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No Reading Without Writing (and Vice Versa)

One of my least favorite feelings in the world is coming to the end of a novel that has

influenced me so much. Disregarding the genuine chaos and horror that happens everyday, this

first world problem is one of the worst in my opinion. I remember the first time I read the novel,

A Good Girl’s Guide to Getting Lost, a personal narrative written by Rachel Friedman. Within

the first few pages, I found myself completely engulfed into the endless chapters about a college

graduate struggling to find her identity and coping with derealization by going on spontaneous

trips around the world. In a way, Rachel was a mirror reflection of myself, so I authentically

connected with the character she created and broke down into tears when I reached the last page

of the book because it felt like a chapter of my life had ended. No sequel, no further

interpretation of what might happen, just that devastating final sentence.

One of the things I find interesting about reading is how it connects to writing. Without

writing, there is nothing to read, but there can be no writing without reading. Sounds like

something Shakespeare would say but it is true. Since elementary school, I have had a love-hate

relationship with writing. Sure, writing a fictional story is great, I will pour my heart into it, but

ask me to write a thorough essay about organic chemistry or the study of aerodynamics and you

will get an entirely different kind of paper. I have always complained about being forced to write

and read about uninteresting topics at school but never really appreciated the fact that I CAN

write and read.

When I first started volunteering at the Active Reading Center, or ARC, during the

Summer of 2020, I was completely disinterested after a few weeks of working there.

Management tossed me in the office where I was in charge of filing boring paperwork and

reorganizing the libraries. I did not understand the purpose of the company and thus, I resented

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having the volunteer there. After several weeks, the program reopened for online Summer

sessions and I started to properly interact with the organization. Observing the zoom meetings

and seeing how these children genuinely struggled with literacy was something that surprised me

because growing up, I never had an issue learning how to read and write. One thing I noticed

about these children was where they came from. Although they each struggled with the same

thing, there was a plethora of children from high income cities and only a select few from the

lower income ones. It was this obvious difference that made me realize higher income families

have better access to programs like ARC while lower income families do not.

In today's day and age, being able to read and write is something we are seemingly all

capable of doing. While most people cannot even imagine not being able to read and write, this

is a reality that exists for many people. Reflecting on my childhood and experience volunteering

at ARC is what has led me to my question: How can a child's socioeconomic status affect their

ability to learn how to read and write?

It is important to note that while reading and writing challenges are directly linked with

each other, they affect a person in different ways. A reading disability may refer to struggling to

grasp basic understanding of what a word means or having difficulty reciting a phrase. Writing

disabilities on the other hand include problems with composition, spelling, punctuation,

grammar, and handwriting. What links these two problems together is that with reading comes

the inevitable, writing. In order to properly write, you must be able to understand what the words

mean.

So what is a reading disability and how does it affect writing? As stated in my interview

with Caroline Clerempuy, the director of operations at the Active Reading Center in Walnut

Creek, “A reading disability makes reading challenging for the child so they have trouble either

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with words or they have trouble learning sounds and some symbol correspondence. They also

have trouble spelling” (Clerempuy). It is not as simple as this though; one of the biggest issues

children struggle with when it comes to reading is phonics. Phonetic reading is the process a

student goes through where they learn, understand, and manipulate the sounds of each letter. This

teaching method is applied to young children, which helps them learn how to decode unfamiliar

words by sounding them out. Word decoding is also a massive part of phonics: “Decoding refers

to the ability to break down a word into its phonemes, which are the smallest detectable units of

sound, and then combining the sounds to make the word” (“Reading Disability”). Most

elementary students who have learned how to read have undergone this process. But how does

any of this relate to writing? Well although writing is an entirely different exercise, a lot of

people who struggle with reading have writing challenges in addition. Because writing requires

composition, the way in which a writer structures a piece of writing, students are not able to

comprehend what is being read in front of them. This makes it difficult for them to recognize and

spell words.

Learning disabilities also play a role in how writing is affected, dyslexia being the most

common of these disabilities. In the article “Tips for Dealing with Learning Disabilities in Basic

Reading Skills,” they state, “The most well-known learning disability in word recognition is

dyslexia. This disorder impairs a person's skill to recognize, decode, and spell words, even those

they already know”. Now while not all reading or writing disabilities stem from learning

disabilities, it is the one of the most common causes. Disabilities like dyslexia affect every aspect

of a child’s educational life, making it challenging to read and write. Author Ben Foss further

explains how dyslexia affects students in his novel, The Dyslexia Empowerment Plan: A

Blueprint for Renewing Your Child's Confidence and Love of Learning: “Brain science has

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proven that dyslexia is not the result of bad parenting, poor schooling, or any sort of social

physiological shortcoming. It is a distinct physiology characteristic relating to brain function”

(Foss 17). Because this learning disability is untreatable, it makes it very difficult for students

who are not getting personalized help to properly learn how to read and write. So now, while it

not only affects them mentally, it also further encourages them to act out in class and struggle

physically. These disruptive behaviors are known classroom behavior.

