In praise of reading, learning
Thomas Jefferson said, ‘I cannot live without books.’ As a bona fide bibliophile, I’ve often reflected on those words. Actually, I suppose I could live without books, but my life would be more barren. For me, books are fertile fields for cultivating the heart and the mind, even in this ‘brave new world’ of 24/7 technology.
My lifelong love of books grew from my early fascination with words. I fondly remember my grandmother ‘encouraging’ me to solve the ‘Word Power’ problems in the Reader’s Digest. I must have been about ten years old at the time. She often kept me while my mother worked at the hosiery mill, and she never missed the chance to ‘improve’ me.
Back then, I tended more toward tree climbing than word divining. However, ‘Me-Ma,’ as we called her, would have none of that foolishness on her watch. She was not an ‘educated’ woman, strictly speaking, but she loved her Bible, and to my young mind, she was wise beyond words. She could be both teacher and taskmaster.
For example, when I did the Word Power drill, she never allowed me to make any marks in her Reader’s Digest. Instead, I had to record my answers/guesses on a thick lined tablet, with an Indian chief on the cover. This way, Me-Ma could check my word power and my penmanship at the same time.
My good friend and fellow songwriter, Jack White, reminded me of the Apostle Paul’s love of words and parchments. No doubt some of that love rubbed off on Me-Ma as she read her beloved Bible.
Another good friend of mine, a highly qualified ESL teacher, reminded me of the truism that students must first learn to read so they can then read to learn. This nexus between learning to read and reading to learn may seem self-evident, but it holds the key to success ‘ or failure ‘ for students in their formative years of education.
I may be wrong, but it seems to me the love of reading and learning is in relative decline these days. I’ve heard many students and, incredibly, a few teachers, say they find reading ‘boring.’ Instead, they prefer the audio-visual approach to information and entertainment.
The problem is those who don’t take the time and effort to read what is worth reading rob themselves of the richness that worthwhile reading could add to their lives. In short, those who don’t read aren’t much better off than those who can’t read, at least in terms of cultural literacy.
There is at least one shining exception to this ‘dumbing down’ of American cultural literacy-and it comes from a curious source-television. ‘Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader’? pits nervous adults against precocious fifth-graders, testing their knowledge of geography, history, math, science, and other age-appropriate topics. Hosted by Jeff Foxworthy, the show makes learning seem like fun, even though the kids usually outsmart the grown-ups.
Time and ratings will tell whether this kind of show trumps the mindless mush that passes for television entertainment. Meanwhile, it just might encourage more of us to read and learn something worthwhile.
Retired Army Col. Thomas B. Vaughn can be reached by e-mail at tbvbwmi@blomand.net.