events. You can write this in paragraph form or in a table.
Please track and note what page the quote is coming from. Make sure each quote has a
follow-up annotation.

Jeremy Evans
Professor Agosta
UWRT 1101-00#
18 January 2017
Scribner Reading Log
5.

Literacy as State of If I take literacy in the most commonly known way

Grace (ability to read and write), and think about it in local
communities/culture, even therein small communityI
the tendency in can see this at work. As an English major in college, I can
many societies to remember the list of literature that youve read and/or
endow the literate your favorites as being meaningful in terms of how
person with special literate or cultured you were. Read and enjoyed a
virtues. pg. 13 majority of Shakespeares tragedies and comedies? 5
points. All of your favorites were published pre-1800s?
10 points. Now, the consequences of this belief system
were minoror at least seemed so. You were maybe
seen as more cultured, intellectual if you read the
above than if you had a love for YA fiction. Maybe more
peers wanted to work with you on group projects or took
your analysis of a text more seriously. Im not entirely
convinced that this affected professors views of
students. But what other kinds of special virtues are
Jerry Lo
Professor Agosta
UWRT 1101 006
18 January 2017
Example
placed and how does that affect peoples lives? Do we
trust those who perform higher literacy more? Do we
attach more social currency to them? And how is it that
we know that someone has a higher degree of literacy
after all, I cant tell by looking at someone that theyve
read all these books. It must take some kind of
performance or outing of that information the
language they use, the knowledge they expose, etc.

Literacy as Adaptation I agree with this quote saying it is needed

The necessity for literacy skills in daily life is
obvious; on the job, riding around town,
shopping for groceries, we all encounter
situations requiring us to read or produce
written symbols. pg. 9
Literacy as Adaptation
Inner-city youngsters may have no desire to
write letters to each other; raising ones
reading level by a few grades may not be
seen as a magic ticket to a job; not everyone
has a bank account that requires the mastery
of unusual forms (Heath 1980) pg. 11
LITERACY AS POWER
While functional literacy stresses the
importance of literacy to the adaptation of the
individual, . pg. 11
LITERACY AS POWER
such efforts be productive without the
deep involvement of community leaders?
pg. 13
LITERACY AS A STATE OF GRACE
called it literacy as salvation and literacy
as a state of grace. pg. 13
LITERACY AS A STATE OF GRACE
is bound to concrete thinking and cannot
everywhere and everyday things. Some
people dont look like it does but it is a part of
our lives no matter where we go. Some
written symbols might be different but at the
end of the day it all has the same meaning. I
would like for them to interpret this into
schools so they understand each other better
and have a way of a better communication.
Well now a day, everyone is writing on social
media. I dont think we should judge by the
reading levels of other, because some people
can understand more than some that can read
better. Everyone has a good and bad for
everything.
I dont think they should stress it on any of the
literacy. They all make sense and should be
interpreted together although they do collide
with each other.
The leaders that are involved can understand
literacy better, because they are the one that
interpreted into the community and received
the feedbacks. So the more active the leader
is in the literacy the more he will understand.
This saying in the paragraph makes since
literacy should or is a key of communication.
In my opinion if the literacy can be common in
the world then it would be a lot easier to
understand each other.
People tend to have their own thinking before
they try to find new material. They dont look
for things that go against what they are
Jerry Lo
Professor Agosta
UWRT 1101 006
18 January 2017
Example
learn new material. - pg. 14 thinking so they ignore and the new material
is nothing to them.
LITERACY AS A STATE OF GRACE In my opinion, the 3 literacy could work great
together if someone would try to fit them
These metaphors are often urged on us as together. There was a lot that I read that
competitive pg. 14 made since and went against each other.
What if they just add another way of looking
then it might make more since. Why cant
these just exist with each other?