In order to fully understand what classroom behavior is, one must understand the

difference between externalization and internalization. Imagine not being able to read or write.

Say that you are in third grade but you are only learning at a first grade level. What are you

going to do? Are you going to sit there quietly? No, kids at this age are going to be destructive.

They are going to be disruptive and ask their peers for help which affects the participation of

everyone in the classroom. As stated by Gopal Mahakud:

Externalizing problem behavior refers to behavioral problems such as, conduct disorder,

aggressiveness, and antisocial behavior or attention deficit and hyperactivity Internalizing

problem behavior refers to emotional problems like depression and anxiety. In

internalizing problem behavior negative emotions are directed at oneself rather than

others psychometric symptoms, such as headaches and abdominal pain have also been

seen as part of internalizing problem behavior. (“Mahakud”)

Externalization and internalization are two very different problems but they are both common

issues that are found within children that struggle with reading and writing. Because students are

not able to physically grasp the material, they are then rowdy in class which poses a problem for

everyone. As for internalization, students are taking this entirely personal. While they are

watching their peers skyrocket past them, fully achieving in class, they are well aware of how far

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behind they are. My mentor Cynthia Lemyre, director of the Active Reading Center for children

with reading and writing challenges, made an excellent point when she stated, “You know some

kids internalize everything but if you can't do that you're going to be destructive. You're going to

be asking your friends or your friend knows you have a challenge. And so they're going to be

telling you all the answers and telling you what it is. So that is a huge problem for a classroom”

(Lemyre). They are going to take their lack of understanding personal and this will affect all

other aspects of education because they now have this viewpoint that they are dumb. As time

goes by, this mindset only becomes increasingly worse as the child grows up and becomes more

socially aware.

Classroom behavior is not the only thing that is affected though. This also has a

significant effect on their mental health at a young age: “Because the ability to read is an early

predictor of educational achievement, students with reading disorders are at risk of poor

academic performance throughout their school years. They may experience low self-esteem and

negative outcomes later in life if they don't receive the help they need” (“Tips for Dealing with

Learning Disabilities”). In many instances, students are not able to get the help they need.

Whether it be because the teacher is incapable of helping them or schools do not offer programs

to support the students, all these factors affect the student later on in life. These problems do not

go away and will continue into middle school and later on into high school. At that point, any

sort of help offered will most likely be rejected by the student and it will be too late.

While it is no doubt that reading and writing disabilities range in all sorts of

socioeconomic groups, one cannot help but wonder why it is so much more common for lower

income families to be struggling with these problems. In the US alone, nearly 32 million adults

are considered illiterate (“Changing Illiteracy”). A majority of the people who fall in this

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category unfortunately hold a low socioeconomic status, or SES. The reason why this is such a

big issue is because many of these adults have children. Childhood poverty is a huge issue and

affects all sorts of educational aspects in a student's life: “Childhood poverty is intergenerational

and connected to the educational level of parents and caretakers; in fact, 73% of children whose

parents have less than a high school diploma live in low-income families. A child’s parents and

home environment are linked to illiteracy” (“Changing Illiteracy”). In order to achieve

something, one has to practice. For example, if one wants to get better at a sport, they exercise,

go to practices, and train. It is the same way with reading and writing. While learning in school is

very important for young children, it is just as important for them to be practicing these skills

outside of the classroom. Having an illiterate parent makes it very difficult to do this because

they are unable to help their child. In many cases, illiteracy is also linked to poverty so these

families are not able to afford to send their kids to a good school, or even have access to books at

home. All these factors play a huge role in affecting the child's literacy development. One study

known as the National Longitude Survey of Youth produced an article on the bidirectional effects

of poverty have on children’s reading home and environment scores. It goes into further detail

about how once a child is affected by poverty during the developmental period, it is unlikely they

will be able to improve in the future. In the document, researcher Lee Kyunghee states,

“Findings also suggest that, after taking early poverty into consideration, changes in family

income did not affect reading scores, partially because early persistent poverty is likely to

continue given that family income is relatively static” (Kyunghee).

The statistics in the survey found that children who lived in poverty scored much worse than

those who did not. Even with an increase or change in family income, it will not make a

difference. The scores will not change. Because of the psychological aspect that follows an

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untreated reading or writing challenge, students can eventually receive the right support and help

they need but they will continue to struggle.

