Illiteracy and information technology

"PN planning to take education to new heights" reported The Times on February 20. "The new St Benedict's College in Kirkop serving as a background, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi told a press conference that by the end of the next legislature his party wants to increase the number of students who choose to continue to study after Form V from the present 70 per cent to 85 per cent of all Maltese 18-year-olds." Very good, but not quite.

The 2005 census shows that there are also illiterates who form 7.2 per cent of the population besides students who can continue to study after reaching 18 years of age. Source NSO. These deserve attention also.

During this electoral campaign the Labour Party deserves credit for focusing attention on the plight of illiterates. These have a right to a good total education and Maltese society, through its established authorities, has an obligation not only to provide it, which it is already doing, but also to see that all children do receive it from the very beginning and all along the way to the end...unhindered by any personal, social, community, educational, financial or political limitations.

In this regard the Labour Patry's proposal for an additional reception class is proving to be very contentious. I have already expressed myself in favour of a reception centre, not a reception class, with a very strong psycho-social component to deal with many of the "personal and social" and not just the "educational" causes of illiteracy, as the Minister of Education has already described very clearly (February 4). The fact that the 2005 census shows a marked improvement of four per cent on the figure of 11.24 per cent illiterates in the 1995 census deserves very serious consideration before Maltese society takes some radical decisions on the early education of our small children.

The Nationalist Party is calling the reception class a repeaters' class and it may have its reasons for doing so. It may have said that the present system already makes provision for children with literacy, numeracy and basic skills problems through inclusive education and so many facilitators in schools. Illiteracy in its broadest form, and its causes, produce not only people unable to read and write and without the necessary skills to cope in life. It produces also dysfunctional families, deviancy, crime and a lot of social pathology. We have been shown the estimated high costs for implementing the reception class presented by those who are contesting it. To my knowledge, so far, we have not been given the estimated financial, social and political costs of illiteracy.

In his press conference on education, as reported also in In-Nazzjon, the political organ of the PN, the Prime Minister said a lot on post-secondary education and the PN's plans, including the financial ones, to expand it even further if re-elected, which is really very good. However, he said nothing on illiteracy, its causes, the solutions and the costs, one way or the other.

The fact is, however, that illiteracy is still with us. Which should not be the case, even if other countries have it. Not in a small state as Malta where total education is not only provided to all but is accessible to all. Which should make the Nationalist Party reflect much more seriously on this national problem during this electoral campaign and propose more effective solutions besides criticising those of the Labour Party.

The present Minister for Information Technology said - also in The Times on February 20 - "We want to ensure everyone is IT literate. When we say "everyone" this is not empty political talk. It is an aspiration, up there with wanting everyone to be able to read and write." And he continued to expand on his Ministry's schemes to provide computers and broadband internet, and the corresponding training at a low, or no, cost to all.

Information technology is another option to combat illiteracy...through the fascination of the computer world. Fortunately, the Minister for IT is known to have the will and the capacity to take literacy also "to new heights". It is suggested he takes on board also social workers and psychologists as strategic partners in this venture. After all, among other options, social workers are known to have tried this system also with illiterates and slow learners with very good results.