Keiths Transcript:

HOST INTRO: Today starts the newest series from Radio Rookies - WNYCs Youth Program that trains New York City teens how to report radio stories. Keith Harris is 17 years old and only recently overcame a problem thousands of New York teenagers struggle with: illiteracy. He was raised in Guyana, but his mom sent him to the U.S for 9th grade. When Keith first started at The High School for Global Citizenship in Brooklyn, his teachers thought he was stubborn and resistant to class participation. And he was - because he didnt want them to know he could not read and write. KEITH: A broken heart by Keith Harris. A broken heart is fill of tears and pain to surf survive without his love his life aint nothing but dust, my life aint nothing but...all right start over. NARRATION: OH MY GOD! I dont like listening back to myselfI keep making mistakes. KEITH: One more timeA broken heart by Keith Harris. NARRATION: 2 years ago - I could not read or write. Its easy for me to tell you now, but I spent most of my life hiding the truth. MOM: Hello? KEITH: Talk. MOM: Hello? NARRATION: This is my mom. MOM: Keith, I would like you to make me proud. NARRATION: When I was growing up in Guyana, I didnt make my mom proud. School was my enemy, instead of going to classI would play cricket, gamble with friends or go swimming. One time I almost drowned. MOM: A man come home and told us a little boy actually drowned. So I didnt really think it was Keith until when Keith show up. Keith eyes red, red, red. That was the little boy was in the river. NARRATION: I was a bad boy. On Sundays, as soon as church was over, I would run straight home just because I didnt want to have to read the Bible out loud in Sunday school. I never told anyone that I couldnt read and write. I wanted it to be a secret. So we all pretended everything was fine. Sometimes my mom still does. MOM: Well school in Guyana was brilliant.Very perfect. NARRATION: Perfect? KEITH: What was my report card like? MOM: Keith used to get like 75 and I think that was good. NARRATION: Nahshes lying. I used to fail! By the time I was 14, I was getting into so much trouble that my mom sent me to the U.S. for high school. MOM: I had to beat him on his hands. NARRATION: ButI was already really good at hiding my problems. KEITH: Yo what up? (school bell) NARRATION: My number one rule: never ever read out loud. When it was close to my turn, I would always ask to go to the bathroom. (classroom sounds) NARRATION: When I tried to read, the pages looked like a forest with no single tree. Everything was just a blur. And my handwriting, oh my god! It was scrappy and nappy like barbed wire, I hated it! MS. BAUER: Write one more paragraph... NARRATION: All I wanted to do and all I did was play basketball. And believe it or not, it was basketball

that got me to start paying attention in school. COACH JONES: When Keith first came in I remember seeing him in the gym I saw a tall lanky kid. NARRATION: Coach Jones wanted me to play on the basketball team, but he told me I needed a 75 average. Guess what? He was lying. COACH JONES: You didnt need a 75 average, you just needed to pass a certain amount of classes. NARRATION: He wanted me to be a good student. COACH JONES: I wanted to try to push you. NARRATION: I really, really, wanted to make the teamI wanted to be the next Dwayne Wade from the Miami Heats like everyone said I could be. But to get a 75 average I needed help - I could not keep my secret anymore. (knock on door) KEITH: Hi Ms. Kelterborn. NARRATION: Ms. Kelterborn was the first person I told I couldnt read. MS. KELTERBORN: I didnt know what to do. I didnt want you to be embarrassed. So I was like okay give him a comic book he could tell the stories through pictures. But that still must have been frustrating for you, because you couldnt read the words.You must have been just been like this woman is crazy. I just told this woman I cant read and she handed me a comic book. TEACHER: Practice those! NARRATION: In the 10th grade, Ms. Kelterborn got me into a class just for students who cant read and write. Ms. Bauer changed my life. MS. BAUER: Um do you remember one of the first books that you read in independent reading with me? KEITH: Yeah um The First Part Last. MS. BAUER: Uhuh The First Part Last. NARRATION: Thats my favorite book. Its the first book I ever finished reading. KEITH: I read it twice and in like probably in like two months. NARRATION: When she asked me to read out loud, I did it, because no one would laugh at me. MS. BAUER: You were quiet and you would mumble and Id always say, sit up and speak clearly, and Id stand all the way on the opposite side of the room and Id say you need to speak up so we can hear you and now I never have to say that you always speak up cause you want everyone to hear you. NARRATION: When reading finally started to make sense, I was so proud of myself. I laughed so much my jaw started to crack. And around that same time, Dwayne Wade and the Miami Heats won the NBA championship. T.V. CLIP: The Miami Heat, theyve done it! NARRATION: Everything was just great! He won and I won. T.V. CLIP: Congratulations to Dwayne Wade! MS. HUGHES: When you started here in 9th grade Ms. Kelterborn you had failed both English classes. And now youre scoring 80s in English! NARRATION: At the end of my junior year, my guidance counselor Ms. Hughes told me Im on track to graduate, as long as I pass the state tests. MS. HUGHES: The fact that you havent given up but rather youve used your frustration as power impresses me like you cant imagine. NARRATION: Yes! I cant believe it myself. I learned to read so fast. But, just because Im reading and writing now does not mean things are easy. Theres still a lot more work to do. And Im doing it all by myself. My

