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In the U.S., are functionally illiterate. Oliver James was one of those people, until he decided to do something about it.听

His story may resonate with those 45 million functionally illiterate Americans: he simply fell behind in school, and he didn鈥檛 have strong literacy skills under his belt before his curriculum switched from 鈥渓earning to read鈥� to 鈥渞eading to learn鈥� (which usually happens between third and fourth grade). To this day, many students don鈥檛 have access to extra literacy instruction during this pivotal time, and just like Oliver, they continue on with their lives without knowing how to read.听

Now, Oliver has been teaching himself to read for years, and he鈥檚 been documenting his journey . Strong literacy skills take time to achieve, especially as an adult, but with determination and a will to learn, anything is possible. He is a living example of the importance of learning to read early in life, and a testament to how essential literacy skills can be.

A few fast facts on literacy

In addition to the 45 million Americans that are functionally illiterate, one in six adults have low literacy skills, and with low literacy skills are unemployed. Illiteracy is defined as the inability to read or write, often under a fourth-grade level, and functional illiteracy is more prevalent than many people realize.听

When students don鈥檛 have strong literacy skills by the fourth grade, they鈥檙e to graduate high school on time. And when these students drop out before receiving a diploma, it decreases their job opportunities, especially lucrative ones.听

The school-to-prison pipeline is another benefactor of low literacy rates in the U.S. The Lucy Project found that had poor literacy rates. Those with poor literacy skills are often isolated, punished, and pushed out, resulting in them acting out. Schools have implemented 鈥渮ero-tolerance鈥� policies that punish these same students harsher than more literate students. And often, socioeconomic factors play a role in a student鈥檚 access to literacy support.

Socioeconomic factors in education

School districts and schools in lower-income areas are, on average, underfunded, overpopulated, lack key resources, and have a higher rate of teacher turnover than more affluent areas (). Due to the lack of funding, these schools are often ill-equipped to help students, whether academically, emotionally, nutritionally, technologically, or with higher education counseling. Black and brown children living in poverty are at a disproportionate disadvantage for not only living in poverty, but also receiving harsher punishments in school that can reduce their likelihood of graduating high school or staying out of prison.

Students learning English as a second language are also at a disadvantage, lacking proficiency that can hinder them from being able to fully participate in education and society. This perpetuates the cycle of poverty and low literacy rates.听

Low literacy skills and a low income result in fewer healthcare options and procrastination of treatment due to cost, thus creating an even larger problem. Besides the crippling debt, the justice system will continuously villainize people for simply being impoverished and unable to pay the dues.听

In the US alone, functional illiteracy costs 2% of the annual GDP, amounting to approximately $428 billion . This is due to decreased employment opportunities, higher dependence on social welfare programs, lowered self-esteem, and increased likelihood of engaging in criminal behavior.听

A failed solution to the illiteracy crisis

In 2001, former President Bush recognized the need for school reform and literacy support for our nation鈥檚 kids. He created and rolled out the No Child Left Behind Act, which aimed to bridge the gap between low-income and low-performing students and those in higher-performing schools and districts. The policy implemented standardized testing in all K-12 schools and set a quota, however, it did not require anything beyond the bare minimum. Not meeting the stated quota resulted in funding cuts, resulting in teachers focusing on 鈥渢eaching the test,鈥� rather than focusing on growing skills .听

While this policy had good intentions and standards, the repercussions were that some students were pushed forward when they didn鈥檛 have all of the skills necessary to succeed in the next academic year. The focus became the scores rather than comprehension or true understanding of what was being presented.听

While the No Child Left Behind Act didn鈥檛 quite do what it set out to do, it shed light on the literacy crisis in a way that illuminated the real problem, which was essential for other education advocators to craft a more effective solution.

Solutions that work

While the literacy gap may seem overwhelming, there are plenty of organizations that work every day to help bridge it. Reading Partners is one of many organizations that provide literacy intervention and advocacy for students who need it most. We work to empower students, especially those in those underfunded areas, with the support and resources they need to boost their literacy skills, and try to bridge the opportunity gap.听

Reading Partners鈥� goal is to bring volunteers from the community to work one-on-one with students who need extra literacy support. Following an easy-to-use curriculum rooted in the science of reading, volunteer tutors give students the resources they need to develop strong literacy skills. We know that while equitable access to literacy education is pivotal to student success,the literacy opportunity gap is still prevalent in both students鈥� and adults鈥� lives. But with people like Oliver teaching themselves to read and literacy organizations giving opportunities to learn to students across the nation, we have a shot at narrowing the literacy gap and watching the next generation of students prosper.听

If you鈥檇 like to be part of the solution and help students strengthen their literacy skills, to be a volunteer literacy tutor with Reading Partners.