These conditions not only affect their physical ability to learn, but also have a significant

impact on their cognitive development. A child’s developmental period during preschool and the

beginning of elementary school is crucial for their future and these long lasting impacts will

affect them in all sorts of ways: “Low SES in childhood is related to poor cognitive

development, language, memory, socioemotional processing, and consequently poor income and

health in adulthood. The school systems in low-SES communities are often under-resourced,

negatively affecting students’ academic progress and outcomes” (Education and Socioeconomic

Status). One of the reasons why poverty is a never ending cycle is because of this. The struggle

children go through in their youth will affect them later on into adulthood. If they cannot read or

write, then they will not succeed in school. If they cannot succeed in school, then they will not be

able to learn and will most likely drop out which then makes it very difficult to get a job. But say

they get a job. Now they are unable to correctly process information or understand instructions

which usually results in termination and later poverty. As the cycle continues, their future

children will experience the same thing.

Another factor of poverty and education is the influence it has on a person's

psychological health. While it is more of a physical challenge these students struggle with, it also

affects mental health. As stated by the article “Education and Socioeconomic Status,” “Low SES

and exposure to adversity are linked to decreased educational success. Such toxic stress in early

childhood leads to lasting impacts on learning, behavior, and health.” While having a low

socioeconomic status is something that mostly affects adults, it can be harmful towards young

children as well, especially during early childhood while they are still in a developmental phase.

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Being raised in a household where they lack the access to learning material, support, and even

just basic human needs makes it very difficult for students to focus on education. As they

struggle keeping up with their classmates, it plays a negative role on their mental health because

they start to view themselves as stupid. This mindset becomes implemented in their heads and

continues into their adolescence. Another issue is the fact that many of these reading and writing

challenges are so minor and unnoticeable that they are oftentimes left untreated. Gopal Mahkud

emphasizes that, “Incompetent children are punished more often and rewarded lesser than

competent children in the classroom and in the home setting, which then reflected in their

depression. Kampwirth affirmed that failure in classroom activities may lead the child to focus

his/her attention on other domains than school works”. While students are not necessarily

“punished”, an example of this could be when they receive a test score back. When they see that

they got an F versus their peers who all got A’s and B’s, it is very damaging to their self esteem

and students will view this low score as a “punishment” for their inability to learn. Further

failure affects grades in all subjects of education and students lose motivation to try. They begin

to neglect school and focus on other things. In most cases this leads to depression, anxiety, and

even substance abuse.

Unfortunately, students with low socioeconomic statuses often do not receive support to

get back on track and these bad habits continue. After adolescence comes adulthood and it

becomes increasingly worse from here on out. In the article written by Gopal Mahakud, he

articulates, “For adults, limited reading ability is correlated with unemployment, crime, lack of

civic awareness and involvement, poor health maintenance for self and family, and other social

problems.” It is crazy to think how something as simple as an untreated reading or writing

challenge can cause a butterfly effect later on into life. These two basic tasks are necessary to

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succeed in life and without them, students are pretty much set up to fail from day one. If one

cannot read or write, then they cannot learn. If they cannot learn then they stop trying in school

and maybe even drop out. After that they are completely on their own and it is very difficult to

achieve in a world where everything revolves around writing and reading.

Although a reading and writing disability cannot be “healed”, there are a number of

different programs and organizations which have been implemented into schools to help

students. Early intervention is one of the most crucial parts of treating a reading and writing

disability. In simple terms, early invention is a specified support and educational system for very

young children who have been victims of neglect or abuse, as well as children who have

developmental delays or disabilities in areas such as reading and writing. Although early

intervention is not some magical cure, it can be hugely beneficial for children with

developmental delays: “There is no medical or surgical cure for a reading disability as of 2015;

treatment is based on educational remediation. Remediation of a reading disability is highly

individualized because children differ in the degree of difficulty they experience with the various

aspects of reading. In general, the earlier an intervention begins, the more likely it is to be

effective” (“Reading Disability”). Early intervention can help prepare a student for when they

enter elementary school and even bring them onto the same level as their peers. In instances of

abuse and neglect, it will offer the child a specialized learning support system that is adapted best

towards their needs. In most cases, students who are victims of neglect live in poverty, thus

lacking access to proper material in the household. It is super important for these kids to be

learning inside and outside of school and if they are unable to, it will only worsen their

developmental delays, especially if they are not able to have an early intervention. According to

The Department of Education, “Students who read at home scored 25% higher in reading. These

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kids will also go on to score higher in math and other subjects. Without books at home, it’s a real

challenge to set up children for success” (“Changing Illiteracy”). This statement further

emphasizes the need for these children to be learning in their households as well. Because these

students are still not independent, it is important for an adult to be there to help them and when

the parent is also struggling with illiteracy, that makes it much more difficult. Most families who

have a low socioeconomic status are also unable to afford a quality education so students are left

in below average institutions where they are not receiving the material they need.

