[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 45 (Thursday, April 21, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[Congressional Record: April 21, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
READING ABILITY AS A NATIONAL IMPERATIVE
Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, for centuries, an ability to read has been
regarded as a sine qua non of civilized life, and, more recently, as
the entry-level ticket to a higher living standard and the minimal
prerequisite to advancement in the workplace.
In recognition of these realities, and in recognition of a nearly
scandalous lack of competence by so many American teenagers, both in
high school and among school dropouts, the Senate and House of
Delegates of the West Virginia State Legislature last month passed a
joint resolution calling on, and inviting, the Federal Government to
give its,
* * * full support to the development of a national center
for literacy in Southern West Virginia that will direct,
consolidate, research and develop national programs to
identify the national crisis of illiteracy, its impact on the
future of social and national security, and formulate
national policies and programs to redirect a campaign to
reverse that impact; * * *.
Mr. President, I commend the West Virginia State Legislature for its
foresight and concern in adopting such a resolution.
Moreover, I further commend Mr. Tom Colley, executive editor of the
Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Bluefield, WV--a daily newspaper in the
Thomson chain--for advancing such an idea. I am certain that I share
Mr. Colley's frustration that, in this era of space exploration,
computer advancement, and other multiple features of an emerging
sophisticated global culture, America should continue to suffer the
debility wrought by thousands upon thousands of adult men and women who
do not possess sufficient literacy to qualify for more than menial
occupations, if that.
During the Dark Ages of Western culture, a man who could read was
revered as nearly a magician, and was honored for his almost
supernatural powers. Needless to say, most of our ancestors in the
ancient past dared not even dream of attaining such an ability, and, by
and large, most women in past cultures dared not even entertain
fantasies of such an achievement.
How paradoxical, then, that in our own era of almost universally
available instruction in reading--this era of libraries stuffed with
the classics of world literature, of newspapers priced for mass
markets, of newsstands overflowing with paperbacks and magazines on
subjects without census--how paradoxical, Mr. President, that, in such
a culture as ours, thousands upon thousands of people, by apparent
choice or deliberate neglect, opt to stunt their own intellectual
growth by failing to take advantage of their opportunities to master
reading and thus to condemn themselves to living in their own personal
Dark Age.
Literacy, as well as basic skills in arithmetic and mathematics, is
the key to genuine freedom and the mastery of one's own destiny.
Certainly, literacy alone cannot guarantee the good life, but few men
or women in any culture in 1994 ever achieve more than minimal levels
of material success without literacy.
Mr. President, I again commend the West Virginia State Legislature
for the adoption of its joint resolution on literacy, and I thank my
friend, Mr. Tom Colley, for taking the initiative in heralding the need
to take action in behalf of literacy in our country. Further, I ask
unanimous consent that the full text of the official resolution on
literacy be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the resolution was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
House Concurrent Resolution No. 27
Whereas, An alarmingly high percentage of high school
seniors read at inadequate levels to carry out moderately
complex tasks and have inadequate writing skills; and
Whereas, The United States Department of Education has
reported that a high percentage of Americans over age sixteen
are, as far as most workplaces are concerned, not properly
prepared for employment because of the lack of basic reading,
math, and comprehension skills; and
Whereas, Southern West Virginia is recognized both
statewide and nationally as having an image of a higher level
of proportionate illiteracy; and
Whereas, The public, seeking benefits from adult education
opportunities, is faced with a complication of literacy
programs that are not networked or interactive because of
insufficient state and federal direction; and
Whereas, There is no clearinghouse of accurate data on
illiteracy nor a realistic evaluation of the social and
economic crises posed by growing illiteracy; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia: That the
federal government is requested to give full support to the
development of a national center for literacy in Southern
West Virginia that will direct, consolidate, research and
develop national programs to identify the national crisis of
illiteracy, its impact on the future of social and national
security, and formulate national policies and programs to
redirect a campaign to reverse that impact; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates
be hereby directed to forward a copy of this resolution to
the West Virginia Department of Education Secretary Barbara
Harmon-Schamberger, West Virginia Superintendent of Schools
Henry Marockie, the Governor, the West Virginia delegation to
Congress, President Bill Clinton, and U.S. Secretary of
Education Richard Riley.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
Mr. HOLLINGS addressed the Chair.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Chair recognizes the Senator from South
Carolina, Mr. Hollings.
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