Cultural Literacy According to E.D. Hirsch


According to E.D. Hirsch, to be culturally literate is to possess the basic
information to thrive in the modern world. It is the "grasp on the background
information that writers and speakers assume their audience already has." In
his book, Cultural Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know, Hirsch sets
forth 5,000 essential words and phrases of which each person should be
knowledgeable. The list ranges from idioms to mythology, from science to fairy
tales. Why has this list prompted a notable debate on our country's educational
standards? E.D. Hirsch believes that the literacy of American people has been
rapidly declining. The long range remedy for restoring and improving American
literacy must be to "institute a policy of imparting common information in our
schools." In short, according to Hirsch - the answer to our problem lies within
the list.

Hirsch's book explains the importance of the need of a higher level of national......

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Title: Cultural Literacy According To E.D. Hirsch
Approximate Word Count: 895
Approximate Pages: 4 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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