Literacy Classes

Have you ever opened your mouth at the wrong time? Sometimes I wonder if I did when I shared in my testimony in chapel a couple of years ago that I had taught Literacy in our tribal area. Unbeknown to me, they were looking for someone to help with the Literacy course, so that statement didn’t go unnoticed. Someone with experience! Ears perked up! Thus began my involvement with the Literacy classes. I soon found myself learning the role of having things in order for the day classes begin – making a PP to explain to the class what to expect; prepare, handout and grade the assignments due when classes start, divide the class into working groups and getting kits ready for the groups to use in making primers.

During the course the various groups take turns during the morning devotional. They all opted to incorporate drama into their talks, showing in reality the importance of being able to read. I loved this one where a young man went to an Optometrist for a pair of glasses. He wanted to be able to read, and was sure that if he wore glasses like the missionary did, he would be able to read. Every time the missionary put glasses on, he could read.

A wife going to the Pharmacy for medicine for her husband. She couldn’t read the label or instructions, but they thought the more he took, the quicker he would get better, so he downed the whole bottle at once.

Passing on the message from person to person, the message changed considerably before it got to the last person. When the second group wrote the message down, the last person received the message as the first person communicated.

Two very thirsty ladies were given bottles of water to drink. Wonderful, but how in the world do they open them? Get the picture? People hungry for the truth are given Bibles, but how in the world do they read them?

Can you imagine not being able to read the Bible – or any other book? All you know is what someone tells you. Can you imagine not being able to sign your name – or being able to read it? Knowing how important it is to be able to read and write, my heart has a soft spot for those classes. Yet fitting it into my already busy schedule is always a challenge.

However, when you think on these questions, it really brings home the importance of the Literacy Classes. Being prepared to teach illiterate people the art of reading and writing will be a tremendous benefit to the work. Hopefully some day soon these students will be involved in helping various people groups to be able to read the Bible and sign their own name. We also trust that someday soon, many more people groups will be able to move on from ‘learning to read’ to ‘reading to learn.’