Learning about our literacy problems from one of Mrs Brown's Boys [IrishTimes]
- Published: 18 January 2011
TALKBACK: A scene in a television comedy shines a light on our adult illiteracy crisis, writes BRIAN MOONEY
MRS BROWN, the star of the new RTÉ comedy series Mrs Brown’s Boys isreprehensible in many respects. Listeners to RTÉ’s Liveline last week expressed concern about the bad language and general content of the programme.
That’s an issue for another day. But Brendan O’Carroll (as Mrs Brown) has performed a huge service to Irish education by handling the literacy issue in a very thought-provoking way in one key scene.
In the scene, Mrs Brown’s son, a plumber, has turned down the offer of a supervisor’s position, because he cannot read or write. Amid all the profane language and hilarious laughter, the issue of literacy is handled with huge sensitivity, and will hopefully reach out to many thousands of adults suffering daily from the tyranny of illiteracy.
And there are thousands suffering.
Isn’t it shocking that there may be hundreds of thousands of adults in Ireland, who have spent at least 10 years in our national education system, who can neither read nor write? They have never read a newspaper or a book and cannot even own a cheque book, as they may not even be able to write their own name.
Nothing I write in this column will directly touch the lives of those in Ireland who can neither read nor write, as they have no way of accessing my words. But those of us who have mastered the wonderful gift of literacy can do a huge amount to lift those with a literacy deficiency out of their ongoing predicament.
To reach out to an employee, a neighbour, a member of a local club or team, is ultimately an act of self-interest. Educational disadvantage disables the entire community, even if you live a relatively comfortable life seemingly insulated from such dysfunction.
Full Story: www.irishtimes.com