While speaking with Lemyre, she introduced me to a program used at the Active Reading

Center called Reading Revolution Reading. This awesome program creates a specialized

teaching program for students with reading and writing difficulties: “Reading Revolution is a

phonics based program. They designed this reading program to teach phonics and to teach how

to connect the sound for the letter shape. We teach from the basic beginnings all the way up to

being able to decode words that you would use in college” (Lemyre). This is another form of

early intervention where instead of the parents intervening, the education system does. Reading

Revolution has had a significant impact on many students and does an excellent job treating

these disabilities because it aims to create a personalized teaching system for individual students

in ways that will benefit their needs. A nationwide survey of children utilizing Fletcher's Place

Reading and Spelling Program in the home showed a 20% increase in tested reading proficiency

in an average of only 6.5 hours of working with the program. (“Reading Revolution Reading”).

This survey further proves how effective this program really is. Because most students who

struggle with reading and writing are not able to keep up with their peers, it is really important

for them to have access to personalized programs like this one so they can be helped

individually. Unfortunately, a student’s socioeconomic status can prevent them from receiving

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help from these programs. The cost of lessons and effort required to help these children is time

consuming and expensive which makes it difficult for many people to access them.

Having a low socioeconomic status limits the ability for a student to earn a quality

education and statistics show that it leads to disparities in reading and language development. It

is a terrible epidemic that plays a massive role in a person's life and restricts them from many

opportunities. In order for a child to be successful, it is important for parents to be involved in

their lives. As time goes by, early intervention becomes imminent and those who are not able to

get help are at risk of falling behind in the future. Because poverty is such a difficult cycle to

escape, it is passed on through generations. Children born in low income families have a much

harder time succeeding in the future and in most occasions, they struggle with the same

difficulties their parents do, only now they are illiterate, lacking basic learning skills. While it

may seem like this is only a minor problem compared to all the other horrible things going on

around the world, it is not. There is a reason why the illiteracy rate is most commonly found in

people who live in poverty. Though we might not be able to fix the current issue at hand, we

have the opportunity to step in for future generations.

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Work Cited

“Changing Illiteracy in the U.S. With Early Initiatives.” Red Nose Day USA,

rednoseday.org/news/changing-illiteracy-and-poverty-in-america

Clerempuy, Caroline and Charlotte Tolerton. “Reading/Writing Challenges Interview with

Caroline Clerempuy.” 20 Mar. 2022.

Education and Socioeconomic Status Apa.org, 2022,

www.apa.org/pi/ses/resources/publications/education#:~:text=For%20instance%2C%20l

ow%20SES%20in.. Accessed 3 Mar. 2022.

Foss, Ben. The Dyslexia Empowerment Plan: A Blueprint for Renewing Your Child's Confidence

and Love of Learning. Ballantine Books, 2016.

Kyunghee Lee, The Bidirectional Effects of Early Poverty on Children's Reading and Home

Environment Scores: Associations and Ethnic Differences - ProQuest.”

Www.proquest.com, www.proquest.com/docview/923625099/1D5ADE607825437CPQ/4.

Accessed 1 Mar. 2022.

Lemyre, Cynthia, and Charlotte Tolerton. “Reading/Writing Challenges Interview with Cynthia

Lemyre.” 12 Feb. 2022.

Mahakud Gopal, “Classroom Problem Behavior and Working Memory - ProQuest.”

Www.proquest.com,

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www.proquest.com/docview/1788193190/D63DA9B8318C4FB0PQ/26?accountid=1938

03. Accessed 2 Mar. 2022.

"Reading Disability." The Gale Encyclopedia of Psychology, edited by Jacqueline L. Longe, 3rd

ed., vol. 2, Gale, 2016, pp. 979-982. Gale In Context: High School,

link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3631000647/SUIC?u=wal55317&sid=bookmark-SUIC&xid=4f7

ffbca. Accessed 3 Mar. 2022.

“Reading Revolution Reading & Spelling Programs.” Www.readingrevolution.com,

www.readingrevolution.com/CLASSROOM/. Accessed 2 Mar. 2022.

“Tips for Dealing with Learning Disabilities in Basic Reading Skills.” Verywell Family,

www.verywellfamily.com/learning-disabilities-in-basic-reading-2162447#:~:text=Learning

%20 disabilities%20in%20basic%20reading%2C%20also%20

known%20as%20reading%20 disorders.0reading%2C%20also%20

known%20as%20reading%20disorders. Accessed 3 Mar. 2022.

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