mom visits once in a while, but she still lives in Guyana. I wish she was here to help me. KEITH: Yo (bang on mic) NARRATION: Last year when I took the SAT test, there was no one to make sure I have money or food. Or even to take me there. KEITH: Gonna take the SAT test, it means so much to me. Damn! Im nervous. (In store, opens door) KEITH: Can I have a pencil, two pencils, #2? NARRATION: I had to sign up, buy pencils, and figure out how to get there all on my own. KEITH: Miss, can I ask you a question if you ever take the SAT before? WOMAN: I take it home in Trinidad. KEITH: It was hard. WOMAN: If you studied it wouldnt be hard... WOMAN: God bless you all the best. KEITH: Thank you. KEITH: Thank you for these pencils man. MS. BAUER: Okay so Im going to ask you to read a word list to me. So I am going to give you this. NARRATION: 2 years ago I could never imagine myself wanting to take a test. KEITH: Um, today I am doing assessment with Ms. Bauer. shes trying to test out my level of reading and I just hope its at least at 10th grade and not like 7th or 6th because Im gonna be real mad. KEITH: Read it like all the words? MS. BAUER: Okay youre going to read one word at a time. Start with word list A. KEITH: Get, is, and, there, see, not. NARRATION: I was saying the words so fast. It was so easy, but after awhile it got harder. KEITH: The little sick girl would stay equally in bed, wait, the little girl sick, the little sick girl would stay quietly in bed at home while her mother was away. NARRATION: After the test, Ms. Bauer said that I could find out my score if I wanted, but I decided not to. Im not ready yet. If she says Im still at 6th or 7th grade reading level, I dont want people to know. I believe in the truth, but sometimes the truth hurts a little too much. KEITH: And hearing something like that might make me want to give up, which I am not going to do. NARRATION: I dont want my mom to be embarrassed by me. I want her to say to everyone that when I was in Guyana I could not read or write, but now I can. KEITH: I am in the Kitchen, no food is cooking though. Um this is my mom. Can you give me a summary of my report card in Guyana? MOM: You. KEITH: And this time the truth. MOM: You, used to fail. KEITH: Say, remember how you was lying and you was like I had 75? Why you say that? MOM: Because I was ashamed of you. KEITH: One thing you like about me in America? MOM: You develop very fast and you learn and I admire you for everything youve done. NARRATION: For WNYC I am rookie reporter Keith Harris. NARRATION: Read a book. Read a book! (music starts) Read a book, read a book, read a ___ book. R E A D A B O O K, R E A D A B O O K, not a sports page, not a magazine but a book.