Frederick Douglass' "Learning to Read and Write"

In his narrative essay, “ Learning to Read and Write ,” Frederick Douglass explores the process through which he was able to teach himself how to read and write regardless of the opposition that he was facing from his slave owners. Douglass (2013) indicates that the slave owners were opposed to the idea of a slave having to learn how to read and write considering that they had developed fear for slaves who would be able to think independently. Douglass sought to teach himself how to read and read through a process that would see him challenge other children with the sole intention being towards improving on his understanding. I can be related to Douglass's method of learning, as I once taught myself how to read Spanish by actually having to educate myself by reading widely.

Although I encountered a wide array of challenges, I sought to ensure that I would be able to maximize my understanding of Spanish, which served as a source of motivation. I challenged myself in trying to pronounce words and comparing them to the actual pronunciations. For Douglass, the process of learning how to read and write involved having to befriend little white boys, who he believed would be of great benefit for him in ensuring that he can learn. Douglass (2013) indicates that the most successful plan that he had adopted involved having to make friends of all the little white boys he met on the street, which he would later convert into teachers. In my case, I sought to use what was available to me, which was the use of the internet and physical books to improve my bilingual learning.

From the onset, I focused much of my attention on translating words from Spanish to English, which would give me a clear sense of understanding of how the Scriptures ought to be used as part of a sentence. I then challenged myself to write a Spanish sentence, which I use as a measure to determine whether I was able to construct correct Spanish sentences. For Douglass, his idea of learning how to read and write meant that he would seek to use his friends, who were conversant in reading and writing, to determine his proficiency. He would convince his friends to show him how to write and would challenge himself towards ensuring that he would write the same sentences over and over. Additionally, this also meant that he would use the little white boys, who would educate him on how to read specific words.

After Douglass had learned how to write his first four letters, he would compose the words with the notes and challenge the little white boys to see whether they would write better than him. Douglass (2013) indicates that he would engage in writing words that he was so fortunate to learn and would later challenge the young boys to write better than him, which he believed was a good lesson in writing. In my case, I would challenge myself through the internet to determine whether my words were accurate concerning what was expected of me in the overall process of writing Spanish. After I had learned how to read and write specific words, I would use the internet as a tool to determine whether my spelling and pronunciation of the words were accurate. I must say that this provided me with a positive experience that defined my approach to learning a new language.

The story of Douglass reflects on the fact that learning how to read and write is often considered as being challenging, especially in cases where one seeks to teach him or herself. However, the story also shows the fact that overcoming these challenges is often possible and depends wholly on the commitment that one is willing to place in the overall process, as this would serve as a critical determinant of success. Douglass (2013) sought to overcome his inequalities and the challenges that he was facing from his masters by ensuring that he would use what was available for him to learn how to read and write. When seeking to learn a new language, one is always expected to be ready and willing to practice as much as possible, as this would serve as a determinant of expected success levels. Practicing often means having to find new and challenging material that would be of great value to improve the overall learning process.

That means that one must always be willing to challenge oneself to take up new words and letters that would be of value to improving the process of learning. Douglass's approach to education was defined by experience where he would use what he saw to determine what was expected of him. That is an accurate representation of the learning process when focusing on reading and writing. Learning how to read and write is characterized by the fact that one must learn how to duplicate what he or she sees to serve as a determinant of the learning process. In most cases, this means having to engage with those that are proficient with the language to help in understanding their use of letters and words. Douglass made friends, who were white, as he believed in the fact that they would help him know how to shape his words as part of improving his learning outcomes.

References

Douglass, F. (2013). Learning to read and write. In Comley, N.R., Hamilton, D., Klaus, C.H., Scholes, R., Sommers, N., & Tougaw, J. (Eds.). Fields of reading: motives for writing (10 th ed.) (pp. 67-71). New York, NY: Bedford Books.