His says his writing level is roughly 6th grade, and the story reads like it too. I believe it. Illiteracy was the standard for humanity not long ago, and yet there were still teachers.
I was a teacher for 17 years, but couldn't read or write
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Re: I was a teacher for 17 years, but couldn't read or write
#22I still don't get it. How is it possible that he managed to go through the system.
Re: I was a teacher for 17 years, but couldn't read or write
#23This poor guy has felt bad his entire life when he could've been an excellent coal miner instead.
Every place I've worked is filled with people like this guy to one extent or another - fearful parents pushing their kids to go to school and pretend to be something they're not. Then people who have an affinity for thinking have to navigate these insecure idiots (sorry, medical term) their entire careers.
It makes workplaces hell for everyone involved, both the idiots and the capable.
People ought to do what they are capable of doing. People ought to be treated with dignity and respect. If we get that far this century, boy, that'd really be something.
Re: I was a teacher for 17 years, but couldn't read or write
#24Rather than learning how to read, it'd do everyone a whole lot more good to admit that some people are not cut out for school and to send them off to work when they're teenagers. This poor guy has felt bad his entire life when he could've been an excellent coal miner instead. Every place I've worked is filled with people like this guy to one extent or another - fearful parents pushing their kids to go to school and p…
I think your attitude is what makes the hell tbh.
We should definitely teach everyone to be literate, and not just decide they should be "excellent coal miner"s instead.
Re: I was a teacher for 17 years, but couldn't read or write
#25His says his writing level is roughly 6th grade, and the story reads like it too. I believe it. Illiteracy was the standard for humanity not long ago, and yet there were still teachers.
Re: I was a teacher for 17 years, but couldn't read or write
#26I still don't get it. How is it possible that he managed to go through the system.
It took them 5 years to figure out that I couldn''t see anything other than what was immediately in front of me. I was a smart kid, and never had problems in the classroom as I sat in the front row and listened very carefully to what was going in.
I would memorize the eye test sheet while standing in line at the nurses office, waiting to be tested. They never suspected anything was amiss, and routinely reported to my parents that I had perfect vision.
I was finally discovered when my father, trying to be clever while we were out shopping, asked me about an ice cream parlor in the distance. Despite the name of the shop being written clearly above the shopfront, I bombed the question and my father realized that I couldn''t see what he was talking about.
Re: I was a teacher for 17 years, but couldn't read or write
#27I still don't get it. How is it possible that he managed to go through the system.
Because despite his illiteracy, he is a clever and resourceful person- with enough cleverness and a bit of luck, its possible to do lots of stuff like this. He was able to circumvent the barriers imposed by illiteracy through deception, careful manipulation, or outright swindling. While iliteracy is definitely a huge concern in the world, I hope I'm not the only one out there to admire him for grifting his way throug…
Re: I was a teacher for 17 years, but couldn't read or write
#28On Google translate you can test new phonetic spelling. "Wii shäl miit tu dei in Nyy Jork" works best in Polish, Icelandic and Finnish. I suggest we just ignore weird sounds like θ and ð and just use "th" as "thö" sounds reasonably good in those languages.
It would be nice if they used IPA instead of yet another informal nonstandard system.
It would be easy to organize meeting of all Anglos and accept this as an alternate spelling. Polish have some weird sibilants, so that it could be the starting point.
Re: I was a teacher for 17 years, but couldn't read or write
#29Rather than learning how to read, it'd do everyone a whole lot more good to admit that some people are not cut out for school and to send them off to work when they're teenagers. This poor guy has felt bad his entire life when he could've been an excellent coal miner instead. Every place I've worked is filled with people like this guy to one extent or another - fearful parents pushing their kids to go to school and p…
Re: I was a teacher for 17 years, but couldn't read or write
#30Rather than learning how to read, it'd do everyone a whole lot more good to admit that some people are not cut out for school and to send them off to work when they're teenagers. This poor guy has felt bad his entire life when he could've been an excellent coal miner instead. Every place I've worked is filled with people like this guy to one extent or another - fearful parents pushing their kids to go to school and p…
> It makes workplaces hell for everyone involved, both the idiots and the capable. I think your attitude is what makes the hell tbh. We should definitely teach everyone to be literate, and not just decide they should be "excellent coal miner"s instead.
I think the answer is probably that we don't want parents pulling kids out of school early just to earn money for the family? So legally requiring they stay at school longer protects.
Just a thought